Read in-depth CAT 2021 exam analysis by IMS India. Also know the total number of good attempts, slot wise difficulty levels and expected cut offs in CAT analysis 2021.
CAT 2021 exam was held today in three slots at various exam centres. Shiksha brings to you in-depth CAT 2021 analysis by MBA experts and coaching institutes. In this blog, you will read detailed CAT 2021 analysis by IMS India. Read below in-depth CAT 2021 analysis, which includes section-wise distribution of topics, difficulty levels, number of good attempts, sectional cut off and expected scoring pattern.
- CAT 2021 Exam Analysis Highlights
- CAT 2021 Analysis: VARC
- CAT 2021 Analysis: DILR
- CAT 2021 Analysis: Quantitative Aptitude
- CAT 2021 Score vs Percentile
CAT 2021 Exam Analysis Highlights
According to CAT 2021 analysis by IMS India, the difficulty level of exam was moderate to high. Given below is the section-wise break up of the CAT 2021 question paper:
| Section Name |
Duration |
MCQs |
TITA |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VARC |
40 min |
19 |
5 |
24 |
| DILR |
40 min |
14 |
6 |
20 |
| Quantitative Aptitude |
40 min |
14 |
8 |
22 |
| Total |
120 min |
47 |
19 |
66 |
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CAT 2021 Analysis: VARC
The VARC section of CAT 2021 was toughest of the three. There were four Reading Comprehension passages with four questions each. The passages were inference based and of 470-500 words. The passage ‘The Thirst Empire – Chinese tea’ was easy but rest of them were moderate to tough. In VA, there were three Para Jumbles, two Odd Sentence Out and three Para Summary questions. VA was easier than RC as always. Check below, topic-wse distribution of questions in VARC section according to According to CAT 2021 analysis by IMS India:
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| VARC Topics |
No. of Questions |
Question Type |
Difficulty Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Comprehension |
16 |
MCQ |
Overall: Difficult |
| RC-1: On Utopia and Dystopia |
4 |
MCQ |
Difficult |
| RC-2: On Mayan Civilization – personhood |
4 |
MCQ |
Medium |
| RC-3: Marshmallow Theory |
4 |
MCQ |
Medium |
| RC-4: The Thirst Empire – Chinese Tea |
4 |
MCQ |
Easy |
| Verbal Ability |
08 |
MCQ & TITA |
Overall: Medium |
| Parajumbles (4 sentences) |
3 |
TITA |
Medium |
| Out of Context sentence |
2 |
TITA |
Easy |
| Summary |
3 |
MCQ |
Medium |
Also Read:
CAT 2021 Analysis: DILR
The DILR section of CAT 2021 had a total of 20 questions. There were four sets, out of which two sets of LR had six questions each and the other two sets of DI had four questions each. According to CAT 2021 analysis by IMS India, this section was easier compared to last year’s DILR section of Slot 1 and slightly tougher compared to Slot 2 and Slot 3. Overall, an attempt of 10 to 12 questions with high accuracy of 85-90 per cent can be considered a good performance.
| DILR Area |
Set Description |
No. of Questions |
Question Type |
Difficulty Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data Interpretation |
Bar graph (year wise) with different items grouped in furniture, tech and office stationery. |
4 |
3 MCQ, 1 TITA |
Easy |
| Logical Reasoning |
Friends, Acquaintances, Stranger among 7 friends |
6 |
4 MCQ, 2 TITA |
Medium-Difficult |
| Data Interpretation |
Cost price of various fruits getting mixed in various smoothies. |
4 |
3 MCQ, 1 TITA |
Medium |
| Logical Reasoning |
8 people, 3 countries, 4 issues and 18 papers |
6 |
4 MCQ, 2 TITA |
Easy-Medium |
CAT 2021 Analysis: Quantitative Aptitude
This section of CAT 2021 was of moderate difficulty level and was dominated by Arithmetic (10 questions), followed by Algebra (five questions). There were four questions on Modern Maths and three questions on Geometry. In Arithmetic, the questions were asked from topics such as Time-Speed-Distance, Time and Work, Averages and Mixtures & Alligations.
Out of 22 questions, six were TITA and 14 were MCQ-type. According to CAT 2021 analysis by IMS India, students should have been able to attempt about 14 questions in the given time with 85-90 per cent accuracy.
| QA Topics |
No. of Questions |
Difficulty Level |
|---|---|---|
| Arithmetic |
10 |
Moderate |
| Algebra |
5 |
Moderate |
| Geometry |
3 |
Moderate |
| Modern Maths |
4 |
Moderate |
Also Read:
- CAT score vs percentile and marks vs percentile
- Understanding CAT normalization process
- CAT 2021 - How Scaled CAT Score will be Calculated for Three Slots?
- Colleges Accepting CAT percentile above 90
- Colleges Accepting CAT percentile from 80-90 percentile
- Colleges Accepting CAT percentile from 70-80
- Colleges Accepting CAT percentile from 60-70
CAT 2021 Score vs Percentile
Check below, CAT 2021 scores and percentiles as estimated by IMS India experts
| CAT Percentile |
VARC Score |
DILR Score |
QA Score |
Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99.5 %ile |
45 |
33 |
48 |
104 |
| 99 %ile |
41 |
29 |
42 |
97 |
| 98 %ile |
37 |
26 |
37 |
86 |
| 95%ile |
32 |
21 |
28 |
72 |
| 90%ile |
27 |
17 |
23 |
59 |
| 85%ile |
23 |
15 |
19 |
52 |
| 80%ile |
21 |
13 |
16 |
44 |
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Student Forum
Answered 12 hours ago
No, CAT is not compulsory to get admission in TITE - Templecity Institute of Technology and Engineering. The college accepts entrance exams such as: OJEE/ATMA/CAT/MAT. Candidates wishing to get admission into this programme should have passed graduation with at least 50% marks.
R
Contributor-Level 10
Answered Yesterday
No, CAT is not compulsory to get admission in MBA at College of Engineering, Pune. The college consider svalid score of entrance exams such as:
- MAH-CET (The primary state-level exam considered for Maharashtra students)
- CAT
- CMAT
- XAT
R
Contributor-Level 10
Answered Yesterday
Yes, personal interview round for MBA admission is mandatory for all candidates regardless of which exam they apply through. Candidates applying through CAT result for PP Savani University can only skip SLMET written test during MBA admission process.
Their final evaluation will be based on combined
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered Yesterday
Xavier Institute of Management and Informatics does accepts CAT scores for admission in MBA programme. However, it is not compulsory. Aspirants can also get admission based on their qualifying exam scores and performance in the PI round.
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered 2 days ago
Candidates preparing for CAT may not need to prepare for KLMAT Management separately, as the syllabus is the same and the test structure is also similar. However, one should make sure they practice KLMAT sample papers from a month before the exam as the question type and difficulty level will be dif
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
Candidates who want to apply for Sharda University, Greater Noida MBA course must secure a CAT/ XAT percentile of 65% to skip SUAT. For MAT applicants, this score stands at 75% for MBA admissions at Sharda, Greater Noida.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
Yes, you can get scholarship for MBA in Adamas University based on CAT score according to the following criteria:
CAT Score | Scholarship |
|---|---|
80 percentile & above | 50% of the 1st Semester Fee |
70 percentile to 79.99 percentile | 25% of the 1st Semester Fee |
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
No, CAT is not compulsory to get admission in MBA at IILM University Gurgaon. Candidates wishing to get admission in MBA should have passed Graduation with at least 50% marks. The university offer admission based on entrance exam score such as:
- CAT
- XAT
- MAT
- NMAT
- CMAT
- GMAT
R
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 5 days ago
As per my knowledge, Yes If you've worked hard for your CAT score and you're now wondering whether DBS Global University will accept it For MBA admission at DBS Global University, a valid CAT score is accepted alongside MAT, CMAT, XAT, GMAT, and the DBS Global University Entrance Examination. Regist
P
Beginner-Level 4
Answered 6 days ago
The CAT 2026 cutoff has not been released yet. However, as per the 2025 cutoff, for admission to PGDM International Business at FORE School of Management, the last round cutoff percentile stood at 75 for the General AI category.
Additionally, the XAT cutoff 2026 for the same course also stood at 75
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