In every MBA aspirant's life, CAT plays an immense role. A natural consequence of this is that it takes up a huge amount of mental space for the aspirant until the day of the exam.
A natural question that comes to the mind of every serious aspirant after they attempt the CAT paper is, 'How have I done?' or 'What percentile will I get?' or 'Will it be enough to get a call from my dream college?' or 'Is there any tool that can help me know my CAT percentile?'
CL has been answering these questions and predicting the CAT percentiles based on the raw CAT scores provided by students since 2007. Every year, our CAT percentile predictor has benefited from the vast amounts of historical data at our disposal.
Calculate Your CAT Percentile
CAT 2024 Our CAT Percentile Predictor has been able to make remarkably good predictions based on CAT exam analysis 2024, especially when the patterns have changed drastically (number of sections, number of questions, etc.). Our students have often marveled at the accuracy of our CAT percentile calculator. It is not unusual for us to hear terms like 'surreal' or even 'amazed' when we get some predictions right to the second decimal!
Here are some points to be noted about our CAT 2024 Percentile Predictor.
|
Actual %iles |
CL's Prediction (Median) |
Average Absolute Error |
|
>99.5 |
99.53 |
-0.03 |
|
99 |
99.1 |
-0.1 |
|
98 |
98.23 |
-0.23 |
|
97 |
97.31 |
-0.31 |
|
96 |
96.31 |
-0.31 |
|
95 |
95.27 |
-0.27 |
|
90 |
89.84 |
0.16 |
|
85 |
84.17 |
0.83 |
|
70 |
68.21 |
1.79 |
|
65 |
63.18 |
1.82 |
|
Actual %iles |
CL's Prediction (Median) |
Average Absolute Error |
|
>99.5 |
99.57 |
0.12 |
|
99 |
98.77 |
0.19 |
|
98 |
97.77 |
0.32 |
|
97 |
96.515 |
0.36 |
|
96 |
95.56 |
0.41 |
|
95 |
94.47 |
0.475 |
|
90 |
88.82 |
1.49 |
|
85 |
84.24 |
0.89 |
|
70 |
68.1 |
1.58 |
|
65 |
63.59 |
1.64 |
CAT percentile is a relative score that indicates your rank compared to the rest of the CAT test takers. In simple terms, the CAT percentile measures a candidate's performance by comparing their score to those of other candidates, indicating the position of the candidate in comparison to those with lower scores.
Example: If a candidate has secured a 99 %ile, it means that his or her performance was better than 99 percent of all the test takers who appeared for CAT in that particular year.
The calculated percentile of each aspirant is given on the respective scorecard. The convening body on the official website of CAT also provides the method of calculating the percentile. Here is the method used to calculate the percentiles in CAT 2024:
where,
P = Percentile of the candidate
N = Number of candidates who appeared for CAT 2024
r = The rank assigned to candidates based on their scaled scores
Note: If two or more candidates' scaled scores are the same, they will be given the same rank (r). That is, if two candidates get the highest scaled score in VARC, they will be assigned rank 1. Also, the candidate with the second-highest scaled score will follow at rank 3. The Final Percentile (P) will be rounded off to two decimal places.
Career Launcher has always believed in helping its students as much as possible, which remains true for the AI-driven CAT percentile predictor. Based on your predicted percentile, you can make a decision on how you want to proceed:
Career Launcher’s CAT Percentile Predictor works based on the maximum and minimum accurate attempts of the candidate. This is done with the help of our students as they key in their attempts and how they believe they have scored. Our percentile predictor is backed by the data provided by the test takers and has been built on the foundation of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Moreover, our top CAT gurus bring their expert knowledge into the model to create the most accurate CAT Percentile Prediction model.
Below is the step-by-step process elaborating on the idea used behind our CAT 2024 Percentile Predictor:
This is the basic structure on which Career Launcher’s AI-Driven CAT Percentile Predictor operates.
Note: You will only be allowed to get your percentiles once you have submitted your raw scores and filled in the correct information based on how you have performed in the actual exam.
Career Launcher's AI-Driven CAT Percentile Predictor has been widely used over the past few years. If we look at its performance based on past years, Possible deviations from the predicted percentiles, as observed in the previous CAT results, are given below:
The IIM admission process differs among the various participating institutes. Further, it is worth noting that there are two stages to qualify for the CAT 2024 Selection Process:
(Remember, the CAT percentile is just the first step towards receiving a call. The only thing you can work on is your test score and how to maximize it.)
After the CAT selection procedure ends, each IIM releases its separate merit lists. The final selection process of B-schools or the CAT selection procedure of participating B-schools is based on multiple criteria, such as performance in CAT and GD/WAT and PI rounds and academic records and/or work experience. The CAT eligibility criteria or parameters vary from institute to institute. IIMs release their detailed admission criteria every year after the CAT notification.
Aspirants should understand that MBA admissions through CAT rely on percentiles rather than raw scores. This means that not only do they need to perform well, but they must also outperform other test takers.
The CAT percentile is determined based on the score a candidate achieves. Out of the 66 questions in CAT 2024, attempting around 45 questions with 85-90% accuracy can get you a 100 percentile. The table below reflects the estimated CAT score vs percentile for your reference:
|
CAT Percentile |
VARC Score |
DILR Score |
QA Score |
Overall Score |
|
99.9 |
48 |
36 |
48 |
106 |
|
99.5 |
44 |
32 |
32 |
89 |
|
99 |
40 |
28 |
28 |
80 |
|
98 |
36 |
25 |
24 |
71 |
|
95 |
30 |
19 |
19 |
57 |
|
90 |
25 |
16 |
15 |
49 |
|
85 |
21 |
13 |
12 |
40 |
|
80 |
19 |
11 |
10 |
36 |
|
75 |
17 |
10 |
9 |
31 |
|
70 |
15 |
9 |
8 |
29 |
IIM Ahmedabad
IIM Bangalore
IIM Calcutta
IIM Lucknow
The answer to this question is highly subjective, as the name itself suggests that it is a tool designed for prediction; therefore, it will reflect whatever inputs you provide. The outcome is solely based on the estimated data available, and the actual CAT results may differ. Thus, it is advised not to rely exclusively on it for college selection. However, Career Launcher's AI-Driven CAT Percentile Predictor has been widely used over the past few years. When examining its performance over the years, the deviations from the predicted percentiles are minimal and almost negligible. Therefore, you can use our percentile calculator to check your CAT percentile.
The key thing to keep in mind when using an online CAT percentile predictor is that its accuracy relies on several factors. These include the difficulty of the CAT question papers (for all three slots), the unpredictability of the questions asked, and the overall performance of all the candidates taking the exam.
It is always advisable to have a fair idea of your estimated scores and percentiles well before the results come out, as it will help you understand how you have performed in the exam and which B-schools you have a chance to receive calls from based on past cutoff trends. This will assist you in preparing for the WAT-GD/PI rounds.
Generally, it's best to use the percentile tool after you've taken the test. Once you've completed the CAT paper, you'll have a sense of how many answers you got right and how many you got wrong, which will help you in determining your raw CAT score. After you have a rough idea of your score, you can use the predictor to find out your estimated CAT percentile and use that information to shortlist MBA colleges accordingly.