Which B-schools will you get based on your percentile?

As the CAT result has been declared on January 5, 2019, you must be exploring your B-School admission options based on the percentile secured by you. No matter what your percentile is, do remember that your result is not the only deciding factor to pursue your MBA dream. It is only the beginning of the admission process and all candidates stand a chance of admission given the large universe of B-schools and MBA seats available in India. The Direct Admission presents you the percentile brackets and a corresponding set of B-schools where you stand a chance based on your CAT percentile and the B-School Cutoffs.

The CAT 2020 result is only an indicator towards optimising your available admission options and targeting the set of best-fit B-schools for yourself. With the right information, you can find the right B-schools according to the percentile bracket you belong to. We have identified percentile brackets and accordingly the B-schools where you stand a chance of admissions. Based on your percentile bracket, you can narrow your option and target the right set of B-schools for your MBA admission.

Below is the percentile brackets basis of which you stand a chance of admission:

i)       90+ percentile

ii)      80 to 90 percentile

iii)     60 to 80 percentile

iv)     < 60 percentile

Let us have a look at each percentile bracket in detail and analyse the admission opportunity for you.

Case 1: 90+ percentile

If you belong to this bracket, there are opportunities galore for your MBA admissions. Being among the brightest MBA aspirants, your high percentile brings you in the zone where you fulfil the cut-off for a majority of the IIMs along with other top B-schools such as FMS, University of Delhi, MDI Gurgaon, NITIE Mumbai, DMS-IIT Delhi, Bombay and Kharagpur and many more.

Provided you clear the other admission criteria of the IIMs such as past academic records, work experience and diversity factors, you are most likely to get calls for the second round of admission procedure which includes Group Discussion, Personal Interview and Written Ability Test.

The following table brings to you the list of top B-schools with more than 90 percentile CAT cutoff.

Top B-schools With 90+ Percentile CAT Cutoff

What Next?

• Your next step will include preparing for the WAT, GD and PI rounds for the IIMs and other top B-schools. Reading newspapers and keeping yourself abreast with the current affairs is the primary step for the GD, PI and WAT preparation.
• Apply to the top B-schools with cutoff over 90 percentile whose application window is still open.

Case 2: Range of 80-90 percentile

If you belong to this percentile range, you can not only expect calls from the top B-schools but from the new IIMs as well. However, getting a call from the older IIMs might not be possible as the apex IIMs, popularly referred as BLACKIS (IIM Bangalore, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Kozhikode, Indore and Shillong) consider 90+ percentile only for the General category candidates. Among the top B-schools, you may expect calls from SPJIMR Mumbai, LIBA Chennai, TAPMI Manipal, IMNU Ahmedabad to name a few.

Refer to the table below to get the list of B-schools with CAT cutoff range of 80 to 90 percentile.

Top B-schools With 80-90 Percentile CAT Cutoff

Keep an eye on the B-School application notifications. While several B-schools have closed the application process, they might reopen the process after the declaration of the result.

If you are taking the other MBA entrance exams such as IRMA 2019, MICAT 2019 or the state level MBA entrance exams like MAH CET 2019, focus on the dedicated preparation. Although most of the exams have some common sections such as Quant and Verbal Ability, still it is suggested that you have a focused and dedicated approach towards the sections.

Case 3: Range of 60 to 80 percentile

If you have secured a percentile in this bracket, you can aim for admission in Tier 2 or Tier 3 B-schools. The admissions are likely to be open till February or March. The admission process mainly includes GD and PI or only PI for which you have to prepare accordingly. MBA institutes like Xavier Institute of Management Enterprise (XIME) Bangalore, Institute of Public Enterprise (IPE) Hyderabad, Amrita School of Business Coimbatore, IFIM Bangalore among others are suitable for application based on your CAT result.

Check the table below to know the list of suitable B-schools for this range of cutoff.

Top B-schools With 60-80 Percentile CAT Cutoff

In case you score better in XAT or CMAT, apply to the participating institutes of these exams through the scores. If you decide to take admission through your CAT result itself, do a comparative analysis of your admission offers and choose the right B-School.

Case 4: Below 60 percentile

If you have obtained a percentile below 60, you have options of almost all B-School beyond the ranking of 50. In many of the Tier 3 B-schools, there is no particular admission deadline or cutoff percentile. However, you need to select your admission offer carefully after strictly cross-checking the factors below:

• Affiliation and recognition of the B-School
• Return of Investment – Compare fee vis-a-vis placements
• Programmes/Specializations offered
• Faculty size including the permanent and visiting members
• Infrastructure including technology
• Industry tie-ups of the institutes
• Pedagogy (Classroom hours, field study, industry visits, case studies module etc.)

Top B-schools With <60 Percentile CAT Cutoff

Further, if you are aiming for a specialised MBA programme, you can still go for your admission in a top B-School. Wondering how? MICA and Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA) conduct their own entrance exam but CAT is the prerequisite eligibility criteria.

There is no particular CAT cutoff percentile to be secured in order to be eligible to take MICAT or IRMA Issues of Social Concern exam. The shortlist for the next round of selection procedures such as GD, PI and WAT rounds would also be based on the scores of entrance exam conducted by these B-schools separately.

If you decide to go for these B-schools, prepare well based on the specific pattern and question types and ensure a call from the B-schools followed by admission offer.

CAT Percentilewise Colleges