The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) are the coveted management / business schools of India, located in the cities of Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Indore, Kolkata, Kozhikode, and Lucknow. They award post-graduate diplomas in management (equivalent to an MBA) with various specializations. The programs are of a duration of two years. Apart from the flagship programs, the IIMs also offer various shorter duration management training programs as well as part-time MBA programs for various organisations and individuals. All the IIMs are completely autonomous institutes owned and financed by the Federal (Central) Government of India.

Admission Process

The CAT (Common Admission Test) conducted by the IIMs is a very competitive test conducted for admission to around 1250 graduate programs in management at the six campuses, and is usually considered one of the most competitive exams in the world, with a success rate of less than one in a hundred. Each institute conducts group discussions and personal interviews to evaluate the students shortlisted after the test. Around 50% of the seats are General category, that is that they are filled through open competition. Around 195,000 students compete for less than 1200 general seats in the IIMs (As per 2006 figures) which makes it even more selective than all the top US business schools put together. Even with a top 1% score, a candidate must also successfully take the equally stringent group and individual interviews.