The Common Admission Test is scheduled to be held on November 25, 2018. This year, IIM Calcutta will conduct CAT 2018 exam and Professor Sumanta Basu is the exam conveyor. CAT is one of the most competitive management entrance tests for which every 02 lakh candidates register every year.
One pattern to be observed in this year’s CAT is that the dates for all the events of the exam are a day earlier than that for the exam last year. For example, last year the exam date was November 26, wheres, this year the exam will be held on November 25, 2018. So, it can be expected that the registration for CAT 2018 shall start by August 08, 2018, since last year the application form was available by August 09.
The application form for CAT 2018 will be available by online mode only at iimcat.ac.in. There is no other mode of registering for the entrance test another than the online mode, The window for submitting the application form shall be available for more than one and a half month and the last date for submitting CAT 2018 Application Form, shall fall after 45 days from the date of opening of the registration process.
Last year, more than 2.31 lakh candidates registered for the test and around 2 lakh appeared for it.
Not only the schedule but the exam fee for CAT exam changes over the year. It has been observed that the registration fee for the entrance test increases every year for both Unreserved and Reserved categories. However, the mode of payment will be same which is by online mode using the Credit Card/ Debit Card/ Net Banking.
In the year 2015, the registration fee for SC, ST, and PwD category candidate was Rs. 800/- and for all other categories it was Rs. 1600/-. Then in the year 2016, the registration fee for CAT exam for SC, ST, and PwD category was increased to Rs. 850/- and for all other categories it was further increased to Rs. 1700/-. In the year 2017, the exam fee for SC, ST, and PwD category candidate was Rs. 900/- and for all other categories it was Rs. 1800/-.
Hence, one thing is clear that every year there is an increase of Rs. 50/- for SC, ST, and PwD category candidates, and a hike of Rs. 100/- for all other category candidates.
Looking at the data above, it is estimated that for CAT 2018, the candidates belonging to SC, ST, and PwD category shall have to pay an amount of Rs. 950/- whereas all other category candidates have to pay Rs. 1900/- for the application fee charges.
The Common Admission Test is a national level entrance test which is held by different Indian Institute of Management (IIMs) every year on a rotational basis. It is a computer-based test through which you can get admission in 20 IIMs and more than 100 other top Business school.
Academic experts and even toppers suggest that six months of dedicated preparation is ideally required to score high percentile in the exam. It is important for the candidates to know the exam pattern, marking, and syllabus for CAT exam.
The CAT paper comprises questions from three sections – Quantitative Ability, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, and Logical Reasoning. Solving mock test papers/ previous year papers and closely analyzing your performance with each mock test is the best way to prepare for CAT.
