MBA from IIMs without CAT Exam

You can pursue MBA from IIMs without CAT exam score. Check this article for the list of MBA programmes for which CAT score is not mandatory.
Is it possible to pursue MBA from IIM without CAT score? Many management aspirants often ask education counsellors this question. This is a very genuine query, as CAT is a high difficulty level exam and require at least six to nine months of dedicated preparation to score 98-99 percentile, which is the average CAT cut off for admission to IIM MBA courses. Not many candidates, mainly working professional can’t dedicate that much of time for CAT preparation. Not many candidates score 99+ percentile in CAT despite dedicated preparation.
The CAT cut off percentile of top IIMs is 99+ percentile and that of rest of the IIMs is 95+. Since, over two lakh candidates apply for CAT exam and total number of full-time MBA seats in the 21 IIMs is around 4,500, many students miss the chance of securing an MBA seat at the institutes by a thin margin. Thus, many students look for options other than CAT, to get into an IIM.
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While, it is impossible to pursue full-time regular MBA from IIMs without CAT as it is a mandatory criteria for admission, there are other MBA courses candidates can opt for if they don’t want to appear in CAT or don't have a valid CAT score.
Q: Can I get into IIM Rohtak with 70%?
Q: Does IIM Bangalore accepts CAT score for Executive MBA admission?
No, IIM Bangalore accepts GMAT/ GRE to provide admission to the EPGP course. Candidates qualifying for any of the two entrance exams can apply for the E-PGP course provided they fulfil the other eligibility criteria as well. The minimum eligibility requirements are as follows:
- Graduation in any discipline with a minimum of 50% aggregate or equivalent Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)
- Applicants from SC, ST and PwD categories must have a minimum of 45% or equivalent CGPA
- Applicants who have not pursued any bachelor's degree but completed their CA/ ICWA/ CS after Class 12 are also eligible to apply
Q: Can I get IIM Shillong at 92 percentile?
The minimum Sectional CAT score required to get shortlisted for the GDPI round at IIM Shillong for the year 2022 is mentioned below:
Category | VARC | DILR | QA |
---|---|---|---|
Differetly Abled | 50 | 50 | 50 |
ST | 50 | 50 | 50 |
SC | 60 | 60 | 60 |
EWS | 75 | 75 | 75 |
Others | 75 | 75 | 75 |
The overall CAT cutoff, based on the category of the candidate is showcased in the table below:
Category | Percentile |
---|---|
General | 90 |
SC/ ST | 75 |
OBC | 80 |
Note: The overall CAT percentile is taken from unofficial sources. Hence, is indicative
Also Read:
- MBA from IITs Through CAT: Check Cut Offs and Selection Criteria
- Colleges Accepting CAT Score Range 50 to 60 percentile
- Colleges Accepting CAT Score Range 60 to 70 percentile
- Colleges Accepting CAT Score Range 70 to 80 percentile
- Colleges Accepting CAT Score Range 80 to 90 percentile
IIM MBA Courses without CAT
Management courses without CAT at IIMs include Executive MBA, Integrated Management Programme, PhD, MDP, FPM and professional certification courses. Read below all about MBA from IIMs without CAT.
Executive MBA is for working professionals looking for skill enhancement and upward mobility in corporate hierarchy. For this course, candidates have to have a minimum of two to five years of work experience at executive/managerial level. The Executive MBA course is imparted in either full time or online blended mode.
Integrated Management Programme is a five-year BBA+MBA course after class 12. Candidates who have completed class 12 can apply for this course, which offers MBA degree at the end of fifth year. This is a popular course option for candidates who don’t want to go through the process of CAT preparation and qualifying it.
However, even for Executive MBA and Integrated Management Programme, candidates have to appear for entrance tests. They may not be as tough/competitive as CAT. Read below for further details.
Executive MBA from IIMs without CAT
MBA aspirants can pursue the course at IIMs without appearing for CAT exam but they will have to appear for other exams such as GMAT/GRE. Given below is the table indication MBA courses from IIMs without CAT (including courses that have CAT as one of the multiple exam options):
IIM College |
Course |
Eligibility/Selection Criteria |
---|---|---|
ePGD in Advanced Business Analytics
|
GMAT/GRE/CAT/GATE or the ePGD-ABA qualifying-cum-aptitude test |
|
Online MBA |
IIMA Admissiom Test (IAT), CAT, GMAT, GRE |
|
MBA-PGPX |
GMAT/GRE |
|
EPGP |
GMAT/GRE |
|
PGPEM |
GMAT/GRE or CAT |
|
PGPPM |
Course is exclusively for officers from All India Services, Central Services and State Services |
|
MBAEx |
GMAT |
|
PGPEx-VLM |
Written Test |
|
PGDBA |
PGDBA Entrance Test |
|
PGPWE |
GMAT/ GRE/CAT/ XAT/ GATE/ PGP-WE Entrance Exam |
|
IPMX |
GMAT/GRE |
|
PGP-Finance |
GMAT/GRE/CAT |
|
PGP-LSM |
GMAT/GRE/CAT |
|
PGP-BL |
GMAT/GRE/CAT |
|
EPGP |
EMAT/ GMAT/GRE |
|
EPGP |
GMAT |
|
PGPMX |
IIM Indore Aptitude Test for PGPMX |
|
PGPEx and PGP(WE) |
GMAT |
|
PGDBA Working Executives |
GMAT/GRE/CAT |
|
One Year MBA-Global Supply Chain Management |
GMAT/GRE/CAT |
|
One Year MBA-Digital Enterprise Management |
GMAT/GRE/CAT |
|
MBA Working Executives (Chennai campus) |
Written Test |
|
Executive MBA |
Personal Interview |
|
NA |
NA |
|
ePGP |
Personal Interview |
|
MBA for Working Professionals |
IIM Nagpur Aptitude Test |
|
Executive MBA |
GMAT/GRE/CAT/IIMJAT |
|
Executive MBA |
GMAT/GRE/CAT/GATE/IIMSAT |
|
Executive MBA |
GMAT/CAT/EMAT |
|
MBA (Analytics) |
GMAT/CAT |
|
MBA (Tourism & Hospitality Management) |
GMAT/CAT/IIM Sirmaur Test |
|
Executive MBA |
GMAT/GRE/GATE/CAT/IAAT |
|
PGPDGM |
GMAT/GRE/GATE/CAT |
|
PGPEx |
GMAT/GRE/IIMV Test/CAT |
The selection process of Executive MBA programmes offered by IIMs include Personal Interview. Written Ability Test along with PI is mandatory for some courses. Thus, the candidates need to prepare for admission on the basis of selection criteria of the course they choose to pursue.
Integrated MBA from IIMs without CAT
Given below is the list of IIMs that offer five-year Integrate Programme in Management (IPM). Admission to these courses also include entrance exam and personal interview.
IIM College |
Course |
Eligibility/Selection Criteria |
---|---|---|
IIM Indore |
IPM |
IPMAT and WAT-PI |
IIM Rohtak |
IPM |
IPM Aptitude Test and WAT-PI |
IIM Jammu |
IPM |
JIPMAT and PI |
IIM Bodh Gaya |
IPM |
JIPMAT and PI |
IIM Ranchi |
IPM |
JIPMAT and PI |
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IIM admisison to the MBA course is based on a valid CAT score, followed by Written Ability Test (WAT) and Group Discussion & Personal Interview (GD &PI). CAT 2023 cut offs for IIM admission are estimated to be in the range of 95-100 percentile for General candidates. For top IIMs such as IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore and IIM Calcutta, among others, the minimum CAT cut off is 90 percentile and the maximum can go upto 100. IIM Rohtak estimated CAT cutoff 2023 (percentile) will range between 92 and 94 for the General category students.
So, considering the previous year trends and estimated CAT percentile for IIM Rohtak, students with 70 percentile cutoff will not be able to get into IIM Rohtak. Candidates can get admission to other B-Schools like XIME, Bangalore and LIBA, Chennai with 70 percentile CAT cutoff.