IIM Bangalore admission criteria for the upcoming cycle has been released. The IIM B selection process continues to follow the same pattern as previous years. The admission steps include the first shortlisting stage, the personal interview and writing ability test round and the final selection stage.

As per earlier trends, the minimum CAT percentile for general category candidates is slightly below 91.97. For SC and ST candidates, it is in the mid-seventy range, while candidates in the EWS category require a percentile slightly above ninety to qualify for selection.

IIM Bangalore Admission and Selection Process 2026-28

The first shortlist for the IIM Bangalore PGP batch will be prepared using the IIM Bangalore CAT cutoff for the upcoming cycle. The required percentile to be eligible for the IIM Bangalore PGP program is similar to the criteria followed by IIM Lucknow.

• CAT 2025 Score & Profile

• Attend PI and WAT

• Final Admission

Stage 1 IIM Bangalore Selection Criteria 2026: MBA CAT Cut Off 2025

Indian Institute of Management Bangalore IIM B follows a category-based shortlisting policy in which candidates from each group have to meet the set minimum performance scores in all sections of the admission test. 

Note: Clearing the IIM Bangalore CAT 2025 minimum cutoff does not guarantee a 2026 interview. It serves only as a screening criterion.

IIM Bangalore Selection Criteria 2026: Pre-PI 2026–2028 Shortlisting Requirements

A pre-PI score is generated for each candidate as part of the IIM Bangalore admission process. The pre-PI score is determined using the IIM Bangalore 2026 selection criteria.

At this stage of the IIM Bangalore 2026 admission process, the CAT 2025 score carries the highest weightage. For the first shortlist, the top ten candidates in each of the following categories automatically qualify for the PI stage.

• Total CAT score

• Adjusted bachelor’s degree score (for commerce, arts and science streams)

• Professional qualification score (CA/ICWA/CS)

After reaching the PI stage, all these candidates are assessed using the same evaluation process as every other applicant.

Stage 2. PI and WAT for IIM Bangalore Selection and admission process 2026

The PI and WAT take place on the same day at the same location. The WAT lasts about 30 minutes and is assessed on both content and writing style.

In this stage, the work experience weight used in the pre-PI score is reduced from 10 to 5 to calculate the final composite score. This work experience score is then multiplied by the quality of experience score, which is rated on a 5-point scale (0.25, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2) by each interview panel member. 

Stage 3: IIM Bangalore criteria for selection 2026: Final Merit List

IIM B selection criteria include, final admission offers for each category are made solely based on the post-PI scores. 

The CAT 2025 points are allocated across the three sections as follows VARC – 8.75 points, DILR – 10 points and QA – 6.25 points.