Great Lakes - PGDM & PGPM Admissions 2026
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CAT Application Date:01 Aug' 25 - 13 Sep' 25
Getting an IIM interview call will not just be an achievement for CAT 2025 aspirants—it’s about crossing the first hurdle in the IIM admission race. As per RTI data, 597 candidates out of 176629 from General category got a PI interview call from IIM Ahmedabad last year. Similarly, 739 out of 175565 (Gen) got calls from IIM Bangalore, 931 out of 177009 (Gen) got interview calls from IIM Calcutta, and 1850 out of 161564 (Gen) got calls from IIM Kozhikode last year.
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A 99+ CAT percentile is often considered a safe score for an IIM BLACKIS call. However, there have been instances where candidates with 99+ percentiles did not receive calls from the older IIMs because IIMs give weightage to sectional cut-offs. So, at what CAT score can you realistically expect an interview call from an IIM? In this article, we present authentic data from last year, obtained through RTIs, detailing the category-wise minimum CAT score and IIM call CAT percentile at which candidates received IIM interview calls, along with the number of applicants versus those shortlisted. This data can help you set CAT 2025 percentile targets, fine-tune your preparation strategy, and pave a clear path towards an IIM seat.
Getting an interview call from top IIMs is not just about clearing the CAT cutoff but also about meeting the institute-specific minimum CAT score which varies widely across different IIM campuses. Candidates must note that each IIM sets its own benchmark based on several factors like: past year trends and competition levels.
Let us take a look at the following breakdown of the minimum CAT percentile for IIM that will be needed for an interview call. Through this you will get an understanding of where you stand, will be able to set realistic targets and plan your preparation strategy well. We have compiled this data of last year (2024-26) with help from RTI data which enlists the IIM shortlist percentile and will help you get an idea.
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM A Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 176629 | 13975 | 46011 | 21163 | 5597 | 1092 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 597 | 30 | 312 | 174 | 102 | 56 |
% of Form Filled | 0.34 | 0.21 | 0.68 | 0.82 | 1.82 | 5.13 |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Ahmedabad interview shortlist (composite score) | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 0.610503 | 0.557798 | 0.524637 | 0.456321 | 0.398081 | 0.278215 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Bangalore Interview | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 175565 | 13905 | 46023 | 21167 | 5622 | 1087 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 739 | 155 | 471 | 299 | 148 | 83 |
% of Form Filled | 0.42 | 1.11 | 1.02 | 1.41 | 2.63 | 7.64 |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Bangalore interview shortlist (composite score) | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PwD |
2024-2026 | 48.8695 | 39.2903 | 40.4451 | 34.0663 | 27.8257 | 35.1605 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Calcutta Interview | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PwD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 177009 | 14108 | 46567 | 21447 | 5727 | - |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 931 | 62 | 417 | 430 | 230 | - |
% of Form Filled | 0.53 | 0.44 | 0.9 | 2 | 4.02 | - |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Calcutta interview shortlist (composite score) | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 51.3 | 46.95 | 44.775 | 38.714 | 33.915 | - |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Lucknow Interview | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PwD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 176969 | 14153 | 46590 | 21444 | 5608 | 1085 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 1268 | 312 | 910 | 792 | 396 | 236 |
% of Form Filled | 0.72 | 2.2 | 1.95 | 3.69 | 7.06 | 21.75 |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Lucknow interview shortlist (composite score) | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 48.80616 | 35.4395 | 38.28033 | 27.14991 | 19.40983 | 8.736601 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Kozhikode Interview | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PwD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 161564 | 13489 | 43743 | 19525 | 5074 | 999 |
Shortlisted | 1850 | 400 | 1200 | 750 | 360 | 140 |
% of Form Filled | 1.15 | 2.97 | 2.74 | 3.84 | 7.09 | 14.01 |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Kozhikode interview shortlist (composite score) | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 62.42054 | 55.09648 | 54.34841 | 48.20149 | 42.65777 | 45.69608 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Indore Interview | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 105470 | 9910 | 31173 | 14332 | 3719 | 845 |
2024-2026 | 1827 | 216 | 1377 | 863 | 491 | 335 |
% of Form Filled | 1.08 | 1.56 | 3.07 | 4.22 | 9.2 | 32.21 |
% of Eligible | 18.76 | 41.14 | 44.62 | 40.27 | 51.36 | 100 |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Indore interview shortlist (composite score) | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-26 | 60.0112 | 53.6639 | 51.504 | 46.9869 | 40.9503 | 11.7512 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Mumbai Interview | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | KM |
No. of candidates who filled the NITIE form | 1653 | 166 | 745 | 402 | 83 | 7 |
No. of candidates who filled the NITIE form | 18 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Shortlisted (Non-PwD) | 861 | 53 | 510 | 258 | 51 | 4 |
% of Form Filled | 52.09 | 31.93 | 68.46 | 64.18 | 61.45 | 57.14 |
Shortlisted (PWD) | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
% of Form Filled | 27.78 | NA | 25 | 0 | NA | NA |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise Number of Candidates Shortlisted for IIM Shillong Interview | |||||
Category | Others | EWS | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 14280 | 823 | 1381 | 543 | 200 |
Category-wise CAT score for IIM Indore final offer (composite score) | |||||
Category | Others | EWS | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 43.01807 | 36.05407 | 31.81264 | 12.21517 | 24.66559 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | |||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 161873 | 13771 | 44302 | 19786 | 5184 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 9191 | 2285 | 6272 | 3459 | 1725 |
% of Form Filled | 5.68 | 16.59 | 14.16 | 17.48 | 33.28 |
Category-wise minimum percentile for shortlisting to interview round | |||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST |
2024-2026 | 94 | 77 | 77 | 60 | 40 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 179223 | 14210 | 47629 | 22005 | 5765 | 1076 |
Shortlisted | 9191 | 2285 | 6272 | 3459 | 1725 | 444 |
% of Form Filled | 5.13 | 16.08 | 13.17 | 15.72 | 29.92 | 41.26 |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 72.88 | 69.26 | 69.68 | 60.64 | 52.13 | 34.27 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | |||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 145278 | 12979 | 41235 | 17920 | 4486 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 5986 | 1856 | 4466 | 2137 | 845 |
% of Form Filled | 4.12 | 14.3 | 10.83 | 11.93 | 18.84 |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | |||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST |
Non-DAP | 82.54 | 75.81 | 76.06 | 70.43 | 63.01 |
DAP | 68.96 | 38.02 | 42.37 | 44.63 | 43.22 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | DAP |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 165013 | 13812 | 44402 | 20009 | 5110 | 973 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 9191 | 2285 | 6272 | 3459 | 1725 | 444 |
% of Form Filled | 5.57 | 16.54 | 14.13 | 17.29 | 33.76 | 45.63 |
Category-wise minimum percentile for shortlisting to interview round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | DAP |
2024-2026 | 94 | 77 | 77 | 60 | 40 | 40 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 2790 | 398 | 1934 | 1421 | 319 | 53 |
Shortlisted | 2354 | 384 | 1873 | 1382 | 306 | 39 |
% of Form Filled | 84.37 | 96.48 | 96.85 | 97.26 | 95.92 | 73.58 |
Category-wise minimum percentile for shortlisting to interview round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 96 | 92 | 82 | 60 | 50 | 40 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 154932 | 13552 | 43081 | 19092 | 4776 | 916 |
Shortlisted | 11029 | 2379 | 6322 | 3306 | 1552 | 394 |
% of Form Filled | 7.12 | 17.55 | 14.67 | 17.32 | 32.5 | 43.01 |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
Gender Neutral | 53.1934 | 50.09 | 49.7538 | 44.86 | 37.9684 | ALL |
Super Numerary | ALL | 44.1007 | 42.58 | 34.2707 | ALL | ALL |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | |||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form (Non- PwD) | 114059 | 8599 | 30434 | 13936 | 3610 |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form (PwD) | 480 | 35 | 119 | 41 | 5 |
Non-PWD | 5847 | 1764 | 4051 | 2175 | 524 |
% of Form Filled | 5.13 | 20.51 | 13.31 | 15.61 | 14.52 |
PWD | 133 | 8 | 19 | 7 | 1 |
% of Form Filled | 27.71 | 22.86 | 15.97 | 17.07 | 20 |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | |||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST |
Non-PWD | 36.467 | 37.29 | 34.648 | 28.14 | 8.659 |
PWD | 11.154 | 24.054 | 13.054 | 11.386 | 13.242 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 116595 | 8667 | 30926 | 14146 | 3741 | - |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 6760 | 1949 | 4609 | 2573 | 666 | 195 |
% of Form Filled | 5.8 | 22.49 | 14.9 | 18.19 | 17.8 | - |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2023-2025 | 49.24 | 41.67 | 36.54 | 29.89 | 14.47 | NA |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 153108 | 13325 | 42608 | 18929 | 4861 | 938 |
Shortlisted | 2802 | 746 | 1795 | 1205 | 550 | 189 |
% of Form Filled | 1.83 | 5.6 | 4.21 | 6.37 | 11.31 | 20.15 |
Category-wise minimum percentile for shortlisting to interview round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 82.03 | 72.05 | 72.03 | 51.33 | 40.18 | 40.01 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PwD |
Shotlisted | 8000 | 689 | 3500 | 1800 | 950 | 338 |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 55.049 | 44.079 | 48.294 | 38.679 | 33.234 | - |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 6055 | 1850 | 4456 | 2177 | 873 | 258 |
Category-wise minimum CAT percentile shortlisted to interview round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 94 | 77.01 | 77 | 60.02 | 40.18 | 40.01 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 156161 | 13537 | 43079 | 19177 | 4842 | 913 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 9191 | 2285 | 6272 | 3459 | 1725 | 444 |
% of Form Filled | 5.89 | 16.88 | 14.56 | 18.04 | 35.63 | 48.63 |
Category-wise minimum percentile for shortlisting to interview round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 94 | 77 | 77 | 60 | 40 | 40 |
*Source: RTI
Category-wise no. of candidates shortlisted for Interview Round | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
No. of candidates who filled the CAT form | 152034 | 13356 | 42382 | 18709 | 4618 | 887 |
No. of Candidates Shortlisted | 7793 | 2185 | 5723 | 3035 | 1409 | 364 |
% of Form Filled | 5.13 | 16.36 | 13.5 | 16.22 | 30.51 | 41.04 |
Category-wise composite score cutoff for the final offer of admission | ||||||
Category | General | EWS | NC-OBC | SC | ST | PWD |
2024-2026 | 68.88 | 62.95 | 62.71 | 54.59 | 41.86 | 27.47 |
*Source: RTI
The composite score is a critical component of the IIM admission process, which is used for both shortlisting candidates for interviews and determining final selections. To calculate composite score for IIMs, it is important to have a brief understanding of what the composite score of a particular IIM is.
For all those unaware, the composite score is the final score which is obtained by an applicant based on their performance of their application and performance. The calculation for the same is done according to the weightage held by different components for the selection process. The weightage of these components vary from each IIM.
Check out the following tips to improve chances of getting an interview call from top IIMs in India.
One must aim for a very high percentile, especially if you are aiming for top 3 IIMs (A,B and C), above 99 percentile.
Take as many mock tests to understand your current position, keep analysing your performance and focus on weaker sections.
Focus on showing your communication skills, clarity of thought and maturity for getting an admission.
Practice to develop clarity of expression, coherence and critical thinking to build compelling narratives.
Be aware of current world events, economics and topics which are mostly passionate about.
Lastly, be honest with your responses, as this will allow you to provide solid reasoning in case the interviewer digs deeper into your answers.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
It is very important that a candidate is well prepared for the IIM Interview as interviewers are testing your knowledge as much as they are testing the confidence of the candidate.
Yes, IIMs do conduct interviews as part of their admission for candidates to get admission to top MBA programs. These interviews, along with Written Ability Test (WAT) are some of the crucial components of the selection process which carry significant weight in the final decision.
Yes, you can get an interview call with 90 percentile. Keep in mind that to get interview calls from top IIMs, one must get exceptional CAT scores. Except for a few, major IIMs close their cutoff lists at 90 percentile.
The lowest CAT scores for IIM admissions are around 85-90 percentile for newer IIMs and 35-45 percentiles for reserved categories (SC/ST/OBC/EWS) in specific situations such as Supplementary Admission Process (SAP) or for colleges with lower admission thresholds.
On Question asked by student community
Hello
As you said you by mistakenly done that, you don't need to get worry regarding that ,
Just inform the help desk and carry the correct certifications , the state certificate will not disqualify you .
The steps you can follow is -
1. You can check if the correction window is available or not
2. Contact the CAT desk immediately.
Hope this helps
In CAT registration, you cannot create a new user ID with the same mobile number, even if you use a different email ID. Each mobile number and email can be linked to only one account. If you already registered once, the system will not accept a duplicate with that number. To register again, you must use a new mobile number and new email ID. If you lost your old login, you can recover it through the forgot password/user ID option on the CAT portal.
Yes, you can fill the CAT form even if you currently have a backlog. CAT eligibility requires you to be in your final year of graduation or already graduated backlogs don’t stop you from applying.
While filling the form:
Enter the aggregate percentage/CGPA of marks you have obtained up to the latest semester for which results are declared (in your case till 4th semester).
There will be an option to mention that you have a backlog.
If you clear the backlog later, you’ll just need to show the updated marks during admission.
Hello Aspirant,
Yes, you can apply for the CAT exam as a final-year student. You must declare your backlog on the online application form. You do not write about it on the final-year student certificate; that document is to certify your enrollment status. You must clear all backlogs before the final admission process to any MBA college.
Hello,
Thank you for your question!
KL- MAT syllabus: Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning, English/Verbal Ability, and General Awareness (similar to MAT/CMAT pattern).
CAT scores are valid in many private universities including KL University, but always check the year’s admission notification.
CAT vs other exams: CAT is toughest (IIMs + top B-schools), while MAT/CMAT/ATMA are relatively easier and accepted by many mid-level private universities.
Hello it will clear your doubt!
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