CMAT 2019 was conducted on 28th January, 2019 in two time slots: 9.30 am to 12.30 pm and 2.30 pm to 5.30 pm. CMAT scores are accepted by many top MBA colleges like JBIMS, Goa Institute of Management, SIMSREE, K J Somaiya etc.

The exam was conducted in the Computer Based Test (CBT) format. The duration of the exam was three hours (180 minutes). The structure of CMAT 2018 remained the same as that of the earlier CMAT exams.

The test had four sections with 25 questions each. Each question was of MCQ type with four options. Each correct answer carried four marks while there was a penalty of 1 mark for every wrong answer. There was no time limit for each section. A candidate could freely move across the sections throughout the exam duration.

The distribution of the questions is as given in the table below:

Students who reported at the center venues after the Gate Closure time (which was 30 minutes before the commencement of the exam) were not allowed into the center. This time, CMAT was conducted by National Testing Agency (NTA) and not by AICTE.

Students were permitted to take breaks during the exam but not in the first 30 minutes and in the last 30 minutes of the exam. However, candidates were NOT allowed to move out of the exam hall with their hall tickets even if they ended their test ahead of the stipulated time.

The hall tickets of the candidates and the rough sheets taken by the candidate were collected after everybody ended their tests. This time, there was an additional procedural step of pasting one's photograph on the attendance sheet during the exam.

Given below is a summary of the CMAT test based on students' observations and reactions post the exam:

Quantitative Techniques and Data Interpretation (QTDI): As compared to the paper pattern two years back, there were fewer number of calculation-intensive questions. The questions were spread across a wide range of topics viz., Numbers, Ratio & Proportion, Time & Work, Time & Distance, Linear Equations, Functions, Inequalities, Geometry, Mensuration, P&C, Probability, Sets & Venn Diagrams, etc. There was one question on Six Sigma.

There were two questions based on Data Interpretation which were time consuming. One question was a pie chart related to market share & the other was a table of subjects and marks scored by a number of students.

A well-prepared student could have attempted 21-22 questions in the section.

Logical Reasoning (LR): All LR questions were individual questions and there wer no set based questions.Unlikelast year, most questions in this section were on the easy to moderate side. Questions included coding-decoding, direction sense, alpha-numeric-symbolic series, cubes, venn diagrams, visual diagrams, family tree, matrix arrangements (distributions), comparisons, series based, analogies and odd man out.

There were 4 questions on Verbal Reasoning (Statement Assertions and conclusions, Strong-Weak Arguments etc). A good student could have answered 21-22 questions.

Language Comprehension (LC): There were four Reading Comprehension passages in the third section. There were a total of 15 RC questions. Three of the RC passages had just two paragraphs with three questions each. The topics included Comparison of Developed & Developing countries; Endangered Languages; Parenting; and the questions were of moderate difficulty. The fourth passage was about Steve Jobs and was relatively longer. It had six inference based questions.

The Verbal Ability segment had ten questions. These included questions on Synonyms, Antonyms, Error spotting, Fill in the Blanks, One word substitution, Parajumbles, Figures of Speech, Meanings of words and their usage in sentences, Grammatically correct sentence etc.

The section was moderate to difficult and a serious test taker should have been able to answer 20-21 questions.

General Awareness (GA): This section was moderate in difficulty level. About half the number of questions were based on Static GK and the remaining half was based on Current GK. The section had questions on:

• Indian Constitution, Civics and Civic Bodies, Commissions etc
• General Science,
• Politics,
• Banking,
• Quotation by a famous personality,
• Sports, and
• Current events.

A good student would be able to answer around 15 questions in this section.

The overall cut offs are expected to increase as CMAT 2019 was found to be easier than last year.

T.I.M.E. wishes the CMAT 2019 test takers all the very best for the results!

In the light of NTA explicitly disallowing the sharing of exam content, no student / coaching institute/ online portal can use the content or share it with anybody. No such information can also be posted on any forum on the internet. So, T.I.M.E. has a policy in place where

• T.I.M.E. employees will not share information about the test.
• T.I.M.E. will not encourage/ ask students to disclose details about the content of the test that they took.
• T.I.M.E. will not allow any person to post such information on its website www.time4education.com