MAT is a national-level management aptitude test. It is conducted by one of the most reputed academic bodies in the country called all India Management Associations or AIMA. This examination gives candidates a chance to be placed in over 800 affiliated colleges for MBA and PGDM courses. This examination is not an annual examination and is conducted four times every year.
MAT is far more flexible in comparison to other similar examinations. A candidate can appear for this examination either through offline (paper-based test), Computer-based test, or remote proctored (Internet-based test).
While the fees and syllabus for these three formats of examination remain the same, the dates vary almost every time.
MAT is one of the most preferred examinations by the candidates for the flexibility it provides and also due to the number of chances they get to increase their scores and thus increasing their chance of making it to the desired college, as there is no maximum number of attempts allowed for a candidate.
A candidate can attempt all four MAT exams if they wish to. However, only the scores for the exam they attended most recently will be evaluated in the examination process and all the results from before that will be scrapped.
What Makes You Eligible for this Exam?
- Candidates who have either completed their graduation or are in the final year of their graduation can apply for this examination.
- Candidates must have acquired a minimum of 50% aggregate in their bachelor's to be eligible for this examination.
- For candidates belonging to SC/ST and PwD categories, the minimum aggregate marks required is 45%, or a CGPA equaling this.
- There is no maximum age limit to attend this examination because there is no maximum age limit for getting admission into MBA colleges. But a candidate must be at least 20 years old to write this exam. (To be consistent with the minimum requirement of graduation.)
- A candidate need not have any work experience to attend this examination However, work experience often helps when in the college interview rounds.
- Candidates who have attempted MAT before with unsatisfactory grades are also eligible to repeat the examination as many times as they wish to.
Syllabus of the Exam
The syllabus for this examination is a compilation of various subjects-
Language Comprehension
Data Analysis & Sufficiency
Indian & Global Environment
Intelligence & Critical Reasoning
Mathematical Skills
Why Every MBA Aspirant Must Attend the MAT Examination
- Access to Top Colleges in the Nation: The most attractive factor about this examination that draws thousands and lakhs of each year towards attending it, is the fact that it is accepted by top MBA colleges on a national level. MAT gives a candidate access to over 800 affiliated MBA colleges in the country by just appearing for one examination. For candidates appearing for college-specific entrance examinations, or state-level entrance examinations like CET, MAT can further increase their reach of colleges and also increase the chance of making it into the top colleges. Even if your scores are not as impressive in the state-level CET-MBA examination, it is always good to know that through MAT, there is always a second chance without wasting a whole year.
- Not a Do or Die Exam, but a Do and Do Again Exam: The one thing that makes MBA entrances so scary is the fact that if you do not perform well, you will either have to settle for an average college or wait a whole year to attempt again. This is what triggers so much stress around MBA entrances for most candidates and this stress further affects a candidate's confidence. With MAT, you can attempt the examination 4 times a year. This means that in a year, you get four chances to make it to the top colleges in the country, without having to waste another year.
A large number of candidates who appear for MAT make it to their dream colleges in the second or sometimes the third attempt. Hence, MAT gives a candidate a chance to rectify the mistakes that they made in their first attempt and perform better till they achieve desired scores.
- MAT is Easy on You MAT examinations are easier than most other MBA entrance examinations like CET and CAT. It is important to acknowledge that the modern course of management agrees that management is not just a theoretic subject, but is a dynamic subject where candidates with different aptitudes can excel. If you believe that you can become an effective manager and entrepreneur but you fear that you will have to let your skills go in vain because academic or arithmetic abilities might not be your best skills. But MAT takes into account the real qualities needed for a manager. This means that this test is designed to test not only your knowledge but your problem-solving skills, your time management, and your amount of preparation will help you more than your inborn intelligence.
To sum it up, every MBA aspirant must consider appearing for the MAT examination. It is advised that candidates appear for other MBA entrance examinations along with MAT. MAT allows candidates to attempt the examination multiple times without wasting a whole year in the wait for the next examination. MAT is an excellent examination and gives candidates more than one chance to aim and achieve their goal-college, especially since scoring exceptionally well in this examination is not very difficult.
Pro Tip: It is helpful to appear for the last two rounds of MAT because a lesser number of candidates appear for this examination and thus increases your percentile.
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