Why is CAT 2020 registration lowest since 2016?

The number of candidates applying for the Common Admission Test (CAT 2020) has witnessed a slide — 2.30 lakh in 2020 as against 2.44 lakh last year, according to the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Indore, the exam conducting institute. The number of applicants is the lowest since 2016.

Even as the drop in registration has come at a time when the economy is on a downward spiral and unemployment numbers are growing, IIM-Indore director Himanshu Rai told indianexpress.com that it has little to do with COVID-19. “The figure of CAT registration has usually been in the range of 2.3-2.4 lakh in the past years,” he said.

Other IIMs directors also termed the drop in the registration figures as “marginal”. IIM-Sambalpur director Mahadeo Jaiswal said, “The drop is only by 14,000. The variations happened in other years as well. The exam will be conducted like any other entrance test maintaining the COVID-19 protocol.”