{"id":10113,"date":"2026-09-21T20:06:31","date_gmt":"2026-09-21T20:06:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/blog\/?p=10113"},"modified":"2026-09-29T20:20:54","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T20:20:54","slug":"cat-2026-exam-date-cutoff-iilm-mba-admission-without-cat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/blog\/cat-2026-exam-date-cutoff-iilm-mba-admission-without-cat\/","title":{"rendered":"CAT 2026 Exam Date, Cutoff &#038; IILM MBA Admission Without CAT: What Are Your Options?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Quick Answer:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> CAT 2026 will be held on Sunday, November 29, 2026, conducted by IIM Indore, with results expected in the first week of January 2027 (IIM Indore, 2026). Cutoffs for top IIMs have recently required 95 percentile and above (Careers360, 2026). If you do not have a CAT score, you can still pursue an MBA \u2014<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/school-of-management\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM University&#8217;s School of Management<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> accepts XAT, MAT, CMAT, NMAT, ATMA and GMAT, and also runs its own Entrance Test for candidates without any of these.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Every autumn, the same question does the rounds in MBA WhatsApp groups and college corridors. What happens if CAT does not go your way this year? It is a fair worry. CAT decides admission to 22 IIMs and roughly a thousand other B-schools, and the exam only gets tougher each cycle. But CAT is not the only door into a good MBA programme, and knowing the alternate routes well before results day saves a lot of last-minute panic.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This guide covers the CAT 2026 exam date and full timeline, what cutoffs have looked like at top institutes in the most recent admission cycle, and a practical look at how<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/postgraduate-admissions\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM University&#8217;s MBA admission<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> works for candidates who do not hold a CAT score.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-is-the-cat-2026-exam-date-and-timeline\"><b>What Is the CAT 2026 Exam Date and Timeline?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CAT 2026 is being conducted by IIM Indore, following the convention where one of the older IIMs takes charge on a rotational basis. The CAT 2026 notification and official bulletin were released on July 26, 2026, and the exam itself falls, as usual, on the last Sunday of November. All exam and registration dates below come from the official CAT website,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iimcat.ac.in\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iimcat.ac.in<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a primary source (IIM Indore, 2026).<\/span><\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Event<\/th>\n<th>Date<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Notification released<\/td>\n<td>July 26, 2026<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Registration opens<\/td>\n<td>August 3, 2026<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Registration closes<\/td>\n<td>September 22, 2026, 5:00 PM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Late fee payment window<\/td>\n<td>Till September 24, 2026, 5:00 PM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Admit card release<\/td>\n<td>November 4, 2026<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Exam date<\/td>\n<td>Sunday, November 29, 2026, in three shifts<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Result<\/td>\n<td>First week of January 2027<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A few details worth knowing if you are still preparing:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Application fee is Rs. 2,700 for General, EWS and NC-OBC candidates, and Rs. 1,350 for SC, ST and PwD candidates.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Exam pattern covers 68 questions across VARC, DILR and QA sections, to be completed in 120 minutes, with a 40-minute sectional time limit for each section.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marking scheme awards plus 3 for a correct MCQ answer and minus 1 for a wrong one, with no penalty for TITA (non-MCQ) questions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The exam is conducted across roughly 170 cities in India.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The CAT 2026 convener is Prof. Aditya Billore, Professor of Marketing at IIM Indore, who holds an M.Tech and B.E. degree and is a Fellow of IIM Indore (Collegedunia, 2026).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Around 2.95 lakh candidates registered for CAT in the most recent completed cycle, of whom about 2.58 lakh actually appeared, roughly a 12 percent no-show rate (Careers360, 2026).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you are weighing your options right now, mid-preparation, unsure whether to bank everything on CAT, it helps to look at what recent cutoffs have actually required, and then at what a non-CAT MBA route looks like in practice.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-do-recent-cat-cutoffs-actually-show\"><b>What Do Recent CAT Cutoffs Actually Show?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cutoffs change every year based on the paper&#8217;s difficulty and the size of the applicant pool, so treat the figures below as approximate, trend-level numbers drawn from the 2024 to 2025 admission cycles, not a guarantee for CAT 2026. Official, institute-wise cutoffs are released by each IIM and B-school only after results are declared, usually through their own admission notices. These are secondary source estimates compiled from education portals and should be read as indicative ranges rather than exact figures.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>General category cutoff ranges (recent cycles, approximate):<\/b><\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Institute or College<\/th>\n<th>Approximate Cutoff Percentile<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>IIM Ahmedabad<\/td>\n<td>99 to 100<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>IIM Bangalore<\/td>\n<td>98 to 100<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>IIM Calcutta<\/td>\n<td>98 to 100<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>IIM Lucknow, Indore, Kozhikode<\/td>\n<td>97 to 98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Newer IIMs (Amritsar, Bodh Gaya, Trichy, Udaipur, Ranchi, Nagpur, and others)<\/td>\n<td>85 to 95<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>FMS Delhi<\/td>\n<td>98 to 99<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>MDI Gurgaon<\/td>\n<td>96 to 97<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>SPJIMR Mumbai<\/td>\n<td>95 to 96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Top IITs (Delhi, Bombay, Kharagpur, Madras, Roorkee)<\/td>\n<td>92 to 95<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>IMT Ghaziabad, XIMB, TAPMI, GIM Goa<\/td>\n<td>85 to 90<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sources: Pagalguy (2025), Careers360 (2026), iQuanta (2025). All figures are approximate and represent expected ranges compiled from historical trends, not officially declared cutoffs for CAT 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"why-do-sectional-cutoffs-matter\"><b>Why Do Sectional Cutoffs Matter?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A strong overall percentile is not the whole story.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IIM Ahmedabad and Kozhikode have typically expected around 70 to 75 percentile in each individual section.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IIM Lucknow and Indore have leaned closer to 80 to 85 percentile per section.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A candidate with a high overall score but one weak section can still miss the shortlist entirely.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A couple of broader patterns are also worth noting. Cutoffs have been trending upward rather than downward. Year-on-year comparisons show the IIM A, B, C cutoff band moving from roughly 96 to 98 percent in 2020 to 95 to 99 percent by 2025, and the broader B-school band tightening from about 78 to 92 percent to 95 to 99 percent over the same period (iQuanta, 2025). A 95-plus percentile does not guarantee an IIM call, but it does keep newer IIMs, MDI Gurgaon, SPJIMR Mumbai and several IIT departments of management studies realistically within reach.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the part that trips up a lot of aspirants. Even a genuinely strong CAT attempt, in the 95th or 96th or 97th percentile range, can miss the cutoff at the institute a candidate had set their heart on, simply because so many other students are clearing the same bar. That is exactly the scenario where knowing your backup routes in advance, rather than scrambling for them in January, makes a real difference.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"which-entrance-exams-can-you-use-instead-of-cat-at-iilm\"><b>Which Entrance Exams Can You Use Instead of CAT at IILM?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If CAT does not go your way, or you would rather not wait an entire year to reattempt it,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM University<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> offers a workable path into a full-time, two-year MBA, without CAT being the only ticket in. This section draws on IILM University&#8217;s own published admission and eligibility pages, which are the primary source for this information (IILM University, 2026).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM University accepts scores from CAT, XAT, MAT, CMAT, NMAT by GMAC, ATMA and GMAT for MBA and PGDM admissions. In practice, this means a candidate who has appeared for any one of these, even as a backup exam alongside CAT, already meets IILM&#8217;s entrance score requirement.<\/span><\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Exam<\/th>\n<th>Conducted By<\/th>\n<th>Typical Use for IILM Admission<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>XAT<\/td>\n<td>XLRI<\/td>\n<td>Accepted alongside CAT for MBA shortlisting<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>MAT<\/td>\n<td>AIMA<\/td>\n<td>Held in multiple sessions across the year, generally used with 70-plus percentile<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>CMAT<\/td>\n<td>NTA<\/td>\n<td>Accepted for MBA and PGDM admission<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>NMAT by GMAC<\/td>\n<td>GMAC<\/td>\n<td>Accepted, with multiple attempt windows<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>ATMA<\/td>\n<td>AIMS<\/td>\n<td>Accepted for MBA admission<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>GMAT<\/td>\n<td>GMAC<\/td>\n<td>Valid for five years, so ensure your score remains valid until enrolment<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"what-is-the-iilm-entrance-test-and-how-does-it-work\"><b>What Is the IILM Entrance Test, and How Does It Work?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the option most candidates do not know about until they go looking. IILM also conducts its own Entrance Test for MBA and other postgraduate management admissions, offering a direct pathway for students who have not taken CAT, MAT, XAT or NMAT, or who prefer to secure a seat through the university&#8217;s internal assessment process. This is followed by a Personal Interview, and it is generally conducted during May and June \u2014 useful to know if you are mapping out your admission calendar early. Current dates and the full application process are listed on the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/postgraduate-admissions\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Postgraduate Admissions<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In short, if you have spent months preparing for CAT and, for whatever reason, the score does not reflect that effort, you are not locked out of a full-time MBA. There are three practical ways in at IILM. You may already hold a different national entrance score, you can attempt a shorter, less intensely competitive exam such as CMAT or ATMA, or you can take IILM&#8217;s own Entrance Test as a direct route.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-are-the-eligibility-criteria-for-iilms-mba\"><b>What Are the Eligibility Criteria for IILM&#8217;s MBA?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Candidates need a bachelor&#8217;s degree in any discipline with a minimum of 50 percent aggregate marks or an equivalent grade. The<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/gurugram\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gurugram campus<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> specifically asks for a minimum of 55 percent marks in Class 10, Class 12 and graduation, so it is worth checking the exact eligibility criteria for your target campus before applying. Final year undergraduate students who expect to meet the percentage requirement are also eligible to apply, and there is no restriction on undergraduate stream. Engineering, commerce, arts and science graduates are all considered on equal footing. Full campus-wise criteria are listed on the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/eligibility\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eligibility<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-does-the-iilm-admission-process-look-like-step-by-step\"><b>What Does the IILM Admission Process Look Like, Step by Step?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The process runs in five stages, according to IILM University&#8217;s own<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/admissions-procedure\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Admissions Procedure<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page.<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Apply online<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> through the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/postgraduate-admissions\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Postgraduate Admissions<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page, along with your academic documents and entrance exam scorecard, or note that you plan to attempt the IILM Entrance Test.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Get shortlisted<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> based on entrance score, academic record and any relevant achievements.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Attend the Group Discussion<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> round.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Clear the Personal Interview<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with faculty and industry panellists.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Receive your offer<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with final admission confirmed once your bachelor&#8217;s degree marksheet is submitted. For final year applicants, admission stays provisional until degree completion is verified.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the fine print on documents, deadlines and campus-specific criteria, check the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/eligibility\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eligibility<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page and<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/admissions-procedure\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Admissions Procedure<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page directly before you apply, and browse the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/scholarship\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scholarship<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> options available if cost is a factor in your decision.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"cat-route-vs-non-cat-route-a-quick-comparison\"><b>CAT Route vs Non-CAT Route: A Quick Comparison<\/b><\/h2>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Factor<\/th>\n<th>CAT Route (IIMs, top B-schools)<\/th>\n<th>Non-CAT Route (IILM and similar universities)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Competitive intensity<\/td>\n<td>Very high, 95-plus percentile typically needed at well-known institutes<\/td>\n<td>Moderate, entrance score is one factor among several<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Attempts per year<\/td>\n<td>Once annually<\/td>\n<td>Multiple options, since MAT runs several sessions a year and IILM&#8217;s own test is a separate window<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Weightage on other factors<\/td>\n<td>Class 10 and Class 12 marks and overall profile often carry meaningful weight at IIMs<\/td>\n<td>Academic record, Group Discussion and Personal Interview performance matter significantly<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Best suited for<\/td>\n<td>Candidates confident of a top percentile and willing to wait a full admission cycle<\/td>\n<td>Candidates who want certainty, flexibility or a faster admission timeline<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Neither route is objectively better. It depends on your risk appetite, your timeline and how confident you are heading into results day.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"frequently-asked-questions\"><b>Frequently Asked Questions<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b>When is CAT 2026?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0CAT 2026 is scheduled for Sunday, November 29, 2026, conducted by IIM Indore (IIM Indore, 2026).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>When will CAT 2026 results be declared?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Results are expected in the first week of January 2027.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What percentile is needed for an IIM call in 2026?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Based on recent cycles, older IIMs such as Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calcutta have required approximately 98 to 100 percentile, while newer IIMs have been reachable from around 85 to 95 percentile (Pagalguy, 2025; Careers360, 2026). These figures are trend indicators only, not confirmed cutoffs for CAT 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Can I get an MBA at IILM University without appearing for CAT?<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes. IILM accepts XAT, MAT, CMAT, NMAT, ATMA and GMAT scores as alternatives to CAT, and also conducts its own Entrance Test for candidates without any of these scores (IILM University, 2026).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Is work experience required for IILM MBA admission?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0No, it is not mandatory, but it is factored into shortlisting alongside your entrance score and academic record where applicable.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>What is the minimum eligibility for IILM&#8217;s MBA programme?<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A bachelor&#8217;s degree in any discipline with at least 50 percent aggregate marks, though this can vary slightly by campus, so check the full eligibility criteria for the campus you are applying to. See more answers on the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/faq\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM FAQ<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> page.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-bottom-line\"><b>The Bottom Line<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CAT 2026 on November 29 remains the biggest date on the MBA admissions calendar, and if you are targeting the IIMs or the handful of B-schools that treat CAT as the sole gateway, there is no substitute for putting in the preparation. You can track official updates directly at<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iimcat.ac.in\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iimcat.ac.in<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But it does not have to be the only plan. If your CAT score does not land where you need it to, or you would simply rather not spend another year waiting, programmes like<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/school-of-management\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM University&#8217;s MBA<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> give you a genuine, well-structured way in through XAT, MAT, CMAT, NMAT, ATMA, GMAT, or the university&#8217;s own Entrance Test, followed by the same Group Discussion and Personal Interview process that most B-schools use to evaluate candidates.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Explore the MBA programme at<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/greater-noida\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IILM University&#8217;s Greater Noida campus<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/gurugram\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gurugram campus<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, check the<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/admissions-procedure\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Admissions Procedure<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/scholarship\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scholarship<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> options available, or<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iilm.edu\/apply-now\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">apply directly<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to start the conversation with the admissions team.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Quick Answer: CAT 2026 will be held on Sunday, November 29, 2026, conducted by IIM Indore, with results expected in the first week of January 2027 (IIM Indore, 2026). Cutoffs for top IIMs have recently required 95 percentile and above (Careers360, 2026). If you do not have a CAT score, you can still pursue an [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":178,"featured_media":10114,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[1207,1209,1208,1211,1210],"class_list":["post-10113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exam-watch","tag-cat-2026","tag-cat-2026-cutoff","tag-cat-2026-exam-date","tag-iilm-mba-admission","tag-mba-without-cat"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>CAT 2026 Exam Date, Cutoff &amp; MBA Admission Without CAT<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"CAT 2026 exam date, IIM cutoff trends and how to get an MBA without CAT. 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