What are the similarities between CMAT & CAT?

A Master in Business Administration (MBA) is a great career choice as it can provide a wealth of opportunities and fit perfectly with the market-driven world. Accordingly, numerous aspirants dream of pursuing an MBA as their career choice. If you believe that pursuing an MBA degree would be a catalyst for your career advancement or change, then holding a degree from a reputed institute should be your precedent. In aligning with this, the primary objective must be to comprehend the structures and nature of the existing prevalent management entrance examinations.

Two of the most common MBA entrance exams include the CAMTexam (Common Management Admission Test) & CAT exam (Common Aptitude Test). Candidates must appear to get admission in management and associated disciplines. Usually, candidates become confused about which of these two exams is better.

If you think of appearing for both entrances, understanding their similarities can enhance the preparation tactics. This article exhibits the similarities between CMAT &CAT examinations to ensure that you can restructure your approach and get admission offers into the top B- School.

Brief Outline of CAT & CMAT

National Testing Agency (NTA) is the body that conducts the CMAT exam essentially to grant admission for MBA courses in various institutes recognized by the AICTE. The introduction of this exam was to lessen the weight on candidates who intended to sit for numerous state or private institutes-organized entrance tests. Additionally, it strives to decrease the burden imposed on students relating to exorbitant expenditures for attending coaching classes for various management entrance exams, test series, study materials, and other available materials deemed necessary as a part of preparation.

CAT exam is the most popular entrance exam to get admission into B-schools. In India, a good score (i.e., over 90 percentile) in the CAT exam means a gateway to the most prestigious B-schools, such as the IIMs, FMS, SP Jain, etc. In addition, over a hundred colleges and institutes refer the CAT scores to shortlist applicants for their selection process.

CMAT & CAT – The existing Similarities

Aside from being the doorway to prestigious B-Schools, CMAT and CAT share similarities, usually leaving many MBA aspirants confused about better. The similarities between CAT and CMAT exams are given below:

Course of admission

Both entrance exams are conducted for getting admission into MBA/ PGDM courses.

Level of exam

CMAT & CAT are national-level exams.

Method of examination

Both of them are online or computer-based exams.

Number of questions provided

Both of them consist of 100 questions, but the CMAT exam includes additional 25 optional questions.

Number of options provided per question

Both exams adopt the MCQ pattern and offer four choices for each question.

The number of exams conducted.

Both exams are conducted once every year.

Medium of exam

English is the official medium of both exams. 

Penalty for wrong answers

Like other competitive exams, both entrance exams award a negative marking of 1 mark for each incorrect answer. 

Examination fee

Both charge RS. 1000 for the General category and Rs. 1000 for the reserved category. 

Both CAT &CMAT exams are the most popular exams to get admission into the country’s top schools. Both of them share many similarities. Nonetheless, when comparing the number of applicants for these two exams, the CAT exam receives more than three times that of CMAT. Pondering the less competitive nature of CMAT, one can state that the difficulty level is higher in the CAT exam. However, it is essential to contemplate the advantages and disadvantages before sitting for one of the examinations.