How Many Students Actually Clear CAT? Here’s What the Numbers Say 

The Common Aptitude Test, or popularly known as the CAT exam, is conducted once a year. Every year, nearly 2.5–3 lakh candidates register for the CAT exam. In 2024, 2.93 lakh students appeared for the CAT exam. However, only 14, 29, and 30 students could obtain 100, 99.99 and 99.98 percentiles, respectively. As the competition is high, aspirants often wonder, How many students clear CAT exam?

While CAT is a gateway to secure MBA admissions at IIMs, it also creates possibilities for you at other top business schools in India, such as SP Jain Mumbai, MDI Gurgaon, FMS Delhi, and many more. CAT is also a selection criterion for admission to executive MBA colleges in India. This blog is a deep dive into the CAT exam statistics, trends, and analysis. Learn about how many students clear the CAT exam every year, along with many more details. Let us dive in!

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How Many Students Take CAT Exam Every Year? Registrations vs Appearances

Every year, 2.5–3+ lakh students register for the CAT exam. Of this, nearly 89% of students participate in the exam. In 2024, 2.93 lakh students appeared for the CAT exam, while 3.29 lakh candidates registered. However, this number of CAT exam takers is a significant rise from the year 2022, when only 62% of the students appeared for CAT out of the total number of students registered. To analyse the data, here we have covered the past 5 years of CAT exam registration trends. Let us take a look:

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How Many Students Clear CAT Exam: What Do the Past Trends Say?

Looking at the 10-year trend for the CAT exam, it can be said that the participation of students in the CAT exam has significantly increased in the last two years. There could be many reasons that might have pushed participants to take the CAT exam, about which we shall discuss ahead. We have seen that the number of students registered is huge. The number of students who have participated in the CAT exam is a large number, too. However, the real question is, “How many students actually clear the CAT?”

How Many Students Clear CAT Exam?

It is expected that approximately only 10,000 – 30,000 students have qualified for the CAT exam in the past years. How many students clear CAT exam statistics is not officially released as a whole, as it depends on cutoffs for different institutes. While the exact marks required to qualify CAT is not available, you need to secure 99-100% to enrol at the top IIMs. Based on past trends, you could have a vision of how many students clear CAT exam for the top IIMs such as IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, and IIM Calcutta.

CAT CutOffs for Top IIMs

Cutoffs for IIM CAT 2024 are significantly high, seeing the tough competition among students. Here are the estimated CAT 2024 exam cutoffs based on which students may be called for interview rounds at IIMs. Take a look:

Why CAT Exam is Such a Tough Competition? Key Reasons

With so many students participating in the CAT exam every year, this makes the competition becomes more intense. The number of seats in IIMs and other top B-schools in India is limited. A large number of students competing for finite seats makes the CAT exam more challenging. Here is why the CAT exam competition is rising:

Increasing Popularity of CAT Exam

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  College Prestige: The CAT exam is organised by IIMs and serves as a gateway to top business schools in India. The educational status of these colleges is recognised and appreciated overseas as well.
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  Global Recognition: IIMs and other renowned B-schools like SPJIMR Mumbai, IIFT Delhi, MDI Gurgaon, etc. These colleges have high prestige abroad, accredited by foreign bodies like AACSB and AMBA, ensuring global acceptance.
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  International Opportunities: IIMs and schools like MDI Gurgaon and SP Jain offer international exposure through international immersions at top management schools abroad. It provides you with broader and global business perspectives and creative opportunities in foreign nations.
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  High Salary Packages: IIMs and other top business schools participating in CAT are known for their high placement rates and packages. Top IIMs’ salary packages often range between INR 30-50 LPA and beyond.
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  Rising MBA Demand: MBA has become the most sought-after course globally. Employers actively seek MBA candidates who studied at highly reputed colleges for managerial and executive roles, contributing to the rising demand for MBA in India and overseas.

How to Stay Ahead of the CAT Competition?

How many students clear CAT exam? The question may be intimidating. However, you do not need to feel dejected. As someone wise once said, If you want to get anywhere, you have to start somewhere. You can consider the high number of students appearing for the CAT exam as an inspiration rather than a discouragement. Here are the ways you could stay ahead in the CAT exam:

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  Begin preparing at least 9-12 months before the exam.
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  Stay consistent with your effort and maintain regular practice.
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  Understand the exam pattern and prepare accordingly.
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  Focus on basics to build a strong understanding of foundational concepts.
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  Prioritise accuracy first over attempts and speed.
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  Use quality and trusted resources for CAT preparation.
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  Solve mock tests regularly at least 2 months before the exam.

What if CAT is Not Cleared?

21 IIMs in India have nearly 5,500 seats or slightly more. However, over 3 lakh students register for the CAT exam every year. This is not possible for everyone to make it through IIMs in just one year. Even after combing the seats of every top participating business school in India cannot enrol 3 lakhs students together. So, why should you take the CAT exam? It is due to the benefits that create possibilities for you beyond IIMs. Take a look below to explore:

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  Preparing for CAT strengthens your critical thinking and problem-solving skills, highly valued in corporate jobs and for government competitive exams.
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  Enhances your communication skills for efficient workplace interactions and opportunities abroad.
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  Improves your confidence, making you an ideal candidate for various jobs and roles.
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  Communication and sharp thinking skills may help you secure admissions abroad.
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  You can transferably take XAT, NMAT, GMAT, MAT, and other management exams immediately.
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  Helps you secure a seat at other top B-schools with CAT scores considerations.
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  Allow you to secure promising jobs.

The Takeaway

CAT is one of the toughest exams in India. Apart from opening your pathways to IIM MBA admissions, it also allows you to secure admissions at other top business schools in India. While only around a 10% fraction of students clear the CAT exam every year, the rest can do it through other management colleges in India. Candidates who could not qualify for CAT can also benefit from preparation for other MBA entrance exams like XAT, MAT, NMAT, GMAT, SNAP, and more. Keep preparing and be consistent to stay ahead of the CAT competition.