Express News Service
First Published : 28 Apr 2009 03:33:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 28 Apr 2009 08:23:48 AM IST
BANGALORE: Eschewing the paperbased format that has been in place for the last 33 years, the Common Admission Test (CAT) for admissions to the
seven Indian Institutes of Managements (IIM) is now going to be a computer-based test from this year onwards.
Instead of a single-day country-wide examination, the test will be conducted in a window of about ten days
sometime at the end of the calendar year. The test is used for admissions to IIMs at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Indore, Kozhikode, Lucknow, and Shillong The test will be conducted by Prometric, a subsidiary of Educational
Testing Service (ETS), which conducts the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Prometric has been chosen by the IIMs from a shortlist which included UKbased Pearson VUE that conducts
the GMAT, and Bangalore- based Eduquity Ventures that conducts the entrance test for BITS Pilani.
According to a release from IIM Bangalore, the test will allow candidates some leeway in choosing test dates, use biometric
identification for enhanced security, and provide for video monitoring to eliminate any scope for cheating. IIM Bangalore has also maintained that the 'computer-based format would improve communication between candidates and IIMs
in terms of programme information, test delivery, receipt of admit cards, and receipt of score reports.' The reason given by IIMs for the move to a paperless format is the staggering rise in the number of candidates who take CAT.
From 2003 to 2008, a period of five years, the number of candidates has risen from 95,000 to 2.5 lakh. This huge increase of approximately 160 per cent, has resulted in severe strain on the administrative system of the IIMs to
conduct CAT in its existing format.
Sources from one of the IIMs told The New Indian Express that while the contract was signed between IIMs and Prometric earlier this month, the modalities are yet to be worked out. The
details of the examination are likely to be announced by late May or early June, he said.
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