CAT Score vs Percentile

The CAT 2022 exam will be conducted in the last week of November 2022 (final dates yet to be announced), through online mode. The official CAT 2022 result is expected to be announced in the second week of January 2023. One can easily predict the CAT Percentile from the anticipated CAT Score. One can devise their Preparation Strategy by taking into account the IIMs calls they are likely to get based on their evaluated CAT Percentile

One of the common doubts that CAT candidates have is the concepts of CAT score vs percentile mapping. Here, this concept is explained in detail and candidates can know what CAT percentile vs score is and why it is important. Since the CAT is a prerequisite for admissions in the IIMs and other top management colleges in India, several MBA aspirants register for it every year. The exam is conducted by the IIMs on a rotational basis and they use the CAT score of the individuals according to their respective selection criteria.

CAT Score:

The CAT score simply refers to the total score of a candidate. The sectional papers of the candidates are summed and sorted in descending order of their respective marks. This facilitates the process of percentile as explained below.

CAT Percentile:

A simple definition of the CAT percentile is that it reflects the total percentage of the exam-takers who scored equal to or less than a particular individual. For example, someone’s 99 percentile implies that that individual scored more than 99 percentages of the total test-takers.

Scaling and Normalisation:

Before 2015, the CAT was conducted across various slots. At present, CAT is conducted in 3 Slots. Since replicating the difficulty in all the slots is impossible, the conducting authority of the CAT does a process of normalization to maintain equality and fairness for all the exam-takers.

After normalising the scores using the equi-percentile method, the candidates are given a scaled score. This scaled score might be more or less than the actual CAT score depending upon the performance of the fellow candidates.

CAT Score vs Percentile

The CAT Score and the CAT Percentile are completely different concepts connected at the base. A higher CAT score most likely results in a higher CAT Percentile. Therefore, the CAT Score vs Percentile becomes extremely important as the CAT Exam pattern keeps on changing depending on the level of difficulty.

Since the CAT Score vs Percentile comparison varies every year depending upon the difficulty of the exam, one needs to understand how much to score in order to get into their dream college.

To stand a chance at getting into your dream college, past CAT trends will help you identify the kind of score that they would require

*CAT 2020 had a different exam pattern with the duration and number of questions reduced to 2 hours and 76 Questions, respectively. This resulted in a drop in the overall scores required for the given percentiles. As per the CAT 2021 notification, CAT 2021 will follow this trend.

CAT 2022 Exam composite score calculation

The composite score of each student is based on the scaled CAT score, class 12th marks, class 10th marks, Graduation score, work experience (more than 2 years) diversity, academic diversity and gender diversity.

Conclusion

All CAT aspirants should know the CAT Score vs Percentile mapping so they can target the colleges accordingly. But while the CAT Score vs Percentile mentioned in this article is based on past year trends, this could change if the convening IIM tweaks the format or difficulty level of the CAT Exam drastically.

In conclusion, the CAT Percentile matters since colleges take into account CAT Percentiles and not the marks when selecting candidates for the second round.

Stay tuned with BYJU’S to get more such information about the CAT exam. Also, get various preparation tips, sample papers, mock tests and several engaging video lessons to prepare for the CAT more effectively.