CAT 2012 sees 8.6% increase in number of girls compared 2.6% increase in the number of boys

KOLKATA: The total number of registered candidates for CAT 2012 is 4.2% more than last year, according to Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode ( IIMK), which is coordinating CAT 2012.

IIM-K on Monday announced the highlights of CAT 2012 registrations on behalf of The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).

CAT 2012 has seen a sharp rise in the number of girls with an increase by 8.6% over last year as compared to the number of boys registering for CAT which has increased by 2.6%.

The category-wise break-up of registration reveals a notable increase in participation from NC-OBCs which is 17.3%, SC which is 5.0% and ST which is 7.4% indicating healthy growth from all categories.

Candidates from an engineering background continue to dominate the total pool with 67.6%. As in the past, a large number of the applicants are either fresh or have work experience less than 6 months. However there is a substantial increase of 43% in the test takers with 2 - 3 yrs work-experience.

The top 5 cities in which candidates have scheduled to test account for 40.7% of the total number of registrations New Delhi (21224), Bangalore (19553), Mumbai (16895), Hyderabad (16138) and Pune (13368). Based on candidates' residing address, Maharashtra has the highest number of registered candidates (31040). This is followed by Uttar Pradesh (25270) and Delhi (21507).

"The shift in candidate pool in terms of gender and social balance, as well as work experience, is a positive indication that our society is becoming more aware of the opportunities that are available," said professor SSS Kumar, CAT 2012 convenor.