IIM Kozhikode & CAT 2020: Changes in the 2021-23 Selection Policy

IIM Kozhikode – the campus whose selection criteria has been undergoing at least an iota of change with every passing year. Between CAT 2018 and CAT 2019, there were some variations in the weight given to the different parameters considered for eligibility.

Now, IIM Kozhikode has officially released the selection policy for the Batch of 2021-23 (a.k.a people who will be writing CAT 2020), and the ‘change is the only constant’ mantra seems to remain true this time as well.

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So what has changed, what is the update and how is it going to play out? Let’s dive in!

1) Academics, CAT Scores, Diversity and…

As reiterated, CAT is the first step in the overall process of vying for a seat at the IIMs. There are other crucial factors that decide whether or not a candidate would get shortlisted to further rounds of the selection process.

Personal Interview (PI) is the next round. The shortlisting criteria for the PI round has been laid out, and there are a few changes (obviously).

Criteria	Weightage CAT 2018	Weightage CAT 2019	Weightage CAT 2020
CAT Index Score	75%	45%	45%
Class X Percentage Score	–	30%	25%
Class XII Percentage Score	20%	15%	15%
Gender/Academic Diversity Score	5%	10%	10%
Work Experience Score	–	–	5%

IIM Kozhikode’s weightage to different parameters

As can be seen, the weightage for the CAT Index Score remains the same as last year. The CAT score is the biggest player in deciding the selection to the PI round.

Notice the crucial change?

Yes, the weightage given to Class X scores has come down from 30% to 25%. If the other percentages remain the same, where does the reduction get compensated for?

In comes Work Experience Score.

A 5% weightage will be given for candidates with work experience. If you are already feeling bad because you do not have any, OR are rejoicing because you have a lot of work experience, pay attention.

2) IIM Kozhikode and the Work Experience criteria

Candidates with work experience ranging from 6 to 36 months can heave a sigh of relief. The table given below explains how the work experience scores will be awarded by IIM Kozhikode.

Work Experience* (in months)	Work Experience Score
Less than 6	0
6 to 36 (both included)	5x/36**
Greater than 36	0

IIM Kozhikode’s Work Experience Score Calculation

* Work experience will be calculated based on the number of months the candidate has worked until December 2020.

** ‘x’ refers to the number of months of work experience of the candidate until December 2020.

So if you are a fresher, OR someone with over 3 years of work experience, you will not gain anything from this criteria. However, those with 6 to 36 months of experience will gain some edge.

IIM Kozhikode and IIM Ahmedabad – The Work Experience Score comparison

IIM Kozhikode’s work experience criteria is slightly different from that of IIM Ahmedabad. The table given below shows how the work experience score is calculated, when it comes to IIM Ahmedabad.

Work Experience (in months)	Work Experience Score
<12 months	0
12 to 36 (both included)	0.2 * (Number of months – 11)
>36	5

IIM Ahmedabad’s Work Experience Score Calculation

As can be seen from the two tables, IIM Ahmedabad’s work experience score increases with the number of months of experience and flattens out beyond 36 months. In IIM Kozhikode’s case, it is a sort of a ground-to-cliff-to-ground bungee.

The announcement from IIM Kozhikode clearly states the following:

Each IIM shortlists candidates for PI based on their own criteria. Hence, it is natural to observe variations in the lists of candidates shortlisted by different IIMs.

3) No WAT

IIM Kozhikode has decided to do away with the Written Ability Test (WAT) for this cycle. The final shortlist will be based on CAT Score, PI Score and Resume Score.

4) Post-PI: The final shortlist

Component	Weightage
CAT 2020 Index Score	44%
PI Score	44%
Resume Score	12%

IIM Kozhikode’s criteria for the final shortlist

The table above represents how IIM Kozhikode will decide the final shortlist of candidates after the Personal Interview. The CAT Index Score and the PI Score form the lion’s share, taking equal parts between them.

Bottom-line: How do these add up?

This is an obvious conclusion. A set of criteria has been laid out; there is absolutely no point lamenting about the competitive edge some candidates would be gaining while the others would not.

You know the rules of the game. Now, it is upto you to make the best use of the one component that is in your control – CAT 2020. If you score well enough, and your score overrides all the other aspects of work experience and diversity, you would rightfully earn your interview call letter.