CAT 2021 exam analysis is out. The question paper was of moderate difficulty and had only 66 questions to be solved in 120 minutes. Read here in-depth CAT 2021 exam analysis by experts for slot 1, slot 2 and slot 3.
CAT 2021 exam is being held today in three slots. The first slot fo exam was conducted from 8:30 AM to 10:30 AM. The second slot will be held from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM and the third slot will be conducted frm 4:30 PM to 6:30 PM. Shiksha will bring to you slot-wise CAT exam analysis by experts along with student reactions from the exam centre. Analysis of the first slot of CAT exam is available now.
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The CAT 2021 question paper of the first slot was easy with only 66 questions to answer in 120 minutes. 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.
Also Read:
- CAT 2021 Exam Analysis Highlights
- CAT 2021 Analysis: VARC
- CAT 2021 Analysis: DILR
- CAT 2021 Analysis: Quantitative Aptitude
CAT 2021 Exam Analysis Highlights
Given below is the section-wise difficulty level of the first slot of CAT 2021 exam:
| CAT 2021 Sections |
Questions |
Difficulty Levels |
|---|---|---|
| Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) |
24 |
Easy to Moderate |
| Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning & (DILR) |
20 |
Moderate |
| Quantitative Aptitude (QA) |
22 |
Moderate to Tough |
| Total/Overall |
66 |
Moderate |
CAT 2021 Analysis: VARC
The VARC section of CAT 2021 was as usual tougher from rest of the sections. Out of 24 questions, 16 were based on Reading Comprehension passages. The passages were inference based and doable. In the Verbal Ability part, the questions were from Parajumbles, Parasummary and Odd Sentence Out.
Overall, 24-25 score can be considered enough for a 85%ile and 35-38 marks can be considered ideal for a 99%ile.
CAT 2021 Analysis: DILR
The DILR section of CAT 2021 had 20 questions divided into 4 sets (4+4+6+6). The questions were based on sets: Smoothies- DI, Bar Graph, Arrangement - Researchers, Publishing and Arrangement - Friends, Strangers, Acquaintances. The sectional difficulty level ws moderate to high and score of 27-30 marks can be considered ideal for a 99+ percentile in DILR.
CAT 2021 Analysis: Quantitative Aptitude
Like last year, the Quantitative Aptitude section was dominated by Arithmetic. Sectional difficulty level can be termed as easy as it had only 22 straight forward questions to be solved in 40 minutes. A score of 40-42 will be considered ideal for a 99+ percentile in this sectio of CAT 2021.
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?
Read below CAT 2021 analysis of slot 1, 2 and 3 by various MBA experts:
| CAT Experts |
CAT 2021 Analysis Page Links |
|---|---|
| CAT 2021 analysis by CATKing |
|
| CAT 2021 analysis by Career Launcher |
Available Now |
| CAT 2021 analysis by IMS India |
Available Now |
| CAT 2021 analysis by T.I.M.E. |
Available Now |
Read More:
Colleges Accepting CAT percentile above 90
Colleges Accepting CAT percentile from 80-90 percentile

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Student Forum
Answered 3 hours ago
No, CAT scores are not important for admission to the MBA course at the School of Business, Sushant University. As per the info. taken from the website of the university, it conducts its own entrance exam for enrollment into the MBA course.
C
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 4 hours ago
RGIPT allows admission without CAT/XAT/GMAT/CMAT/MAT/CUET-PG score under two circumstances. First, you should be a company-sponsored candidate. Second, if you belong to part time registration category. You will still have to fulfil the remaining eligibility criteria.
J
Contributor-Level 10
Answered Yesterday
Candidates with a valid score of CAT/ GMAT/ GRE score are exempted from the written test. These candidates still need to complete the form by paying the application fees. However, these aspirants may get called for the IIM Trichy - Chennai campus PGPBM interview round.
A
Contributor-Level 10
Answered Yesterday
CAT is one of the accepting exams for admission to PGDM at IPE Hyderabad. Candidates with a good score in CAT can also get a scholarship. However, CAT is not mandatory. Aspirants with a score in MAT, XAT, ATMA, GMAT or CMAT exams can also get admission in the PGDM course.
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered 2 days ago
No, candidates who wish to apply for the Global MBA course at Lexicon MILE are required to clear the LAT conducted by Lexicon MILE. The CAT exam score at Lexicon MILE is only used for deciding the PGDM admissions along with several other entrance exams.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
CAT is one of the accepting exams for MBA admission at Karunya School of Management. However, it is not compulsory. Aspirants can also apply through XAT, MAT or KMAT scores. Candidates must also complete graduation to apply for MBA at KSM Coimbatore.
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered 3 days ago
CAT is one of the accepting exams for admission to MBA programme at Amity University Bengaluru. However, it is not compulsory. Aspirants can also get admission in MBA via MAT, GRE or CMAT scores. Candidates with scores in these entrance exams can also get scholarship provided they meet the criteria.
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered 3 days ago
No, CAT exam is not mandatory for VIT-AP MBA admissions. Candidates who are interested in the MBA course offered by the institute can also apply through the scores in the XAT and MAT as well.
VIT-AP also accepts the scores obtained in the VITBEE for the MBA admissions. However, candidates with a high
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 4 days ago
No, CAT scores are not compulsory for enrollement into MBA course at IIS Jaipur. As per the info. available on the website of the institute, the institute give prefrences to those students who have secured scored in the management entrance exams, such as CAT/ XAT/ CUET PG/ MAT. Thus, CAT scores can
A
Contributor-Level 9
Answered 4 days ago
Yes, Manipur Institute of Management Studies, Manipur University does accept CAT scores for admission to its MBA course. Students can also submit scores of other national-level exams, such as MAT/ XAT/ CMAT/ GMAT/ ATMA etc.
V
Contributor-Level 10

Vipra Shrivastava is MA in English Literature from Delhi University with extensive experience in content writing of over 14 years. She has been handling content for Management, Accounting and Commerce streams for 8
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