There's more to IIM entry than just CAT

ON CAT TRAIL: Admission to a B-school does not just depend on the CAT score.

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Mumbai: Don't pin all your hopes on the CAT exam. That's because your admission to a B-school does not just depend on your CAT score. For instance, if you've scored well in your Class 10 and 12 board exams, it could well be the make or break factor in getting into IIM-Bangalore.

That's because the institute gave 80 per cent weightage to previous academic records and work experience in the admission process of 2006 and 2007. Cat scores were given only about 20 per cent weightage.

"While it will take some pressure off students who have had good marks in their 10th/12th and graduation levels — for others, who do not have a good record, it will mean extra pressure. I would say, you can't change your past academic record — what you can do is maximise your CAT score and, going forward, prepare well for your group discussion and interview which account for 40 per cent weightage," Gautam Puri, Vice-Chairman of Career Launcher, points out.

Of course, each IIM has its own unique selection criteria. To a petition filed by CNBC TV18 under the Right to Information Act, IIM-Ahmedabad stated that it does not consider Class 10 and 12 scores while selecting students for the group discussion.

Although the institute revealed that work experience accounted significantly in the personal interview. The institute, however, refrained from stating exactly how much weightage does it carry.

Similar attempts to extract information about the selection process from other B-schools, however, received a stony silence, which is a clear signal that there is more to admissions than just the CAT score.

But remember, 60 per cent students in an IIM classroom have prior work experience. So if you do not crack the CAT this year, head straight for a job. You will stand a better chance next year.

(With Anumeet Kaur Bedi in New Delhi)