The selection criteria for IIM (Indian Institute of Management) tend to differ from one centre to another. Normally the IIMs have a selection process that comprises two stages. First one is the written exam or CAT and the second one is GWPI or group discussion, written ability test, and personal interview. In most of the cases the applicants are shortlisted after the first stage by looking at how well they have performed in the written examinations, how well they have performed academically all throughout their lives, and what is their work experience to name a few. As far as the second stage is concerned most of the IIMs have changed from group discussion (GD) to written ability test (WAT). At the end of this stage your performance in these tests as well as your overall academic record and work experience are taken into account for the purpose of shortlisting.
Weightage on different components of selection process
The weightage given to different components during the process of selection tends to differ from one institution to another. It can be said that the best IIMs give more weightage to how you have performed in the various tests as opposed to your work experience and overall work record.
Weightage given to CAT
Normally a lot of students think that in spite of their exceptional performance in CAT they may not get that call from IIM since they supposedly give more weightage to factors such as academic background, extracurricular activities, and work experience. The following table shows how the various IIMs rate CAT performances:
| Weightage given to CAT scores | List of IIMs |
| 100% | Shillong, Kashipur, Ranchi, Raipur, Trichy, Udaipur, Bodhgaya, and Amritsar |
| 60-80% | Ahmedabad, Lucknow, and Kozhikode |
| 50-59% | Kolkata and Rohtak |
| 20-40% | Bangalore, Indore, and Visakhapatnam |
| Weightage given to CAT scores plus performance in the second stage of selection process | List of IIMs |
| 100% | Shillong |
| 80-99% | Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Kozhikode, Indoor, Lucknow, Trichy, Kashipur, and Amritsar |
| 70-79% | Ranchi, Rohtak, Udaipur, and Bodhgaya |
| 50-69% | Bangalore, Raipur, Simraur, Visakhapatnam, and Jammu |
| Category | VARC | Quantitative ability | Data interpretation and logical reasoning | Overall |
| General | 80.06 | 80.02 | 80.38 | 96 |
| NC and OBC | 70.6 | 71.2 | 71.17 | 75.36 |
| SC | 45.42 | 45.36 | 45.7 | 65.05 |
| ST | 30.07 | 30.9 | 30.69 | 42.12 |
| DAP | 30.07 | 30.9 | 30.69 | 40 |
| Weightage | List of IIMs |
| 0% | Shillong |
| 1-10% | Calcutta, Lucknow, Kozhikode, Kashipur, Amritsar |
| 11-20% | Ahmedabad, Indore, Ranchi, Rohtak, Trichy, Udaipur |
| 25-30% | Raipur and Bodhgaya |
| 31-40% | Bangalore, Sirmaur, Visakhapatnam, and Jammu |
