Fri Dec 20 20:12:58 UTC 2024: ## Local Students Ace CAT Exam, Bucking National Trends

**Chandigarh, [Date]** – Several students from the Tricity region achieved remarkable success in the 2024 Common Admission Test (CAT), a national-level entrance exam for India’s top business schools. The results reveal a shift in the demographic of high-achievers, with a significant increase in toppers from commerce and humanities backgrounds.

Atishay Mariya, a former student of St. Kabir and Bhavan Vidyalaya, secured a top percentile score, attributing his success to rigorous preparation, including extensive mock tests focused on speed and time management. He emphasized his unwavering determination and the support of his family.

Other local high-scorers include Aruvi Dutta from UIET (97.62 percentile), who remarkably achieved this score with minimal preparation, and Amrinderpreet Singh from PEC (99.26 percentile), who credits mock tests as the key to his success. Vaibhav Prasad from GGDSD College also secured a high percentile (97.29), focusing on improving his weaker areas.

This year’s CAT, held on November 24th across 389 centers, saw 2.93 lakh candidates out of 3.29 lakh registered participants. Hirdesh Madan, co-founder of Hitbullseye, noted a significant departure from previous years, with a substantial increase in high-scoring students from non-engineering backgrounds in the Tricity. This trend reflects the growing inclusivity of IIMs, which are now employing differentiated admission criteria to create a level playing field for students from various academic disciplines.

The next stage of the admissions process involves essay writing and interviews, scheduled between January and March. Final results are expected in April. The CAT scores will determine admission to 21 IIMs and other prestigious business schools across India, including IIM Amritsar, IIM Sirmaur, and Panjab University’s UBS.

Read More