02, February 2022
“Can I join an MBA without CAT? If yes how and what are the best options” — this deems one of the most popular queries when it comes to pursuing management as a career. The simple answer to this ever-looming question is, YES. It is very much possible to join MBA without CAT, and there are more than 50 other exams that you can crack with some effort and decent preparation. Students all over India make attempts to clear CAT with a good percentile to get successful admission in tier one colleges like IIMs. However, this widened popularity of the exam also tends to make it one of the most competitive and toughest exams to crack. Despite being amidst a global pandemic, in 2021 alone, almost 2.3 lakhs students registered themselves to appear for the exam and amongst this staggering number, almost 1.92 lakhs students actually appeared for the exam.
One sure shot way to build a robust management career is by staying aware of various exams and being ahead of the dates and schedule. Broadly, management exams are conducted on three levels— national level, state level, and university level. Let's look at some of the popular and easy MBA Entrance Exams, to crack in each category!
National level exams are mostly conducted annually by institutes of national importance, such as IIMs and NTA. These exams have mass acceptability in all public and private institutions as they're recognised nationally. Following are some of these exams:
CMAT is a computer-based test conducted by NTA once a year. In 2022, this exam will most likely be in the last week of March. The registration process will begin in the last week of January. The application fee is INR 2000 for the General category and INR 1000 for the reserved category.
IBSAT is conducted annually by ICFAI Business School Hyderabad. This exam is relatively easier and opens up admission to 9 IBS campuses in India.
NMAT is a national level exam conducted by the Graduate Management Aptitude Council. This is a relatively easy exam that students can appear for thrice to reach a better score. Registration for Phase 2 of NMAT was held from 3rd January to 9th January.
This is a popular MBA entrance exam that is conducted by the Graduate Management Aptitude Council multiple times every year. Students can attempt this exam 5 times a year with a gap of 16 days.
XAT registration for admission into MBA colleges for the academic year 2022-2023 began on 10th August 2021. The exam opens up admission into 150+ B schools all across India and is conducted by XLRI Jamshedpur.
As per the new norms, this exam is now conducted 3 times a year by Symbiosis International (deemed) University. For admission to the academic year 2022-2024, the exam was conducted on 19th December 2021, 8th Jan 2022 and 16th Jan 2022.
This exam is conducted by the All India Management Foundation. As for 2022, the registration window closes on 28th February 2022 and the final test will be held on March 6th.
This exam is conducted by the Association Of Indian Management Schools. Registrations for admission into MBA batch 2022-2024 began on 8th Dec 2021 and will last till 20th February 2022.
Appearing for this exam opens up admission to the flagship course MBA in International Business and is conducted by NTA. The admissions for the academic year 2022-24 are currently open.
This exam opens up admission to the new 5 years joint integrated programme in management at IIM Bodh Gaya and IIM Jammu.
These exams are conducted by the government of a particular state. Cracking this exam opens up admission in most MBA government institutions of the state.
HP Management Aptitude test is conducted by Himachal Pradesh University business school once a year. This test is conducted in 8 cities across the country and opens up MBA admissions in Himachal Pradesh state.
This state-level exam is conducted by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of technology and allows students the opportunity to study MBA in colleges in the West Bengal state.
This management entrance exam is conducted by Punjab University every year for admission to MBA courses. In 2022, the exam is most likely to be held in July.
This exam is conducted annually by the State CET cell of Maharashtra and allows students to take admission into more than 330 colleges offering MBA courses.
The registrations for Tamil Nadu Common Entrance Test 2022 will tentatively commence during the end of January and last till the end of February.
This state-level exam called Andhra Pradesh Common Entrance Test is a state-level exam conducted to allow students to study full time and/or remote MBA or MCA courses in the colleges of Andhra Pradesh state.
This exam is conducted by the Kakatiya University for the Telangana State Council of Higher Education. More than 23000 seats are available for students who want to pursue MBA or MCA courses in Telangana.
The applications for online registration of the Karnataka Management Aptitude Test in 2022 will tentatively commence in the last week of May. Students who wish to pursue MBA in Karnataka state have to appear for this exam to be eligible.
This exam is held by the Kerala State Government for admissions to MBA courses in public and private colleges in that state. The registration process for 2022 will close tentatively in the last week of March.
These entrance exams are specific to an individual university and the admission is mostly restricted to the university that conducts the exam.
This university level exam is conducted by Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed University. In 2022, the registration process will last till mid-April.
This exam is conducted by Xavier's Management University and allows students to apply for various MBA programs in XIMB.
This exam is conducted by the JK Lakshmipat University of Jaipur. The exam takes place offline and there's no general date slab for the test.
SRM Joint Entrance Exam Management is a university-level test conducted by SRM University. In 2022, the registration commenced from 2nd January and will last till 20th June 2022.
This exam is conducted by UPES Dehradun. The registration process for admission into MBA 2022-2024 began on 25th November 2021 and lasted till 24th January 2022.
The application process for admission into MBA courses at GGSIP University will last till the end of April 2022.
Guru Nanak Dev University Management Aptitude Test is a CBT conducted every year to foster admission into MBA courses offered by GNDU's Business School.
Alliance University conducts this exam every year for admission into MBA programmes. This year, the online registration will last till 31st January 2022.
This university level entrance exam is conducted by Galgotias University.
This university level entrance exam is conducted by Galgotias University.
This exam is conducted by the Vellore Institute of Technology. For 2022 admissions, the application process began on 6th December 2022 and will last till 31st January 2022.
These national, state and university level exams are your best way to find a good reputed B School in India to get your MBA degree. And the catch is, the preparation for all these exams will mostly be covered if you’ve studied for your CAT exam as these are relatively easier. So that answers the classic “how to join MBA without CAT” question in the most comprehensive way. If you've been wondering about starting your MBA preparation, let this article be your sign and your guide!
