CAT 2016: Less than Rs.100 needed to apply to an IIM; Process to close on September 22

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MBAUniverse.com News Desk |
September 7, 2016
CAT 2016 registration form entitles you to apply to one or all the IIMs and this package comes with a meagre amount of Rs.85 as application fee per IIM
The registration form has a list of all the 20 IIMs alongwith their 48 programmes to which you may apply without any additional cost at the time of registration for CAT 2016

CAT 2016 registration form entitles you to apply to one or all the IIMs and this package comes with a meagre amount of Rs.85 as application fee per IIM if you divide the total registration fee by number of IIMs. The registration and application process for CAT 2016 will close after 3 weeks on September 22, 2016.

The registration fee for CAT 2016 is Rs.1700/- which covers the application fee for all the 20 IIMs – from IIM A, B, C, L to all the recently opened IIMs including IIM Jammu which has started operation in 2016.

On the contrary, other exams like XAT 2017; NMAT by GMAC; SNAP 2016 apart from charging registration and application fee for the exam also need submission of separate application for admission to the participating institutes to explore admission opportunity in the respective B-school.

CAT 2016: No additional fee to apply to IIMs
In fact, while all other MBA/PGDM entrance exams ask you to separately apply to its participating institutes, the application fee of Rs.1700/- for CAT 2016 exam covers all the 20 member IIMs. The candidates appearing in CAT 2016 do not need to separately apply for each IIM and can fill in the programmes to which he/she wants to apply in each IIM. The registration form has a list of all the 20 IIMs alongwith their 48 programmes to which you may apply without any additional cost at the time of registration for CAT 2016.

48 programmes at IIMs: No additional fee to apply
Not only you can make choice of IIMs, you are also allowed to choose few or all of the 48 management programmes offered by the 20 IIMs according to your preference and eligibility at the time of CAT 2016 registration at no-extra cost.

This facility is also not available with other entrance exams as you have to add extra to apply for each additional programme in the respective B-school.

IIMs & their programmes

Old IIMs: Existed prior to 2010
IIM Ahmedabad: PGP; PGP FABM; FPM
IIM Bangalore: PGP; PGPEM; PGPPM; FPM
IIM Calcutta: PGP PGDM; FPM
IIM Lucknow: PGP; PGP ABM; PGPSM; FPM
IIM Indore: PGP; PGP at Mumbai campus; EPGP; FPM
IIM Kozhikode: PGP; FPM
IIM Shillong (Known as RGIIM): PGP; PGPEX; FPM

IIMs: Started in 2010-11
IIM Kashipur: PGP; EPGPM; EFPM; FPM
IIM Raipur: PGP; PGPWE; EFPM; FPM
IIM Ranchi: PGDM; PGDHRM; FPM
IIM Rohtak: PGP; EPGP; FPM
IIM Tiruchirappalli: PGP; PGPBM; FPM
IIM Udaipur: PGP; FPM

Newest IIMS: Started in 2015
IIM Amritsar: PGP
IIM Bodh Gaya: PGP
IIM Nagpur: PGP
IIM Sambalpur: PGP
IIM Sirmaur: PGP
IIM Visakhapatnam: PGP

Only IIM started in 2016
IIM Jammu: PGP

Be ready with the list
It is advisable to prepare a list of all 48 management programmes offered by IIMs before filling up the registration form for CAT 2016. It will help you to make correct choice of programme and preferred IIM alongwith filling in the right choice of interview city, in case you are shortlisted by the IIMs.

It is very much possible that you wish to join IIM Ahmedabad but the programme preferred by you is offered by some other IIM. Now you will have to decide whether the IIM is to be preferred or the programme. Now your list should be final going by your preferences.

No need to go for all 48 programmes or all 20 IIMs while registering for CAT 2016. You may not like to join one or other programme or would not prefer to join a particular IIM. So finalize your list only with the selected management programmes and leave the rest and close.

You should note that once you finalise and submit the CAT 2016 registration form after making payment, you may not be allowed to make further changes or increase the options. So make sure that you have taken right decision.

Browse respective IIM site
Once you prepare the list of programmes, go to the site of each IIM and check the following-

-- Are you eligible for the respective programme?
-- Is the programme offered by your preferred IIM?
-- Contents/curriculum of the respective programme?
-- How it would help you in your career growth?

No need to apply separately
After the CAT 2016 result is declared in the 2nd week of January 2017, all the 20 IIMs will start their shortlisting process and will communicate with you in case you are shortlisted by them. You need not apply again to any of the IIMs.

Another fact is that, if you have not ticked and opted for the respective IIM and its preferred programme at the time of registration for CAT 2016, you will neither be considered by the said IIM nor will be shortlisted even if you satisfy all the shortlisting criteria. So make sure that you have carefully chosen and marked the IIMs and their programmes at the time of registration for CAT 2016. IIMs may however, ask you to express your interest by filling up certain form on-line without any extra cost.

Almost all the IIMs will shortlist you at a high sectional and overall percentile score in CAT 2016. Apart from this unless you have excellent academics to your credit and work experience also, you may not expect to be shortlisted by top IIMs. The minimum qualifying percentile prescribed by IIMs is the minimum eligibility criteria without which they will not shortlist you.

Common Admission Test (CAT) 2016 is the mandatory exam for admission to various management programmes at 20 IIMs for the batch 2017-19. Registration process at a cost of Rs. 1700/- is open online till September 22. CAT 2016 exam pattern remains on the lines of 2015 CAT exam although sectional and overall number of questions in CAT 2016 may change. The exam will be held on December 4, 2016 in 138 test cities across the country.

CAT 2016 will be a computer based test of 3 hours duration and will be held in 2 sessions on the same day. The exam will be divided in 3 sections with time duration of 1 hour each. The sections are - Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC); Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) and Quantitative Aptitude (Quant). Each correct answer will be awarded 3 marks and each wrong answer for MCQ will be penalized with 1/3 negative marking. Non-MCQ type of questions will be exempted from negative marking process.

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