IIM Calcutta's latest selection criteria document is out! In 2023, IIM Calcutta's admission policy remains largely unchanged compared to last year. Notably, the overall minimum CAT cut-off has been set at the 85th percentile. Additionally, IIM Calcutta has taken an IIM Ahmedabad-esque approach to academic diversity this year (more details below). But the biggest relief? Graduation marks continue to NOT be included in IIM Calcutta's selection criteria. Phew! Here's a quick breakdown of the admission policy document for 2023.
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IIM Calcutta Selection Criteria 2023 - Key Highlights
- The minimum overall CAT 2023 cut-off is 85 percentile for the General category. Minimum cut-off for QA is 75 percentile. Cut-offs for VARC and DILR are 80 percentile.
- Graduation marks will not be included in IIM C's selection criteria. 10th and 12th marks continue to be in IIM Calcutta's selection criteria.
- Notably, anyone with 80%+ in 10th and 12th gets maximum possible marks, which hopefully eases off some pressure from applicants.
- 6 months (or less) of full-time work experience gets you no points for work experience. Work ex between 2-3 years gets you the maximum possible points.
- Academic diversity is somewhat convoluted in IIM Calcutta's latest selection criteria. But the gist is this: engineers (at bachelor's and master's levels) don't get extra points. Non-engineers do. However, if you have a bachelor's in engineering and a master's in non-engineering, you get up to 2 extra points for diversity.
- In the initial shortlisting process for the WAT-PI round, your CAT scores account for almost 2/3rd of the total weight. After the WAT-PI process, 56% of the weight goes to your WAT-PI performance, while 30% of the weight goes to your CAT 2023 scores.
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IIM Calcutta's Selection Criteria in 2023, Explained
In recent years, IIM Calcutta's selection process has significantly evolved, specifically with respect to nuances associated with academic diversity. Understanding this select process can be somewhat confusing, but the gist is this: IIMs want academically well-rounded candidates who do well in CAT and the interview process; IIM C is no different in this respect.
Here's a simple breakdown of IIM Calcutta's 2023 selection criteria to understand what this means for you.
Phase 1: Eliminating candidates based on CAT percentile cut-off
First, IIM Calcutta will screen candidates who do not meet the minimum CAT 2023 overall as well as sectional cut-offs. IIM Calcutta's CAT 2023 cut-offs can be seen in the table below.
| IIM Calcutta Selection Criteria 2023 | Minimum CAT 2023 Cut-Offs | ||||
| Category | VARC | DILR | QA | Overall |
| OPEN | 80 | 80 | 75 | 85 |
| NC-OBC | 70 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
| EWS | 70 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
| SC | 65 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
| ST | 55 | 55 | 55 | 65 |
| PwD | 45 | 45 | 45 | 55 |
Please note that simply meeting the minimum percentile cut-off isn't a guaranteed shortlist for IIM Calcutta's WAT-PI round. It just means you're ELIGIBLE to be called for an interview. The actual cut-off will depend on the number of candidates IIM Calcutta wants to finally admit.
Phase 2: Shortlisting candidates for WAT-PI based on weighted score
Now that candidates have been screened based on the CAT cut-offs, IIM Calcutta will calculate a weighted score based on many variables including your CAT 2023 performance, academic profile, and diversity. The table below shows IIM Calcutta's 2023 selection criteria for the WAT-PI round.
| IIM Calcutta Selection Criteria 2023 | WAT-PI Shortlisting Criteria | ||
| Parameter | Weight | Calculation Method |
| CAT 2023 Score* | 56 | (A/B) x 56 |
| Class 10 marks | 10 | As per Table 3 below |
| Class 12 marks | 15 | As per Table 3 below |
| Gender Diversity Factor | 4 | 4 points will be awarded for female and transgender candidates only. |
| Total | 85 | |
| *A = Candidate’s CAT 2023 Total Overall Scaled Score, and B = Maximum possible CAT 2023 Total Overall Scaled Score | ||
The table below show how IIM Calcutta will compute scores for 10th and 12th marks.
| Class 10th Marks (%) | Points | Class 12th Marks (%) | Points |
| ≥80 | 10 | ≥80 | 15 |
| ≥75 and <80 | 8 | ≥75 and <80 | 12 |
| ≥70 and <75 | 6 | ≥70 and <75 | 9 |
| ≥65 and <70 | 4 | ≥65 and <70 | 6 |
| ≥60 and <65 | 2 | ≥60 and <65 | 3 |
| <60 | 0 | <60 | 0 |
Based on these criteria, IIM Calcutta will create a shortlist of candidates for the WAT-PI round.
Phase 3: Shortlisting candidates for admission based on weighted score
Shortlisted candidates will now appear for the WAT-PI round. Based on their performance in this phase as well as their academic diversity, work experience and CAT performance, candidates will be shortlisted for admission to IIM Calcutta's PGP batch of 2024-2026. The selection criteria and their weights can be seen in the table below.
| IIM Calcutta Selection Criteria 2023 | Final Shortlisting Criteria | |
| Parameter | Weight |
| CAT 2023 Score | 30 |
| Personal Interview (PI) | 48 |
| Writing Ability Test (WAT) | 8 |
| Academic Diversity | 6 |
| Work Experience | 8 |
| Total | 100 |
Points for academic diversity will be awarded as per the table below.
| Sr. No | Academic Category | Points |
| 1 | Bachelor's degree in engineering stream OR Master’s degree in engineering stream OR Integrated Master’s degree in engineering stream | 0 |
| 2 | Bachelor's degree in non-engineering stream | 4 |
| 3 | Dual bachelor’s degree in Law (e.g. BA LLB, BSc. LLB, B.Com LLB, BBA LLB). | 5 |
| 4 | Bachelor's degree in engineering stream and Masters in non-engineering stream | 2 |
| 5 | Bachelor's degree in non-engineering stream and Masters in non-engineering stream | 5 |
| 6 | Dual/Integrated degree where bachelors is non-engineering and masters is in non-engineering stream | 5 |
| 7 | Dual/Integrated degree where Bachelors is engineering stream and Masters is non-engineering stream | 1 |
| 8 | CA/ICWA/CS or Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India (FIAI) without having a bachelor’s degree. | 5 |
| 9 | CA/ICWA/CS or Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India (FIAI) with a bachelor’s degree. | 6 |
| 10 | CA/ICWA/CS or Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India (FIAI) with or without a bachelor’s degree, and with Masters in non-engineering stream. | 6 |
| 11 | Integrated bachelor’s degree in Law and Masters in non-engineering stream. | 6 |
Points for work experience will be awarded as per the table below. Please note that work experience here means full-time work experience in months, as of January 31st, 2024.
| Work Experience (X) | Points |
| Less than or equal to 6 months | 0 |
| Greater than 6 months but less than or equal to 24 months | X/3 |
| Greater than 24 months but less than or equal to 36 months | 8 |
| Greater than 36 months but less than or equal to 48 months | 26-(X/2) |
| Greater than 48 months | 2 |
If this is confusing, here's an example. Consider that you have 26 months of full-time work experience as of January 31st, 2024. This means you get full marks for the work experience component. If you have 45 months of experience, you get 3.5 marks as per the formula above. If you have 6 months of experience, you get no marks for the work experience component.
What Does the 2023 IIM Calcutta Selection Criteria Mean for You?
Here's what you can take away from IIM Calcutta's 2023 admission policy.
- To even make it to the WAT-PI round, you'll need to have an excellent CAT performance. If you have terrible 10th and/or 12th marks, your CAT 2023 score could be your saviour.
- IIM Calcutta is extremely generous in terms of 10th and 12th marks. So if you've got 80%+ marks in 10th and 12th, forget everything and focus on maximizing your CAT scores.
- IIM Calcutta has defined academic diversity at a granular level. Folks with law, integrated/dual, and finance-related certifications will have an edge, as do those with pure non-engineering backgrounds.
- The importance of your WAT-PI performance cannot be understated. Together, these components make up an incredible 56% weight in the final shortlisting process.
- Candidates between 2-3 years of experience will find a serious advantage in the final shortlisting round, as will those with around 37-38 months of work experience.
- Women will have a fair advantage in the initial shortlisting process. But no extra marks in the latter stages of selection, unfortunately.
