CAT 2020 – The Common Admission Test (CAT) is the premier entrance exam for MBA admission in b-schools across the country. CAT scores are used by IIMs, FMS Delhi, MDI, Gurgaon, SPJIMR, Mumbai, JBIMS Mumbai and hundreds of other b-schools. The exam is attempted every year by more than 2.4 lakh aspirants. The application form of CAT 2020 will be released in online mode around the last week of July 2020. The CAT 2020 will be conducted in computer-based mode and comprise both MCQs and non-MCQs. The exam duration will be 3 hours, one-hour for each section. There is no age limit for appearing in CAT 2020, which will be conducted around the last week of November 2020. Go through the rest of the article to learn the full details of CAT 2020, including eligibility criteria, exam pattern, admit card, and result.
CAT 2020 – At a Glance
| Name of the exam | Common Admission Test (CAT) |
| Conducting authority | CAT 2020 is likely to be convened by IIM Indore |
| CAT 2020 exam date | To be notified |
| Test cities | Around 156 |
| Mode of exam | Computer based test (CBT) mode To be conducted in two slots – Morning and Afternoon |
| Age limit for appearing in CAT 2020 | There is no age Limit, but candidates need to be Graduates with minimum 50% marks |
| Question type | MCQs with four answer options, and Non-MCQs |
| Sections and number of questions | The question paper has three sections. Verbal Ability and RC – 34 questions Data Interpretation and LR – 32 questions Quantitative Ability – 34 questions Total questions for the paper = 100 |
| Time duration | 3 hours Further, each section will have a time limit of 1 hour. |
| Participating institutes | 20 IIMs, IITs, FMS, Delhi, MDI, Gurgaon, SPJIMR, Mumbai, JBIMS Mumbai TAPMI, ManipalIMT Ghaziabad, IMI New Delhi, Many other MBA colleges |
| Mode of application | Online |
| Application fee | Rs. 1900 for general Rs. 950 for SC, ST and PwD candidates |
| Official CAT website | iimcat.ac.in. |
CAT 2020 Eligibility Criteria
The eligibility criteria of CAT 2020 will be explained in the detailed notification that will be released by the IIM that is convening the exam. The CAT eligibility criteria 2020 will outline the minimum requirements related to qualifying exam passed, marks obtained, and age limit that the applicant has to fulfill in order to be considered for admission to an MBA program.
Eligibility criteria of CAT 2020
- Qualifying exam: The candidate needs to have passed a B.Tech/BE or any graduate degree exam from a recognized institute scoring minimum 50% marks. Candidates belonging to SC, ST and PwD categories need only 45% marks.
- Such candidates in the final year of their qualifying exam may also apply.
- There is no age limit for appearing in the CAT exam.
- Note that while the CAT application form refers to work experience, it is not a mandatory criteria for writing the CAT 2020 exam. Also, it is the prerogative of the individual IIM or b-school to decide what weightage they want to give to work experience.
The exam conducting authority will release the application form of CAT 2020 in online mode sometime in August 2020. Candidates who meet the prescribed eligibility criteria need to duly fill and submit the CAT application form 2020 before the last date. As a cautionary measure, one must use only correct and verifiable information in the CAT 2020 application form, as otherwise the candidate may be disqualified from the admission process.
How to register for CAT 2020
- Account creation – the candidate will have to create a candidate account by entering details like name, email id, phone number. On successful registration, user id and password would be generated.
- Log-in to fill application form – The candidate has to next log-in and fill various sections of the application form like personal, academic and contact details. The candidate will also have to select a test city or exam centre.
- Upload documents – the candidate has to next upload scanned copies of photograph, signature, Pwd certificate (if applicable) in the prescribed specification. (refer table below).
Document specification
| Document | Dimensions | Format | Image Resolution (minimum) | File Size |
| Photograph | 30 mm x 45 mm | JPEG/JPG | 150 px/inch | Not more than 80 KB |
| Signature | 80 mm x 35 mm | JPEG/JPG | 150 px/inch | Not more than 80 KB |
In addition, the candidate also has to upload duly filled PwD certificate, which has to be downloaded from the CAT website. The document must be self-attested before uploading it in PDF format. Likewise, reserved category candidates need to download the caste certificate and upload the scanned copy of the completed form.
- Payment of registration fee – The candidate has to finally pay the application fee to complete the CAT 2020 registration process.
CAT 2020 Registration Fee
| Category | Fees |
| SC, ST and PwD candidates | Rs 950 |
| All other candidates | Rs 1900 |
CAT Exam Pattern 2020
The applicant must refer to the exam pattern of CAT 2020 to know what types of questions will be asked, the marking scheme, sections, sectional time duration, and much more. Having the CAT 2020 exam pattern in one’s fingertips will make it easier to plan and execute CAT preparation strategy.
CAT 2020 exam pattern
| CAT 2020 Test cities | Around 156 |
| Mode of exam | Computer based test (CBT) mode To be conducted in two slots – Morning and Afternoon |
| Type of questions | MCQs with four answer optionsNon-MCQs or Type in the Answer (TITA) questions |
| Sections and number of questions | The question paper will have following three sections: Verbal Ability and RC – 34 questions Data Interpretation and LR – 32 questions Quantitative Ability – 34 questions Total questions for the paper = 100 |
| Time duration | 3 hours Note: 4 hours for PwD candidates |
| Sectional duration | Each section will be timed and will be 60 minutes. So, once the 60 minutes for a section is over, one can’t answer questions from that section. Note: 80 minutes for PwD candidates |
| Marking scheme | Three marks for every correct answer; there will be negative marking of 1 mark for an incorrect answer |
Section-wise questions
| Section | Total number of questions | Total number of non-MCQs | Total number of MCQs |
| Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension | 34 | 7 | 27 |
| Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning | 32 | 8 | 24 |
| Quantitative Ability | 34 | 11 | 23 |
| Total | 100 | 74 | 26 |
The exam conducting body will release the admit card of CAT 2020 on the official CAT website iimcat.ac.in, tentatively in the 3rd week of October. To download the CAT hall ticket 2020, one needs to click on the admit card download tab and log-in by entering one’s user id and password. An important document for sitting in the exam, the CAT 2020 admit card will contain vital information like name and roll number of the applicant, CAT exam centre name and address, and date and time of the exam.
How to download CAT admit card 2020
- Go to the official CAT website iimcat.ac.in
- Click on the admit card link
- Enter User ID and password
- The hall ticket of CAT 2020 will be displayed on screen
- Download and take a printout of the CAT 2020 hall ticket
Exam conducting authorities will release the result of CAT 2020 tentatively in the 1st week of January 2021. The CAT 2020 result would be declared in the form of a scorecard containing details like name and registration number of the candidate, category, sectional and overall score, and sectional and overall percentile. To download the CAT scorecard, one needs to enter login ID and username.
Note that the result cum scorecard of CAT 2020 will be available in online mode through log-in accounts only and will not be sent to the candidate by post or email.
How to check CAT Result 2020
- Go to iimcat.ac.in
- Click on the result link
- In the log-in window, fill in CAT 2020 User ID and password
- The CAT scorecard 2020 will be displayed on screen
- Download and take a printout of the CAT 2020 scorecard
CAT Counselling 2020
There will be no common counselling of CAT 2020, as each of the participating IIM will conduct the counselling process separately. The IIMs will release institute-specific CAT 2020 cutoffs to shortlist candidates for respective counselling processes.
The same procedure is adopted by the other b-schools as well who will use CAT 2020 scores for admission purposes, but have their own individual counselling sessions.
The CAT 2020 conducted by various institutes typically has any of these elements: Written Ability Test or Group Discussion and Personal Interview (WAT/GD-PI).
After declaration of CAT 2020 result, the candidate will have to upload their CAT scores on the official website of the institute (say IIM Ahmedabad) they are applying for admission to. The institute will go through all the applications received by it and finally shortlist candidates for the WAT/GD-PI based on CAT 2020 scores.
Also read:
CLAT 2020
CLAT Result 2020
BITSAT Result 2020
VITEEE 2020
VITEEE Result 2020
JEE Main 2020
JEE Main Result 2020
