IIMB to conduct CAT this time; no change in format

Test to be held in 138 cities, two more than last year

The Common Admission Test or CAT, 2016, for entry into prestigious B-schools in the country will be conducted on December 4, 2016.

This year's test will remain more or less like the previous one, contrary to the trend in previous years when a number of changes were made. 

The Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIMB), will conduct the test this time. Prof Rajendra K Bandi has been appointed as the convenor for CAT 2016. 

Barring the addition of two new cities where the test will be conducted, there are no other significant changes this year. The test will be held in 138 cities, said a release from IIMB.

IIM Ahmedabad which conducted the CAT, 2015, had introduced major changes. Questions other than the usual multiple choice questions were introduced in 2015. Reintroduction of sectional time constraints was another of the changes.  In CAT 2016 too, there will be two sessions - morning and afternoon.

The duration of the test will be 180 minutes which will be divided into three sections - verbal ability and reading comprehension (section I), data interpretation and logical reasoning (section II) and quantitative ability (section III). Candidates will be allotted exactly 60 minutes for answering questions in each section and they cannot switch from one section to another.

Some questions in each section will not be of multiple choice type. Instead, direct answers are to be typed on the screen, said the release.  Basic on-screen calculator for computation will also be allowed this year, like it was done for the first time last year. 

Centre allotment

Candidates will be given the option to select four test cities in the order of preference. The test cities and centres will be assigned only after the last date for registration.

“In the rare case that a candidate is not allotted any of the preferred cities, he or she will be allotted an alternative city,” said the IIMB release.

Candidates will have to pay the registration fee through online mode only. After submission of applications, candidates will be permitted to download their admit cards.

The CAT-2016 tutorial will be available on the CAT website:www.iimcat.ac.in, October 18 onwards. Candidates can contact the help desk over [e-mail] or phone [phone] , if they have any queries.

Points to remember

Online registration: August 8 to September 22, 5 pm.
Downloading of admit card: October 18 to December 4, 1 pm.
Test date: December 4 (morning and afternoon sessions).
Results: Second week of January 2017 (tentative date).