IIM Amritsar’s official MBA Admission page currently displays the policy for the 2026–28 batch, based on CAT 2025. That policy is useful for understanding the previous selection process, but it is not the admission rule for the 2027–29 batch. The institute says its criteria are decided each year and that no inference should be made about future cycles. Applicants should therefore use the new batch’s policy when it appears, rather than treating an older percentile threshold or score weight as a promised cutoff.
What is confirmed for the next MBA batch
The current official MBA Admission page names the 2026–28 batch and CAT 2025. It does not set out IIM Amritsar’s 2027–29 shortlist thresholds, score weights, interview stages, dates or final-year completion deadline. Those details remain to be confirmed in a batch-specific notice. The institute’s MBA application link and Admission page are the relevant places to check for the live process. A page link or an older policy is not evidence that a new application window is open.
If you are preparing for the next two-year MBA intake, keep the CAT and institute stages separate. CAT is the common test; IIM Amritsar’s policy determines how a score and other profile details are used for its own shortlisting and offers. The university’s policy page describes an annual process with an initial shortlist for Personal Interview (PI), followed by a separate final selection stage. That gives a useful picture of the prior process, but it does not confirm whether the next batch will retain the same sequence or weights.
The official page also lists separate admissions links for MBA, MBA in Business Analytics and MBA in Human Resources. Do not assume that one programme’s criteria automatically apply to another. Check the current policy attached to the exact programme and batch you want. IIM Amritsar describes its MBA as a full-time, two-year residential General Management programme with a summer internship; programme structure and admissions routes for other offerings are published separately on the institute’s site.
Previous-cycle CAT shortlist thresholds
For CAT 2025 and the 2026–28 MBA batch, IIM Amritsar set minimum section-wise and overall percentiles for its first shortlist. The table below reproduces those minimums from the institute’s official policy. They are not the final selection cutoff, a guaranteed PI call, or a projection for CAT 2026 or a later batch.
The 2026–28 policy adds a condition beyond percentiles: candidates needed a positive raw score, greater than zero, in every CAT section to be considered in the first shortlist. It then limited further processing for PI to candidates who cleared that first screen. So matching the listed minimums was only an eligibility step for the next stage; it did not mean an interview or offer was automatic. The institute prepared a pre-PI merit list using multiple inputs and called a number of candidates based on rank.
This distinction matters when you see a “cutoff” quoted without context. Ask whether it is a published minimum for the first shortlist, an observed score of a candidate called for PI, or an offer-stage threshold. They are different measures. The 2026–28 table is an official historical minimum, not a forecast of the score needed to get an interview in 2027–29.
How the 2026–28 MBA selection score worked
IIM Amritsar’s previous policy used a weighted pre-PI score for its initial merit list. CAT contributed half of that score; Class 10 and Class 12 results contributed 10% each, graduation 5%, gender diversity 10% and work experience 15%.
The policy also described how some inputs were standardised. Class 10 and 12 percentages were adjusted against the 90th-percentile score for the candidate’s board. Graduation marks were converted into a score band; when a final-year candidate’s final marks were pending, an intermediate score could be used. If marks were unavailable, the institute used the awarding institution’s CGPA conversion rule, or a percentage of maximum cumulative grade points where no conversion formula was provided. Candidates were told to report marks and graduation discipline accurately; the policy treated incorrect information as misrepresentation.
At the next stage, the 2026–28 post-PI score used PI at 70%, work experience at 10%, gender diversity at 10% and academic diversity at 10%. The final aggregate was 70% of the pre-PI score plus 30% of the post-PI score. This shows why a CAT percentile alone could not determine the final result under that policy: academic marks, experience and diversity factors also entered the score, and PI carried most of the post-PI component. The 2027–29 policy may use different factors or weights, so use these figures only to understand the published 2026–28 method.
Practical steps for a 2027–29 applicant
- Check the exact programme and batch. The institute publishes separate routes for MBA, MBA-BA and MBA-HR, as well as other programmes. Read the policy whose heading names your programme and intake.
- Use the current CAT instructions for the relevant test year. CAT registration, eligibility, category documentation and test-day details are controlled through the official CAT website. Do not rely on dates copied from a previous year.
- Read IIM Amritsar’s new policy before estimating a shortlist. Confirm the minimum section and overall thresholds, any positive-score condition, and whether an additional institute application or PI shortlist form is required.
- Keep score stages distinct. A minimum percentile may qualify a candidate for consideration; it does not itself promise a PI call or admission. Check the policy for the pre-PI formula, PI or other assessment stages, and final aggregate.
- Prepare verifiable academic records. The previous policy used board and graduation data and warned against inaccurate entries. Keep marksheets, degree or provisional records, conversion rules and category documents available, then follow the new notice’s exact requirements.
- Verify dates and degree-completion conditions in the new cycle. The previous policy required final-year candidates to complete degree requirements by 30 June 2026. That date belongs to the 2026–28 batch; it must not be reused for a later intake.
IIM Amritsar’s current MBA overview describes the programme as residential and two years long. For a decision about the next intake, pair that programme information with the new batch’s admission policy, fee schedule and application notices. Until IIM Amritsar publishes the 2027–29 criteria, its 2026–28 CAT thresholds and weights are a dated reference, not current promises.