Common Admission Test or CAT examination is a common aptitude test which is a gateway to 20 IIMs and over 1,200 B-schools in India. is a computer-based test held in India every year by one of the IIM’s based on a policy of rotation in the last week of November. This year CAT Exam would be held on November 28, 2021. CAT 2021 Exam will be conducted by IIM Ahmedabad.

CAT syllabus is very generalized and vast. This test was started by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) to select students for their various business administration programs using the test. This exam aims to test the candidate’s aptitude in Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude.

CAT Exam 2021 Highlights

Features	Details
Exam Name	Common Admission Test (CAT)
Conducting Institute	Indian Institute Of Management (IIM)
Exam Level	National Level Examination
Exam Frequency	Once a year
Exam schedule	November 28, 2021
Exam Mode	Online
CAT Exam Duration	2 Hours (120 minutes)
Eligibility	Graduation with 50 % aggregate (45 % for SC/ST students)
Number of Applications	2.30 lakh (In 2020)
Exam Purpose	Admission into IIMs, SPJIMR, FMS, MDI, IMT and over 1200 Indian B-Schools
Course Offered	MBA or PGDM
Sections	3 Sections: QA, VARC, DILR
CAT syllabus	· Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)- Para-jumbles & para-summary, sentence completion, inferences, RC passages-based questions. · Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)- Seating Arrangement, Blood Relation, Syllogism, Tables, Graphs, Data Caselets · Quantitative Ability (QA)- Number System, Geometry, Algebra, Mensuration, Time and Work
CAT pattern	Online exam with MCQs and non-MCQs
Exam Language	English (Exam is conducted in CBT mode)
No. of Test Cities	158
Exam Helpdesk No.	cathelpdesk@iimcat.ac.in; 1800-2090-830 (Toll Free)
Exam Website	https://iimcat.ac.in

Aspirants can download the CAT Syllabus 2021 – Download Section Wise Pdf Now from the official website.

CAT Eligibility Criteria 2021

The conducting IIM lays out certain eligibility conditions which all the applicants need to meet before applying for CAT 2021. These conditions may vary based on the category to which a candidate belongs.

Some of the basic CAT 2021 eligibility criteria is discussed below for reference:

Criteria	Description
Number of Attempts	No Limit
Minimum Qualification	Graduation with 50% – General/ OBC-NC/EWS
Minimum Qualification	Graduation with 45% – SC/ST/ PWD
Equivalent	CA/CS/ICWA Degree with 50% – General/ OBC-NCCA/CS/ICWA Degree with 45% – SC/ST/ PWD
CAT Eligibility for Final Year Students	Will be admitted on a provisional basis if qualified.
CAT Age Limit	No Limit

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CAT Conducting Institutes Over the Years

CAT is conducted by only the top six IIMs on rotation basis. The CAT 2021 exam will be conducted by IIM Ahmedabad after a gap of five years.

Check the below table to know which IIMs conducted CAT in recent years:

CAT Year Conducting IIM	CAT Conducting IIM
2021	IIM Ahmedabad
2020	IIM Indore
2019	IIM Kozhikode
2018	IIM Calcutta
2017	IIM Luckow
2016	IIM Bangalore
2015	IIM Ahmedabad
2014	IIM Indore
2013	IIM Indore
2012	IIM Kozhikode
2011	IIM Calcutta
2010	IIM Lucknow
2009	IIM Ahmedabad

CAT Exam Pattern 2021

It is very important for candidates to understand the pattern of the CAT question paper before appearing for the examination. It would help them devise an effective exam day strategy. CAT will be held online, as a computer-based test. The question will be divided into three sections. The candidates will be answering around 76 questions in total. Some key highlights of the CAT exam pattern are given below:

Mode	Online i.e., Computer-based Test (CBT)
Duration	2 Hours or 120 Minutes
Maximum Marks	228 (in CAT 2020)
Subjects	Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, Quantitative Ability, Verbal Reasoning and Reading Comprehension
Medium/Language	English

The marking scheme for CAT 2021 is as follows:

Questions	Marks Awarded
Correct Answer	+3 Marks
Incorrect Answer (MCQs only)	-1 Mark
Unattempt Questions	No addition or deduction of marks
TITA	· +3 Marks for every correct answer · No negative marking

CAT 2020 had the following pattern:

Section	Duration	No. of MCQs	No. of non MCQs	Total
VARC	40 minutes	21	5	26
DI LR	40 minutes	18	6	24
QA	40 minutes	18	8	26
Total	2 hours	57	19	76

Difficulty Level of CAT Question Paper

The CAT exam is considered to be the toughest MBA entrance exam in India. The overall paper is moderate to tough every year, with one or the two sections being easier than the other is. It has been seen over the years that the difficulty level of CAT exam has been invariably higher than any other MBA entrance exam.

Based on the experience of test takers and experts, the difficulty level and some of the important topics from the previous year’s CAT exam are provided in the table below:

CAT Section	Total Questions	CAT Slot 1	CAT Slot 2	CAT Slot 3	Topics
CAT VARC Paper Analysis	26	Difficult	Easy	Moderate	RC, Para Summary, Odd Sentence, Para jumbles
CAT DILR Paper Analysis	24	Easy	Moderate	Difficult	Sales Figures, Scheduling, Parking Slots, Votes polled
CAT Quant Paper Analysis	26	Moderate	Moderate	Easy	Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry

CAT Syllabus 2021

CAT syllabus 2021 can be divided into three sections: Quantitative Ability (QA); Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR) and Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC).

Overview of CAT Syllabus 2021

Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus	Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning Syllabus	Verbal Reasoning Syllabus
Number Systems	Tables	English Usage or Grammar
Profit, Loss and Discount	Caselets	Vocabulary Based (Synonyms/ Antonyms)
LCM and HCF	Bar Graphs	Fill in the blanks
Speed, Time and Distance	Line Charts	Sentence Correction
Percentages	Column Graphs	Cloze Passage
Time and Work	Venn Diagrams	Jumbled Paragraph
Ratio and Proportion	Pie Chart	Meaning-Usage Match
Averages	Other Basic Reasoning Questions	Analogies or Reverse Analogies
Quadratic Equations & Linear Equations	Calendars	Summary Questions
Complex Numbers	Number and Letter Series	Verbal Reasoning
Simple and Compound Interest	Clocks	Facts-Inferences-Judgments
Logarithm	Venn Diagrams	Reading Comprehension
Sequences and Series	Cubes
Inequalities	Seating Arrangement
Probability	Binary Logic
Surds and Indices	Logical Matching
Set Theory & Function	Logical Sequence
Permutation and Combination	Syllogism
Mixtures and Alligations	Logical Connectives
Trigonometry	Blood Relations
Coordinate Geometry
Geometry
Mensuration

Detailed syllabus given section-wise:

CAT 2021 Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus

The CAT 2021 Entrance Exam syllabus for quantitative aptitude is provided below. All the important topics related to the CAT subjects is provided in order to help candidates understand the number of topics to be covered before commencing the preparation process.

Arithmetic– Number System, HCF, LCM, Ratio & Proportion, Simplification, Percentage, Average, Age Calculation, Time & Work, Distances.
Algebra– Hypothesis of Equations, Quadratic Equation, Permutation, and Combination, Sequence and Series
Percentages- Percentages and its applications
Trigonometry– Trigonometric Ratios, Heights, and Distances.
Calculus– Minima and Maxima functions.
Mensuration-Areas and Volumes – Rectangles, Squares, Triangles, Circles, Cubes, Cones, Spheres, Pipes and Cistern.
Geometry and its applications– Angles, Lines, Triangles, Circles.
Ratio and its applications.
Numbers and their applications.

CAT Verbal Ability Syllabus 2021

The candidates will have to type the answers (TITA) to the Verbal Ability questions. Hence, negative marking is not applicable.

The different kind of questions which the candidates may have to answer are:

Error corrections
Para-jumbles
Sentence completion
Vocabulary-based questions

Note: In CAT 2020, 26 questions were asked in this section.

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Important topics in CAT Verbal Ability Syllabus 2021

Candidates should prioritize the following topics from the CAT 2021 syllabus in order to score more in the Verbal Ability section.

Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary, Grammar
Close passage, Synonyms, and Antonyms
Critical Reasoning (and its numerous applications)
Idioms, Analogies, Para Completion, Fill in the blanks
Sentence Correction, Summary Questions, Jumbled Paragraph
Fact Interference Judgement, Meaning, and Usage Match

Reading Comprehension

In the Reading Comprehension section, the candidates will be answering several MCQs. The candidates will have to read about 3 to 4 long comprehensions, along with 2-3 short ones. The length of the long passages will be 900 words. The short passages will be 600 words long.

The topics will revolve around Politics, Literature, Science, History, Environment, Mythology, etc. In the VARC section, the Reading Comprehension section will occupy a weightage of about 70%.

Reading Comprehension paragraphs will be around 900 words and shorter paragraphs will have about 600 words. Candidates will have to read the paragraph and answer the questions asked at the end.

The syllabus for current affairs includes the topics like the Current affairs of National and International importance, Impact of Covid 19 pandemic on social life, Government Policies, Immigration, New Education Policy, CAA, Triple Talaq, Make in India, Clean India.
Syllabus for Economy includes topics like the Global Economic changes, Economic Development and Environment destruction, Demonetization, Unnecessary expenditure by the Government.
Syllabus for Literature includes work from great philosophers like Aristotle, Charles Dickenson, Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King, Mohan Das Karam Chand Gandhi, and others.
Syllabus for Science and Technology includes topics about the Modern world, the Advancement of Technology, and the fading of culture.
Syllabus for History includes topics about the social changes in the History of India, War of Roses, French Revolution, Freedom Fights among others.
Syllabus for Mythology includes topics about the important mythological, current social structure, and abstract fictional topics as well.

Logical Reasoning Syllabus

It is reported that a majority of the candidates find it easiest to score in the Logical Reasoning section. The section contains puzzles, problems, and questions which test a candidate’s mental ability.

Important topics in CAT Logical Reasoning Syllabus 2021

We have curated a list of important topics from the CAT Syllabus 2021 in order to help candidates score more.

Direction Sense
Puzzles
Series
Clocks and Calendars
Data Structures
Blood Relations
Arrangements
Coding-Decoding
Sylloge
Logical Connectivity

CAT Data Interpretation Syllabus 2021

In the data interpretation section of the CAT Syllabus, questions are designed to analyse a candidate’s ability to extract information from a given set of data, which can be in any form, i.e., Bar graph, pie chart, line graph, etc., is tested.
There are different types of charts and graphs which are used to frame Data Interpretation questions.
Aspiring Candidates must be thorough with all these questions from the CAT Syllabus in order to perform well in the CAT 2021 Exam.

Important topics in CAT Data Interpretation Syllabus 2021

Tables
Pie charts
Line graphs
Bar graphs
Clock
Cubes
Venn Diagram
Data Sufficiency
Seating Arrangement
Binary Logic
Caselets
Calenders
Number and Letter Series
The combination of Graphs.

CAT Syllabus Weightage

Quantitative aptitude

In the quantitative aptitude section, there are a few topics which are extremely crucial and repeated every year in the CAT exam. In this section, 34 questions are asked of which 8-9 questions are TITA based.

Some of the most important syllabus topics for CAT 2021 with their weightages are given below:

Topic Name	Expected No. of Questions
Geometry & Mensuration	7-8
Algebra	6-7
Arithmetic Questions	10-12
Number System	4-5
Others	2-3

Verbal Ability And Reading Comprehension (VARC):

Common Admission Test (CAT) syllabus for VARC section is divided into 2 parts. The 1^st part of CAT syllabus covers topics on Reading Comprehension passages and the 2^nd part of CAT MBA syllabus 2021 on VARC covers topics on Verbal Ability.

Total questions in this section are 26 out of which 6-8 questions are of non-MCQ type which do not carry negative marking. The 34% weightage of VARC syllabus is divided into 24% to RC syllabus and 10% to VA syllabus.

CAT Syllabus VARC Topics	Number of questions
Sequence of sentences	1-2 Questions
Meaning of the phrase	2-3 Questions
Inferences, Statements, Arguments	4-5 Questions
Irrelevant Statements	1-2 Questions
Synonyms-antonyms	2-3 Questions
Analogies	1-2 Questions
Completion of Paragraph	1-2 Questions
Error Correction in Sentences	1-2 Questions
Author’s assumption	2-3 Questions
Jumbled paragraphs	1-2 Questions
Vocabulary usage	2-3 Questions
Main idea in the RC Passage	2-3 Questions
Pick Out of Context Sentence	1-2 Questions
Critical Reasoning	1-2 Questions
Sentence Completion	1-2 Questions
Fill in the blanks	1-2 Questions
Para Summary	3-4 Questions

CAT 2021 Result

IIM is expected to release CAT 2021 results in the 1^st or 2^nd week of January 2022. Scorecards will be published online along with the results. Candidates will be notified about their percentile via SMS. CAT scores will be valid for 1 year.

After CAT 2021 Results are announced, different institutes will start publishing their CAT 2021 cut off percentiles for further processes.

CAT 2020 Analysis

Apart from the basic syllabus for CAT preparation, it might be useful to have a look at the CAT 2020 and CAT 2019 to set a benchmark.
The CAT 2020 Exam Pattern was modified due to the COVID Pandemic. The time limit for CAT 2020 was reduced to 2 hours with 40 minutes given to each section.

The number of questions was modified as well with 26 Questions in VARC, 24 Questions in DILR and 26 Questions in QA. The difficulty level varied somewhat with each slot.

The CAT Exam Pattern in CAT 2019 remained identical to CAT 2017 and CAT 2018 with 3 sections and 34 questions in VARC, 32 in DILR and 34 in QA.
The overall difficulty level of both slots was roughly the same. The QA and DILR was of a lower difficulty level in CAT 2019 than in CAT 2018 but the VARC were trickier in CAT 2019 compared to CAT 2017 or CAT 2018.

CAT 2021 Cut Off

Approx. CAT Cut-Off Percentiles (General Category)	Institutes
CAT Percentile 98.5+	IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C, IIM-I, IIM-K, IIM-L, FMS, IIT- B, MDI-PGPM, RGIIMS
CAT Percentile 96.5+	IIT-D, SPJIMR, JBIMS, NITIE-PGDIM, MDI-PGP HR/IM, IIM-KS, IIM-RH, IIM-RN, IIM-RP, IIM-T, IIM-UP
CAT Percentile 94.5+	IIT-C, IIT-KH, IIT-KN, IIT-R, IISc-B, IIM-A (ABM), IIM-Asr, IIM-BG, IIM-L (ABM), IIM-N, IIM-Sam, IIM-Srm, IIM-V, MDI-M
CAT Percentile 90+	BIM, FSM, IRMA, IMI-D, IMT-G/N, KJSIMSR, MICA, NIRMA, PUMBA, SPJAIN-D/S, TAPMI, UBS-CHD
CAT Percentile 87+	BIMTECH-PGDM/IB, GLIM, IBS-ICFAI, IFMR, IMI-K/B, IMT-H LBSIM, LIBA, MFC-DU, MIB-DU, MHROD-DU, WIMDR-M
CAT Percentile 85+	AJKMCRC, BIMTECH-Retail/Insurance, IIFM, ISBM-P, IIMC (Mass Com Delhi), MISB, MBE-DU, WIMDR-B

MBA College Accepting CAT Score (Above 90 Percentile)

College	Total Fees (Approx)	Average Placement Packages
Bharathidasan Institute of Management (BIM)	Rs. 13,75,000	10 LPA
Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT Kgp	Rs. 7,36,000	16.50 LPA
University Business School (UBS)	Rs. 32,874	9.5 LPA
MICA	Rs. 18,50,000	12.8 LPA
Delhi School of Management (DSM)	Rs. 1,58,000	7.5 LPA
Institute of Rural Management (IRMA)	Rs. 11,50,000	10.95 LPA
Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research	Rs. 11,00,000	11 LPA
Institute for Financial Management and Research	Rs 12,00,000	9 LPA
SP Jain Institute of Management and Research	Rs. 16,25,000	22 LPA
Institute of Management Studies, Banaras Hindu University	Rs. 98,888	9 LPA
Institute of Finance and International Management	Rs. 11,00,000	19 LPA
Sydenham Institute of Management Studies, Research and Entrepreneurship Education	Rs. 1,36,000-1,53,000	10.43 LPA
Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra	Rs. 4,77,00	11.76 LPA
Institute of Public Enterprise	Rs. 8,00,000	6.09 LPA
Balaji Institute of Modern Management	Rs. 6,60,000	6 LPA
SCMS Cochin School of Business	Rs.. 7,50,000	5 LPA
Department of Management Sciences, University of Pune	Rs. 1,32,000	6.43 LPA
Woxsen School of Business	Rs. 34,60,000	8.1 LPA
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Usha and Lakshmi Mittal Institute of Management	Rs. 12,25,000	4.5 LPA
DoMS, IISc	Rs. 70,000	24.5 LPA
K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research	Rs. 11,93,000	5 LPA
Indian Institute of Forest Management	Rs. 4,80,000	7.5 LPA
Indian Institute of Management Visakhapatnam	Rs. 9,00,000	13.08 LPA
Trinity College for Management and Technology	RS. 2,12,000	3 LPA
MNNIT	Rs.1,01,902	7.82 LPA
BITS School of Management	Rs. 24.5 Lakhs (Total)	NA

MBA College Accepting CAT Score (80-90 Percentile)

College	80-90 Percentile	College	Above 85 Percentile
Fore School of Management	Rs 15.98 lakh	IMI, Delhi	Rs 16.95 lakh
Goa Institute of Management	Rs 16.98 lakh	Institute of Management Technology, Nagpur	Rs 12.05 lakh
International Management Institute, Delhi	Rs 17.68 lakh	Bharathidasan Institute of Management, Tiruchirapalli	Rs 13.75 lakh
S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research	Rs 17.50 lakh	Delhi School of Management-DTU	Rs 3.17 lakh
Loyola Institute of Business Administration, Chennai	Rs 15.26 lakh	KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies & Research, Mumbai	Rs 7.08 lakh
Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management	Rs 15.29 lakh	Department of Management Sciences, Pune University	Rs 1.33 lakh
T. A. Pai Management Institute (TAPMI), Manipal	Rs 14.60 lakh	Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT Kharagpur	Rs 7.36 lakh
Prin. L. N. Welingkar Institute of Management development & Research, Bangalore	Rs 11 lakh	Department of Management Studies, IIM Madras	Rs 7 lakh
Amity University, Gurgaon	Rs 8.20 lakh	Department of Management Studies, IIT Roorkee	Rs 8 lakh
Amity University, Gwalior	Rs 8.20 lakh	School of Management, Manipal University	Rs 6.86 lakh