Day 144

This year the decrease in the number of the applicants for Common Admission Test (CAT) is the lowest in the last 10 years. Last year the number of applicants was 2.70 lakhs. But this year the number of applicants is 2.41 lakhs. Straight down fall of 29,000 applicants. If we talk in percentage then its downfall of 10.74%. The blame is given to the global slowdown, which affected the salaries and the employment. And the placement scenario wasn’t good in the B-schools. So, this may be the one of influential reasons. This time CAT Committee was prepared for some 3 lakhs applicants. It was having a buffer system for the extra applicants. But still, that didn’t work out. The number is less than the expectation of the committee. I think, in addition to the placement scenario, the computer based test of CAT has played an influential role in the downfall. Many aspirants aren’t familiar with the computer. So that may have created some kind of scare in the mind of applicants. They might have thought that how can the cope with the computer based exam. They don’t have much experience and knowledge in handling the computer. Might be they have thought to prepare for the next year or might have looked to other entrance exams of B-schools.