IIM Ahmedabad PGP 2027-29 policy: CAT 2026 cut-offs stay at 95 overall and 85 per section, but shortlisting now scores you within your degree discipline

IIM Ahmedabad (IIMA) has an admission policy for its two-year MBA (PGP) 2027-29 batch on its website. The PDF was posted on 11 September 2026, so it is not a new document, but it differs from last year's policy in several ways. CAT 2026 is on 29 November 2026, and IIMA says it will shortlist only from candidates who sat that exam and applied to IIMA.

What did not change

• CAT 2026 cut-offs. General and EWS need the 95th percentile overall and the 85th in each of VARC, DILR and QA. NC-OBC: 90 and 80. SC: 85 and 75. ST: 75 and 65. For PwD candidates the overall cut-offs are 85, 80, 75 and 65, and the section cut-offs 75, 70, 65 and 55, in the same order. These match the 2026-28 table.
• Composite score. 35% application rating and 65% CAT overall percentile.
• Application rating. Points for Class 10, Class 12 and graduation marks, 3 gender diversity points for every candidate who is not male, and work experience at 0.2 points for each month above 11, capped at 5 points after 36 months. The rating is divided by the average of the top 50 ratings.
• Writing test. The Analytical Writing Test is kept, at 10% of the final score. The interview stays at 50%.

What changed

Item	PGP 2026-28	PGP 2027-29
Final composite score	50% PI, 10% AWT, 25% CAT, 15% application rating	50% PI, 10% AWT, 40% normalised composite score
Marks tables	Class 12 points depended on stream; bachelor's points depended on the degree group	One table for Class 10, Class 12 and bachelor's marks (above 90% earns 10 points)
Normalising the composite	Five academic groups	20 undergraduate disciplines, divided by the average of the top 1% scores in your discipline (5 to 100 scores counted)
Extra shortlisting filters	Class 10 and 12 average cut-off by stream, and an 80th percentile bachelor's cut-off	Not in the 2027-29 policy
Joining deadlines	Certificate by 30 June 2026, documents by 31 December 2026	Certificate by 30 June 2027, documents by 31 December 2027

The 2026-28 policy also had a two-stage shortlist with fixed caps per category, such as 100 for General. The new document says only that the AWT and PI shortlist is generated after the CAT cut-offs, with reservation categories represented. It also no longer mentions the extra rule for transgender candidates or the condition of a positive raw score in every section.

Dates and rules to note

• IIMA plans to publish the AWT and PI shortlist in the second week of January 2027, with no regret letters for others.
• Offers and waiting lists appear in the second week of April 2027. Accept by the first week of May 2027.
• You must be 19 by 30 June 2027, meaning born on or before 30 June 2008.
• AWT and PI are held in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and New Delhi. You chose two cities on your CAT form.
• A graduation degree needs 50% marks, or 45% for SC, ST and PwD. Seats are reserved at 27% NC-OBC, 15% SC, 7.5% ST, 5% PwD and up to 10% EWS.
• IIMA says it may change the cut-offs if the applicant pool needs it.

If you studied in Gujarat, the practical effect is that your discipline matters. A BCom and a BE candidate are compared with their own peers before the cut-offs apply. Our guide to CAT 2026 has the admit card date and exam pattern.

CareerBox News Desk, reporting on IIM Ahmedabad: its Admission Policy for PGP 2027-29 Batch (Domestic), posted on 11 September 2026, compared with the Admission Procedure for PGP 2026-28 Batch. Official portal: iima.ac.in/academics/mba/admissions. Dates and eligibility change; confirm them on the official portal before you act.