IIM Admission Criteria & Selection Process 2024

The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) follow a second-stage selection process – Common Admission Test (CAT) written examination and GWPI (Group Discussion/Written Ability Test/Personal Interview). In most Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), after the first stage, a shortlist of students is prepared taking into account the performance in the written examination, educational background, work experience, etc.

Shortlisted candidates are required to appear for the 2-stage of the admission process in which they will have to undergo a personal interview, written ability test, and/or group discussion. Most of the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) have now shifted from Group Discussion (GD) to Written Aptitude Test (WAT) as a part of the selection process. The final list of selected applicants is prepared considering your performance in the written examination, GWPI process, educational background, work experience, etc.

Weightage – Different Types of Selection Process

The importance of different types in the selection process varies from institution to institution and for most institutions it varies from year to year. In general, we can say that most of the leading MBA colleges give high importance to performance in CAT/GD/WAT/PI rounds and relatively less importance to other factors like educational background, prior work, etc.

At this stage, many candidates are made to understand that it is extremely difficult to receive a call from an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and even more difficult to convert a call. Through this section, we will try to dispel some of the myths associated with the selection process of IIM. In the process, we are also sharing the details of shortlisting at various stages.

Weightage for CAT written test

Some applicants have a misconception that even if they perform exceptionally well in CAT, they will still not get an IIM call because IIMs give a lot of importance to academic background, work experience, extra-curricular activities, etc. Let us take a look at the importance given to the Common Admission Test (CAT) in interview shortlist preparation adopted by various Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).

List of IIMs with CAT Score

11(IIM Rohtak, Trichy, Udaipur, Kashipur, Raipur, Ranchi, Shillong, Bodhgaya, Sambalpur, Jammu, sirmaur) : 100%

2 (IIM Ahmedabad, Lucknow ): 60 to 80%

5 ( IIM Bangalore, Calcutta, Kozhikode, Vizag, Amritsar): 40 to 60% 

2 (IIM Indore, Nagpur ) : Less than 40% 

As can be seen from the above table, 13 out of 20 IIMs give at least 60% weightage to the CAT score while shortlisting students for the WAT/GD/PI rounds.

Importance of Educational Background in The Final Selection

Those who disagree think that if you are not 90% in your entire academic career then you do not get a chance to get admission to any Indian Institute of Management (IIM). This is wrong. Let us know the importance of educational background in preparing the final shortlist.

CAT Score Weightage in IIMs

4 (IIM Calcutta, Kozhikode, Shillong, Rohtak): 0%

12(IIM Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Raipur, Ranchi, Trichy, Udaipur, Jammu, Sambalpur, Nagpur, Bodhgaya, Sirmaur, Kashipur): 5% to 15%

4 (IIM Bangalore, Indore, Visakhapatnam, Amritsar): 16% to 40%

More than 40%

As can be seen, only 4 out of 20 IIMs give more than 15% weightage to educational background. For all other IIMs, this parameter is much less important than stated.

Weightage for "controllable" in the final selection

As they say, some things are beyond our control and there is no use worrying about them. And, there are some things we can control, and let's make the most of them. If we assume that as far as writing CAT is concerned then education profile, gender, and work experience are not really in our control, and the only thing we can control is in CAT and WAT/GD/PI process Our performance in delivery, control in the final selection of these is as follows:

1 (IIM Shillong): 100.00%

7 (Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Lucknow, Indore, Kozhikode, Rohtak, Amritsar): 80-99%

10 (IIM Bangalore, Raipur, Ranchi, Udaipur, Kashipur, Bodhgaya, Nagpur, Jammu, Sirmaur, Trichy): 60-79%

2 ( IIM Sambalpur,Visakhapatnam ): Less than 60%

What is clear from the above is that with good performance in the Common Admission Test (CAT) and GWPI, we still have a good chance of getting admission into any Indian Institute of Management (IIM), irrespective of previous education/employment status. There are also many non-IIM B-schools like XLRI, MDI, FMS, IIFT, and NMIMS; they pay great attention to the admission process and pay us a good salary. So, before you say you can't, say you will try and do your best!