r/CATPrep

Please do guys

Bhyiii uski waitlist kb tk move hoti h koi senior pichle saal vala

Ye khali St St ki move krdi h

Hmmm kya kreeee

edit : this isn't a ha8te post. i just want to know whether to repeat or not. thats why i asked what are yall doing.

I was going through the new fee of iimj on their website for year 2026-28. And its mire than 22 lakh. Those who can't afford- how are you managing your finances ?

I want to convince myself to make a good investment, so please be honest !!

Anyone here preparing seriously for CAT 2026?

A few of us (working professionals + MBA grads) have been discussing prep strategies, mock approaches, resources, etc. in a small group and it’s been pretty helpful so far.

Thinking of adding a few more serious aspirants so discussions stay active and useful.

If you’re consistently preparing and want a focused peer group, feel free to DM.

I have converted IIM Indore PGP 2026–28. The academic calendar shows registration on 26 June and hostel check-in 2 days before registration.

The issue is that my university's final semester examinations may overlap with this period, and the official exam schedule has not been released yet.

I will complete my degree requirements, but I'm worried about a possible clash between university exams and reporting/joining formalities at IIM Indore.

Has anyone faced a similar situation at IIM Indore or any other IIM? Were you allowed to join with an undertaking, report late, or submit documents later due to university exam schedules?

Any guidance or personal experiences would be very helpful. 😭😭🙏🏻🙏🏻

Thank you.

Acads: 8/7/7 , GEM Final year , VIT Vellore(idk tier so i specified college)

Achievements and Extras : - Filed 1 patent (medical and ai based )

-One IEEE paper/conference before graudation

-In top 51 out of 11000+ teams in a MNC based hackaton.

Work Ex: 0 Months (Fresher)...got a summer tech intern in an indian based firm but left coz of work was very unreliable and useless for my profile in case i proceed further in tech.

Targets: IIM Mumbai, IIT B/ D, MDI, IIFT, SIBM, NMIMS,BITSOM, IIM Udaipur/Amritsar/ Nagpur , IMT Ghaziabad, IIT Kharagpur/Kanpur/ Roorkee/ Madras..(not in any order)

(Ik my bad acads ...so not even thinking of BLACKI or any high acad weightage school)

I’m an 18-year-old girl from the 2024 batch. My qualifications are 96% in Class 10 and 92% in Class 12 (PCMB). I had primarily prepared for NEET, but after everything that happened with the exam this year, I’ve become very uncertain and need backup options. I do hope I get a college but two years have drained me and I feel like crying when i see the same books again and again. I want to go out of the city.

Right now, the most decent college option I’m getting is JIIT Noida for Engineering. My family would likely need to take an education loan for it, so id need a decent job. Then I'm also thinking about changing the stream entirely to B. Com Hons/Bsc Economics in St. Xavier's College. I do want to do an MBA too in the future. I’m especially confused about:

• CSE vs IT vs ECE vs other branches [I probably will get all branches except CS 62]
• Whether software jobs are still a safe option considering AI
• Whether taking a loan for JIIT is worth it
• Which branches keep the most options open for future MBA/corporate roles as well. I am not entirely opposed to changing stream. kinda desperate so considering St. Xavier's B Com Hons and BSc Economics as well.

I've been doing some research on B-school accreditations lately, and I wanted to share a perspective that doesn't get discussed enough - how AACSB accreditation actually affects a student's experience and opportunities, not just how a school looks on paper.

Quick context on AACSB

AACSB is the oldest and one of the most selective business school accreditations in the world. Only about 6% of business schools globally hold it. In India, that number is roughly 30 institutions out of hundreds of B-schools.

Getting AACSB isn't a paperwork exercise. The process involves years of evaluation across curriculum quality, faculty qualifications, research output, and learning assurance systems. Schools go through multiple rounds of review before earning accreditation.

Which Indian schools have it?

Some well-known names include IIM-S/C/I/L/U, ISB Hyderabad, XLRI, SP Jain (Mumbai/Global), Great Lakes Institute, IMT Ghaziabad, IMI New Delhi, TAPMI, Jindal Global University, BIMTECH, and, more recently, LBSIM New Delhi, which received AACSB accreditation in April 2026.

Schools without AACSB include several popular private B-schools such as SIBM Pune, NMIMS, K.J. Somaiya, Amity (main campus), and Welingkar.

To be clear, not having AACSB does not automatically make a school weaker. Institutions like NMIMS and SIBM consistently deliver strong placements and good outcomes. Accreditation opens opportunities that might otherwise be harder to access.

What actually changes for students?

This is where things become tangible.

Student exchange opportunities

Many AACSB-accredited schools around the world prefer, and in some cases only consider, partnerships with other accredited institutions. Schools such as HEC Paris, Bocconi, Rotman, NUS, and NTU Singapore often build exchange networks around AACSB or EQUIS-accredited schools.

That doesn't mean non-accredited schools can never secure exchange partnerships, but accreditation makes those conversations much easier.

For students, the practical benefit is access to stronger international exchange opportunities and a clearer pathway to spending a semester abroad at globally recognised institutions. That experience can add real value to a CV, particularly for students interested in international careers.

Faculty quality and research exposure

AACSB also places significant emphasis on faculty qualifications. Accredited schools are expected to maintain a balance of research-active academics and professionally qualified industry practitioners.

In practice, this encourages institutions to invest in faculty development, research output, industry engagement, and international collaboration. It also creates opportunities for visiting professors, joint research projects, and faculty exchanges between accredited schools.

For students, this can translate into classrooms led by faculty who are actively publishing research, consulting with industry, or participating in global academic networks, rather than relying solely on legacy teaching material.

The honest comparison

A student at a non-accredited school can absolutely receive a quality education, build a strong network, and secure excellent placements. For many domestic careers, the difference may not be dramatic.

Where accreditation tends to matter more is in international mobility, overseas study opportunities, global recognition of the degree, and the credibility an institution carries when students apply outside India.

For example, LBSIM's AACSB accreditation now places it within the same global accreditation ecosystem as schools such as XLRI and Great Lakes when engaging with international academic partners. For students interested in careers with international exposure, that can be a meaningful advantage.

One thing worth remembering

Accreditation is a floor, not a ceiling.

The best schools use accreditation standards to improve curriculum, strengthen faculty quality, and create better student opportunities. The weaker ones simply use it as a marketing badge.

That said, when applicants compare B-schools, they often focus almost entirely on placement reports, average packages, and rankings. Those matter, but they're also snapshots in time. Accreditation tells you something different. It tells you whether the institution itself has been tested against globally accepted standards for teaching quality, faculty strength, academic processes, and continuous improvement.

No accreditation can guarantee a great experience. But if two schools appear similar on placements, fees, and specialisations, it is worth paying attention to whether one has already met a benchmark that only a small fraction of business schools worldwide have achieved.

At the very least, it suggests the school has invested in building systems, partnerships, and academic quality that extend beyond a single placement season. And for students who may want international exposure, exchange opportunities, global recognition, or simply more options later in their careers, those factors can become more valuable than they initially seem.

Happy to answer questions if anyone is comparing B-schools. I've spent quite a bit of time digging through this data recently.

Spent a few weeks parsing every CAT paper from 2020–2025 and mapping each QA question to its Arun Sharma chapter. Built a small tool on top of the data that estimates your QA + DILR percentile based on chapter-level self-rating.

Trying to figure out if this is actually useful or just an interesting exercise. Would appreciate honest reactions from people deep in CAT prep — does this answer a real question you have, or are existing predictors and mocks already doing the job?

cat-estimator.vercel.app

The data isn't scraped from one source. Topic-level difficulty per slot was cross-referenced from credible sources (listed on the website), every question was hand-classified, and the scoring is a Monte Carlo simulation with 400 runs per slot — not a single number that pretends to be precise. Methodology is visible on the site.

It's non-commercial atp.

https://preview.redd.it/3on5nmte7o2h1.jpg?width=889&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c9622a46ff1bab4a1090560f5f14849821d06c73

Nc-obc moved just 30??? Are you kidding me? I'm currently at 31 after this movement... Is there still a chance left?? Most of the seats must be filled atp...😭😭

View Poll

8/5/7 SC Category with 52% in 12th (PCMB) & a backlog — Is CAT still worth attempting?

My profile:

10th: ~83%

12th: ~52% (PCMB)

Graduation: B.Pharm, ~7.7 CGPA (Graduated in 2025 instead of 2024 due to a backlog)

Work Ex: Medical Coding (Joined 2024)

Category: SC

I’m confused about whether my 12th marks and graduation timeline make CAT/IIMs unrealistic for me, especially considering my background with math.

Do most IIMs have a strict 60% cutoff in 12th for interview calls, or are there significant relaxations for the SC category?

Will 52% in 12th and a graduation backlog automatically reject me from top B-schools?

My math was good in 10th, but I really struggled and lost interest in 12th PCMB math because it felt completely different. Given this, how difficult will the CAT Quant section be for me, and where should I start?

Since I started working in 2024 but didn't officially clear my backlog and graduate until 2025, how will my work experience be counted during admissions?

Even if I convert an IIM or a good private college, will final placements be affected because of the “60% throughout academics” criteria that many companies have?

Looking for honest opinions from people with similar profiles or current MBA students.

I saw someone with 72.5x convert. Is it possible that i m calculating my cs wrong ? I used AZUCATion cap cs calculator.

Hi everyone,

I’m preparing for CAT 2026 and would really appreciate some honest guidance regarding my profile and realistic percentile targets.

Profile:

- Female, General

- 10th: 89%

- 12th: 92%

- UG: B.Com (Hons), Delhi University (final sem ongoing)

- CGPA: 8.18 (till Sem 5)

- Academics: Had Maths till 12th

- Coaching: Enrolled in Rodha R7 batch

- CV: Mostly college societies, one 2m internship

My Questions:

- What percentile should I realistically target for BLACKI and top colleges (FMS, SPJIMR, MDI, etc.)?

Given my profile (general Non engineering female + decent academics but no work ex), how much does the percentile need to compensate?

- Any specific strategy changes I should follow considering I had maths till 12th but not in graduation?

- How should I strengthen my profile alongside prep (if at all needed now)?

- Section-wise targets I should aim for?

Prep Status:

Just starting seriously with Rodha. I’m comfortable with basics but haven’t done structured prep yet.

Would really appreciate insights from people with similar backgrounds or converts. Thanks in advance!

Deepankan Bilthare, penguin chamiya of SCMHRD BA MBA, got his da*d's white painted face fisted by Batman due to his vengeance.

Recently came across it while looking for better RC analysis tools and honestly found some features pretty different from typical CAT prep platforms:

- reading behavior insights

- adaptive RC drills

- detailed inference/tone analysis

- streaks & leaderboard system

- Birbal AI explanations

Most platforms mainly focus on mocks/questions, but this felt more focused on understanding why RC mistakes happen.

Curious if others here have tried it too. Did it help your VARC consistency or RC accuracy over time?

Hi, I have 9/8/7 academic profile (GEM), 5 mons work ex during applying for cat.
I wanted to if it is possible for me to get a blacki shortlist. If yes what percentile is safe and for which IIM ?

I am an obc-nc male candidate and i scored 96% in tenth, 94% in twelfth and 8 cgpa in my computer science graduation from a tier 1.5ish college.

I'll be graduating this July.

I have no job in hand, but i have completed a 5 month paid full time internship at a startup.

How feasible will be cat'26 for me? If i prepare for cat full time?

Please be critical and do not sugarcoat my chances, i find myself in a dire condition right now have my job offer revoked twice based on the job market.

Please give me an honest answer. Good advice can prove to be a make or break for my career.

This year dms iit delhi waitlist movement is too slow. Last year it went upto 285 or so. I am waitlisted at 135 gen category. Don’t know will convert or not. anyone with some insights.