IIFT Admission 2027 (MBA IB & BA): Applications Out Soon; Check Eligibility, CAT Cut Offs, Waitlist Movement

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade Entrance Exam 2025 ( IIFT )

Vipra
Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content
Updated on Sep 17, 2026 01:14 IST
IIFT admission process includes three stages – entrance exam, essay writing, extempore and personal interview. Candidates have fill the application form for both, CAT exam and IIFT. Check IIFT shortlist and IIFT final admission list 2027. The IIFT admission 2027 will be released in May 2027.

IIFT conducted the PI and extempore in February-March for MBA admission 2026. Final result has been announced for the same. Check here details of IFT shortlist 2026 and final admission.

IIFT admission 2027 -2029

IIFT admission through CAT

IIFT admission process 2027 will include Extempore and Personal Interview (PI) which will be held in April 2027. To be able to participate in IIFT Delhi admission, candidates need to register for CAT 2026 exam and appear for it on November 29, 2026. Besides, that the aspirant also has to fill the IIFT application form 2027 for being selected. Every year, more than 50000 candidates apply to IIFT for MBA course. Over 1000 candidates are shortlisted for MBA International Business and MBA Business Analytics courses. Read below all about IIFT admission.

Table of contents
  • IIFT Admissions 2027: Selection Process and Shortlisting Criteria
  • IIFT Shortlist Criteria 2027
  • IIFT Admission Process: Final Selection
  • Number of MBA - IB seats in IIFT
  • IIFT Fees (MBA-IB)
  • IIFT Placements (MBA-IB)

IIFT Admissions 2027: Selection Process and Shortlisting Criteria

IIFT admission process 2027 will have two stages – Essay Writing, Extempore and Personal Interview and final selection.

Stage 1: Essay Writing, Extempore and Personal Interview  – Candidates who clear the IIFT admission cut off have to participate in this round of IIFT admission for final selection

Stage 2:  In this stage, the candidates are evaluated based on their IIFT exam score, performance in Essay Writing, Extempore and Personal Interview , academic history and work experience. Final list is prepared and selected candidates are offered admission.

IIFT Shortlist Criteria 2027

In the first stage of IIFT admission, CAT qualifying candidates were shortlisted for Extempore-PI on the basis of following parameters. IIFT Delhi will soon release the IIF Shortlist Criteria for 2027 academic session. Refer the table for last years' shortlist criteria.

Parameters

Score

CAT score

98
(Score of the candidate / Maximum CAT Score of
198 X 98)

Gender diversity (M=0; F=2)

2

Total score

100

Also Read: IIFT eligibility criteria and reservation policy

IIFT Cut Off for Admission (MBA IB)

Candidates can check category wise IIFT MBA cut offs of previous year below:

MBA IB Category

IIFT Cut Off Percentile 

General

55.734

General/EWS

50.9354

OBC-NCL

50.7536

SC

46.0963

ST

48.1518

PwD

45.8104

Kashmiri Migrants/Non-Migrants

58.0719

IIFT Cut Off for Admission (MBA BA)

The final IIFT 2026 cut offs will be released soon. Candidates can check category wise IIFT MBA cut offs for Business Analytics for previous year, below:

MBA BA Category

IIFT Cut-off

General

57.00

General-EWS / 

52.00

OBC-NCL

52.00

SC 

47.00

ST

47.00

PwD

47.00

Kashmiri Migrants / Non-Migrants

58.07

Download:

IIFT Cut Offs MBA(IB) 2025-27

IIFT Cut Offs MBA(BA) 2025-27

GMAT cut offs for selection of candidates for MBA (BA) programme:

Category

Cut-off of GMAT Score

General

700

Gen-EWS/OBC-NCL

650

SC/ST/PwD/Kashmiri Migrants, Kashmiri Pandit

600

Also Read:

IIFT cut offs are different for different category students. Candidates who meet the admission cut off are selected for Extempore and PI round. This round is conducted in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Mumbai. However, this year, this round will be conducted online. 

📃 CAT Call Predictor 2026

Written Skill Assessment

The round of IIFT admission process is conducted to assess a candidate’s ability to understand a topic or issue and the ability to explain it in a succinct manner. Candidates are divided in groups of eight. Each group is given one essay topic, five minutes to think and 15 minutes to write. The topics can vary from business & economics to politics & society. 

Group Discussion/Extempore

GD round of IIFT admission is quite similar to the GD rounds of other MBA colleges. A group of candidates is given a topic to discuss in 30-40 minutes. The GD begins with each candidate introducing themselves and sharing their opinion on the topic. Once every one has spoken, the floor is left open for everyone to discuss. The motive behind Group Discussion is to assess a candidate's leadership qualities, communication skills and ability to convince others.

This year, instead of online Extempore,  in-person GD will be conducted. Candidates will be given a topic to speak for a certain time duration. This round will help in judging the candidate's public speaking skill and clarity of thoughts.

Also Read:

Q&A Icon
Commonly asked questions
Q:   When will cut offs be announced for IIFT admission 2024-26?
A: 

IIFT cut off for admission to 2024-2026 batch was declared in February 2024. The cut offs was released by the institute on its official website along with shortlist criteria and admission process details. Since, for admission to the batch of 2024-2026 will be based on CAT 2023, the cut offs are based on the same. For 2024-2026 batch:

Sectional cut off for General category is 55 and and composite cut off is 30%.

For Gen-EWS/OBC-NCL, the sectional cut off is 50 and the composite cut off is 25%.

For, SC/ST/PwD/Kashmiri Migrants, Kashmiri Pandits, the sectional cut off is 30 and composite cut off is 20 %. 

For the previous batch of MBA International Business programme, the IIFT cut offs for General category was 40 percentile, whereas for General-EWS and NC-OBC categories, the cut off was 35 percentile. For SC/ST/PwD/KashmiriMigrants/Non-Migrants, the IIFT cut off 2023 was 30 percentile. 

Q:   I belong to the SC category. What will be the IIFT admission cut-off for me?
A: 

Yes, IIFT admission cut-offs for different categories will be different. For the SC category students, the cut offs are lower than that of General category students. Given below is the table indicating IIFT cut offs 2023 for each category. You can see that the cut off was the highest for General category, followed by General-EWS / OBC-NCL category students and SC / ST / PwD.

Category

Cut-off

General

52

General-EWS / OBC-NCL

47

SC / ST / PwD

42

 

This year, IIFT MBA admissions will be based on CAT 2023 scores. The CAT cut offs for IIFT will be released in March 2024. It is expected that CAT cut offs for SC category students will be low as well.

Q:   Does a candidate need to clear sectional IIFT cut offs too?
A: 

Yes, the candidates are required to clear the sectional cut offs of IIFT entrance exam as well for selection to second round of IIFT admission process, which is group discussion or extempore, essay writing and personal interview. The sectional cut offs play an important role in assessing the abilities of a candidates in all subjects – Data Interpretation, Quantitative Aptitude, Logical Reasoning and English Comprehension. That is why the institute releases sectional cut offs as well for shortlisting of candidates for the personality assessment round of the MBA admission process. Those who do not meet the sectional cut offs, may not get selected for the group discussion or extempore, essay writing and personal interview round.

Q:   Will I be considered for GD and Interview round even if I don't meet the IIFT cut off criteria?
A: 

No, the minimum eligibility criteria to be selected for Group Discussion/Extempore and Interview round of IIFT is meeting the admission cut off released after the declaration of IIFT entrance exam result. Candidates have to clear the both the sectional and overall cut offs to be eligible for extempore and PI shortlisting. Apart from the cut offs, candidates also have to meet the academic eligibility criteria which is minimum 50 per cent aggregate for General students and 45 per cent aggregate for Reserved category students.

Candidates must note that the minimum academic criteria is only the eligibility criteria and may not ensure selection for Group Discussion/Extempore and Interview round of IIFT MBA admission.

Personal Interview

The Personal Interview round of IIFT admissions is essentially a personality assessment round. The interviewers ask candidates questions related to their work experience, education, etc. but the focus remains on assessing their communication ability, presence of mind and problem solving skills.

Also Read:

IIFT Admission Process: Final Selection

Final selection of candidates have been done after evaluating every candidate who participated in WAT-GD-PI round. Given below are the parameters and their scores as per last year's admission policy.

IIFT admission: Parameters of final selection

IIFT exam score

45

WAT

10

GD

10

PI

10

Gender Diversity (M = 0, F= 2)

2

Academic Diversity (Engg = 0, Non-Engg = 2)

2

Work Experience

3

Academic consistency (Class 10 = 4, Class 12 = 4)

8

Total

100

Rating scores for Class 10 and 12
Check the table below for rating score of marks obtained in Class 10 and 12.

Per cent score in Class 10 and 12

Rating Score

Up to 55

1

55 to 60

2

60 to 70

3

70 to 80

5

80 to 90

8

90 and above

10

Rating scores for Work Experience

Check the table below for rating score according to work experience (in months).

Work Experience

Rating Score

Up to 12 months

0

12 to 24 months

2

24 to 36 months

3

36 to 48 months

2

48 to 60 months

1

60 months

0

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Number of MBA - IB seats in IIFT

About 35,000 to 40,000 students appear for the IIFT entrance exam for admission to the three campuses of IIFT. Given below is the table indicating campus-wise seat intake. 

IIFT Campus

Seats for MBA (IB) 

IIFT Delhi

220

IIFT Kolkata

140

IIFT Kakinada

  60

IIFT Fees (MBA-IB)

Given below is the tuition fee of MBA-IB programme for Indian and Foreign students at IIFT Delhi. The IIFT MBA fees mentioned below does not include hostel fees and other charges.

Category

Tuition Fees

MBA (IB) Programme Fee for Indian Students

INR 17,25,000

MBA (IB) Programme Fee for Foreign & NRI Students

USD 60,000 INR 55,000

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IIFT Placements (MBA-IB)

IIFT placement process takes place in the final semester of MBA-IB programme in which top national and international companies participate to hire students in various capacities. IIFT has maintained a consistent record for excellent placements with highest international offer touching Rs 1 crore in the past. Given below are highlights of IIFT placements:

IIFT Packages and Placements

Highest international salary offered

INR 80 LPA

Average domestic salary offered

INR 25.16 LPA

Average median salary offered

INR 24 LPA

Total number of recruiters

82

Total number of first time recruiters

26

Total number of students

392

Sector-wise maximum hiring

BFSI (30 %)

Q&A Icon
Commonly asked questions
Q:   What if I meet qualifying IIFT cut off but not the final cut off? Will I still be able to get through to the interview round?
A: 

No, meeting both sectional and overall IIFT cut offs is mandatory to make it to the interview round of IIFT admission. If a student is unable to meet any of the criteria, he/she will not be shortlisted for the interview round. Similarly, they will have to meet the academic eligibility criteria of a minimum score of 50 per cent in graduation (45 percent for reserved categories) to be eligible for shortlisting for the personality assessment round. For 2024-26 batch admission, the institute will consider CAT score instead of the IIFT entrance exam score. Even in CAT, they will need to meet overall as well as sectional score.

Q:   Is IIFT Delhi MBA cutoff released category-wise for admissions?
A: 

Yes, IIFT releases cutoff lists category-wise. The cutoff also varies for MBA-International Business and Business Analytics admission. For General category, the IIFT cut off is higher than that for Reserved category students. For example, IIFT 2022 cut off for General category candidates was 52.75 but for SC/ST candidates, it was 42.75. in 2023, the qualifying cut off was 35 percentile for General-EWS and NC-OBC categories, it is 35 percentile. In addition, for SC/ST/PwD/KashmiriMigrants/Non-Migrants, the IIFT cut offs 2023 was 30 percentile. Read more on IIFT Delhi Cutoff, here.

Q:   What is IIFT cut off?
A: 

IIFT cut off is the minimum exam score required to be eligible for the Extempore and Personal Interview (PI) round of Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) admission. Shortlisting of candidates for the second round of IIFT admission is based on both sectional and overall IIFT cut offs. Candidates who do not clear the overall or sectional IIFT cut off percentiles are not shortlisted for the second round.

The IIFT cut off is determined by the admission authorities at the institute. The cut offs are released after the announcement for entrance exam result, so that candidates can fill the shortlist form if they meet the minimum score requirement or the cut off.

Q:   Do IIFT cut offs vary category wise?
A: 

Yes, IIFT cut offs for MBA-International Business and Business Analytics admission differ category wise. For General category students, the IIFT cut off is higher than that for Reserved category students. For example, the IIFT 2022 cut off for General category candidates was 52.75 but for SC/ST candidates, it was 42.75. in 2023, the qualifying cut off was 35 percentile for General-EWS and NC-OBC categories, it is 35 percentile. For SC/ST/PwD/KashmiriMigrants/Non-Migrants, the IIFT cut offs 2023 was 30 percentile. Selection for the personal interview round is based on these cut offs.

The Reserved category students also get the benefit of Reservation quota fixed by the Government of India. A certain number of seats are available for Reserved category candidates in the management programmes.

Q&A Icon
Commonly asked questions
Q:   Does IIFT accept score of other entrance exams?
A: 

Apart from the IIFT entrance exam score, only GMAT score is accepted for admission to the MBA-International Business programme. The GMAT score is accepted from international /NRI/PIO students only. For domestic students applying for MBA International Business course, appearing in IIFT entrance exam is mandatory. However, for the 2024-26 batch admission, the institute has decided to not conduct the IIFT entrance exam and instead accept CAT 2023 score for domestic candidates. Which means, domestic candidates have to appear for CAT 2023 exam to be eligible for IIFT-MBA admission.

Q:   Is there any age restriction to apply for IIFT exam?
A: 

No, there is no age bar on appearing in IIFT entrance exam. Any candidate with a bachelor's degree from a recognised university having scored a minimum of 50 per cent aggregate can appear for IIFT entrance exam. The minimum score criteria for SC/ST/PwD candidates is 45 per cent aggregate. Final year graduation students can also appear in the exam. The exam is for MBA degree so a fresh graduate as well as a working professionals of junior, middle or senior levels can also appear for the exam. In fact, candidates with work experience are given preference over fresh graduates during the selection rounds. Candidates can appear for the IIFT entrance exam multiple times as well.

Q:   What is the eligibility criteria for IIFT entrance exam?
A: 

Candidates who have score a minimum of 50 per cent in aggregate in graduation are eligible to apply (45 per cent forSC/ST/PwD candidates). The graduation degree should be from a universityrecognisedby the UGC. If you are in the final year of your bachelor’s degree programme and wish to appear for IIF then you need to have scored a minimum 50 per cent in aggregate in first two years of your Bachelor's degree (45 per cent for Reserved category candidates). However, your admission will be provisional until you submit your Graduation certificate before the last date of document submission fixed by the institute.

 Aspirants must note that there is no age limit to appear in the IIFT entrance exam. The only eligibility criteria for IIFT exam is graduation with required score. Fresh graduates as well as individuals having work experience can also appear for the IIFT entrance exam which is held for admission to MBA-International Business and MBA-Business Analytics.

Q:   Who can apply for IIFT exam?
A: 

IIFT is a PG entrance exam thus the minimum qualification required is graduation. Check below the eligibility criteria:

  • Any candidate who has completed graduation with minimum 50 per cent aggregate or equivalent (45 per cent for SC/ST candidates)
  • Any candidate who is in the final year of graduation, can also apply for IIFT exam.
  • Any candidate having other professional PG degrees can also apply for IIFT entrance exam.
  • Apart from fulfilling the academic criteria, candidates also have to fulfill the entrance exam criteria which is CAT exam. For the batch of 2024-26, IIFT accepted CAT 2023 score for shortlisting candidates.
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Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content

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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