Best Colleges accepting CAT Score in India

There are approximately 1,550+ MBA colleges in India accepting CAT scores. Of these,  1,077 colleges are privately owned, 177 colleges are owned by public/government organisations, and public-private entities own 7 MBA colleges. CAT is the most accepting entrance exam in top MBA colleges in India. IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Lucknow, IIM Indore, Indian Institute of Management Mumbai, etc. are some of the top MBA colleges that accept CAT score in India.

Here are the best MBA colleges in India that accept CAT:

Disclaimer: This info. is taken from the official website and may differ.

Joining the best MBA colleges accepting CAT scores in India can be worthwhile for you. For that, you need to check its ROI. Listed below are some of the colleges along with their tuition fees and average placement package:

CAT score is valid for one year at the IIMs and top B-Schools. In some tier 3 and government institutions, CAT score of previous two years are also acceptable. Many B-schools including IIMs have an option of deferment of admission, wherein you can confirm your admission and pay the nominal fee but join the batch in the next year. It is advised that candidates take admission in the same year as their CAT attempt so that they don't have to reappear next year. Given the competition in MBA space, it is difficult to get a good college whether you have a low score or average score. So, incase one is getting a good college, they should take admission and not drop a year to appear for CAT again.

Internationally, IIMA has been ranked 29 by the QS Masters in Management Rankings (MBA) and 44 by the QS Global MBA Rankings. Nationally, IIM Ahmedabad ranks 1 by the NIRF 2022 and The Week 2022. IIM Ahmedabad, being an elite Management institute, has received several international and national rankings in recent years. A few top accolades received by IIMA are enlisted below:

It is estimated that joining the top B Schools accepting CAT scores in India can be affordable as most colleges have tuition fees between INR 1-2 lakh. Listed below are some of the affordable colleges having tuition fees of less than INR 1 lakh:

The table below shows the best government colleges accepting CAT scores in India along with their total tuition fees:

If you have a very good CAT score but poor academic record it is quite likely that you may not be shortlisted for top IIMs as the institutes prefer candidates with overall consistency in academics. Class 12 scores holds a lot of importance in shortlisting of candidates for WAT-PI.

Yes, MBA programme is offered at DMS IIT Delhi. The Department of Management Studies (DMS) at IIT Delhi offers MBA, MBA (Telecom), Executive MBA programmes. For admission to the MBA Programme at DMS IIT Delhi the aspiring candidates need a Bachelor's Degree or equivalent, with a minimum of 60% marks or a CGPA of 6.00/10. Relaxation to 55% or 5.50 CGPA for SC/ST/PwD candidates. Final-year candidates can apply, with provision to join upon submitting results. Admission involves CAT scores, interview assessment of personality and knowledge, followed by an offer letter sent to registered email. 

The general eligibility criteria to get MBA admission in India that accept CAT scores are listed below:

• Candidates should have a bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification in any discipline from a recognised university or institution with a minimum of 50% aggregate.
• MBA colleges in India consider scores from national-level entrance exams such as Candidates are required to meet the minimum cutoff scores set by the respective colleges.

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Yes CAT syllabus is difficult to crack if you do not have enough time. There are three subjects in CAT- VARC, DILR and Quantitative Aptitude. Most of candidates find RC passages tough to crack. In Quants, Arithmetic, Algebra and Geometry pose significant challenge during preparation. In DILR, Reasoning questions often turnout to be tricky and confusion. 

On an average, about 10-15 CAT aspirants score 100 percentile. Given below is the data of CAT 100 percentilers of last 4 years:

IIM Calcutta placement 2023-24 was concluded with a 100% placement record. The highest package offered in the placement drive stood at INR 1.2 crore per annum. Thus, students after MBA from IIM Calcutta can accept a good placement drive. However, the placement offered changes every year based on the merit of the participants and upon the participating companies.

The cost of IIM Indore MBA ranges between INR 17.30 Lacs and INR 35 Lacs as per unofficial sources. However, the fee structure given on IIM Indore official website, the total fee of the PGP course is inclusive of the course fee, alumni fee, medical insurance and mess deposit.

Given below is fee structure of IIM Indore MBA fees, as per the official website for 2023-25 batch:

Minimum qualifying cut off for IIM Ahmedabad is 95 percentile whereas for IIM Bangalore and IIM Calcutta, it is 85. However final cut offs for these three top IIMs are between 99 to 100 percentile.

Having a good academic profile for IIM admission is very critical. The top 6 IIMs lay a lot of emphasis on Class 10 and Class 12 score for selection of candidates for WAT-PI round. The academic profile is evaluated again at the time of preparation of final merit list. It has been seen in the past that some candidates despite having 99+ percentile, were not selected for PI round due to low score in Class 12.

The academic profile is assessed for academic as well as gender diversity. Which means a candidate who studied Arts in Class 12 may be selected for PI with lower marks than a candidate who studied Science in Class 12.

Candidates aiming for IIMs must know that while the importance of academic profile is very important for top IIMs, it is moderately important for rest of the IIMs. For, other top MBA colleges, overall profile matters more than academic score. So, if you do not have superlative scores in Class 10 and 12, build a good profile with work experience and extra curricular activities to increase your chances of selection.

IIM shortlist is the list of CAT test takers who make it to the second phase of IIM admission process, which is Written Ability Test (WAT) and Personal Interview (PI). The IIM shortlist is the list of candidates who are eligible to participate in the WAT-PI rounds of IIMs for MBA admission.

Gauhati University MBA admission is completely based on the merit scores obtained by students in the university/national-level entrance exam along with their merit at the undergraduate level. The university conducts its own entrance exam for admission. However, those with a valid score in national-level entrances, such as MAT/ CAT/ XAT/ CMAT exams are exempted from this test provided they have a score of 75 percentile and above. Those who qualify one of the afore-mentioned exams are required to go through a GDPI round for final selection. Before everything else, students must meet with the minimum eligibility criteria set by the university which is to pass a relevant undergraduate degree with at least 50% aggregate. However, those who are in the final year of their UG degree can also apply provided they have no arrears in the previous semesters and fulfill the complete eligibility before first semester exams.

No, UNIPUNE doesn't offer direct admission to MBA course. Candidates have to qualify the eligibility and selection criteria. SPPU MBA admissions for Maharashtra candidates are subject to a valid score in MAH CET, conducted by DTE Maharashtra. However, for outside Maharashtra candidates, a valid score in CMAT/ CAT/ MAH CET works well. Interested candidates are required to register on the official website and appear for the course-wise shortlisting process. Before that candidates have qualify the eligibilty, any UG degree with at least 50% aggregate (45% aggregate for reserved category candidates).

The highest package offered during IIT KGP placements 2026 was INR 2.44 Crore per Annum.

The placement rate recorded during SJMSOM IIT Bombay MBA placements 2023 was 100%. Students get a good salary package after completing MBA from a reputed institute like SJMSOM. The highest package and average package offered during SJMSOM IIT Bombay MBA placements 2023 stood at INR 54 LPA and INR 28.88 LPA, respectively. The top recruiters of SJMSOM IIT Bombay in 2023 included leading companies such as GEP, HUL, Google, Accenture, Cargill, etc. 

Yes, IIM Raipur also offers an executive Post Graduate Programme in Management (ePGP) which is equivalent to executive MBA programme. Executive PGP is specially curated for working professionals to add on some trending skills which are currently required in the industry. Only candidates having a valid work experience after their graduation can apply for the executive Post Graduate Programme in Management (ePGP) at IIM Raipur.

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) is one of the top Management institutes in the country. It has grabbed #15 rank in the NIRF 2024 rankings in the Management category. The overall the highest and average stipend offered (for two months) during IIFT Delhi summer placement 2025 for the MBA IB batch of 2024-26 stood at INR 6 Lacs and INR 2.73 lakh, respectively. Moreover, the Sales and Marketing domain emerged as the top recruiting domain. Furthermore, in the MBA BA batch of 2024-26, the highest and average stipend stood at INR 4 Lacs and INR 1.42 lakh, respectively.