This is a daunting question for all the graduates seeking an MBA. Not all the candidates can bag an IIM or an XLRI seat. So, it is important for them to understand and target the kind of schools they can place their applications in. There are a number of institutes in India that can add value to your skills for a successful career. Each of them may have certain parameters that may suit you better according to your own needs and goals. Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. These are a few names of repute, when it comes to education in management courses.

• Indian School of Business, Hyderabad.
• Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.
• Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow.
• Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta.

Other well established MBA institutes in India are FMS (Faculty of Management Studies), XLRI, MDI Gurgaon, IIFT, JBIMS, SPJIMR, NMIMS, SIBM Pune, SCMHRD and Taxila Business School.

Getting admissions into MBAs is a tough chore. Understanding the selection process is one important task, as it decides the future of MBA students for an up-and-coming career.  Students take tests to get entry into the well-known colleges of the country. There are a few tests that all the MBA seekers prepare for, in order to participate in the entrance completion exams for the running in, admissions to MBA.  CAT is the most reputed one, there are other tests also these students take for MBA admissions, depending upon their priorities and purpose of pursuing an MBA program. These tests are:

• CAT (Common Admission Test),
• MAT (Management Aptitude Test),
• CMAT (Common Management Admission Test) and
• XAT (Xavier Aptitude Test)

If you want to study in the top IIMs (Indian Institute of Management) in India, the CAT exam needs to be cleared. For non-IIM admissions, students appear for MAT and a few other exams. Institute of Business Management in Pune and FMS (Faculty of Management Studies) in Delhi, JBIMS, SPJIMR, NMIMS are among a few top rated non-IIMs. CAT, MAT and XAT scores are accepted by many Institutes in India.  Eg. Amity Business School, accepts CAT, MAT, XAT as well as GMAT scores.

Likewise, there are a few other entrance exams also that helps you get admissions to MBA colleges. They are CMAT, GMAT, NMAT, SNAP, IIFT, MAHCET, and AIMA etc.

So the selection criteria for MBA will depend on your entrance exam scores, performance in GD/PI round, past academic record, work experience, gender and academic diversity. There are some unique parameters that some B-schools like SPIJMR consider e.g. they conduct WAT, Group Exercise and Psychometric Rounds also.

MBA Admission Process in India can be understood in four steps:

Step-1: Register

The applications are open for MBA entrance exams in most of the MBA Institutes in the month of August till September.  The applications close by November last week of every year. One can register and apply for the MBA Entrances during this time. Some of the recognized MBA entrance tests are CAT, XAT, IIFT, NMAT, SNAP.

Step-2: Entrance Exam Dates
Usually, the Common Admission Test (CAT) is held during the month of November, after which most of the other entrance exams are held.

Step-3: Shortlisting Process 

Once after the declaration of MBA exam results, depending upon the exam scores and cut-off marks candidates are called for the next rounds of selection. Parameters for the admission selection process may vary from college to college. The next rounds of the selection process involve selection through exam scores, academics, diversity, and work experience among other parameters. Different schools have assigned weights to these parameters and each institute completes the process individually.

Step-4: Final Admission Process
The shortlisted candidates have to appear in the Group Discussion (GD), Written Ability Test (WAT) followed by Personal Interview (PI) or any other selection round as per the institutes’ requirements.

Apart from IIMs, there are other b-schools that are of the same repute and if one is unable to secure a seat here you can try your chance. They hold good rankings and at times are better than IIMs on certain parameters.

• S P Jain I statute of Management Research
• Management Development Institute
• Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies
• Great Lakes Institute of Management
• Xavier School of Management
• Symbiosis Institute of Management
• Taxila Business School
• Lala bahadur Shastri Institute of Management
• Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies
• Indian School of Business