What is the CAT exam for? What is CAT exam eligibility?

Introduction : 

 Let's discuss everything about  CAT 2025 exam. First, let's understand what CAT actually is. The common admission test or CAT is a computer-based entrance exam conducted by the Indian Institute of Management on a rotational basis. It is the gateway to not just the prestigious IM but also to over 1,200 business schools across India. That 2025 will likely be conducted by IM Kohicot in November 2025. 

The exact conducting IIM will be announced officially in the coming months. Now that we understand what 

 CAT  Exam Eligibility : 

CAT is, let's talk about who can take this exam. To be eligible for CAT 2025, you need a bachelor's degree with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA. For SC, ST and PWD candidates, this requirement is relaxed to 45%. Even the final year students can apply provided they complete their degree and meet the minimum percentage requirement before the admission process concludes. 

 CAT Exam Date 2025 : 

Now let's talk about the important dates for CAT 2025. Here is the timeline based on the previous year trends. The CAT registrations will be opened on 1st week of August 2025 and the application deadline will be on 3rd week of September 2025. Coming to the admit cards, it will be released on 1st week of November 2025 and the exam date will be on 30th of November 2025. The response sheet will be released tentatively on 1st week of December 2025 and the results will be declared tentatively on 3rd week of December 2025. Since these dates are based on previous year patterns, I will update you with the exact dates as soon as they are officially announced.

 The CAT 2025 registration process will be completely online through the official CAT website. Once the official dates are announced.

CAT Exam Pattern : 

  Now, let's talk about the exam pattern. That is typically a 2 hour computer based test divided into three sections. Verbal ability and reading comprehension, data interpretation and logical reasoning, quantitative aptitude. The total number of questions in CAT are 68 questions as per CAT 2024. In VRC, the total number of questions is 24. In DLR it's 22 and in Quant it's 22. The total number of marks is 24. Each section has a time limit of 40 minutes and you cannot switch between sections. Once a section's time is up, you're automatically moved to the next section. The exam consists of both MCQs and non-MCQs or TA questions, which are nothing but type-in-the-answer questions. Each correct answer gives you plus three marks.

 For MCQs, there is a penalty of one mark for each wrong answer, while TA questions have no negative marking. Now, let's discuss the syllabus for each section of CAT 2025. First, let's look at the verbal ability and reading comprehension section.

 This section tests your comprehension ability and critical thinking. Reading comprehension dominates this section with about 65 to 70% weightage. You will typically see three to four passages with four questions each. The passages can be from various domains like philosophy, psychology, history, arts and museum, society, culture, biology, science and technology. The remaining 30 to 35% covers verbal ability questions on paraphrasing, jumbled sentences, para completion and odd one out. 

CAT  Exam Syllabus : 

Now, let's talk about the data interpretation and logical reasoning section. This is often considered the most challenging section in CAT. DLR typically consists of five sets with four to six questions per set. Each set presents a scenario or data that you need to analyse and draw conclusions from. The topics relevant to data interpretation are tables, case-based DI graphs, charts, networks and diagrams, roots and networks, mathematical puzzles, maxima and minima, etc. Candidates can expect around one to two sets of data interpretation questions in each slot. The topics for logical reasoning are puzzles, arrangements, selection, games and tournaments, conditional LRs, coin picking, binary logic, truth and lie, case-based LRs, 2D and 3D LR. You can expect around two to three sets based on logical reasoning. 

Finally, let's cover the quantitative ability section. This section tests your mathematical and problem-solving skills. You can expect around 30 to 35% questions on arithmetic in the Quant section. The topics that come under arithmetic are averages, ratios and proportions, percentages, mixtures and allocations, profit and loss, time speed and distance, time and work, simple interest and compound interest. 25 to 30% of the questions come from algebra. 

The topics that come under algebra are linear and quadratic equations, inequalities, logarithms, sets and indices, functions and graphs and polynomials. Coming to geometry, you can expect 15 to 20% of the questions. 

The topics are lines and angles, triangles, circles, polygons, quadrilaterals, coordinate geometry and menstruation. Coming to the number system, you can expect 10 to 15% of the questions. The topics are properties of numbers, divisibility, factors, HCF and LCM, remainders and base system conversions. Coming to modern math, you can expect 5 to 10% questions on permutations and combinations, probability, set theory, series and progressions and Venn diagrams.

 Now, let's understand how the CAT score works. Since CAT is conducted in multiple sessions, scores are normalised to ensure fairness. The normalised scores are then converted into percentiles. Your percentile indicates your relative performance compared to all test takers. For example, a 99th percentile means you performed better than 99% of the candidates. Generally, for top IIMs like Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Kolkata, you need a 99th percentile. For good private B schools, a percentile of 95 plus can get you calls. Remember, each IIM has its own selection criteria that includes not just your overall percentile but also sectional percentiles, academic performance, work experience and diversity factors.