IIM Selection Process 2025: A Complete Guide to Selection Process of 21 IIMs

All the 21 IIMs, including IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta release their selection process separately for the MBA admission. IIM selection process for MBA admission 2025 will depend upon your performance in three major areas:

1. Your CAT 2024 exam score
2. Your Profile
3. Your Performance in IIMs’ Final Selection PI-WAT Round

Your final admission offer depends upon your performance in all the above three stages of IIM selection process. All the IIMs release key components, parameters and weightages for final selection process for MBA admission. Now Let us understand in detail IIM Admission process as below: 

Only the CAT exam takers who clear the required CAT percentile score cut off can qualify for IIM Shortlist Criteria and go through IIM Selection process. After declaration of CAT result, IIMs will shortlist the suitable candidates for final admission round as per their respective admission policy and weightages. Apart from weightage awarded to CAT exam score, IIMs also award weightages in shortlisting process to other parameters like Academics, Work Experience and Gender Diversity. The shortlisting process is based on your past record and as such, you are not able to improve on any parameter to get support at this stage. IIM Admission Process with weightages awarded by IIMs to different components in shortlisting process are as below:

IIMs final selection process evaluates candidates on following key parameters:

• CAT Exam Score
• Personal Interview (PI)
• Written Ability Test (WAT)
• Academic Profile
• Academic Diversity
• Gender Diversity
• Work Experience

In some of the IIMs like IIM Shillong, Group Discussion round is also conducted. Weightages are awarded to each of the above components. Each of the key parameters in IIM selection criteria for MBA admission with its importance and weightage is shared below:

After considering the CAT exam score cut off in shortlisting process, IIMs again consider CAT exam score in final selection process as below:

• IIM Selection Criteria for MBA Admission awards weightage to CAT exam score in the range of 20 to 40 percent IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore will award only 25% weight to CAT exam score in final selection process
• IIM Lucknow will award 30% weightage to CAT 2024 exam score in final selection 2025

All the IIMs will conduct Personal Interview in different cities for final selection of the candidates. Key highlights and weightages awarded to Personal Interview (PI) in IIM Final Selection are:

• IIMs award a weightage in the range of 30 to 50 percent to Personal Interview in final selection round.
• The Personal Interview is conducted by a panel of 3-4 experts in Offline or Online mode
• Duration of Personal Interview is 15 to 20 Minutes
• The Personal Interview evaluates communication and leadership skills of the MBA aspirant. 
• IIM Ahmedabad will award 50% weight to Personal Interview, while IIM Bangalore and IIM Lucknow will award 40% weight to PI in final selection

Apart from Personal Interview, IIMs conduct Writing Ability Test (WAT) in Final Selection Process. Key features and weightage to WAT round are:

• Writing Ability Test is conducted by IIMs in final selection process to assess the writing skills and knowledge of the candidates on a given topic
• The WAT in IIM selection process consists of a writing test of about 200 to 300 words and should be completed in 20-30 minutes
• IIM Shillong also conducts Group Discussion (GD) Round in its final selection process apart from WAT
• IIMs award 10 to 15 percent weightage to performance in WAT
• The 10 New CAP participating IIMs are not conducting WAT for last three years
• The IIMs not conducting WAT increase the PI weightage in final selection
• IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Lucknow will award 10% weightage to WAT.

In their selection process, IIMs will also consider your academic performance from class 10 onwards. Key features of how IIMs consider academics in selection process and what is the weightage awarded to it are as below:

• If you have scored 90% and above marks in Class 10, you will get 5 to 10% weightage
• If you have scored 90% and above marks in Class 12, you will get 5 to 10% weightage
• If you have scored 85% and above marks in graduation, you will get 5 to 10% weightage
• IIM Bangalore, IIM Lucknow will award 10% weightage to your past Academic Performance
• IIM Ahmedabad selection process will award 15% weightage to Academic performance final selection  
   

Candidates with work experience are also awarded weightage in IIM Final Selection Process as below:

• Work Experience gained after completing graduation is considered
• The Work Experience should be in Supervisory cadre
• All the IIMs award 2% to 10% weightage to the candidates with quality work experience
• Break up of Weightage awarded to Work experience is as below:
• 0 to 6 Months: No Weightage
• 6+ Months to 1 Year: 2% Weightage
• 1+ Year to 2 Years: 5% Weightage
• 2+ Years to 3 Years: 10% Weightage
• 3+ Years: 5% to 6% Weightage
• IIM Bangalore will award maximum 10% weightage, IIM Lucknow will award maximum 5% weightage to Work Experience in final selection process. 

IIMs consider Academic and Gender Diversity in final selection process. To improve Diversity in their class rooms and to get rid of their image of Engineering students driven institutes and male dominated institutes, IIMs award weightage to the Academic and Gender Diversity in their shortlisting or in final selection process. Key features of consideration on Academic and Gender Diversity and weightage awarded to it are:

• Academic Diversity implies that you are Not an Engineering Graduate. 
• If you are a Non Engineer and a graduate with Humanities, Commerce, Science stream, you will get a weightage between 2% to 5% in IIM final selection process
• Gender Diversity weightage is exclusively awarded to women candidates only
• IIMs award 3 to 5 percent bonus marks to the girl candidates in their selection process
• IIM Lucknow will award 5% weight to Diversity Factor in the final selection round 
• IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore will award 5% weightage for Gender Diversity 

IIM Final selection process gives an opportunity to the IIM aspirants to improve their overall score through the performance in PI-WAT round. Even if you have not scored very high in CAT, IIM selection process offers the last chance for MBA admission. While older IIMs will conduct their individual selection process, ten new IIMs will conduct their selection process through Common Admission Process IIM CAP

Top IIMs Selection Parameters: Weightages

Q: How to get Admission in IIM for MBA Program? What is the Selection Process?
A: You can get admission in IIMs if you satisfy the IIM Admission eligibility requirements, take CAT exam and clear the cut offs and perform well in IIM final selection process on each component

Q: Which exam is for MBA admission in IIMs?
A: IIMs conduct Common Admission Test (CAT) for MBA admission. CAT is the mandatory entrance exam for IIM Admission 

Q: What is the IIM Ahmedabad Selection Process?
A: IIM Ahmedabad selection process 2025 includes shortlisting based on CAT score and final selection process as detailed above? 

Q: What is IIM Calcutta Selection Process?
A: IIM Calcutta selection process 2025 includes shortlisting based on CAT score and final selection process as detailed above? 

Q: When MBA admission starts in IIMs?
A: IIM MBA Admission selection starts with the beginning of CAT exam registration process from the first week of August. IIM Admission last date to apply is the last date of CAT registration.

Q: What is the IIM Admission Age Limit in selection process?
A: There is no IIM Admission Age Limit prescribed by any IIM. Any person who qualifies the IIM Admission Eligibility like 50% marks in graduation and takes CAT exam, can apply for IIM Admission  

Q: What is the IIM selection process after taking CAT Exam?
A: Post the CAT exam, IIM selection process has two components – Shortlist based on CAT score and Final PI-WAT process.

Q: What is the IIM Admission Fees?
A: Each IIM decides its own Admission Fees which should be paid at the time of accepting admission offer. IIM Admission fees for different IIMs is in the range of Rs.50,000 to Rs.1,00,000.