MBA - Master of Business Administration

Master of Business Administration is popularly known as MBA. The institutes offer a two-year degree course to cover various areas related to the business field.

What is Master of Business Administration

MBA is the degree obtained after completing the courses in business studies, including marketing, finances, operations management, and human resource. The MBA degree brings together business people and helps a student make networks with like-minded people. Hence, MBA is the best place to build a network while starting any new business.

MBA is available both in foreign universities as well as in India. Obtaining an MBA degree from any well-recognized university does not restrict the student to any business field and makes them an all-rounder business professional. There are several criteria for MBA admissions, and some require minimum age while some require minimum two-to-four years of working experience.

MBA degree opens the door to various possibilities and connects a student with other people. The strong networks built by the students help them excel in their business careers like product management or even while starting their own business.

MBA Admission in India

Exams for MBA Admission in India

There are nine most popular entrance exams in India conducted for MBA admission. These entrance exams are CAT, GMAT, CMAT, ATMA, MAT, SNAP, XAT, and NMAT. These are National Level entrance exams, and there are some exams conducted at the state level; these are MAH CET, KMAT, TANCET, PGCET, Maharashtra, etc. Some institutes also conduct their separate entrance exams, including IIFT, UPES MET, TISS NET, KIITEE Management, and IBSAT.

General Eligibility for MBA

1. A graduation degree (which can be 3 or 4 years) is a must for a candidate to opt for MBA.
2. The candidate should have a minimum of 50% or equivalent CGPA in their graduation degree.
3. Some institutes even have an upper age limit beyond which a candidate is not eligible. This age limit is about 35 years.
4. Some institutes like IIT Kharagpur have different eligibility criteria, such as compulsory 4-year graduation and a minimum aggregate of 60% in graduation.

Although general eligibility criteria remain almost the same for all entrance exams, there are some specific differences according to the institutes and the examination.

MBA Entrance Examinations in India

CAT (Common Admission Test) -

CAT entrance examination is so popular that it is inevitable that anyone in their graduation hasn't heard about it. This examination is an entrance that provides admission in the most renowned MBA colleges of India, which include IIMs, SPJIMR, JBIMS, IITs, IMI, MDI, etc. It is challenging to crack this exam and provides vast opportunities to students appearing for it.

Eligibility Criteria for CAT exam

1. No age restriction for the exam.
2. The candidate must have a graduate degree but can appear for the exam even in the fourth year of their graduation.
3. Students belonging to the general category should have at least 50% in graduation. Reserved category students should have at least 45% in graduation.
4. The reservation in admission is according to the caste of the candidate.

CAT Exam Notification

CAT notification is generally released in July of the year of examination. It is released by the institute conducting the CAT exam for that year. Any one of the top six IIMs is assigned for conducting the CAT exam for a year. These IIMs conduct the exam in rotational order.

Mode of CAT Exam

CAT is a computer-based assessment type exam. Candidates have to appear for the exam at an examination center where they are allotted the computers for attempting the exam. Candidates are asked to login to the test with their credentials before the test timing. Each section is time-bound to save candidates from wasting time.

The pattern of the CAT Exam

A general CAT pattern consists of 100 questions distributed among three sections, namely 'Verbal ability and reading comprehension,' 'Data Interpretation and logical reasoning,' and 'Quantitative ability'. The difficulty level of these sections varies each year but is generally moderate to high. All the sections are allotted a time limit from the total 3 hours exam. The exam pattern changed for the year 2020 due to the covid-19 pandemic. The new pattern for 2020 had 76 questions that were to be solved in 120 minutes.

Significance of CAT Exam

• Students passing the exam are shortlisted for the various management and business-related companies that offer high packages.
• MBA from a renowned college like IIMs through the exam provides the students diverse job options. There is a choice in marketing, finance, consulting, etc. Students can choose from these fields and start or accelerate their careers.
• Students can readily get seed capital for their new businesses if they attend top institutes offering MBA. Through these colleges, students interact with brilliant people with whom they can brainstorm ideas and improve themselves.

XAT (Xavier Aptitude Test) -

XAT is conducted for admissions to MBA courses in more than 160 institutes in India, such as XLRI, XIMB, and SPJIMR. This exam is conducted by XLRI; hence XLRI accepts the score of only the XAT exam for MBA admissions. The sections in the XAT exam are a bit similar to other management exams. However, an additional Decision-Making section is added, along with some minor changes in the mark distribution and selection criteria.

IIFT (Indian Institute of Foreign Trade) -

IIFT is another national-level entrance exam for management courses. It is conducted by IIFT and offers MBA in International Business course admissions in IIFT. The sections of the paper are almost the same as any other management entrance exam. However, the time provided to solve the paper is 120 minutes, unlike CAT, which provides 180 minutes to solve almost the same number of questions. Hence rigorous practice is a must to clear the IIFT exam.

CMAT (Common Management Admission Test) -

CMAT is an exam that provides admission to management programs in India. Graduates can write this exam to obtain MBA admission in AICTE affiliated colleges across the country. AICTE was responsible for conducting this exam till 2018. NTA is conducting this exam from 2019 onwards.

Advantages of taking the CMAT exam are -

1. Many colleges accept CMAT scores -

More than 500 colleges are accepting the CMAT exam's score. These include some top colleges like JBIMS, K J Somaiya, SIMSREE, etc.

2. Moderate Level of difficulty -

CMAT has four sections which are very much similar to the other exams. Each section comprises 25 questions. CMAT has a moderate difficulty level as the options are directly related to the questions. Hence the difficulty level of CMAT is lower as compared to the CAT or XAT exams.

3. Admission to MBA/PGDM courses of AICTE approved institutes -

CMAT provides options to the AICTE approved institutions to select graduate students for their MBA/PGDM courses. Hence these institutes only offer programs approved by NAT/AICTE.

4. Relatively low college fee -

Colleges through CMAT charge fees around 5 lakhs to 15 lakhs, which is low compared with the IIMs that charge 16 lakhs to 25 lakhs fee for the entire course. Some colleges through CMAT even charge lower, around 2 lakhs to 3 lakhs.

CAT is one of the major entrance exams for MBA admission in B-schools in India. However, many other exams act as a gateway to MBA admissions in top institutes. These include CMAT, XAT, ATMA, GMAT, SNAP, etc. The syllabus and eligibility remain almost the same for these exams. However, there are minor differences like the criteria for selection, etc. Moreover, the criteria for selection to the top B-schools in India also differ from institute to institute.

MBA Admission in IIMs

IIMs (Indian Institutes of Management) are the most popular institutes offering MBA programs to graduates. IIM Calcutta is the first IIM. It was after it that IIMs were established in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, and Lucknow. These were the only four IIMs for a long period. Gradually, other IIMs were established. Today, the total numbers of IIMs are 20.

It is the dream of every MBA aspirant to get admission to the IIM. Although IIMs are one of the best institutes for any MBA aspirant, it is extremely difficult to get into them. The primary requirement for any IIM to select the candidate is that they should have appeared for the CAT exam and should have a non-zero positive score in the exam. However, another important factor is the age limit for the student to be eligible.

The selection criteria for admission differ according to the institute, but the selection criteria are independent of the other IIM and are the decision of a particular IIM. IIMs have specific weightage in the total score; for the past academic record, work experience gives only a certain weightage to the CAT exam score of the student.

Importance of MBA

1. MBA helps develop advanced management skills -

Usually, MBA pursuing students are graduate students or with very little experience. Hence completing MBA teaches them the skills necessary to manage people.

It helps develop skills that can aid in the successful management of any company and help it succeed. The skills vary according to the program and institute of the student, but the basic course outcomes will remain similar to those listed below -

• Develop leadership and management skills.
• Skills to advertise and sell a product.
• Networking with people and building partnerships.
• Handle complex situations through proper management, for, e.g., financial crisis.
• Promotion of the company and maintaining its image.
• Create reports by analyzing industry data.
• Manage hiring and employee retention.
• Create a proper structure to help the company grow.
• Take hard decisions at a proper time.

Taking an MBA course exposes you to new business trends, gets hands-on new business tools, and helps explore the business world by improving business and collaborations.

MBA prepares you to adapt to the new business environment. MBA helps you to sustain the changes in the industry. It prepares an individual to handle a harsh business environment and search for new business opportunities. Additionally, it always acquaints people with the new ways in which businesses operate.

2. Diversity in the MBA program

There are several options one can choose from to fulfil their aspirations. Many specializations are offered by different universities, which gives students diversity. Some of the specializations are extremely helpful and highly in demand; these include -

• General Management - It is a very well-known specialization. It helps students in their overall development in the management field.
• International Business - This specialization helps you grow an international business that often has offices in multiple countries. It is a great option for those who wish to go abroad.
• Strategic Management - It offers knowledge of long-term business plans and backup plans.
• Finance - This specialization focuses on financial planning. It is based on statistics, data analysis, and accounting.
• Marketing - This specialization helps students develop product and promotion skills.
• Entrepreneurship - It is for the students who are interested in start-ups. It helps them tackle their problems and prepare great business models.
• Operations Management - This specialization is important for managers interested in the production process and can handle the productions efficiently.
• IT Management - It is a specialization for technical business products. It relies on data analysis and product development according to the market requirement.
• Human Resource - It provides knowledge on handling employees. This includes motivating them, conflict resolving, team development, and clarifying the job responsibilities of employees. If you are a people person, this is a great choice for you.
• Consulting - It is a specialization which is very well paid. It helps resolve the problems of other companies through developing solutions. Hence it requires knowledge of multiple sectors.

3. Helps develop a powerful business network

Networking is crucial for any business. MBA degree helps you create a strong network of people, including students, professors, and other staff. Eventually, making you good at management.

4. MBA offers great packages

Regular Master's do not help you land in packages as high as those through an MBA degree. Several high-paying options will help you earn almost double a normal university degree. Moreover, it also provides job security.

MBA degree offers great diversity and is not specific to a certain field. This makes it more popular for young graduates. Also, there are several exams for MBA admission that provides multiple options to the students. They can select according to their preference and start preparing for the exam. Hence if you find it interesting, give it a try.