Overview: The 2024 Common Admission Test (CAT) is set for November 24, under IIM Calcutta's likely oversight. The first step to begin your preparation is by familiarizing yourself with the CAT syllabus for you to be fully prepared for CAT 2024.

The very first and important fact that you need to note is that CAT syllabus is never released by any of the IIMs conducting CAT entrance exam. However, in this blog we will covering the entire CAT syllabus in length for you based on previous year's CAT exam trend.

The questions are based on the previous year's standards of CAT questions containing concepts of elementary level and high school Maths, reading and English comprehension and logical reasoning.

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CAT Syllabus Highlights 2024

CAT Exam Particulars	CAT Syllabus 2024 Details
CAT Full Form	Common Admission Test (CAT)
Conducting Institute	IIMs
CAT Exam 2024 Date	Sunday, November 24, 2024 (tentatively)
Duration	2 Hours
Total Sections	5
Total Questions	66
CAT syllabus	Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC), Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR), Quantitative Ability (QA)
CAT pattern	Computer Based Test (CBT) with MCQs and non-MCQs

CAT Syllabus 2024 Overview

• Earlier, CAT exam was a three-hour paper, but for the past three years (2021, 2022, 2023), CAT has been a two-hour exam.
• Though the CAT exam pattern has changed over the years, the three subject areas viz.,Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC), Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR), Quantitative Ability (QA) have remained the same.
• So, even though there is no officially prescribed CAT syllabus based on the CAT exams conducted over the past many years, we can logically infer a few things. 
• Having said this, solving previous years' CAT questions papers can increase the probability of scoring well in CAT Exam 2024, even if the authorities decide to throw a little surprise at you.
• In this article, we discuss the CAT syllabus for 2024 based on the analysis of CAT conducted over the years.

CAT Exam Pattern in 2023

• CAT 2023 consisted of a total of 66 questions divided into three timed sections.
• The CAT question paper from last 3 years has remained unchanged.
• Around 75% of the questions are MCQs (Multiple-Choice Questions), while the rest are TITA (Type in the Answer). The table here gives a quick overview: 

Section	Duration	Number of MCQs	No. of TITA Qs.	Total
VARC	40 minutes	21	3	24
DILR	40 minutes	14	6	20
QA	40 minutes	14	8	22
Total	120 minutes	49	17	66

Check the overview for CAT Exam Pattern tabulated below: 

CAT Exam Syllabus 2024 - Key Components	CAT Exam 2024 - Details
Time allotted	2 hours
Total No. of Questions	66
No. of Questions Section-wise	VARC: 24 DILR: 20 QA: 22
Time allotted per section	40 minutes each
Mode of Examination	Computer-based
Medium of Examination	English

CAT Exam Syllabus PDF 2024 [Subject-Wise] - Check Here

This is to inform you that none if the IIMs officially releases CAT Exam Syllabus PDFs. Moreover, we are dependent on the previous year's pattern and questions asked from the topics from all the three sections.

There are 3 sections asked in CAT exam syllabus for MBA also called CAT exam subjects viz.,

1. Quantitative Aptitude
2. Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension
3. Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning

However, after going through the trend of pas few years of CAT exam, we have researched and complied the entire syllabus into CAT exam syllabus PDF.

Download Detailed CAT Exam Syllabus PDF

The CAT exam syllabus for MBA, important topics and respective weightage are listed below:

CAT Syllabus for Quantitative Aptitude 

Topics	Sub-Topics
Number System	Prime Factorization,
	Divisibility Rules,
	Finding Units place and tens place of a number,
	LCM and HCF,
	Indices and Surds,
	Cyclicity,
	Remainders,
	Base Change
	Factorial.
Arithmetic	Simple Interest and Compound Interest,
	Time, Distance and Speed,
	Mixtures and Allegations,
	Ratios, Proportions and Variations,
	Time and Work,
	Pipes and Cisterns,
	Percentages
	Averages,
	Profit and Loss
Geometry	Circles,
	Polygons,
	Triangles,
	Trigonometry,
	Lines and Angles,
	Coordinate Geometry
Algebra	Functions and Groups,
	Inequalities and Modulus,
	Logarithms,
	Maxima and Minima,
	Polynomials,
	Linear and Quadratic Equations,
	Algebraic Identities
Modern Mathematics	Probability,
	Permutations and Combinations,
	Set Theory
	Venn Diagram,
	AP, GP, HP
	Binomial theorem

Below is the detailed CAT exam syllabus PDF for Quantitative Ability:

Download Detailed CAT Exam Syllabus PDF for Quantitative Ability

Check: Why CAT Exam is Important?

Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus Weightage:

It becomes important for you to lean about the topic wise break-up with weightage of each topic in the CAT syllabus. This can be done once you have gone through the CAT eligibility criteria thoroughly.

In CAT 2023, out of the 22 questions, 8 were TITA questions, and the remaining were MCQs. Over the years, the maximum number of questions in the QA section of CAT have been from Arithmetic. 

Topic	No. of Questions in Slot 1	No. of Questions in Slot 2	No. of Questions in Slot 3
Algebra	6	7	7
Arithmetic	8	7	8
Number System	2	2	3
Geometry	3	4	2
Modern Maths	3	2	2

Here is an overview of the four broad areas (in %) covered over the years in the QA section. 

CAT Syllabus Logical Reasoning & Data Interpretation 

CAT Syllabus 2024 for is provided below:

DI Topics	Tables
	Data Caselets – Reasoning-Based DI
	Column Graphs
	Bar Graphs
	Venn Diagrams
	Line Charts
	Pie Charts
	Scatter Plot
	Radar Chart
	Routes and Network
	Bubble Chart
LR Topics	Binary Logic
	Games and Tournaments
	Arrangements
	Team Formations
	Order and Ranking

Below is the detailed CAT exam syllabus PDF for Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation:

Download Detailed CAT Exam Syllabus PDF for Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation

Check: How to prepare for logical reasoning for CAT

CAT 2024 DILR Syllabus Weightage (in CAT 2023):

DILR Sets	No. of Questions in Slot 1	No. of Questions in Slot 2	No. of Questions in Slot 3
Token	5	5	5
Girls Graph	5	5	5
University team data	5	5	5
Metroline	5	5	5

Here is an overview of the topics (in %) covered over the years in the DILR section. 

Check: CAT Exam Preparation Books 2024

CAT Syllabus for Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension 

CAT exam syllabus PDF for VARC is provided below:

Here are the important topics that you must cover for the CAT syllabus specifically for the VARC section.

S.No.	Important Topics
1	English Usage or Grammar
2	Vocabulary-Based (Synonyms/ Antonyms)
3	Fill in the blanks
4	Sentence Correction
5	Cloze Passage
6	Jumbled Paragraph
7	Meaning-Usage Match
8	Analogies or Reverse Analogies
9	Summary Questions
10	Verbal Reasoning
11	Facts-Inferences-Judgments
12	Reading Comprehension

Below is the detailed CAT exam syllabus PDF for Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension:

Download Detailed CAT Exam Syllabus PDF for Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation

Check: What to do after the CAT exam?

Weightage:

VARC Sets	No. of Questions in Slot 1	No. of Questions in Slot 2	No. of Questions in Slot 3
Reading Comprehension	16	16	16
Odd-sentence out	2	2	2
Para Jumbles	3	3	3
Para Summary	3	3	3

Among the three sections, describing the syllabus for VARC is the simplest. Reading Comprehension dominates the section with a little more than 65% of the question weightage.

The remaining questions are from Para Summary, Para Jumble, Odd One Out, and Missing Sentence (introduced in CAT 2022). So, building a reading habit is the key to covering the VARC syllabus.  

In CAT 2023, 4 passages with a total of 16 questions were asked. 3 Para Summary Questions, 3 Para Jumble Questions and 2 Missing Sentence Questions completed the section. From a total of 24 questions, 3 were TITA questions. 

Here is an overview of the RC genres (in %) covered over the years in the VARC section. 

Number of questions in each section

Here is the number of questions asked in each section:

CAT Syllabus Sections	Questions	MCQs	Non-MCQs
Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC)	24	19	5
Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR)	20	15	5
Quantitative Aptitude (QA)	22	14	8
Total	66	48	18

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CAT Syllabus- Section-Wise Important Topics

CAT Syllabus- Important Topics for QA

1. Arithmetic
2. Algebra
3. Modern Math
4. Geometry

CAT Syllabus- Important Topics for DILR

1. Arrangement and Puzzle
2. Direction Sense
3. Order and Ranking
4. Data interpretation

CAT Syllabus- Important Topics for VARC

1. Reading comprehension
2. Para jumble
3. Para Summary
4. Odd Sentence Out

You can prepare for the CAT Exam Syllabus for MBA 2024 using the best-chosen CAT preparation books for all the three sections.

The CAT exam syllabus for MBA 2024 is comprehensive and covers many topics. It is important to be thorough in your preparation and to cover all the topics mentioned in the syllabus. With the right amount of dedication and hard work, you can definitely crack the CAT exam and pursue your career goals.

• The CAT exam consists of three sections: Quantitative Aptitude, Logical Reasoning & Data Interpretation, and Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension.
• The CAT syllabus is never official released. Instead, candidates are expected to deduce important subjects and topics from the previous year's papers.
• CAT primarily assesses candidates' problem-solving speed and application skills rather than rote memorization. CAT exam questions are designed to test practical aptitude.

Check: CAT Exam Questions with Answers