Checked 25 September 2026. From the August 2026 admission booklet; the February 2027 booklet had not been published on 25 September 2026. The pattern has been unchanged across the 2024–2026 booklets, but check the new booklet when it appears (expected late November).
The C-DAC Common Admission Test (C-CAT) is the single entrance test for C-DAC's post-graduate certificate programmes in advanced computing, AI, big data, embedded systems, VLSI, security and more. It is held twice a year; the next sitting, for the February 2027 batch, is expected in the second week of January 2027 — C-DAC has not announced it yet. Everything below is from the official admission booklet for the August 2026 batch, the latest published.
Where other pages get this wrong
There is no Category I any more, and PG-DAC is now PGCP-AC.
Commonly published instead: "Category I (Section A only) for PG-DGi", "PG-DAC, 900 hours".
The August 2025 and 2026 booklets state that no course is offered under Category I; applications offer only Category II (Sections A + B) or Category III (A + B + C). And C-DAC has rebranded its PG Diplomas as Post Graduate Certificate Programmes — "PG-DAC is now PGCP-AC" — NCVET-approved, 1,200 hours and 40 credits. Many coaching and aggregator pages still carry the old names and the old category.
August 2026 admission booklet; the January date is inferred from past cycles.
The pattern
| Item | Rule (Aug 2026 booklet) |
|---|---|
| Sections | A, B and C; one hour each; English medium |
| Questions | 50 objective questions per section, four options, one correct |
| Marking | +3 correct, −1 wrong, 0 unattempted; maximum 150 per section |
| Category II (A + B) | 100 questions, 2 hours, 300 marks |
| Category III (A + B + C) | 150 questions, 3 hours, 450 marks |
| Mode | Computer-based, at C-DAC test centres (31 cities in the booklet); three city choices |
| Slots | Morning: A 9:30, B 10:45, C 12:00. Afternoon: A 14:00, B 15:15, C 16:30 |
| Fee | ₹1,550 (Category II) or ₹1,750 (Category III), GST included, non-refundable |
Category totals are our arithmetic on the per-section rule. The sections run back to back with a 15-minute gap, so a Category III candidate sits for about three and a half hours.
Which category opens which course
| Category | Courses (Aug 2026) |
|---|---|
| II — Sections A + B | PGCP-AC, PGCP-BDA, PGCP-AI, PGCP-ITISS, PGCP-MC, PGCP-ASSD, PGCP-HPCSA, PGCP-FBD, PGCP-CSF, PGCP-RAT |
| III — Sections A + B + C | PGCP-ESD, PGCP-VLSI — plus every Category II course |
A Category III candidate receives two ranks: a Category II rank from Sections A and B, and a Category III rank from all three. That has a consequence the fee table hides: Section C cannot hurt your Category II rank, because it is not part of it. The only costs of choosing Category III are ₹200 and an extra hour. The category cannot be changed after the form is submitted, so a candidate who might want Embedded Systems or VLSI should choose Category III at registration.
The official syllabus
| Section | Topics (booklet wording) |
|---|---|
| A | English, Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning, Computer Fundamentals and Concepts of Programming |
| B | C Programming, Data Structures, Object Oriented Programming Concepts using C++, Operating Systems and Networking, Basics of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence |
| C | Computer Architecture, Digital Electronics, Microprocessors |
"Basics of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence" is the recent addition to Section B, with its own two reference books. C-DAC publishes no weightage within a section and releases no past papers, so any topic-wise question count you see online is someone's reconstruction.
| Topic | Booklet reference |
|---|---|
| English | Any high-school grammar book (e.g. Wren & Martin) |
| Quantitative aptitude and reasoning | R. S. Aggarwal; M. Tyra; Barron's New GRE |
| Computer fundamentals | Sinha & Sinha, Foundations of Computing |
| C programming | Kernighan & Ritchie; Kanetkar, Let Us C |
| Data structures | Srivastava, Data Structures Through C in Depth |
| OOP (C++) | Kanetkar, Test Your C++ Skills |
| Operating systems and networking | Silberschatz, Galvin & Gagne; Forouzan |
| Big data and AI | Reis & Housley, Fundamentals of Data Engineering; Mueller & Massaron, AI for Dummies |
| Computer architecture | Stallings |
| Digital electronics | Morris Mano; Wakerly; R. P. Jain |
| Microprocessors | Gaonkar (8085); Barry Brey |
Section by section
Section A — the common section
English (grammar, vocabulary, comprehension), quantitative aptitude, reasoning, and "computer fundamentals and concepts of programming". The last item is what separates C-CAT's Section A from a general aptitude test: it asks about how computers and programs work — number systems, memory, basic programming concepts — so a candidate from a non-computing branch needs to prepare it deliberately. Everyone sits Section A, whatever their category.
Section B — programming and systems
C programming, data structures, object-oriented programming in C++, operating systems and networking, and the basics of big data and AI. The booklet's references are the standard ones — Kernighan & Ritchie and Let Us C for C, Silberschatz for operating systems, Forouzan for networking — which tells you the level: undergraduate fundamentals, examined fast.
Section C — hardware
Computer architecture, digital electronics and microprocessors, with Stallings, Morris Mano and Gaonkar (8085) among the references. It counts only for the Category III rank, which only PGCP-ESD and PGCP-VLSI use.
On the day
| Item | What the last two cycles did |
|---|---|
| Admit card | Downloadable from about four days before the test (6–10 Jan for 10–11 Jan 2026; 30 Jun – 4 Jul for 4–5 Jul 2026) |
| Days | Two consecutive days, a Saturday and Sunday (10–11 Jan 2026; 4–5 Jul 2026) |
| Slots | Morning from 9:30 or afternoon from 14:00; the three sections one after another with 15-minute gaps |
| Centre | A C-DAC test centre in one of your three city choices |
| Ranks | About 11–12 days after the test (22 Jan 2026; 16 Jul 2026) |
How ranks are made
The ranking rules (booklet §10)
- A qualifying cut on Section A. The lowest 10% of scorers in Section A get no rank. (The admission web page words this as the lowest 10% in Sections A, B and C; the PDF booklet says Section A. Aim well above both.)
- No rank with zero or negative marks. A candidate with zero or negative marks in a category is not ranked in it; zero or negative in Section B means no Category II or III rank; zero or negative in Section C means no Category III rank. Not qualifying in Section A — or in Section B — means no rank in either category, however good the other sections.
- Ties: higher Section A marks first; then the higher ratio of correct answers to questions attempted — the booklet says "in the specific section required only for that category of courses", which it does not define further; still level, the same rank.
- A rank is valid for one batch only. The January rank list counts for the February batch and nothing after it.
Section A therefore matters three times over: it is in every category's total, it is the qualifying gate, and it is the first tie-breaker. Candidates from computer science backgrounds tend to treat it as a warm-up — the rules say it is the one section nobody can afford to under-prepare. The second tie-breaker rewards accuracy, not volume: two candidates on the same marks are separated by the share of their attempts that were right.
The marking arithmetic
C-CAT marking: when is a guess worth it?
A correct answer earns +3 and a wrong one costs −1. Pick how many of the four options you can rule out, and see the expected marks from answering against leaving the question blank. Then enter how many you plan to attempt and how many you expect to get right to see the section score.
| Attempted of 50 | Correct | Section score |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | 30 | 70 |
| 40 | 30 | 80 |
| 35 | 30 | 85 |
| 40 | 35 | 100 |
| 50 | 40 | 110 |
Score = 3 × correct − 1 × wrong. With four options a blind guess has an expected value of exactly zero (a one-in-four chance of +3 against a three-in-four chance of −1), so it adds risk and nothing else. Rule out one option and the expected value becomes +0.33 a question; rule out two and it is +1. The table shows the other side: 30 right out of 35 attempted beats 30 right out of 50 by 15 marks.
Practise it, don't just read it
Section A and Section B are where the rank is made. Timed topic quizzes are the quickest way to find out how accurate you really are.
The ProSyllabus C-CAT library has topic quizzes for English and Quantitative Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, Computer Fundamentals, C Programming and Data Structures and OOP — the core of Sections A and B. Each question comes with an explanation.
What is the C-CAT exam pattern?
Three sections — A, B and C — of 50 objective questions each, one hour per section, with +3 for a correct answer and −1 for a wrong one. Category II candidates sit Sections A and B (300 marks); Category III candidates sit all three (450 marks).
Is there negative marking in C-CAT?
Yes: −1 for each wrong answer, against +3 for a correct one. Unattempted questions score zero.
Should I choose Category II or Category III?
Choose Category III if you might want PGCP-ESD or PGCP-VLSI, the only courses that need it. A Category III candidate still gets a Category II rank from Sections A and B, so Section C cannot lower that rank; the extra cost is ₹200 and one more hour.
Is Category I still available in C-CAT?
No. The 2025 and 2026 booklets state that no course is offered under Category I; applicants choose Category II or III.
What is the C-CAT syllabus for Section B?
C programming, data structures, object-oriented programming concepts using C++, operating systems and networking, and basics of big data and artificial intelligence.
How are ties broken in C-CAT?
By higher Section A marks first, then by the higher ratio of correct answers to questions attempted "in the specific section required only for that category of courses" (the booklet's wording). If still equal, candidates share the rank.
When is C-CAT for the February 2027 batch?
Not announced as of 25 September 2026. The January 2026 sitting was on 10–11 January after registration from 27 November to 29 December 2025, and the January 2025 sitting on 11–12 January (reported), so the second week of January 2027 is the likely window.
Is C-CAT held online from home?
No. It is a computer-based test taken at C-DAC test centres; you choose three exam cities when you register.
How many marks is C-CAT out of?
150 marks per section: 300 for Category II (Sections A and B) and 450 for Category III (all three).
What is the C-CAT fee?
₹1,550 for Category II and ₹1,750 for Category III, including GST and not refundable.
More in this series
- Eligibility: which degree opens which C-DAC course
- The twelve C-DAC courses compared
- Counselling rounds, lock/freeze, fees and withdrawal
- Training centres and seats: C-DAC vs ATCs
- A preparation plan for the January 2027 C-CAT
- C-DAC placements: what the data does and does not show
- C-CAT notice board — official updates
Sources
- official — C-DAC ACTS admission booklet, August 2026 batch (v1.0)
- official — C-DAC PG Certificate Programme admission page
- official — C-DAC admission page for the February 2026 batch (archived 19 Jan 2026)
- official — C-DAC admission booklet, August 2025 batch (archived)
- official — C-DAC ACTS home page
- reported — Careers360 — C-CAT 2025 admit card, exam 11–12 Jan 2025
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
