CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022: Age Limit & Qualification

CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022: The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) has released the notification for CAT 2022 exam. The registration process for the entrance exam started on August 3, 2022, and the last date to apply is September 21, 2022. Candidates planning to appear for the exam must have a clear knowledge of CAT eligibility criteria.

* Steps to practice CAT unlimited questions are mentioned below in this article.

In order to be eligible, candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree in any stream with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks. If candidates apply for the exam without satisfying the mandatory CAT eligibility norms, then they will be disqualified from the entrance exam. Check out the article to know more about the CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022.

CAT Exam Eligibility Criteria 2022: Exam Overview

Let us have an overview of the CAT 2022 before getting into other details:

CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022

Candidates applying for CAT must ensure that they satisfy all the necessary CAT eligibility criteria for 2022. The candidate must have completed a bachelor’s degree from a well-recognized college. CAT eligibility criteria do not specify any age limit. Work experience has its own points in an interview, but this is not a basic eligibility criterion. During the selection process at IIMs, the concerned authorities will verify the CAT eligibility 2022 of the candidate at various stages. CAT eligibility criteria may vary based on the candidate’s category.

Let’s have a look at the below tabular representation of the CAT eligibility criteria.

CAT 2022 Eligibility Required

IIM Bangalore lays out certain eligibility conditions that every applicant must meet before applying for CAT 2022.

Educational Qualifications:

• Candidate must have completed a bachelor’s degree program in any stream from any university that the Ministry of HRD, India recognises.
• The minimum percentage that is required for a bachelor’s degree in General and OBC category candidate is 50%.
• Candidates who belong to the reserved category must attain a minimum of 45% in the bachelor’s course.
• For candidates who are awarded grades or CGPA, the grades will be according to the process certified by the university.

Let’s look at the table below that represents the academic educational qualification details.

Candidates in the final year of graduation must submit the certificate from the Registrar/ Principal of the respective institution or university. This certificate defines that candidate met all the requirements for equivalent qualification on the date certificate is issued.

Age Limit: There is no age limit to appear for CAT 2022.

Number of Attempts: A candidate can appear for the CAT exam as many times as he/she wishes to i.e. No restriction on the number of attempts.

Marks in Qualifying Exam: 

• Candidates must have secured 50% marks or equivalent CGPA in the qualifying examination (Bachelor’s degree or equivalent).
• For candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), and Persons with Disability (PwD), the qualifying mark is 45%.

CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022: Admissible Degrees

Candidates must have the following degree, then-candidate must apply for CAT 2022. Let us have a look at the below table for seeking admission into the Business school and IIms.

CAT Eligibility with Backlogs

CAT aspirants who have an academic backlog during graduation can apply and register for CAT 2022 without any issue. In CAT 2022, those with backlogs are expected to apply and appear for the exam. It should be stated that the official IIM admission policy does not state that candidates with backlogs apply for the CAT exam. Candidates with a backlog in the final year of graduation are eligible to apply for CAT.

It is to be noted that the candidate’s percentage score or percentage equivalent to grades/CGPA will be based on the practice followed by the respective University/Institution. If a University/Institution has no scheme to convert Grade/CGPA into equivalent marks, the percentage score will be calculated by dividing the candidate’s CGPA by the maximum possible CGPA and multiplying the result by 100.

CAT Reservation Criteria 2022

IIM Bangalore offers some reservations for different categories. The reservation criteria for CAT 2022, i.e. category-wise reservation of seats, are tabulated below:

Steps To Practice Unlimited CAT Questions

To take the CAT free practice test on Embibe, candidates must follow the steps below:

• 1st Step: Visit the official website, i.e., embibe.com.
• 2nd Step: Use a mobile number/email to log in
• 3rd Step: Then select the Goal as ‘Management’ under the Government exam.
• 4th Step: Click Next and select ‘CAT’.
• 5th Step: Click Next and select the preferred language.
• 6th Step: Once done, click on the available links to take the practice tests.

Reservation Policy for Person With Disability

PwD candidates will have to bring a PwD certificate that is issued by a competent authority. This is one of the prior eligibility criteria which PwD category candidates must fulfil. Individuals with various type of disabilities accepted under PwD reservation includes:

• Low vision/ blind candidates
• candidates with hearing impairment
• Candidate with a locomotive disability or cerebral palsy.

CAT 2022 Exam Eligibility Criteria for Final Year Students

Often it is observed that students hold this common doubt that is the final year students eligible to appear for the CAT exam. Candidates who are in the final year of the program and are awaiting the results can also apply. The final year candidates of bachelor’s degrees are welcome to give the CAT exam, and they must clear the same with the required percentage, i.e. 50% for General category candidates and 45% for candidates belonging related to the reserved category. If a candidate is unable to clear their bachelor’s degree with the eligible percentage, then the candidature will be cancelled, considering it null and void.

The number of final-year students appearing for CAT each year is quite significant. Candidates need to clear their CAT exam eligibility. In order to comply with CAT exam eligibility criteria, candidates need to furnish some additional documents, which include:

• Candidates who do not possess their final degree certificate with the total grade obtained must provide an additional document with the Principal’s signature verifying that the candidate currently has over 50% marks in the course.
• After the admission of the candidate to B-schools, the candidate will be required to furnish their final certificate from graduation in order to continue their studies.

If you are a foreign candidate studying in the final year of graduation or post-graduation must fill out the form making sure that you satisfy the eligibility criteria of CAT.

CAT 2022 Important Points

Some important points regarding CAT eligibility criteria are as under:

• Candidates must ensure they fulfil all the eligibility criteria listed above before applying for the exam.
• The CAT eligibility criteria mentioned above are just the minimum requirements to appear for CAT 2022. The participating institutes might have their own set of requirements to select candidates.
• Meeting the minimum CAT eligibility criteria doesn’t guarantee that one will be shortlisted by IIMs.
• If the authorities find any of the information provided by the candidate is wrong or misleading at any stage of the selection process, his/her candidature will be cancelled.
• The authorities will not allow any change in the category of the candidates after the registration is over. So, candidates must be careful while filling up the CAT application form.

Now you have all the details of CAT eligibility criteria 2022. Focus on your preparation if you meet all the criteria. Finish each and every topic included in the CAT syllabus and master them. Taking a sufficient number of CAT mock tests is also important. This will help you get used to the level of the actual exam.

FAQs on CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022

Following are the frequently asked questions and their answers related to CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022:

Q.1: When CAT 2022 Exam will be held?
Ans: The CAT Exam is scheduled to be held on November 27, 2022, in three sessions.

Q.2: Who is ineligible for CAT 2022?
Ans: Candidates who score less than 50% in graduation and the candidates whose UG degree is issued by an institute that is not recognized by UPSC, UGC, or AICTE.

Q.3: Are candidates with backlogs eligible to apply for CAT?
Ans: Students who have a backlog are eligible to apply for CAT. They must click on “Are you in the final year of bachelor’s degree”? The candidate must click on this and fill the application form.

Q.4: Is it possible for candidates to appear in more than one slot?
Ans: No, this is not possible. A candidate cannot appear for more than one slot to appear for the examination.

Q.5: Can I appear for CAT for practice purposes, even if I am not eligible for the exam?
Ans: No candidate cannot appear for the exam; they must meet the eligibility criteria in order to appear for CAT.

Related links:

We hope this article on CAT Eligibility Criteria 2022 has helped you. Stay tuned to Embibe for more updates on CAT 2022!