Is the syllabus for CAT and TANCET same? Can I prepare for TANCET exam using CAT study material such as mock tests and question papers?

CAT is a national level exam for MBA admission, while TANCET is a state level exam for MBA admission. Syllabus for both CAT and TANCET are on a similar lies with slight changes in the sections. TANCET exam includes an additional section for Business Situation analysis. Candidates who have prepared for CAT exams section, including DILR, VARC, and QA, need a minimal study plan to prepare for TANCET. Candidates who took the CAT exam must drive deeper into the section for analysis of business situations. Study material, including books, question type remains similar for CAT and TANCET exam. Practising mock tests for CAT and TANCET must be done individual as the difficult standards, exam duration, number of questions and other elements of test pattern will vary. Mock test will provide a better understanding of taking TANCET and CAT exam.

What is the syllabus & exam pattern of TANCET?

TANCET exam is conducted for MBA and MCA admission. More than 25,000 candidates take the TANCET exam for MBA admission. The sections vary for MBA and MCA exams. The space below mention the TANCET MBA exam pattern: Mode of TANCET exam: Offline, OMR based Type of questions: Objective type Number of questions: 100 Number of sections: 5 Exam duration: 120 minutes Maximum marks: 100 Marks for correct response: 1 mark Mark down for incorrect response: 1/4 mark Exam medium: English The TANCET MBA syllabus is based on five sections. The sections for TANCET MBA exam include: Business Situations Reading Comprehension Quantitative Ability Data Sufficiency English Usage All sections in the TANCET exam have equal weightage.

How many options are there in each MCQ in TANCET question paper?

TANCET exam coprises as many as 100 objective type questions. TANCET MBA exam has five sections with equal question weightage. Therefore, each section will have 20 questions each. Candidates have to answer all the questions. However, in case of incorrect responses, candidates will face a penalty of 1/3 mark. Each correct answer will fetch 1 mark.

What is the marking scheme of TANCET for MBA exam?

Anna University prescribes the marking scheme of TANCET MBA and MCA exam. Candidates preparing for the exam day strategy must know the TANCET marking scheme to plan the best strategy. The TANCET exam marking scheme is as follows: Each correct response will fetch 1 mark Any incorrect response in the TANCET exam will lead to deduction of 1/3 mark No negative marking prevails for the unattempted questions Since the TANCET exam have a negative marking for incorrect response, candidates must only mark the answers in the OMR sheet if they are sure of the same. Negative marking may decrease the overall score extensive.

What is the mode of TANCET exam?

Anna University conducts TANCET exam in an offline mode. The offline centre based exam has objective type questions to be answered on an OMR sheet. OMR or Optical Mark Recognition sheet acknowledges human-created marks on a specially printed paper. OMR sheets are commonly used in surveys, exams, etc. Anna University evaluates the responses by all the candidates using the OMR device which scans the sheet after reflecting a light. The OMR device looks at the contrasting reflectivity of the light at certain positions on the form. Shaded areas on the form will reflect less light. Therefore, the shaded blocks are detected as the response from the test-taker.

Will TANCET exam have descriptive type questions?

TANCET exam does not have any descriptive type questions. All the questions in the TANCET question paper are objective type questions, also known as Multiple Choice Questions. Anna University design the TANCET test paper to ask questions with four answers options. Out of these four options, one answers is correct, while other three answers are incorrect. Candidates have to choose the right answers to fetch 1 mark. For every incorrect response, candidates will get a education of 1/3 marks. All 100 questions in the TANCET exam are objective type.

What is the duration of TANCET exam?

TANCET exam duration is two hours or 120 minutes. Candidates have to answer a total of 100 MCQ type questions within 120 minutes. For each question in the TANCET exam, candidates will have more than one minute. Therefore, candidates must target to answer each question of the TANCET exam within the specified timeline. Since there is a negative marking, candidates must avoid the guess work and only answer those questions where they are confident of the answer.

What is the section wise weightage in TANCET exam?

TANCET exam for MBA admission have five sections. Each section of the TANCET exam have an equal weightage. Anna University provides 20 per cent weightage to all five sections of the exam. Eacg section has 20 questions, collectively taking the question count to 100. The sections in the TANCET MBA exam include: Business Situations Reading Comprehension Quantitative Ability Data Sufficiency English Usage Since all the sections of the TANCET exam have equal weightage, candidates provide equal importance to all five sections. Any of the section may lead to act as an advantage in pulling the overall score of the candidate.

Is there any sectional time limit in TANCET MBA exam?

As per the TANCET exam pattern, the exam has five sections compiling 100 questions. The total duration to answers all these 100 MCQs is 120 minutes. It is up to the test take to decide how much time he/she should allocate to each section. Since there is no pre-define sectional time limit, candidates can over across questions as well as sections. Although there is no sectional time limit, candidates must not forget that the weightage of questions and marks in each section is similar. Therefore, all five sections hold equal significance. It is crucial to allocate time to each section based on the candidates individual comfort and preparation. Candidates must keep the total time duration of the exam in mind and the time they need to answers questions from the next section of TANCET exam.

Which section of the TANCET exam has the highest weightage?

The TANCET exam has five sections, namely, Business Situations Reading Comprehension Quantitative Ability Data Sufficiency English Usage As per the TANCET exam pattern, a total of 100 questions are asked collectively from all sections of the TANCET exam. All five section of TANCET MBA exam have equal weightage. Therefore, candidates have to answer a total of 20 questions, irrespective of the section. Since all sections of the TANCET exam have equal weightage, candidates must take all sections seriously. Each section of TANCET exam holds identical importance.

TANCET Exam Pattern 2026: Check Section-wise Latest Paper Format

Q: Is it easy to get high scores in TANCET exam?

Yes, it is easy to obtain high score in TANCET exam. to meet the cutoff scores. An exam is considered tough or easy by an individual based on his/her preparation. TANCET exam pattern is easier compared to other MBA entrance exams such as CAT, XAT, CMAT, etc. TANCET MBA has five sections with 20 marks for each section. These sections are mentioned below: Business Situations Reading Comprehension Quantitative Ability Data Sufficiency English Usage

Q: How many times is TANCET exam conducted in one exam session?

TANCET exam is conducted once every year. Candidates can appear for the TANCET exam once within one academic year. For admission to the next year, candidates have to appear for the subsequent term of the TANCET exam. However, the exam schedule and frequency might change in the future. For latest updates on TANCET exam, candidates can rely on shiksha's TANCET exam page. https://www.shiksha.com/mba/tancet-exam .

Q: Will TANCET shift to online exam mode in future exam sessions?

Anna University may consider changing the TANCET exam mode from offline to online. Since the exam has fewer audience as compared to other competitive exams, offline exam becomes easy to manage. Candidates prefer an online exam over the offline OMR based exam. The decision with the change in the exam mode shall lie with the conducting body.

1.3K Students Q&A

This exam is conducted for courses given below:

MBA MCA, MCA(LE)

Updated on Sep 10, 2025 23:37 IST

By Abhishek Dhawan, Assistant Manager – Editorial Content

TANCET 2026 Exam Pattern: The conducting body of TANCET 2026, Anna University, has released the TANCET exam pattern. TANCET pattern for MBA is different from MCA; therefore, Anna University conducts the exam for MBA and MCA in two separate shifts. TANCET exam is conducted every year for MBA and MCA courses. The exam pattern of TANCET MBA 2026 is on similar lines to the previous session. Anna University will conduct TANCET 2026 in a pen-pencil based mode, or the offline mode.

As per the TANCET 2026 MBA exam pattern, the question paper will have five sections, namely, Analysis of Business Situations, Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Ability, Data Sufficiency and English Usage. Each section will have 20 questions. Candidates need to answer questions from all the sections within a two-hour duration. Read this article further to get more details on TANCET exam pattern 2026.

Access past 10 year TANCET question papers for MBA and MCA

➤ TANCET MBA Question Papers with Answers

➤ TANCET MCA Question Papers with Answers

Q: Is it easy to get high scores in TANCET exam?

Q: How many times is TANCET exam conducted in one exam session?

Q: Will TANCET shift to online exam mode in future exam sessions?

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