CAT vs MAT

CAT vs MAT :But there is a qualitative difference. CAT - affiliated B - schools are ranked a tad higher than the MAT - affiliated ones. The CAT, which is administered by Indian Institutes of Management, is also accepted as the qualifying exam by about 20 other institutes, other than IIMs. In contrast, the MAT is a relatively new test, administered by the All India Management Association (AIMA), for other institutes. Though very few students in metropolitan cities appear for the MAT, most students in smaller towns try to adopt a combined strategy for cracking both, the CAT and the MAT, in hope of making it at least to one exam. The CAT is generally held on the last Sunday of November and MAT on the first Sunday of December every year.There are structural variations between the CAT and MAT papers. In sections on Quantitative Aptitude and Data interpretation the main difference pertains to the level of difficulty as well as the types of questions asked. The MAT is more formula - based while the CAT is entirely application - based. Therefore, the strategy for MAT should be to rely entirely on the "Frequently Asked Questions" given in reputed publications. Since the MAT seldom springs surprises, the section tests that one takes while preparing for the CAT would suffice. A student with average aptitude, comfortable with concepts, will get through the MAT, but you need to have an analytical bent of mind to crack the CAT. In the English section also there are variations. In the MAT paper, the emphasis is on facts - the stress is on grammar through analogies like match the following and fill in the blanks. But in the CAT paper, questions are inference - based like sentence structuring, the logic behind creating paragraphs, understanding the assumptions made in the passage, etc.In the CAT, time management plays a very crucial role for if you are able to crack 80-90 percent of the questions of a section, it would be considered a very good attempt. At the same time, there is virtually no pressure of time while cracking the MAT.