CAT Syllabus 2023 and Exam Pattern for MBA Courses, VARC, DILR, and QA
CAT Syllabus 2023: Here we have discussed the syllabus of the CAT exam. The IIMs do not release the fixed syllabus for the CAT exam. The questions are mostly asked on the basis of middle school Math and English topics. What we have presented in the article is based on the general topics asked in the CAT exam. The CAT (Common Admission Test) is a computer-based test conducted by one of the IIM’s every year on a policy of rotation. These test scores are calculated on the basis of candidate performance in quantitative ability, verbal ability, data interpretation and logical reasoning. This test was started by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) to select desired students for their various business administration programs using the test.
CAT Syllabus 2023
CAT Syllabus 2023 is vast and law students preparing for the entrance test must be aware of the important details about the exam pattern, marking scheme, exam duration, number of questions asked and other information. Check the important points of the CAT Syllabus and Exam Pattern in the table below.
| CAT Syllabus 2023 | |
| Particulars | Details |
| Name of the Section |
|
| Duration of the CAT Exam | 2 Hours (120 Minutes) |
| Section-wise Duration | 40 Minutes for Each Section (VARC, DILR, QA). 53 Minutes 20 Seconds for PwD candidates for each section. |
| Slot-wise Session |
|
| Number of Questions | 76 Questions (54 MCQs and 22 Non-MCQs) |
| CAT exam total marks | 228 marks |
| Mode of the CAT 2023 exam | Computer-Based Mode (CBT) |
| Marking Scheme |
|
CAT 2023 Notification & Exam Date Out- Click to Check
CAT Exam Pattern 2023
Before getting into the CAT Syllabus let us have a look at the Exam Pattern. Check out the table for the general points of the exam pattern of the CAT Exam below.
| CAT Exam Pattern 2023 | |
| Number of sections | 3 |
| Duration of exam | 40 minutes per section |
| Number of questions | 76 |
| Total marks | 228 |
| Language of question paper | English |
| Number of answer choices | 4 |
CAT Section Wise Exam Pattern
Check the section-wise exam pattern of the CAT exam in the table below:
| CAT Section | Questions | MCQs | Non-MCQs | Maximum Marks |
| Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) | 26 | 18 | 8 | 78 |
| Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR) | 24 | 18 | 6 | 72 |
| Quantitative Aptitude (QA) | 26 | 18 | 8 | 78 |
| Total | 76 | 54 | 22 | 228 |
CAT Syllabus 2023
After acquainted yourself with the exam pattern of the CAT exam you can have a look at the section-wise syllabus of the CAT exam. Check the detailed syllabus below.
CAT Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension Syllabus 2023
Out of the three sections, the VARC section is the first section that is to be solved in the exam. The section has two sub-parts, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension. Take a look at important topics and some key points of this section.
| CAT VARC Syllabus 2023 | ||
| Fill in the blanks | Para Completion and inference | Verbal Logic |
| Verbal Reasoning | Subject-verb agreement | for jumbles |
| Sentence completion | Foreign language words used in English | Different usage of the same word |
| Grammar | Reading Comprehension | Idioms |
| Syllogisms | Analogies | Antonyms |
| Jumbled paragraphs | Sentence correction | One word substitution |
| Parts of speech | Preposition | Types of Clauses |
| Phrases Modifiers | Errors in tenses | Articles usage |
The topic-wise questions in CAT VACR are given in the table below.
| Topics | Number of questions expected |
| Para-Jumbles | 2-4 |
| Sentence Completion & Correction | 2-3 |
| Odd Sentences | 1-2 |
| Others (Fill in the blanks, Vocabulary Based, etc.) | 1-2 |
CAT Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning Syllabus 2023
Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR) is the second section of the CAT exam. This section is divided into two sub-sections: Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning. Check the important topics of the section.
| CAT DILR Syllabus 2023 | ||
| Blood Relations | Clocks and Calendars | Syllogism |
| Series | Statements | Venn diagram |
| Proposition | Data Arrangement | Data Structures |
| Direction Sense | Family Tree | Tables |
| Coding-Decoding | Binary Logic | Pie Charts |
| Assumptions | Seating Arrangement | Data Sufficiency |
| Puzzles | Sets & Caselets | Bars & Line Graphs |
The number of expected questions from the topics in the CAT DILR Section is given below:
| Topics | Total Number of Questions |
| Graph, Bar diagram | 6-8 |
| Tables & Charts | 5-8 |
| Graphs, Charts | 7-10 |
| Tables, Pie chart | 4-5 |
CAT Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus 2023
Quantitative Aptitude is the last section of the CAT question paper and is to be solved in the last 40 minutes of the exam. Take a look at important topics and some key points of this section.
| CAT Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus 2023 | ||
| Geometry | Ratios and Proportion | Inequalities |
| Trigonometry | In-equations Quadratic and linear equations | Work and Time |
| Algebra | Surds and Indices | Percentages |
| Measurement | Time-Speed-Distance | Logarithms |
| Partnership (Accounts) | Number System | Square Root and Cube Root |
| Profit & Loss | Geometric Progression | Probability |
| Mean, mode, median | Binomial theorem | Simple interest and compound interest |
The number of topics and expected questions in CAT QA Section
| Topics | Total Number of Questions |
| Arithmetic Questions | 10-12 |
| Geometry & Mensuration | 7-8 |
| Algebra | 6-7 |
| Number System | 4-5 |
| Others | 2-3 |
