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IIM to have online CAT tests
By siliconindia
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Tuesday, 26 August 2008, 19:30 IST
Mumbai: Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) are planning to start conducting the Common Admission Test (CAT) online in a couple of years. Leading institutes like Career Launcher and TIME are lining up large investments to give online training.
TIME, for instance, says it could tie-up with a network of colleges or companies like Reliance Infocom to facilitate online training for its students. Jaideep Singh Chaudhary, product manager CAT, TIME told Business Standard,"We are looking at tying up with computer training institutes or a network of colleges with computer labs at various centres to conduct computer-based training sessions."
Career Launcher plans to invest around three million rupees across its centres to provide computer terminals for its students. "CAT online means taking a test on the computer which serves questions from a local server. We are working towards equipping ourselves with training and putting our methodology in place," says Shiva Kumar, Director, Career Launcher, an MBA-test preparing institute.
IIMs have already invited tenders for conducting the test by parties or companies with ability to put up infrastructure that can handle the exam on such a large scale. The CAT exams could be formatted on the lines of the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) so that the scores are valid for a year or two.
The IIMs are considering online CAT to counter the escalating number of CAT applicants each year. The numbers have moved from 90,000 aspirants to 2.3 lakh aspirants (in 2007) over a span of four years. In 2008, the number of students to appear for CAT is expected to go up to 300,000 students.
Online testing could allow a host of flexibilities like convenience of testing across various centers, conducting test at any time of the year in a phased-out manner over a span of 30-odd days and validity of scores beyond a year to the IIMs admission committee and the students.
Industry players are also expecting that an online exam could reduce the number of questions. Online CAT would mean that comfort with working on and reading from the computer is a must for students.
While there are concerns about security breaches to the test process, industry players say CAT online can look at BITSATgraduate admission exams being successfully applied by BITS, Pilani.
The good news for students, however, could be that though these institutes are looking at upgrading their infrastructure to meet the needs of online CAT, they do not plan to pass on the cost to the students, at present.