CAT Exam 2023 – Dates, Registration, Exam Pattern, Eligibility & Scopes

As per the previous trends, the CAT 2023 exam will be conducted in the last week of November, on Sunday. Going by the CAT exam trend of the past few years, most probably CAT will be held on 26th November 2023. CAT is conducted by IIM; it is a national-level MBA entrance exam that is organized for candidates to seek admission to over 1200+ B-Schools across India. There are 400 test centers across India where CAT exam tests are conducted online.

The question paper of the CAT exam consists of 100 questions in total, which includes MCQ and non-MCQ format. The questions are related to Reading Comprehension, Verbal Ability, Data Interpretation & Logical reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude. Due to the pandemic, the CAT 2020 examination timings were decreased from 180 minutes to 120 minutes, but now, as per the CAT’s recent updates, the examination timings will be back to 180-minute minutes.

CAT 2023 Highlights

FeaturesDetails
Name of the examinationCommon Admission Test (CAT)
Organizing BodyIIM
Level of ExamNational Level Exam
Mode of the examinationOnline exam
Exam frequencyOnce in a year
LanguageEnglish
Exam feesFor general category – Rs 2200 For reserved category – Rs 1100
Courses offeredPGDM/MBA
Official Websitehttps://iimcat.ac.in

CAT 2023 Important Dates

EventImportant Dates (Tentative)
Notification Release Date31st July, 2023
Registration Process Start Date3rd August, 2023
Last date to Apply3rd week of September, 2023
Correction Window3rd week of September, 2023
Admit card Release Date4th week of October, 2023
Exam Date26th November, 2023
Answer Key Release Date1st week of December, 2023
Challenge Questions1st week of December, 2023
Result Announcement Date4th week of December, 2023

CAT Eligibility Criteria

  • It is mandatory that the candidate must have cleared their graduation program with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA from a renowned board or university. ( For ST/SC/PWA/DA category candidates, 45% marks in graduation is mandatory).
  • Aspirants holding a professional degree ( CA/ICWA/CS) with a good percentage are eligible.
  • Those candidates who are in their graduation final year are also eligible to apply for the 2023 CAT examination.

CAT Exam Pattern 2023

In 2020, the exam pattern of the CAT exam will be revised. The duration of the CAT examination has been decreased from 180 to 120 minutes. But now, as per the CAT 2023 updates, it is expected that the exam timings will be reverted to 180 patterns. Check out the below table for the CAT exam pattern.

CAT 2023 Marking Scheme

  • The total number of questions will be 100 in CAT 2023
  • The questions will be a combination of subjective and objective-type questions.
  • The candidate will score + 3 for the correct answer
  • For each incorrect answer in the MCQ, 1 mark will be deducted
  • There will be no negative in the subjective questions

Check out the section-wise distribution of marks

SubjectMarks Allotted in 2023No of questions
Verbal & Reading Comprehension10234
Quantitative Ability9632
Data adequacy and logical reasoning10234
Total 300100

CAT 2023 Syllabus

CAT Syllabus includes various topics of different subjects.
For further information, read out the below table.

SectionSubjectsImportant topics
Data adequacy and logical reasoningData Interpretation

Logical Reasoning
Bar Graph, Line Graph, Data Sufficiency, a combination of Graphs, Pie chart, Caselet, and Tables, etc.

Matching Puzzles, Binary Logic, Blood relationships, Seating Arrangement, Family trees, Proposition, Clocks and calendars, sets, Syllogism, Venn Diagram, etc.
Quantitative AbilityMathematicsGeometry, Algebra, Arithmetic Number system, Time and work Mensuration, Modern Mathematics, Simple interest, Trigonometry, etc
Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension 


English Grammar
Passages fill in the blanks vocab questions, para jumble, para completion, Fact Inference Judgement

Grammar and verbal reasoning like fill in the blanks, sentence correction, Direct-indirect, Active voice, passive voice, Antonyms, Synonyms, and jumbled sentences

CAT 2023 Recommended Books

What is the most difficult task for students preparing for CAT? The selection of the right books for every subject, Right? As the market is flooded with different books of different authors, it is a challenging task to select the best book out of thousands of books. So we have curated a list of CAT entrance books for every section, which you can prefer.

SectionName of the Book Name of the Publisher/Author
Quantitative Ability
Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT

How to Prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for the CAT

Quantitative Aptitude Quantum CAT Common Admission Tests for Admissions into IIMs
Nishit K.Sinha

Arun Sharma


Sarvesh k. Verma
Verbal Ability & Reading ComprehensionHow to Prepare for verbal ability and Reading Comprehension for the CAT

PSC for VA for CAT Exam

30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary Mass Market Paperback
Sharma and Upadhyay

Nishit Sinha

Wilfred Funk & Norman Lewis/ Simon & Schuster
Data adequacy and logical reasoning
Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for the CAT

CAT Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning

Nishit k. Sinha

Gautam Puri

Scope of CAT exam

The aspiring candidates, who are looking forward to building their career in the management field, or want to be the future entrepreneur, Manager of MNC, must take admission in IIMs (Institute of management). IIMs are one of the top B schools across India, you need to get a good score in the CAT examination if you want to enter IIM.

In the premium institute IIM,  students are picked out by top companies with lucrative salary packages. If you do MBA from IIM, then you will get an opportunity to start your venture. An MBA is definitely the best course to opt for as it enhances your job opportunities, better recognition, increases your credibility too.

CAT is undoubtedly one of the toughest exams for MBA admissions! The candidates need an unconventional approach to handle questions and must have good techniques to answer them. You can go for an online CAT preparation course from BYJU’s, you will learn simple and shortcut techniques to solve the CAT exam.

Aspirants! It’s time for you to make your CAT exam worth it by taking offline courses or online courses from CAT scorers. By learning tricks, you can make your final CAT preparation a breeze.

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