IIM Calcutta was India's first national institute for postgraduate management education. It is known for finance and consulting placements, a wide range of second-year electives and its Joka campus in south Kolkata. It suits CAT takers with balanced sectional scores who are ready for an interview-heavy final selection, and especially those interested in finance, consulting or global exposure through CEMS.
At a glance
| NIRF 2025 Management rank | 7 (score 77.34) |
| Established | November 1961 |
| Type | Institute of National Importance under the IIM Act, 2017 |
| Location | Joka, Diamond Harbour Road, Kolkata, West Bengal |
| Flagship programme | Master of Business Administration (MBA) |
| Duration | Two years, full-time, residential |
| Sanctioned intake | 545 across two-year PG programmes in 2023-24 (NIRF 2025 data) |
| Admission test(s) | CAT (CAT 2026 for the 2027-29 batch); overseas candidates apply separately |
| Programme fee | Rs 27,00,000 for the 2024-26 batch, plus a Rs 20,000 refundable caution deposit (latest official fee notice found) |
| Median salary | Rs 30 lakh per annum for the two-year PG cohort graduating in 2023-24 (NIRF 2025 data) |
| Website | iimcal.ac.in |
About IIM Calcutta
The Government of India established IIM Calcutta in November 1961 as the first national institute for postgraduate studies and research in management. It was set up in collaboration with the Alfred P. Sloan School of Management (MIT), the Government of West Bengal, the Ford Foundation and Indian industry. Early faculty included Jagdish Sheth and J. K. Sengupta. The institute is governed under the IIM Act and its own rules and regulations, all of which are linked from its website.
IIM Calcutta stresses a residential culture and an academic structure with a broad first-year core and a large elective menu in the second year. Its MBA page says the second year offers more electives than any other business school in India. Students can also write term papers under faculty supervision. It is the only Indian member of CEMS, the Global Alliance in Management Education, which offers the CEMS Master's in International Management.
Programmes
- MBA: the flagship two-year residential programme. The first year covers economics, finance, marketing, operations, systems, organisational behaviour, HR, strategy and public policy, and the second year is mostly electives.
- CEMS MIM: available to IIM Calcutta students through its CEMS membership.
- PGDBA: a two-year residential Post Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics, offered jointly with IIT Kharagpur and the Indian Statistical Institute.
- MBAEx: an MBA for executives.
- PGPEX-VLM: a programme for manufacturing leaders.
- Doctoral (PhD) and Executive PhD.
- Executive education: short and long-duration programmes.
Admissions and eligibility
According to the admission procedure for domestic candidates (2027-29 batch), you need a bachelor's degree with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA (45% for SC, ST and PwD candidates). Final-year students can apply but must submit a completion certificate by 30 June 2027, and their mark sheets no later than 30 September 2027.
Applications go through CAT 2026. IIM Calcutta follows the Government of India reservation policy for central educational institutions, with 5% of seats reserved for persons with benchmark disabilities. Overseas candidates follow a separate admission procedure.
Selection process
These rules come from IIM Calcutta's admission procedure for domestic candidates, MBA batch 2027-29 (CAT 2026).
Stage I: minimum CAT 2026 percentiles. You must meet every sectional minimum and the overall minimum, and have non-negative raw scores in all sections:
| Category | VARC | DILR | QA | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open | 80 | 80 | 75 | 85 |
| EWS / NC-OBC | 70 | 65 | 65 | 75 |
| SC | 65 | 60 | 60 | 70 |
| ST | 55 | 55 | 55 | 65 |
| PwD | 45 | 45 | 45 | 55 |
The institute warns that actual cut-offs may be much higher.
Stage II: shortlisting for the PI and WAT. A composite out of 85:
- CAT 2026 score: 56 (your overall scaled score as a share of the maximum)
- Class 10 marks: 10 (full points at 80% or above)
- Class 12 marks: 15 (full points at 80% or above)
- Gender diversity: 4 (for female and transgender candidates)
Stage III: final selection. A composite out of 100:
- CAT 2026 score: 30
- Personal Interview: 48
- Writing Ability Test: 8
- Academic diversity: 6 (points for non-engineering degrees and professional qualifications, using the policy's category table)
- Work experience: 8 (up to eight points, by completed months as on 31 January 2027)
Only paid work completed after the bachelor's degree counts towards work experience. Internships, articleship and training do not.
Fees and financial aid
The latest official fee notice we could find on the MBA page is for the 2024-26 batch (61st batch). It sets a total of Rs 27,00,000 over six terms, with Rs 5.4 lakh in Terms I and IV and Rs 4.05 lakh in the other terms, plus a refundable caution deposit of Rs 20,000. The notice does not say whether hostel or mess charges are included. We could not find an official fee for later batches, so confirm the current amount with the admissions office before you plan your finances.
We could not find an official scholarship page for MBA students on the institute's website. In the NIRF 2025 data, IIM Calcutta reported students in its two-year PG programmes receiving full tuition-fee reimbursement from government schemes and from institution funds. Ask the MBA office about need-based assistance for your batch.
Placements
NIRF 2025 data. For the two-year PG programmes, IIM Calcutta reported a median salary of Rs 30 lakh per annum for the cohort graduating in 2023-24, when 528 students graduated and 528 were placed. The medians for the earlier graduating years were Rs 33.67 lakh (2022-23) and Rs 31 lakh (2021-22).
Final placement report, MBA 61st batch (2024-26). The official report states that 458 students received 542 offers from 202 firms, with 100% placement. It lists:
- Average salary: Rs 36.00 lakh
- Median salary: Rs 35.00 lakh
- Highest domestic CTC: Rs 1.45 crore
- Highest international CTC: Rs 1.10 crore
- Offers by domain: consulting 38%, general management 21%, finance 18.6%, IT and product management 13.3%, sales and marketing 9%
The process followed a cluster-cohort system with "hold and wait" and "dreams" options. The report does not state whether the figures were audited. Recruiters named include Bain & Co., BCG, McKinsey & Co., Kearney, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Avendus, Google, Microsoft, Hindustan Unilever and the Tata Administrative Services.
Placement figures vary by year and role; read the official report.
Campus and student life
The campus is at Joka on Diamond Harbour Road, on the southern edge of Kolkata. The institute's website lists four hostels (Lake View, Ramanujan, White and the New Hostel), a Student Council with cultural, sports and alumni cells, and a range of clubs, special interest groups and chapters. Its events include the 7 Lakes Fest and Intaglio. In the MBA, second-year students run a mentorship programme that helps first-years prepare CVs and face mock interviews before summer placements. The CEMS Club and the international office support global programmes.
How to prepare for IIM Calcutta
The shortlist leans heavily on CAT: 56 of the 85 Stage II points come from your overall score. You also need every sectional minimum, plus non-negative raw scores in all three sections. Weak areas are risky, so plan your preparation section by section using our CAT 2026 syllabus breakdown and keep reviewing your mock test analysis.
Class 10 and 12 marks carry 25 points between them at the shortlisting stage, and full points start at 80%. If your school marks are below that, you will need a higher CAT score to compensate.
At the final stage the Personal Interview alone is worth 48 of 100 points and the Writing Ability Test another 8. Start practising structured writing and interview answers early rather than after the results. Reading widely helps with both the WAT and VARC, and our reading comprehension strategy is a good place to start. No cut-off or score guarantees an interview call or an offer.
Frequently asked questions
What is the fee for the IIM Calcutta MBA?
The latest official fee notice we found covers the 2024-26 batch: Rs 27,00,000 for two years, plus a Rs 20,000 refundable caution deposit. Confirm the fee for your batch on the official MBA page.
What is the CAT cut-off for IIM Calcutta?
For the 2027-29 batch, the minimum CAT 2026 percentiles for the open category are 80 in VARC, 80 in DILR, 75 in QA and 85 overall. Clearing these only makes you eligible for the composite-score shortlist, and actual cut-offs may be much higher.
How important is the interview at IIM Calcutta?
Very important. For 2027-29 the Personal Interview carries 48 of the 100 final-selection points, compared with 30 for CAT and 8 for the Writing Ability Test.
What were IIM Calcutta's latest placements?
For the 2024-26 MBA batch, the official report lists a median salary of Rs 35 lakh and an average of Rs 36 lakh, with 542 offers to 458 students. The NIRF 2025 data shows a median of Rs 30 lakh for two-year PG graduates in 2023-24.
IIM Calcutta or IIM Mumbai: which should I choose?
Both rank in the NIRF 2025 top ten and both publish detailed selection rules. IIM Calcutta's final selection puts more weight on the interview, while IIM Mumbai gives CAT 60% of the final composite. Compare their fees, latest placement reports and programme focus before you decide.
Sources
- NIRF India Rankings 2025: Management: rank and score (accessed 22 October 2026)
- NIRF 2025 data submitted by IIM Calcutta (IR-M-S-8972): sanctioned intake, graduates, placed students and median salary (accessed 22 October 2026)
- IIM Calcutta: Admission Procedure for Domestic Candidates (MBA 2027-29): eligibility, CAT 2026 cut-offs, shortlisting and final selection weights (accessed 22 October 2026)
- IIM Calcutta MBA Programme Fee Structure, Batch 2024-2026: term-wise fees and caution deposit (accessed 22 October 2026)
- IIM Calcutta Placement Report 2026, MBA 61st Batch: final placement statistics for 2024-26 (accessed 22 October 2026)
- IIM Calcutta MBA programme page: programme structure and mentorship programme (accessed 22 October 2026)
- About IIM Calcutta: history and mission (accessed 22 October 2026)
- IIM Calcutta CEMS MIM and PGDBA: other programmes (accessed 22 October 2026)
Researched from official sources on 22 October 2026. Admissions policies, fees and placement figures change every year: confirm them on the institute’s website before applying.