To join an MBA or other postgraduate management programs in the top management schools in the country, you would first need to appear for an entrance exam. The entrance examinations which are accepted by most of the institutes are mentioned below.

CAT

CAT is the most popular entrance exam for MBA admissions in India. It provides students with the opportunity to join the IIMs along with many other prestigious management institutes.

Some of the institutes (other than the IIMs) that accept CAT scores are: Faculty of Management Studies – Delhi, MDI – Gurgaon, MICA, IILM, IBS etc.

Click here to know more about the CAT exam.

XAT

XAT too is popular because it is the only way to join the top ranked XLRI MBA. In addition to the XLRI, it is accepted by more than 100 management institutes in India, such as XIM – Bhubaneswar, IMT – Ghaziabad, LIBA etc.

Click here to know more about the XAT exam.

Please Note: Some institutes like the XLRI and the XIMB only accept XAT scores.
However, many other institutes such as IMT – Ghaziabad, MICA, LIBA etc. accept XAT scores as well as scores in the CAT, MAT etc.

MAT

MAT too is accepted by hundreds of management schools in India including PSGIM – Coimbatore, MICA etc. Most institutes that accept the MAT scores, however, also accept scores in the CAT and the XAT exams.

Click here to know more about the MAT exam.

Other Entrance Exams

Many popular and prestigious management schools conduct their own entrance exams for admissions into their postgraduate management and business programs.

Some of the institutes who conduct their own exams are:

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT): http://www.iift.edu/new/
SIBM and other Symbiosis institutes: http://www.snaptest.org/OverView.aspx
Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies: http://upload.nmims.edu/NMAT_2014/index.html
Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS): http://admissions.tiss.edu/admission-process/entrance-test

Some other popular entrance exams:

Many institutes accept GMAT scores while admitting candidates. Click Here to know more about the GMAT examination.

Certain institutes also accept an entrance exam called ‘CMAT’. To know more about the CMAT, visit the following website: http://www.aicte-cmat.in/College/Index_New.aspx.

Should I appear for the CAT, XAT or MAT?

Whether you should appear for the CAT, XAT or MAT completely depends on the exam accepted by your top priority colleges.

Even though most colleges accept all 3 scores, there are some colleges that accept only one or two out of the three. So if your dream college is one that only accepts CAT scores, it would be ideal for you to appear for the CAT and use the CAT scores to apply to all other colleges.

For example, if you wish to join the IIMs, which only accept CAT scores, then you must appear for the CAT and use it to apply to other colleges.

In case you wish to join a college like the XLRI (Xavier Labour Relations Institute), then you must appear for the XAT as you will not be able to apply to XLRI using CAT or MAT scores.

Similarly, if your top priority college only accepts MAT scores, then you must appear for the MAT under all circumstances.

Go through the website of the colleges that are your first preference and see the exams they accept and then make your decision accordingly.

What exams do the top institutes accept?