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Welcome! Let’s help you understand the details of the CAT exam pattern 2018. CAT (Common Admission Test) exam is a life changing and challenging exam given by lakhs of MBA aspirants all over India.
Latest Update: IIMs has announced the CAT 2018 exam date on Sunday, November 25, 2018. Registration for CAT Exam will start on August 8, 2018.
The exam pattern of CAT was changed to computer based test starting May 2009. Your score will help you get into one of the 20 IIM’s or 100’s of other B-schools in India. CAT Exam 2018 is expected to be held in the 4th week of November 2018 across 140 cities and 650 centers in India.
Grapevine says that VARC section will be one of the toughest in CAT 2018 and rightly so because students have become used to search engines to check their concerns on language hence, have become weaker than before. Although questions in this section might remain moderate but will look tougher because of wrong habits of students on language usages. Hopefully, focused aspirants like you will use the information given on preparation here on this portal and will that will yield you good result.
CAT Exam Pattern 2018
The CAT paper pattern was revamped completely in the year 2015 by IIM-Ahmadabad. CAT exam pattern 2018 consists of 100 questions divided into 3 sections. The exam pattern of CAT exam questions is Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) and Non Multiple Choice Questions (Non MCQs). There is negative marking. You cannot switch to next section unless you have finished one section. A detailed breakup of CAT exam pattern 2018 is as below:-
| CAT Exam 2018 Sections | No. of Questions | CAT Exam 2018 Marking Scheme | Duration (in minutes) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marks per Correct Question | Negative Marking* | Maximum Marks | |||
| Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) | 34 | 3 | 1 | 102 | 60 |
| Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DI & LR) | 32 | 3 | 1 | 96 | 60 |
| Quantitative Ability (QA) | 34 | 3 | 1 | 102 | 60 |
| Total | 100 | 300 | 180 | ||
*There is no negative marking for Non MCQ type questions
CAT Exam 2018 Section Details
The CAT exam pattern 2018 consists of three main sections - Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning and Quantitative Ability. The candidate(s) get 60 minutes to answer questions in each section. You cannot switch to next section unless you have finished one section.
The exam pattern of CAT exam 2018 section wise can be broken up into the following:-
| CAT Exam 2018 Sections | Sectional Breakup | Question Type | Section Highlights | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCQ | Non MCQ* | |||
| VARC | Total Questions | 24-27 | 7-10 |
1. Since 2015 there were no questions on vocabulary or grammar 2. VA questions are based out of mostly 3 topics -Jumbled paragraph, Para summary, picking odd sentence out of jumbled sentences 3. There are 5 RC passages |
| Reading Comprehension | 24-27 | Nil | ||
| Verbal Ability | 3-5 | 4-5 | ||
| DILR | Total Questions | 24 | 8 |
1. All questions appear in a set of 4 2. Candidates face most time crunch 3. Allowed to use on screen calculator |
| Data Interpretation | 12 | 4 | ||
| Logical Reasoning | 12 | 4 | ||
| QA | Total Questions | 23-27 | 11-7 |
1. Arithmetic - Percentage, Profit & Loss, Time & speed, Work/days, Compound interest are popular topics 2. Allowed to use on screen calculator |
*Non MCQ type questions need to be typed directly on screen using a virtual keyboard. There is no negative marking for them.
The details of the 2018 CAT exam question pattern are as below:-
CAT Exam 2018 Quick Overview
Below is a quick overview of important dates and details regarding CAT exam 2018:-
| CAT 2018 Exam Date | 25th November 2018 |
| CAT 2018 Result Date | Second Week of January 2019 |
| CAT 2018 Exam Mode | Computer Based Test |
| Types of Sections |
3 sections 1. Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (34) 2. Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (32) 3. Quantitative Ability (34) |
| Types of Questions |
1. MCQs (75) 2. Non MCQs (25) |
| Total No. of Questions | 100 |
| Exam Duration |
180 minutes(60 minute for each section) |
| Marking Scheme |
1. Correct Answer: +3 2. Incorrect Answer: -1 (no negative marking for Non MCQs) 3. Non Attempt: 0 |
All the best! To the candidates who will be writing the CAT Exam 2018.
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