Look beyond the IIMs
SUMIT BHATTACHARJEE
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Aspirants should not be disheartened if they fail to qualify for the IIMs and should look to pursuing other options on hand.
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Preparing for CAT helps one to pitch for other examinations, which are considered to be a bit easier, compared to the difficulty level of CAT.
Photo: K.V. Srinivasan
aiming high: Entrance tests for management courses are conducted by several institutions of excellence. This widens the choice for aspirants.
This year about 3 lakh students would be taking the CAT (Common Admission Test) which will be held on November 16. Apart from being the qualifying examination for the seven Indian Institute of Management (IIM) schools, CAT stands out to be the benchmark for admission for over 80 other b-schools in the country. It is a known fact that the IIMs are considered to be among the top b-schools in the country, and the dream of every management student. But the total number of seats in all IIMs combined, hover around 1,600 (considering all categories). So what is in store for the rest of the management aspirants?
Based on percentile
“Young minds should not be disheartened if they fail to qualify for the IIMs. It is not the end of the road. Aspirants should keep in mind that the main criteria for the initial selection for the IIMs are based on the percentile and the cut-off marks. Percentage and rank does not play a major role. There are many other options apart from the IIMs,” says J.V. Murthy of T.I.M.E.
Normally, the IIMs send the interview letters to the students who figure around the 95 to 99 percentile mark. The rest can opt for the other top rung b-schools that consider the CAT scores like S.P Jain Institute of Management and Research-Mumbai, Management Development Institute-Gurgaon, National Institute of Industrial Engineering-Mumbai and Institute of Management Technology-Ghaziabad. These institutes admit students who figure around the 85 - 90-plus percentile.
Scaling down to the 75 - 80 percentile, students can opt for institutes like Bharathidasan Institute of Management - Tiruchi, Department of Financial Studies-Delhi University (South campus), Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management-Kolkata, FORE School of Management-New Delhi, Institute of Financial Management and Research-Chennai, IMI- Delhi, K.J. Somaiya Institute of Management Studies-Mumbai, Mudra Institute of Communication-Ahmedabad, T.A. Pai Management Institute-Manipal and Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management-Delhi.
Mr. Murthy puts in that one should not stop with the CAT. “Every management aspirant should prepare and opt for at least five management entrance examinations, since the examination modules are almost similar. CAT is the mother of all management tests. It is not an absolute examination but a relative one. Preparing for CAT helps one to pitch for other examinations, which are considered to be a bit easier, compared to the difficulty level of CAT. The integration of concepts and the undercurrent of logic is higher in CAT, compared to others,” he says.
Other options
IRMA (Institute of Rural Management Anand): Test date - November 9: This institute holds its own selection test and is considered to be among the top rung b-schools in India.
Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT): Test date - November 23: This institute conducts its own entrance test and has two campuses: New Delhi and Kolkata.
Symbiosis National Aptitude Test (SNAP): Test date - December 21. This test is conducted by the Symbiosis group for all its 12 institutes like SIBM, SIIB, SCIT, SIMC and SITM. The Director, T.I.M.E., advises the students to take a shot at SNAP, as the options are many.
IBS Aptitude Test (IBSAT) - Test date - December 21: This test is conducted by ICFAI, for its b-schools.
Joint Management Entrance Test (JMET) - Test date - December 14: This examination is conducted jointly by the IITs and IISc - Bangalore. Management programmes offered by the IITs and the IISC are open only to the engineering graduates and the programmes offered by IIT-Bombay and IIT-Delhi are considered to be among the top rung MBA programmes in the country. Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS-2008): Test date - December 14. The examination is conducted by TISS for admission into its MBA programmes.
Narsee Monjee Aptitude Test (NMAT) Test date - December 28. The examination is exclusively conducted by Narsee Monjee Institute of Management and Higher Studies, Mumbai, and the institute figures among the top b-schools in India.
Xavier’s Admission Test (XAT): Test date - January 4, 2009: Considered next to CAT and a good score leads to admission in one of the best business schools in India like Xavier Labour Relations Institute, Jamshedpur. XAT is also the qualifying exam for some of the other good management colleges like Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar, Goa Institute of Management, Goa, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchi, Pondicherry Central University and Xavier Institute of Social Sciences, Ranchi. Faculty of Management Studies (FMS): Test date - January 11, 2009. The test is exclusively conducted by Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi, for admission into its programmes. These apart, one can always try the option of MAT (Management Aptitude Test) for admission into good local colleges.
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