The Common Admission Test (CAT) is India’s most competitive gateway to the IIMs and 1,200+ other B-schools. CAT 2025 will be conducted by IIM Kozhikode on 30 November 2025. This in-depth, SEO-optimised blog covers every detail you need—official timeline, eligibility, fees, exam pattern, section-wise syllabus, topic-wise weightage, trends from CAT 2024/2023/2022, and expert preparation tactics. Finally, discover how B School Buzz, India’s largest MBA community, can supercharge your journey.
Eligibility & Registration Essentials
- Bachelor’s degree with ≥50 percent marks (45 percent for SC/ST/PwD) or equivalent CGPA is required.
- Final-year graduates may apply, provided they complete degree requirements by 2026.
- Registration is online via iimcat.ac.in; OTP-verified email & mobile number are mandatory.
- Category certificates (NC-OBC, EWS, SC/ST, PwD) must be uploaded in specified formats.
Key Features
- Strict sectional timer; no backtracking between sections.
- On-screen calculator & rough sheets provided.
- PwD candidates receive 53 min 20 s per section
Past-Year Exam Analysis
CAT 2024 Overview
- Total Q rose to 68; DILR got 2 extra questions.
- Overall difficulty: moderate; QA easiest, VARC moderate, DILR moderate-difficult.
- Slot-wise: Slot 2 toughest; Slot 3 marginally easier.
CAT 2023 Key Takeaways
- 66 Q, 198 marks; QA toughest in 5 years.
- Algebra & Arithmetic dominated QA (15⁺ Q).
- Overall cut-off for 99 percentile ≈80 raw marks.
CAT 2022 Highlights
- Pattern stable at 66 Q; LRDI purely reasoning-heavy.
- Overall moderate; RC passages dense; QA moderate-difficult.
