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CAT 2023 question paper PDFs of slot 1, slot 2, and slot 3 are available on this page. An official CAT 2023 question paper download link is also given for candidates who will take the CAT 2025 to help them prepare for their MBA entrance exam. The overall difficulty level of CAT 2023 was high. The CAT exam pattern was also similar to CAT 2022, having 66 questions - 24 in VARC, 22 in DILR and 20 in Quantitative Aptitude. The official CAT paper along with CAT answer key was released in the first week of December on the CAT official website - iimcat.ac.in. Scroll down to download the CAT 2023 question paper PDF. The candidates can download the CAT 2023 paper slots 1 2 3 using the links provided below. The links to the CAT 2023 official question paper are also provided within this article.
The CAT 2025 toppers list will be released after the announcement of the IIM MBA entrance exam results. Check the last year's toppers in the CAT exam below.
CAT toppers | CAT percentile |
Aryan Ray | 99.99 |
Sanjiv Kumar | 99.99 |
Sujay Srivastava | 99.94 |
Aniruddh Singh | 99.89 |
Ritwik Raj | 99.88 |
Gourav Agrawal | 99.83 |
Sahil Gupta | 99.77 |
Shouvik Chatterjee | 99.43 |
Virtag Kothari | 99.35 |
Nilesh Shekhar | 99.22 |
Md Jamshed | 99.90 |
Amit Kumar | 99.76 |
Sankalp Karan | 97.24 |
Mayank Raj | 96.97 |
Sumit Kumar Singh | 96.05 |
Ankit Raj from Dhanbad | 95.06 |
Shwet Sneha | 93.70 |
Ayush Kumar Dubey | 92.89 |
Kunal Goel | 99.80 |
Lavya Dhawan | 99.73 |
Dhruv Mittal | 99.69 |
Mitanshi Mehra | 99.55 |
Omkar Subhasish Khuntia | 99.52 |
Anurag Yadav | 99.51 |
Akshad Bhandula | 99.47 |
Siddhartha Singh | 99.39 |
Rohan Garodia | 99.23 |
Sivanjal Gulati | 99.14 |
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The CAT 2023 question paper difficulty level was moderate to high. Generally, the majority of students found the Data Interpretation and Quantitative Aptitude sections tough. With the help of the CAT 2023 question paper analysis, candidates can understand the pattern and the topics from which the questions were asked in each CAT slot.
CAT 2023 question paper PDF slot 1 topics | |
Sections | Important Topics |
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension |
|
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning |
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Quantitative Aptitude |
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In CAT 2023 slot 1 question paper VARC section had 4 reading comprehensions, para summary, para jumbles and odd one out. The DILR section had 4 sets having 5 questions each based on number breaking, ratings, and mean, median and mode. The majority of the questions in the QA section of the CAT 2023 question paper slot 1 were from arithmetic, algebra, simple and compound interest, etc.
CAT 2023 question paper PDF slot 2 topics | |
Sections | Important Topics |
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension |
|
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning |
|
Quantitative Aptitude |
|
In the CAT 2023 slot 2 VARC section, there were 4 Reading Comprehension passages, and the rest of the questions were from para jumbles and para completion. Whereas, in the DILR section of the CAT question paper, there were 4 sets of 5 questions based on mean, median and mode. In the last QA section, the majority of questions were from algebra and arithmetic, and a few questions were from sequence and series, logarithm, time and distance.
CAT 2023 question paper PDF slot 3 topics | |
Sections | Important Topics |
Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension |
|
Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning |
|
Quantitative Aptitude |
|
In the CAT 2023 VARC section of slot 3, there were 4 Reading Comprehension passages with a majority of questions based on Para Jumbles, Para Completion, and Para Summary. In the DILR section, there were 5 sets, of which 3 were based on mean, median and mode. Finally, the QA section had the maximum number of questions from algebra and the rest from arithmetic, geometry and number systems.
Check Out - CAT Syllabus
IIM Lucknow conducted CAT exam last year. It released the official CAT exam question paper. The slot-wise official CAT 2023 question paper can be downloaded by candidates to prepare for their CAT 2025 exam.
CAT 2023 question paper PDF (Official) | |
CAT 2023 question paper slot 1 | CAT 2023 Question paper PDF (Slot 1, 2 and 3) |
CAT 2023 question paper slot 2 | |
CAT 2023 question paper slot 3 | |
Candidates can download memory-based CAT 2023 question paper PDFs for all the slots from the links provided below in the table:
CAT 2023 question paper pdf (Memory-based) | |
CAT 2023 slot 1 | |
CAT 2023 slot 2 | |
CAT 2023 slot 3 | |
Download- CAT Analysis (Slot 1,2,3)
To help candidates appearing for CAT 2024 understand the CAT question paper pattern they can refer to the previous year's paper. Some of the CAT 2023 exam questions that were asked in the CAT paper are as follows:
Q1.The angle between the hand is 8:48 is X. What is the minimum time in minutes when the angle between them increases by 50%?
Q2.If x and y are real numbers such that x² + (x-2y-1)2 = -4y (x + y), here the value x - 2y is
Q3.Let α and β be the two distinct roots of 2x²-6x+k=0, such that (α+β) & (α * β) are the distinct roots of the equation x²+px+p=0, then, the value of 8(k-p)
Download- CAT Slot 1 Answer Key
Q1. One vessel has 40 litres of milk. Now, 4 litres of milk is replaced with water and 4 litres of mixture is replaced with water gain and this process is done repeatedly. Find the minimum number of such processes so that the concentration of milk becomes less than the concentration of water in the end
Q2.Find the number of numbers which are less than 50 and have exactly two factors other than 1 and itself.
Q3. The ratio of two sides of the polygon is 1:2 and the ratio of their interior angle is 3:4. Find the number of sides of the polygon with more number of sides.
Download- CAT Slot 2 Answer Key
Q1.Find the sum of two smallest natural numbers with number of factors as 15.
Q2.A rectangle with the largest possible area is inscribed in a semi-circle. Find the ratio of larger side to smaller side.
Q3.In a regular polygon, each interior angle is 120 more than each exterior angle. Find the number of diagonals of the polygon.
Download- CAT Slot 3 Answer Key
The CAT results were declared on December 21, 2023. Candidates who appeared for CAT 2023 could evaluate their expected CAT score using the CAT 2023 answer key. For aspirants appearing for CAT 2024 can use CAT percentile predictor to estimate their CAT percentile and to check whether they are eligible for the top B-schools or not. The table below mentions the analysis of the expected CAT score vs percentile.
Expected Percentile | Overall Score | ||
Slot 1 | Slot 2 | Slot 3 | |
99 | 80-81 | 82-83 | 78-80 |
95 | 55-56 | 57-58 | 57-58 |
90 | 45-48 | 46-48 | 46-48 |
85 | 39-41 | 40-43 | 40-41 |
80 | 35-37 | 36-39 | 36-37 |
Also Check- How to Calculate CAT Percentile
Every CAT aspirant dreams of securing MBA admission in one of the top B-schools of India.IIMs being the best and most recognised management institution accept CAT percentile as a criterion for admission in their MBA program. Candidates can refer the mentioned table to know the expected CAT cut off of the top IIMs.
CAT colleges | Expected CAT 2023 Cut-off |
99-100 percentile | |
99-100 percentile | |
99 percentile | |
97-98 percentile | |
97-98 percentile | |
97-98 percentile | |
95-96 percentile | |
95-96 percentile | |
98 percentile | |
97 percentile | |
98.54 percentile | |
94 percentile |
Practicing CAT previous year questions is a crucial part of preparing for the exam. By solving CAT question papers 2023 and earlier CAT question papers, candidates can familiarize themselves with the exam structure and the types of questions asked. Accessing CAT previous year question papers pdf provides an easy way to practice from different years, while CAT previous year question papers with solutions help in understanding the correct approach to solving the questions. Using resources like CAT question paper with solution pdf ensures that candidates can check their answers and improve their problem-solving techniques. For more focused preparation, topic-wise previous year CAT questions pdf and CAT previous year questions topic-wise are useful for identifying and strengthening weak areas. Understanding the CAT question paper pattern further aids in strategizing and planning effectively for the exam.
The importance of solving CAT previous year papers is significant for effective exam preparation. By practising with CAT question papers 2023 and other CAT question papers, candidates can familiarise themselves with the actual exam format and the types of questions asked. Accessing the CAT previous year question papers PDF and CAT previous year question papers with solutions allows candidates to understand the correct approach to solving difficult questions, helping them improve accuracy. Using resources like the CAT question paper with solution PDF also aids in identifying mistakes and learning from them.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The overall difficulty level of the CAT 2023 question paper was difficult. The CAT 2023 exam pattern was similar to last year having 66 questions divided into 3 sections- VARC had 24 questions, DILR had 22 questions and QA had 20 questions.
CAT 2023 exam was tough this year. As per the test takers, the quant section was difficult among the three sections. The QA section was lengthy and time-consuming.
The CAT 2023 slot 1 exam was difficult. Candidates who took this MBA entrance exam on November 26 reported that some questions were repeated in the exam from the CAT previous years.
The CAT 2023 slot 2 was moderately difficult. Candidates found the QA section to be more challenging than other sections.
On Question asked by student community
Hello,
For a raw score of 56 in CAT 2025 Slot 3, your expected overall percentile is likely to be in the range of the 90th-95th percentile. The exact percentile can vary slightly on the final normalization process and the process and performance of all test-takers. In this article you'll find more about the CAT result.
I hope it will clear your query!!
Hello,
With a projected CAT percentile of 87% but not clearing sectional cutoffs, your chances at top IIMs are limited because they require both overall percentile and sectional minimums. However, you still have a good shot at other reputed management institutes and non-IIM B-schools. Consider colleges like NMIMS, SPJIMR, IMT, TAPMI, Great Lakes, and other well-ranked private or state-level B-schools that accept CAT scores and weigh your profile holistically. Your academic record, BSc in Animation with 80%, and 5 years of work experience at Ubisoft India are strong points and may help in institutes that value work experience in their selection process. Also, explore institutes that accept XAT, MAT, or CMAT, where your profile can be competitive.
Hope this helps you.
Good Morning,
NIT Rourkela CAT cutoff range is between 70-85 percentiles for the general category. 70 is the minimum percentile needed to apply, and 85 is the highest percentile. However, the maximum percentile depends on the particular year competition. It can be changed.
Thank You.
If you filled the UGC NET form under EWS but you don’t have a valid EWS certificate, then forget using the EWS category. They won’t accept it. You’ll automatically be treated as General category during document verification.
And no, this won’t make your form “invalid” or “illegal.” It just means you won’t get the EWS benefit.
So yes — you can still go for General category posts and Professor recruitment. Just don’t try to submit a fake/invalid certificate; that will get you disqualified.
Hello,
If your CAT admit card shows your surname first followed by your first name as entered in the form, it is correct. You do not need to worry about this format as long as it matches the details you provided. Ensure all other information on the admit card is accurate and carry it to the exam along with the required identification documents.
Hope this helps you.
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