New Delhi: The Master of Business Administration (MBA or M.B.A.) is a master’s degree in business administration (management), which is a one of dream choices of students aspiring to build career in business leadership and management. In India lakhs of students apply MBA entrances to pursue this master degree or PG Diploma in Management in various business schools.
The top MBA entrances in India are as followed: CAT, CMAT, XAT, MAT, SNAP, NMAT by GMAT, IIFT, CET, IRMA Admission Test, and IBSAT. Out of these Common Admission Test is the first choice of all MBA aspirant candidates. Most of the B-Schools in India accept CAT scores for admission. Here, SkillOutlook presents the top ten MBA entrance tests in India, which may help candidates to understand the test process.
Common Admission Test (CAT): Common Admission Test or CAT is the sole entrance exam for admission in MBA and PGDM programs in Institute of Management (IIMs) and some premier B-Schools in India. In a total 20 IIMs and more than 136 management institutes participate in CAT and accept its scorecard for admission. This national level test is open to all graduates having more than 50% in graduation. Generally, the duration of CAT exam is 180 minutes while the test consists of 100 questions.
In CAT 2016, more than 2.30 lakh candidates applied for the test while more than 1.95 candidates appeared the test. The historical practices reflect that admission into IIMs for their flagship program PGDM is based upon CAT Score Card, 10th Marks, 12th Marks and a Group Discussion and Personal Interview round conducted by respective IIMs.
Xavier Aptitude Test 2017: XLRI Jamshedpur conducts XAT on behalf of the XAMI. For more than 60 years XLRI is conducting XAT at all India level to select the most right students for management education. The XAT score is being used by more than 100 institutes for the admission. XAT 2017 was conducted on 08 January 2017 (Sunday). Around 92,000 candidates appeared for the XAT 2017 exam.
XAT exam is an offline test and consisting of two papers. The exam shall consist of the following sections: Quantitative Ability, English Language & Logical Reasoning, Decision Making, GK, and Essay. The Paper 1 is objective type. This paper has questions from Quantitative Aptitude, English Language, Logical reasoning, and Decision Making. Paper 2 has both objective and subjective questions from General Knowledge and Essay Writing.
Common Management Aptitude Test (CMAT): Common Management Aptitude Test (CMAT) is conducted by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). Till last year, the exam was conducted twice a year, In 2015, AICTE announced that CMAT will be a yearly test to be conducted in January. The CMAT scores are accepted by over 1500 B-schools across India which offers over 35,000 seats. Some of the premier institutes which accept CMAT include Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS) Mumbai, Sydenham Institute of Management Studies, Research and Entrepreneurship Education (SIMSREE) Mumbai, Goa Institute of Management (GIM), Goa, etc.
Management Aptitude Test (MAT): Management Aptitude Test or MAT is conducted by All India Management Association (AIMA). The test is conducted 4 times a year (in February, May, September & December) by the Centre for Management Services (CMS) division of All India Management Association (AIMA).
MAT has total duration of 2 ½ hours. There are five papers in MAT: Paper 1 – Language Comprehension, Paper 2- Mathematical Skills, Paper 3 – Data Analysis, Paper 4 – Intelligence & Critical Reasoning, Paper 5 – Indian & Global Environment Section, each comprising of 40 questions for a total of 200 Questions. Each correct answer has 1 mark. There is negative mark system as for each wrong answer, there is 1/4 negative marking. There is no percentile based score card system in MAT. The MAT results are published based on a final composite score.
The MAT score tells you the relative position of the candidate with respect to the other candidates (percentile), there is no final percentile in MAT, instead a final composite score is given. Candidates can use this score to apply to various management institutes which accept MAT scores. MBA aspirants can use this score to apply to various management institutes which accept MAT scores.
The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT): The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) is one of the premier Business Schools in India. The IIFT entrance test is very tough to crack as each year nearly 50,000 candidates apply for just 220 seats.
The duration of the entrance examination is 2 hours. The test has objective questions from the following sections: 1. English Comprehension, 2. Logical Reasoning, 3. Quantitative Analysis, 4. General Knowledge & Awareness. The candidates are shortlisted on the basis of their scores in the entrance examination. After short-listing process, the candidates are called for Group Discussion, Interview and Essay Writing for final selection.
MAH-MBA/MMS CET (Maharashtra MBA Common Entrance Test): Maharashtra – MBA/ MMS – Common Entrance Test (MAH-MBA/MMS CET) is conducted by Directorate of Technical Education, Maharashtra State. This test is conducted for admission to post graduation management degree MBA/MMS and PGDBM/PGDM courses in Government, University Managed and Unaided institutes of Maharashtra.
The total duration of the entrance exam 150 minutes, consisting of 200 objective type questions. Questions will be from the following topics such as Logical Reasoning, Abstract Reasoning, Quantitative Aptitude, Verbal Ability/Reading Comprehension. There is no negative marking system in the examination. Once the exam is year, the candidates will be called for the counselling rounds.
NMAT by GMAC: NMAT By GMAC is an MBA entrance exam conducted by Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC). The exam primarily selects candidates for admission to NMIMS University and 15 other B-schools across India.
The duration of NMAT By GMAC test of 2 hours. The test consisting of multiple-choice questions where the candidate needs to select one of the correct answers. The various sections in the tests are as followed: Language Skills, Quantitative Skills, Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency, and Logical Reasoning. Each question has 1 mark while there will be no negative marking for any wrong attempt.
Symbiosis National Aptitude Test (SNAP): Symbiosis National Aptitude (SNAP) Test is one of the most popular MBA exams in India. The test is conducted Symbiosis International University, Pune. This is a common written test for the admission to all the Post-Graduate Institutes offered by Symbiosis International University.
The duration of the SNAP Test is 2 hours duration. The test objective type and each question will have four responses. There is negative mark system as each wrong answer attracts 25% negative marks. The four sections are as followed: General English, Quantitative Aptitude, General Awareness, Logical & Analytical Reasoning.
IRMA Admission Test: IRMA Admission test is conducted by the Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA). It is conducted for admission to Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management (PRM) and Fellow Programme in Rural Management (FPRM) offered by IRMA. The exam is generally held in the month of January each year. In the test candidates will have to answer 40 questions in 80 minutes.
In a first round of the selection process, IRMA uses CAT scores for shortlisting candidates. Shortlisted candidates are then called for IRMA written test on the subject of “Issues of Social Concern”.
IBSAT (IBS Aptitude): IBSAT is conducted by the ICFAI Business School Hyderabad. The test is for students seeking admission into the management programme of ICFAI.
The total duration of IBSAT is 2 hours. The test is based on the following sections: Quantitative Techniques, Data Interpretation, Data Adequacy, Vocabulary, Analytical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension.
