IIM Entrance Exam 2025: The IIM Entrance Exam is conducted every year to shortlist meritorious students for taking to the most prestigious MBA colleges. The IIM conducts the CAT (Common Admission Test) exam to select candidates suitable for IIMs and ISBs. The CAT 2025 is expected to take place in November. It is conducted by IIM Kozhikode in three sessions, which has a test centre in over 170 cities to allow a higher number of candidates to appear in the IIM Entrance exam.
IIM Entrance Exam 2025
| Name of the IIM Entrance Exam | CAT (Common Admission Test) |
| Conducted By | IIMs (Indian Institute of Management) |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Exam Duration | 2 hours (120 minutes) |
| Sections | VARC, DILR, QA (40 minutes each) |
| Types of Questions | Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) and TITA (Type in the Answer) |
| Total Questions | 68 |
| Total Marks | 204 |
| Marking Scheme | +3 for correct answer, -1 for incorrect answer |
| Eligibility | 50% marks in a Bachelor's Degree (45% for reserved category) |
| Test Cities | 170 |
Also Read, IIM Average Package 2025, Salary Trends, ROI Comparison
IIM Admission Process 2025
The process for admission into an IIM usually includes:
- CAT Exam: You appear for the CAT and achieve the desired percentile for your targeted IIM.
- Shortlisting candidates for WAT-PI: To shortlist candidates for WAT-PI, you could have the following
- Overall and sectional CAT scores
- Academics (10th, 12th, Under Grad)
- Work Experience
- Gender Diversity
- WAT & PI
- WAT- A brief essay explaining current issues or abstract-like topics.
- PI- Faculty, alumni, or industry experts all evaluate you.
- Some of the new IIMs may also use Group Discussion
- Final Selection: Composite score = Weighted average of CAT, WAT, everything you have done, Work-experience, Academics, diversity. Final selection process is going to be done on the categories of the application, General, EWS, OBC, SC/ST, PwD
- CAP/SAP rounds: New IIMs have CAP (Common Admission Process) and SAP (Special Admission Process). If a candidate has applied to only the younger IIMs, these candidates can participate in CAP.
Also Read, Government MBA Colleges In India 2025, Placements, Fees
IIM Entrance Exam Eligibility
There is a minimum eligibility criterion for appearing in the CAT. The candidates must fulfill it to sit in the IIM Entrance Exam.
Educational Qualification
- Bachelor’s degree (minimum of 3 years) in any discipline
- Minimum 50% marks for General/EWS/OBC; 45% for SC/ST/PwD
- Final year students can apply as provisional, based on final results and a provisional certificate, before joining
Work Experience
- Not obligatory for PGP (regular MBA), however, beneficial for executive programs (eg, IIM Ahmedabad EPGP, IIM Bangalore PGPEM)
- Candidates are given certain advantage in composite score is they have worke experience.
Age Limit
There is no upper age limit for appearing in the entrance exam of IIM colleges. The candidates can appear for the CAT in any age group.
Diversity and Quota
- Females are given some preference, which means the 'E' score is considered during shortlisting
- Reserved categories, as per the government of India, have a quota during admission to IIMs. The General category needs 50% while the reserved category needs only 45% for their Bachelor's degree.
Also Read, IIM Highest Package 2025, Domain-Wise Salary Trends In IIMs
IIM Reservation Policy
IIMs have fixed no. of seats in the college for the reserved category students like SC, OBC, EWS, ST etc. The percentage of total no. of seats is given in the table below:
| Category | Reservation |
| OBC | 27% |
| SC | 15% |
| ST | 7.5% |
| EWS | 10% |
| PWD | 5% |
Also Read, Total MBA Seats in IIMs, Category-wise Seats Distribution
How to Get Admission in IIM?
To get admission to IIM, the candidates can follow the steps below:
- Ensure that you fulfill the minimum eligibility criteria given in the article
- Aim for a higher CAT score, which is 98-99 percentile for premier IIMs and 95 for CAP IIMs
- Your marks in 10th, 12th, and UG degree also contribute to the selection process. IIM Ahmedabad assigns up to 10 marks if a candidate has a percentage of 90+
- Gain relevant work experience and participate in programs that add to your leadership skills. Join volunteering and diversity initiatives.
- Practice for WAT and PI by structuring essays with an introduction, arguments, and a conclusion. Discuss career goals, achievements, and fit with the institute.
- Make sure you meet the cut-offs with your performance in the CAT, WAT, PI, and academic profile.
- Female candidates and minorities might receive a bonus score in the shortlisting process.
How to Prepare For the IIM Entrance Exam?
To prepare for the IIM Entrance exam, the candidates can make note of the pointers below and get admission in the Best MBA colleges.
- Understand the CAT Exam syllabus and exam pattern. The syllabus is the guiding light for every aspirant, whether it is an entrance exam or any other competitive exam.
- Regularly practice previous year papers and mock tests
- Serious aspirants can also join CAT Online Coaching such as cracku, which offers excellent study material by CAT toppers at very affordable prices.
- Work on every section individually as well as all at once with the help of a CAT mock test.
- Learn Time Management before you appear for the exam, so that none of the questions are left unattempted.
- Learn tips and tricks to attempt questions quickly and accurately. Try to avoid negative marking.
- Work on your profile building for the later stages of the selection process.
IIM Entrance Exam 2025: Conclusion
To get admission into IIMs is not solely based on your CAT score. You need to have a good academic background, proper work experience, and dedicate enough time to WAT and PI preparation. If you can build a holistic and different personal profile, it will be beneficial. To overcome all of these hurdles, you need to be disciplined and have zeal, along with proper preparation. Most importantly, begin on time, be diligent about your mock tests, and articulate your story and goals succinctly. If you have dedication and confidence, you can be in the next IIM class.
