# Prepare for CAT (MBA entrance)

> Register by mid-September, sit the 120-minute computer-based test on the last Sunday of November, and convert the percentile into IIM and top B-school calls.

- **Section:** Entrance exams · **Region:** India · **Difficulty:** hard
- **Time:** 6–9 months of preparation · registration Aug 3–Sep 15 · exam 29 Nov 2026 in three slots
- **Cost:** ₹2,600 general · ₹1,300 SC/ST/PwD
- **You end up with:** A CAT percentile valid for the 2027 admission cycle at the 21 IIMs and 1,000+ institutes
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-09-05 · **Canonical:** https://for.do/p/cat-mba/

## Before you start

- A bachelor's degree with 50% (45% SC/ST/PwD), or final year of one
- A valid email and mobile for the CAT account, and a photograph/signature to spec

CAT is a two-hour aptitude test with an unusual structure: three sections in a fixed order, forty minutes each, with no movement between them. Because the marking penalises wrong MCQs and each section has its own cutoff, the preparation is about accuracy and balance rather than coverage.

## 1. Confirm eligibility and register

- [ ] Bachelor's degree with 50% (45% reserved) or final year.
- [ ] Register on iimcat.ac.in between 3 August and 15 September (5 pm); fee ₹2,600 general, ₹1,300 SC/ST/PwD.
- [ ] Select up to six test cities and the IIM programmes you want considered; category cannot be edited later.

## 2. Take a diagnostic mock in week one

- [ ] Sit one full CAT-format mock cold. Record section scores, attempts and accuracy.
- [ ] Set the target from the diagnostic: 99th percentile needs roughly 100+ marks in recent years; calibrate with the last two years' score-to-percentile tables.

## 3. Section-wise preparation

- [ ] VARC: read for 30 minutes daily (editorials, long-form essays); practise 4 RC passages a day and para-jumble/summary sets. Accuracy over attempts.
- [ ] DILR: solve two sets a day from previous years and reputed mock series; learn to identify the two solvable sets in the first five minutes.
- [ ] QA: arithmetic, algebra and numbers carry the weight; finish concepts by month three, then only timed sets.

## 4. Mock series and analysis

- [ ] From month four, one full mock a week rising to two in October and November, in your actual slot time.
- [ ] Analyse every mock: which questions you should have skipped, which skipped questions were easy, where time went.
- [ ] Maintain a running error log by topic; revise it weekly.

## 5. Exam day (29 November 2026)

- [ ] Download the admit card from 4 November; carry it with a photo ID.
- [ ] Section order is fixed: VARC, DILR, QA — 40 minutes each, no going back.
- [ ] Use the on-screen calculator sparingly; TITA questions carry no penalty, so attempt them all.

## 6. After the result

- [ ] Results in early January; download the scorecard.
- [ ] Shortlists from IIMs follow within weeks; prepare a written ability test, group discussion and personal interview with your profile, academics and work experience.

## Where people get this wrong

- Chasing questions instead of accuracy. With +3/−1 on MCQs and no negative on TITA, a 70% accuracy attempt beats a 50% accuracy sprint; CAT rewards leaving questions.
- Neglecting DILR. It is the section with the widest score variance and the one that decides calls at the 99th percentile; sets, not speed, win it.
- Registering with a wrong category or a photo that fails the spec. Registration corrections are limited, and the category cannot be changed after submission.
- Ignoring the sectional cutoffs. IIMs shortlist on section percentiles as well as overall; an unbalanced score with a weak VARC is a lost call.

## Questions

**What is the pattern?**  
68 questions in 120 minutes across three fixed sections in order: VARC 24 questions (40 min), DILR 22 (40 min), QA 22 (40 min). +3 for correct, −1 for wrong MCQs, no negative for TITA. 204 marks.

**When are the key dates?**  
For CAT 2026: registration 3 August to 15 September, admit card from 4 November, exam 29 November in three slots (8.30 am, 12.30 pm, 4.30 pm), results early January.

**Is there an age limit or attempt cap?**  
No. Any number of attempts, no age limit.

## Tools used

- [IIM CAT](https://find.do/t/iim-cat/) (official) — Registration and scorecards for the Common Admission Test.

## Sources

- [IIM CAT (official)](https://iimcat.ac.in)
- [MBAUniverse — CAT 2026 dates and timings](https://www.mbauniverse.com/cat/date-and-timings)
- [Career Launcher — CAT exam pattern 2026](https://www.careerlauncher.com/cat-mba/exam-pattern/)