IIM Amritsar CAT Cutoff: Category-wise Reference

The latest MBA selection policy is for CAT 2025 and the 2026-28 intake. Its first-shortlist thresholds were:

A candidate also needed a positive raw score in every CAT section. Clearing only the overall percentile did not qualify a candidate for further processing. After the first screen, the institute calculated a pre-interview score and ranked candidates for PI calls.

General and EWS candidates both needed 90 overall, but their VARC floors differed: 80 for General and 77 for EWS. For example, a General candidate at 92 overall with 78 in VARC would miss the historical VARC minimum even if QA and DILR cleared their cutoffs.

These are qualifying thresholds, not the lowest scores of students who eventually joined. The CAT cutoff guide separates the initial screen from interview and final-offer decisions. This page covers the flagship MBA; entrance tests accepted for an Executive MBA or PhD should not be applied to this CAT-based route.

Academic Scores and Pre-PI Shortlisting

Candidates who cleared the first screen were assessed on these pre-PI components:

Class 10 and Class 12 percentages were first adjusted against the 90th-percentile score for the candidate's own board. Each percentage was divided by that board benchmark. This is different from awarding the same profile score to everyone with the same raw percentage across different boards.

Graduation used this six-band rating:

The degree table uses two-decimal boundaries. It does not specify how marks with finer decimal precision should be rounded. A university percentage such as 65.005% should not be silently rounded into a higher band.

If the university supplied CGPA rather than marks, its own conversion formula applied. Only when no institutional conversion formula existed was the obtained CGPA expressed as a percentage of the maximum possible CGPA.

Graduation, work and gender diversity were part of the shortlist, not additions made only after the interview. The policy specifies their weights but does not provide complete month-by-month work points or a detailed diversity award table. A work-experience formula from another IIM would give the wrong Amritsar estimate.

PI Weightage and Final Selection Formula

The interview panel considered academic background, work quality and personal traits. Its post-PI score combined:

Final aggregate = 0.7 x Pre-PI score + 0.3 x Post-PI score.

The PI's 70% weight belongs to the post-PI block, not the entire final score. That block contributes 30% to the aggregate, so the direct PI share is 70% x 30% = 21%. Similarly, CAT's 50% pre-PI share contributes 35% through the 70%-weighted pre-PI block.

For an illustrative pre-PI score of 60 and post-PI score of 80, the final aggregate is 42 + 24 = 66. These are assumed component scores to demonstrate the formula; 66 is not an admission cutoff.

Work experience and gender diversity appear in both stages, while academic diversity appears in the post-PI block. The institute applies the same selection weights across categories and prepares category-wise final rankings.

The published post-PI weights assign no separate numerical share to WAT. A reference to PI/WAT in the first-screen wording should not be turned into an invented WAT mark. The IIM shortlist criteria differ by institute, including how much of the pre-interview profile remains in the final score.

Final-Year Candidates and Academic Records

For final-year candidates, Amritsar used marks up to one year before the final examinations throughout the admission process. Incomplete degree marks were used only where the final graduation result was pending.

For the historical 2026-28 intake, candidates had to finish all degree requirements by 30 June 2026. This included regular examinations, practical examinations and supplementary examinations, not merely attending the last class.

They also had to meet the minimum graduation percentage required for their category under CAT 2025 eligibility. The completion deadline and the marks condition were separate: finishing examinations on time did not waive the minimum qualification marks.

The application's Class 10, Class 12, graduation percentage and degree discipline all affected selection. Incorrect academic details could prevent further consideration. A later final result did not justify replacing the institute's stated final-year scoring rule with a self-selected semester percentage.

Offer Withdrawal and Refund

The 2026-28 withdrawal rules covered MBA, MBA-BA and MBA-HR. Candidates had to email their decision with a completed, signed withdrawal form within the deadline communicated for their merit list.

Registration and the start of classes were different boundaries. Between them, whether the vacated seat was filled affected the Term 1 refund. Once Term 1 classes began, the policy ruled out a Term 1 refund regardless of vacancy.

Before programme registration, the contact was admissions@iimamritsar.ac.in. After registration, withdrawal was handled through pgpoffice@iimamritsar.ac.in. The form requested the candidate's name, CAT registration number, programme, reason for withdrawal, postal address, bank details, signature and date.

A refund was transferred to the bank account supplied by the candidate. The CAT admission process includes institute-specific offer and withdrawal deadlines.

Cutoffs and Scoressectional floors, academics and merit Documents and Offersfinal-year conditions and refunds

1. Previous-Year Sectional Cutoffs
2. Academic and Pre-PI Reference
3. Final-Score Breakdown

1. Final-Year and Record Requirements
2. Withdrawal Reference