Common Management Aptitude Test or CMAT is a national-level test conducted for admission in management courses in AICTE approved institutions. Like other management entrance exams, the CMAT question paper is divided into different sections to analyze the various abilities of the students. These sections are Language Comprehension, Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation, Logical Reasoning and General Awareness.

To crack this exam, it is important to observe and analyse the pattern and understand how to use it to your benefit. In this article, we will analyse the CMAT exam and see some of it’s patterns. 

CMAT Exam Pattern – Basic Information

Mode of Exam	Online
Medium of Exam	English
Nature of Questions	Objective Type (MCQ’s) i.e. each question will have four choices out of which only one choice will be the correct choice
Marking Scheme	Each answer is scored out of 4 marks. 1 mark is deducted for each wrong answer.
Number of Questions	100 questions in total, 25 questions in each section
Sections	Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation, Logical Reasoning, Language Comprehension, General Awareness
Duration	3 hours
Exam Difficulty Level	Easy to moderate
Required Percentile for MBA Admission in Top Colleges	90+
Importance of Taking the Exam	Top MBA colleges like JBIMS, SIMSREE, K J Somaiya, GIM Goa, PUMBA, among others, accept CMAT exam score

CMAT Exam Pattern – Important Points

• The National Test Agency has announced that the coming CMAT will be done on the same guidelines as the previous year’s format.
• In CMAT 2020, 100 percentile in CMAT was awarded at 347 marks out of 400. In 2019, this score was 372 marks.
• Mr. Gopaljee Jha obtained 100 percentile at a score of 347 marks and was awarded 1st Rank. He was the only student to get 100 percentile marks.
• All the 63,297 candidates who appeared in CMAT 2020 have qualified the CMAT exam
• NTA releases answer keys with question paper and response sheet for the CMAT examinations. Last year, students were able to challenge the answer sheet by 4 February 2020.

To check the eligibility for the exam in detail, read CMAT Eligibility here.

CMAT Exam Pattern – Duration & Scoring Pattern

• CMAT is a 3-hour-long exam with 100 objective-type questions in MCQ form.
• Compared to other management tests like CAT and MAT, the difficulty level of CMAT is easy. There are many reasons for this primary is the competition and number of students taking the test.
• Each question paper consists of four sections, quantitative techniques and data interpretation, logical reasoning, language comprehension, general awareness. Each section has 25 questions and each question is of 4 marks.
• CMAT follows a negative marking strategy. For every correct answer, a student will get 4 marks and for every wrong answer, one mark will be deducted.
• There is no individual time limit to complete any section. However, the total length of the exam is 3 hours.

CMAT Exam Pattern – How to prepare?

Preparing for CMAT is fairly similar to the other management exams. There are a few things every student should consider while preparing for CMAT.

• CMAT, like any other management exam, is divided into sections to judge the different abilities of the applicant. Students should address these sections individually and prepare for them. Performing well in each section will push the final score.
• CMAT has other sections which are also available in other exams but one section or “General Knowledge” is socially associated with CMAT and is unique. Students must read newspapers and other mediums to keep their general knowledge updated. This portion can bring a difference in your final result.
• CMAT applicants should test their skills by joining a mock test series. This will help in making the applicants effective with time management and give them a complete idea on how to approach this exam.
• Applicants should not only prepare for the exam, but also keep the selection process in mind. After the CMAT scores, most of the colleges will conduct group discussions and personal interviews to finalise the process. Students should also work on their communicational skills and knowledge base to score better in these areas.
• Applicants should prepare from the suggested material and cover as much ground as they can. Take a look at the table below.

Sections	Suggested Readings
Quantitative Aptitude	Arun Sharma (Mc Graw Hill Education), Sarvesh K Verma (Arihant), Abhijit Guha (Mc Graw Hill Education), NCERT, Dr RS Aggarwal
Logical Reasoning	Arun Sharma (McGraw Hill Education), Nishit K Sinha (Pearson)
Language Comprehension	Arun Sharma (McGraw Hill Education, Nishit K Sinha, Dr R S Aggarwal, TIME
Vocabulary and grammar	Wren & Martin English Grammar, Word Power Made Easy by Norman Lewis, Business English and Communication by John O E Clark
General Awareness	The Financial Times, Hindu Business Line, Business World, Competitive Success Review

CMAT Exam Pattern – FAQ

Q. How to prepare for CMAT?

Over the years, the CMAT exam pattern and syllabus has not changed. So the exam preparation is also not very difficult. Reading good preparation books, practicing with sample papers and previous year papers are good ways to prepare effectively for the exam.

Q. Which is the lengthiest section of CMAT?

Though any of the sections of CMAT may seem lengthy, language and comprehension is considered to be the lengthiest portion of CMAT, especially since it includes unseen passage. 

Q. What is a good score in CMAT?

Score above 90% is considered to be a good score and will qualify you for taking admission in all the top colleges. 

Q. Can I give CMAT again if I fail to qualify?

Yes, CMAT can be given any number of times. However, a repeated attempt can only be made next year as the exam takes place just once every year.