CAT 2022 Exam: Dates, Applications, Fees, Eligibility, Preparation, Books, Syllabus
CAT 2022 exam will be held on November 27, 2022 (tentatively). Read here all about CAT exam 2022 including dates, applications, syllabus, pattern, books and process.
Common Admission Test or CAT is a national level management aptitude test conducted annually for admission to MBA/PGP programmes offered by the Indian Institute of Management (IIMs) and over 1,200 B-Schools in India. Every year, about 2 lakh candidates appear for the CAT exam, which is conducted on the last Sunday of November. In CAT, candidates have to solve 66 questions on Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretatation, Logical Reasoning, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, in 120 minutes. CAT 2022 exam will be conducted on November 27, 2022 and the online registration process for the same will commence most likely by August 3, 2022.
The 20 IIMs that accept CAT score for admission to post graduate management courses are IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM Lucknow, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Shillong, IIM Raipur, IIM Indore, IIM Nagpur, IIM Sambalpur, IIM Trichy, IIM Visakhapatnam, IIM Bodhgaya, IIM Ranchi, IIM Jammu, IIM Sirmaur, IIM Udaipur, IIM Amritsar, IIM Kashipur and IIM Rohtak.
Top colleges accepting CAT scores apart from IIMs include IMT, IMI, FMS, SPJIMR, MDI, IITs, GLIM, NITIE, NMIMS, ICFAI, GLIM, TAPMI, Amity University, Xavier University, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, BIMTECH and LIBA among others.
MBA aspirants must start preparations CAT 2022 exam now as minimum six months are required to complete the exam syllabus and practice enough numbers of mock tests. If you’ve appeared for the exam before, you’ll need lesser time to prepare for it. Read all about CAT 2022 exam in this article including dates, application process, fees, eligibility criteria, syllabus, pattern, preparation, etc.
CAT Features | Details |
|---|---|
| CAT full form | Common Admission Test |
| Conducting IIM | To be announced |
| Exam level | National |
| CAT syllabus | Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR) Quantitative Ability (QA) |
| CAT pattern | CBT with MCQs and non-MCQs |
| No. of test cities | 156 |
| Exam frequency | Annual |
| CAT 2022 exam date | November 27, 2022 (tentative) |
| Exam fees | INR 2,200 (General category) and INR 1,100 (Reserved category) |
| Eligibility | Graduation with 50 % aggregate (45 % for SC/ST students) |
| Number of applications | 2.31 lakh (in 2021) |
| Number of test takers | 1.92 lakh (in 2021) |
| Exam purpose | Admission into IIMs, SPJIMR, FMS, MDI, IMT and over 1,200 B-Schools in India |
| Course offered | MBA/PGDM |
| Exam helpdesk no. | 1-800-210-1088 (Toll Free) |
| Exam website | https://iimcat.ac.in |
CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022
CAT is an entrance exam for admission to PG-level management courses. Thus, the minimum qualification required is graduation. Check the CAT 2022 eligibility criteria below:
- Candidates must have completed graduation in any stream with minimum 50 per cent in aggregate (45 per cent for SC/ST/PwD candidates) or equivalent from a recognised university
- Final year bachelor’s degree candidates or those awaiting their result are also eligible to appear CAT exam
- Candidates will professional qualifications such as CA/CS/ICWA can also appear in the CAT
CAT 2022: Important Dates
CAT 2022 dates will be announced on July 31. Given below is the table indicating tentative dates and events:
| CAT 2022 Events | CAT 2022 Dates (tentative) |
|---|---|
| CAT 2022 notification release | 31-Jul-2022 |
| CAT 2022 registrations start | 03-Aug-2022 |
| Registrations end | 23-Sep-2022 |
| Form correction | Fourth week of September, 2022 |
| Mock test release | First week of October, 2022 |
| Admit card release | 26-Oct-2022 |
| Official tutorial release | First week of November, 2022 |
| CAT 2022 exam | 27-Nov-2022 (tentative) |
| Answer key release | First week of December, 2022 |
| Answer key challenge process | First week of November, 2022 |
| Final answer key release | Last week of November, 2022 |
| CAT 2022 result declaration | First week of January, 2023 |
CAT Exam Pattern 2022
CAT exam is a Computer Based Test (CBT) conducted at multiple test centres across the country. The exam pattern was changed in 2022 due to COVID-19 pandemic. The total number of questions was reduced from 100 to 76 and the duration was reduced from 180 minutes to 120 minutes. The CAT pattern was revised again in 2021. The total number of questions were reduced from 76 to 66. Check below CAT exam pattern highlights:
| CAT Exam Pattern 2022 | |
|---|---|
| Mode of CAT exam | Computer Based Test |
| Duration of exam | Total: 120 minutes Section wise:40 minutes per section |
| CAT exam slots | Morning: 8:30 AM to 10:30 AM Afternoon: 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM Evening: 4:30 PM to 6:30 PM |
| Number of questions | |
| Total marks | |
| Language of question paper | English |
| Number of answer choices | 4 |
| Question Type | MCQ and non-MCQ |
| Marking Scheme | +3 for every right attempt -1 for every wrong attempt 0 for wrong attempt in non-MCQ |
CAT Sections and Weightage
The CAT question paper has three sections. Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC), Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR) and Quantitative Aptitude (QA). Check the table below for sectional distribution of questions and marks:
| CAT Sections | Number of Questions | Marks Allotted |
|---|---|---|
| VARC | ||
| DILR | ||
| QA |
Section-Wise CAT Syllabus
CAT syllabus is vast and includes a wide range of topics. Given below are the main topics from which the questions are usually asked in CAT exam:
| CAT Syllabus sections | CAT Syllabus topics |
|---|---|
| VARC | Reading Comprehension, Verbal Ability, Para Jumbles, Para Summary and Odd Sentence Out |
| DILR | Set Theory (Variables), Set Theory + Puzzles, Puzzles with Additional Data, Coding-Decoding and Series |
| QA | Number System, Algebra, Arithmetic, Geometry and Mensuration |
CAT 2022 Application Process
CAT 2022 registration cum application process is a mandatory step for appearing in CAT as well as admission to IIMs. The CAT registration cum application process in online and the candidates have to submit the forms at iimcat.ac.in website. Given below are the steps to register of CAT 2022 exam and fill the application form:
- Go to iimcat.ac.in website
- Click on ‘New User’
- Enter name, date of birth, nationality, email ID and mobile phone number
- Enter captcha code and click on ’submit’
- An OTP will be received on the email ID and mobile phone number
- Use the OTP to validate registration
- Next, fill personal details in the CAT application form
- Upload passport size photo and signature
- Fill academic details – class 10, 12 marks and UP, PG or professional degrees
- Select IIM Course, campuses and test city preference
- Make fee payment via debit/credit card, net banking or e-wallet
CAT Exam Fees
CAT application fee is to be paid at the time of form submission. The CAT registration process will remain incomplete until the fee payment. Check CAT 2022 application fee below:
| Category | CAT 2022 Fees |
|---|---|
| General, OBC | INR 2,200 |
| SC/ST/PwD | INR 1,100 |
CAT Test Cities
CAT exam is conducted at multiple exam centres across India. The list of CAT 2022 tests cities will be released along with the exam schedule. Candidates will be given the option to choose up to four cities for allottment of CAT 2022 test centre. Check below, CAT 2021 test cities for reference:
| CAT Test Cities | ||
|---|---|---|
| Port Blair | Hamirpur | Mumbai |
| Guntur | Jammu | Nashik |
| Nellore | Bokaro | Satara |
| Vijayawada | Dhanbad | Palghar |
| Kakinada | Hazaribagh | Ulhasnagar |
| Rajahmundry | Jamshedpur | Shillong |
| Visakhapatnam | Ranchi | Aizawl |
| Kurnool | Belagavi (Belgaum) | Kohima |
| Tirupathi | Bengaluru | Balasore |
| Vizianagaram | Hubballi(Hubli) | Cuttack |
| Itanagar | Mysuru(Mysore) | Sambalpur |
| Dibrugarh | Kalaburagi(Gulbarga) | Berhampur |
| Silchar | Shivamogga(Shimoga) | Dhenkanal |
| Guwahati | Dharwad | Bhubaneswar |
| Tezpur | Mangaluru(Mangalore) | Rourkela |
| Jorhat | Udupi | Puducherry |
| Aurangabad-Bihar | Kannur | Pathankot |
| Darbhanga | Ernakulam | Ludhiana |
| Arrah | Kollam | Amritsar |
| Muzaffarpur | Kottayam | Bhatinda |
| Bhagalpur | Kozhikode | Patiala |
| Patna | Thrissur | Jalandhar |
| Mohali | Trivandrum | Sangrur |
| Chandigarh | Bhopal | Ajmer |
| Bhilai Nagar | Jabalpur | Jaipur |
| Bilaspur | Ujjain | Sikar |
| Raipur | Gwalior | Alwar |
| Delhi | Sagar | Jodhpur |
| Faridabad | Indore | Udaipur |
| Gurugram | Satna | Bikaner |
| Ghaziabad | Bhopal | Kota |
| New Delhi | Jabalpur | Madurai |
| Greater Noida | Ujjain | Chennai |
| Noida | Gwalior | Salem |
| Meerut | Sagar | Trichy |
| Panaji | Indore | Coimbatore |
| Ahmedabad | Satna | Vellore |
| Mehsana | Amravati | Tirunelveli |
| Vadodara | Jalgaon | Hyderabad |
| Anand | Nagpur | Karimnagar |
| Rajkot | Pune | Warangal |
| Gandhinagar | Solapur | Allahabad |
| Surat | Navi Mumbai | Bareilly |
| Ambala | Ahmednagar | Kanpur |
| Hisar | Kolhapur | Muzaffarnagar |
| Karnal | Nanded | Agra |
| Kurushetra | Raigad | Gorakhpur |
| Panipat | Thane | Lucknow |
| Rohtak | Vasai | Varanasi |
| Shimla | Aurangabad | Aligarh |
| Jhansi | Moradabad | Dehradun |
| Haldwani | Roorkee | Asansol |
| Durgapur | Bankura | Burdwan |
| Kolkata | Hooghly | Kalyani |
| Siliguri | Srinagar |
CAT 2022 Admit Card
The admit card for CAT 2022 exam will be issued to registered candidates only. It will be issued online and will be available for download from the IIMCAT website. CAT 2022 admit card will be issued in the fourth week of October. The admit card is a mandatory document to be carried to the exam centre. Given below is the process of CAT admit card download:
- Open the IIMCAT website
- Click on ‘CAT 2022 admit card’
- Enter CAT ID and password
- Go to ‘admit card’ tab
- Open the CAT 2022 admit card and download as PDF
CAT 2022 Result
CAT result 2022 will be announced in the first week of January 2023. Candidates will be able to download their scorecards by logging into their CAT account. The CAT scorecard will contain candidates sectional and overall scores and percentiles. Given below is the process of CAT 2022 result download:
- Go to IIMCAT website
- Click on ‘CAT 2022 Scorecard’
- Enter CAT application number and password
- Click on ‘scorecard’ option
- Download the PDF of CAT 2022 scorecard
Colleges Accepting CAT Score
Apart from the IIMs there are 1,200 MBA colleges in India that accept CAT score for admission. The MBA admission process through CAT includes Group Discussion (GD), Written Ability Test (WAT) and Personal Interview (PI). IIMs do not conduct GD anymore. The selection process of IIMs include WAT/PI or only PI. Given below is the list of some of the top MBA colleges accepting CAT score for admission: