In this article let’s take a look at everything you need to know between two most popular exams for undergraduate students which are gate and CAT exam in detail.
So if you are confused regarding which exam you should choose after your under graduation or you do not know the difference between the two exams.
You don’t need to worry about it anymore.
I would highly recommend you to read this article throughout the end and bookmark it somewhere so that you can get back to this article in future as well.
So without further ADO let’s get started.
Definition
What is the GATE exam?
Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) is an examination conducted in India that primarily tests the comprehensive understanding of UG subjects in engineering and science for admission into the Masters’s Program and Job in Public Sector Companies, basically, in simple words, it is the exam you should write to get admission for Mtech, MSc, MA, etc programs.
Official website: https://gate.iitkgp.ac.in/
What is the CAT exam?
The Common Admission Test (CAT)[2] is a computer-based test for admission in graduate management courses and it will test verbal ability, reading comprehension, logical reasoning and other skills. You can think of this as enterance exam for doing MBA in colleges like IIM and other top MBA colleges n India.
Official website: https://iimcat.ac.in/
What is the difference between the two exams?
Here is a table which explains the difference between both the exams date and cat in detail by observing at 22 different factors.
| Factors | GATE | CAT |
| Meaning | Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering | Common Admission Test |
| Started from | 1983 | 1984 |
| Conducted by | Top IIT & IIS colleges | Top IIM colleges |
| What skills are tested | Bachelor’s degree level knowledge of the chosen engineering discipline or master’s degree level knowledge of the chosen science discipline. The questions are designed to test the listed abilities: Application, Analysis, Comprehension, Recall, Synthesis. | Quantitative Aptitude, Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension |
| Purpose of the exam | Admission to postgraduate colleges for engineering, Technology, Architecture, Science, Commerce or Arts, like Mtech or MSC, etc | Admission to post-graduate management programs like MBA, etc |
| Eligibility criteria | Students with degrees approved by the government in Engineering, Technology, Architecture, Science, Commerce, or Arts are eligible to appear for the GATE 2022 examination, no need for a minimum pass percentage for writing this exam | Bachelor’s degree with 50% GPA and 45% in case of SC, ST as minimum marks. |
| Age limit | There is no age limit | There is no age limit |
| Exam duration | This is 3 hours long exam | This is 2 hours long exam |
| Exam fees | INR ₹ 750 for female, SC, ST, and physically challenged candidates. ₹1500 for all other candidates. $50 for international candidates | ₹2,200 for general category candidates. ₹1,100 for SC/ST/DA (PWD) category candidates. |
| Exam method | Online test conducted on computer | Computer-based test, online test |
| Questions patterns | Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs), Multiple Select Questions (MCQs), numerical Answer Type (NAT) Questions | MCQs & non-MCQs |
| Courses present | Post graduation studies of all the engineering, Architecture, Science, Commerce or Arts courses, etc | Post graduation of all the management courses |
| Total questions & marks | 65 Questions & a total of 100 Marks. | MCQs, Non-MCQs & 76 total questions & 228 total marks. |
| Marking scheme | All of the questions will be worth 1 or 2 marks | All the questions are worth 3 marks |
| Languages allowed | English | English |
| How many seats | There are over 2,500 seats available across IITs. | More than 5000 seats are offered by the 20 IIMs currently functioning in India. |
| How many students attend the exam | 7,11,542 students appeared in (2021) | There are almost 2 Lakh candidates take the exam every year, 227,835 candidates registered in 2020 |
| Competition level | High | Moderate |
| Frequency of exam | Conducted once a year | Conducted once a year |
| The toughness of exam(negative marking) | Two types of MCQs are asked: MCQs – 1 mark for each correct answer; 1/3 mark will be deducted for every wrong answer. MCQs – 2 marks for each correct answer; 2/3 marks will be deducted for every incorrect response. no negative marking for Numerical Answer | Right answer: +3, Wrong answer: -1, No negative marks for Non-MCQs questions. |
| Caste reservations | 15% for SC, 7.5% for ST, 27% for OBC, 10% for EWS, 5% for PWD | 15% for SC, 7.5% for ST, 27% for OBC, 10% for EWS, 5% for PWD |
| Top colleges | Top IIT, IIIT, NIT, Jadavpur University, Anna University, Manipal college, etc | All of the top IIM colleges, Amity business school, Birla institute of management technology, Goa institute of management and IBS Hyderabad, etc |
these are all the important differences you should know between both the exams.
Which one should you choose and why?
After reading all the differences between the both exams now it depends upon you regarding which exam you want to choose after your under graduation.
You should consider GATE exam if,
- You want to get a job in PSU sector
- You want to get a seat in IIT and other top engineering institutions for your post graduation
- You want to get placement in top technology companies
- You want to get a seat in top engineering foreign universities and colleges in countries like Singapore and Germany, etc
- You want to become a teacher and a professor in colleges and top institutions
- You have good knowledge in various branches for the specific branch you selected in your under graduation in engineering and technology
- You are interested in engineering and technology subjects
You should choose the CAT exam if,
- You want to get into business and marketing and get jobs in that field
- You want to get a job in the top positions of the private and public companies with the high paying salary
- You want to start a business in future
- You have taken management courses & degree in your under graduation
- You want to study in top foreign universities in management and business related subjects
- You are really good at Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning, etc skills
Now depending upon your interests and skills you can choose any one and continue.
Here are some interesting articles you can read,
- Is it worth doing MBA after engineering?
- Placement or gate which one should you prepare?
- Is Mtech after btech worth it
- Pros and cons of gate exam
With that said let’s end the article.
Conclusion
These are all the important things you need to know between both the exams.
Do let me know what are your thoughts about both the exams in the comment section below.
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