BIMTECH PGDM Admissions 2026
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How Many Students Clear CAT Exam Every Year? This is a common question which every MBA aspirant must have. Well, to answer this question, the CAT exam authorities have never released any official numbers answering this question. However, one can get a rough idea of this question by looking at the CAT results, which will be out in the second or third week of December 2025. This year, the CAT exam was taken by 2.58 lakh students. Going by last year's data, 3,29,000 candidates had registered for the CAT exam, out of which only 2,93,000 candidates had appeared.
IIM Kozhikode will retain its three-stage admission process for the MBA (PGP) 2026–28 batch, with CAT 2025 scores carrying a final weightage of 35 percent. The minimum overall CAT cut-off for general category candidates remains at 85 percentile, with sectional qualifying scores required in VARC, DILR, and QA. Shortlisting of candidates will be based on CAT performance, academic record, and personal interview rounds.
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CAT (Common Admission Test) is one of the most reputed and anticipated MBA entrance exams in India. The CAT exam is conducted every year for MBA aspirants to get admission to the prestigious IIMs and other top rated B schools in the country. As you continue reading this article, you will find the past years' total number of candidates who took the CAT exam, the past year's toppers, along with more details.
To understand how many students clear the CAT exam every year, we must begin by looking at the number of how many candidates who take the CAT exam every year. Every year, 2.5 - 3+ lakh students register for the CAT exam, out of which only 80-89% of students end up participating in the CAT exam.
As you will look at the below table, you will get to see that the total number of students appearing for the CAT exam has risen significantly. Here is the table listing the total number of candidates who registered and took the CAT exam in the past 5 years.
| Year | No. of Students Registered for CAT | No. of Students Appeared for CAT |
| 2025 | 2,95,000 | 2,58,000 |
| 2024 | 3,29,000 | 2,93,000 |
| 2023 | 2,23,000 | 2,88,000 |
| 2022 | 2,55,501 | 2,22,184 |
| 2021 | 2,29,969 | 1,91,660 |
| 2020 | 2,27,835 | 1,90,144 |
Also See: How Many Students Took CAT Exam?
Over the years, it has been seen that only 10,000-30,000 students have qualified for the CAT exam in the past years. As mentioned, the exact number as to how many students who clear the CAT exam has never officially been released by the CAT exam conducting authorities.
While the exact number is not there, one must note that you need 99-100% to get admission to the top IIMs in India. Take a look at the following table, which mentions the number of toppers in each percentile.
Year | Percentile | No. of Students Qualified |
2024 | 100% | 14 (13 Males;1 Female) |
99.99% | 29 (27 Males;2 Females) | |
99.98% | 30 (29 Males;1 Female) | |
2023 | 100% | 14 (All Males) |
99.99% | 29 (28 Males;1 Female) | |
99.98% | 29 ( All Males) | |
2022 | 100% | 11 (All Males) |
99.99% | 22 (21 Males; 1 Female) | |
99.98% | 22 (19 Males; 3 Females) | |
2021 | 100% | 9 (All Males) |
99.99% | 19 (All Males) | |
99.98% | 19 (18 Males; 1 Female) |
The marks required to clear the CAT exam vary every year. The marks vary from one institute to another depending on their specified CAT cutoff. The CAT cutoff for different IIMs as well as non-IIMs is given in the table below.
Name of the College | CAT Cutoff 2025 (Expected) |
99-100 | |
99-100 | |
99 | |
97+ | |
97+ | |
97-98 | |
95+ | |
95+ | |
95+ | |
94 | |
94 | |
94 | |
94 | |
92 | |
92 | |
92 | |
90 | |
95 | |
95 | |
99 | |
94 | |
98+ | |
90+ | |
99+ | |
90+ | |
95+ | |
95+ | |
85+ | |
90+ | |
95+ | |
85+ |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The success rate for the CAT exam based on previous year records is around 2%. The success rate for IIMs through CAT is even lesser than that.
The pass percentage of the CAT exam is decided by the individual college. CAT exam also has sectional pass percentage for all three sections. The CAT pass percentage ranges from 60 to 80 for the overall CAT exam.
The CAT exam is given by over 2 lakh candidates every year. The number of students giving the CAT exam varies from 2.5 to 2.9 lakh every year.
The CAT cutoff for IIM is between 99 to 100 percentile. This is the CAT percentile at which the final selection of a candidate generally happens. The qualifying CAT percentile for CAT ranges from 70 to 80 depending on the particular IIM. At this percentile a candidate becomes eligible to apply to the particular IIM for its selection process.
Every year, it is estimated that approximately 5,500 students get admitted into 21 IIMs, with the total number of seats across all IIMs being slightly higher.
On Question asked by student community
HELLO,
With an overall 98.54 percentile ( QA/DILR 97.55, VARC 94.89) and strong academics 9/9/0, you have a good profile. As a B.Tech candidate you can expect calls from :-
Hope this will help you !
Hello aspirant,
Your kid has a good profile even in the general category with a BTech from IIT Delhi, three years of excellent job experience in a leading industry, and a 96 percentile in the CAT. He has a strong chance at reputable MBA schools like IIM Shillong, IIM Udaipur, IIM Trichy, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, and others, depending on interview performance and profile match, even though the top IIMs often require higher percentiles.
Thank you
Hope it helps you
With an overall CAT percentile of 82.71 in CAT 2025 as a general category candidate, along with section-wise percentiles of 80.56 in VARC, 75.81 in DILR and 84.56 in QA, your chances at top IIMs are limited, as most older IIMs usually shortlist general category candidates at much higher percentiles. However, this percentile still keeps you eligible for admission calls from several Tier-2 and Tier-3 MBA colleges across India, especially those that consider overall performance, academic background and work experience along with CAT scores. You can expect calls from institutes such as IMT Nagpur, IMI Bhubaneswar, FORE School of Management (some programs), TAPMI Manipal (borderline), Great Lakes Institute of Management (Chennai or Gurgaon for PGPM/PGDM variants), K J Somaiya (depending on cut-offs), GIM Goa (through CAT or other exams), and state-level universities that accept CAT scores. Additionally, many good private universities and autonomous B-schools consider candidates in the 80–85 percentile range and conduct their own GD-PI rounds. To improve your chances, you should apply widely, prepare well for interviews, and highlight your academics, work experience, certifications and extracurricular achievements, as final selection is not based on CAT score alone.
All the best.
With an overall CAT 2025 percentile of 82.71, you are unlikely to get calls from the IIMs (including new or baby IIMs), as most of them generally shortlist candidates at 90+ percentile, even after considering category and profile factors. However, this percentile is still quite decent and opens doors to many good Tier-2 and Tier-3 MBA colleges in India that offer solid academics, reasonable placements, and good industry exposure.
At around 80–85 percentile, you have a strong chance of getting shortlisted by institutes such as IMI Bhubaneswar, IMT Nagpur, IMT Hyderabad, XIME Bangalore/Chennai, TAPMI Manipal (borderline, profile-dependent), IFMR GSB Krea University, FORE School of Management (certain programs), GIM Goa (specialised programs), LIBA Chennai (borderline), K J Somaiya Institute of Management (profile-based), Great Lakes Chennai/Gurgaon (PGDM – profile matters a lot), and Welingkar Mumbai (especially through profile + GDPI). Many reputed state universities and private institutes like PUMBA Pune, Delhi School of Management (DTU – if accepting CAT that year), BIMTECH (some programs), NDIM Delhi, ITM Navi Mumbai, and Jaipuria Institute of Management campuses are also realistic options.
Your sectional percentiles (VARC 80.56, DILR 75.81, QA 84.56) are fairly balanced, which works in your favor, as several colleges apply sectional cut-offs around 60–70 percentile. Final selection will depend not only on CAT score but also on academic background, graduation marks, work experience, diversity factors, and GD-PI performance. If you have work experience, it significantly improves your chances at colleges like Great Lakes, FORE, IFMR, and Welingkar.
In summary, while top IIMs are not achievable at 82.71 percentile, you can still secure admission into reputed mid-tier MBA colleges that provide good ROI and career growth if you perform well in the GD-PI process. It is advisable to apply broadly, focus on profile-based institutes, and prepare seriously for interviews to convert the best possible calls.
With 84.91 percentile in CAT (General, male, no work experience), top colleges like IIMs, IITs, FMS, MDI, etc. are not possible. You may get calls from private institutes such as IMT Nagpur/Hyderabad, IMI Bhubaneswar, XIME, SDMIMD, Welingkar (some programs) and similar colleges. Universities like Amity or LPU are also options.
It’s better to choose carefully, as placements and ROI may be average. Reattempting CAT or trying XAT/CMAT could improve options.
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