CMAT (Common Management Admission Test) & MAT (Management Aptitude Test), both the entrance tests are conducted for offering admission in management and allied courses. But every management aspirant goes through a phase of confusion, as to which management exam he/she should consider applying for?

As we all know that exams like CAT, XAT rank very high in difficulty level. So, aspirants who are looking for an easier substitute can consider appearing in exams like MAT & CMAT.

To further simplify your problem and ease your decision-making process. Through this article, we have defined MAT & CMAT in terms of their exam pattern, difficulty level, participating colleges and likewise.

Let’s begin and introduce you to MAT & CMAT!!

Overview on CMAT & MAT

CMAT is conducted by All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to provide admission for MBA in the colleges approved by AICTE. This exam was introduced to reduce the burden of students who plan to appear in different state board or private colleges entrance exams.

On the other hand, Management Aptitude Test (MAT) is conducted by All India Management Association (AIMA). It is the standardized test to facilitate Business schools to screen the students since 1988.

Also, as AICTE mandates all the colleges approved by AICTE to consider CMAT score. So participating colleges which offer admission based on CMAT score are more than MAT score considering colleges.

MAT and CMAT scores both are valid to seek admission for a year.

To make you understand in detail about these two tests we have explained about the two tests below.

CMAT vs MAT:

1. Exam Pattern:   

MAT Exam: consists of objective questions and it can be taken in an online or offline mode based on the convenience of the student.

MAT is conducted four times in a year in January, May, September, and December. It consists of 200 questions that needs be answered in 2 hours 30 minutes.

CMAT is a computer based online exam. There will be total 100 questions with 4 sections each consisting of 25 questions. 100 questions need to be answered in 180 minutes. And there is no time limit for any section and there is no sectional cut off.

2. Marking Scheme:

In MAT each question carries 1 mark and for every wrong chosen answer ¼ mark will be deducted.

In CMAT each question carries 4 marks and 1 mark will be deducted for every wrongly chosen answer.

Students can take a trial test to get familiar with CMAT exam pattern which is not available for MAT. 

3. Cut Off Marks

A score of 80 to 100 is considered as a good attempt in MAT.

The score of 290-300 in CMAT will lead the student to top business school.

Students who secure more than 95 percentilein MAT or CMAT can be selected for the top B-Schools.

4. Participating Colleges:

Many top colleges consider CMAT and MAT score for providing admissions to their institutes.

Some of the top colleges considering CMAT score are Goa Institute of Management, Xavier Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship, Bangalore, Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai and many other.

Some of the top colleges considering MAT score are International School of Management Patna, Christ Institute of Management Pune, International Management Centre New Delhi and many others.

5. Difficulty Level:       

There is not much difference between these two in terms of difficulty level, but  CMAT is a bit easier than MAT, as the number of questions needs to be answered in the CMAT is less than the number of questions that need to be answered in MAT.

Also, more time will be given for solving questions in CMAT than MAT. This gives CMAT ample edge over MAT in difficulty level.

There is no significant difference in the nature of questions asked in MAT and CMAT, even though students will be tested in 4 sections in CMAT and 5 sections in MAT.

Nature of questions is same. In CMAT there are separate sections for Mathematical skills and Data Analysis and sufficiency whereas these two sections will be covered under only one section in MAT.

Our advice to MBA aspirants

Lot of students who are aspiring for pursuing MBA stress themselves to qualify the toughest entrance exams like CAT or XAT.

There is huge competition among the students to be successful in CAT, as all the students cannot be successful.

They can choose exams like MAT or CMAT which will make their way to the top B-schools.And difficulty level of these tests is also moderate compared to CAT.

There is no considerable difference between these two tests but if we dig deeper CMAT gets an upper hand over MAT due to its difficulty level and a wide range of colleges as CMAT is conducted by AICTE.

As MAT happens after every 3 months students need not worry if they are not successful in their first attempt. They can work on their skills to improve and can be successful in their successive attempts without losing focus and determination.

The syllabus remains same for MAT and CMAT. Students who are preparing for one exam can take another exam as well with little effort in adjusting to the number of questions answered and the change in the duration of the exam.