Dear Omha

Answer: Depends.

MMS-CET, the state level entrance exam for admission to MMS programs affiliated to universities in Maharashtra, is the gateway to the top colleges like JBIMS, PUMBA, K J Somaiya, etc. Aside from public colleges, many renowned private colleges like Welingkar also accept CET scores for admission.

To get admission in the top institutes of the state through CET, one has to go through two processes:

• Exam
• CAP- Common Admission Process

Once the candidate is done with the exam, he/she need to complete CAP rounds which involves:

• registering for CAP round
• waiting for merit lists and seat availability
  
• submission of online option form in which you choose your desired college
• waiting for display of cut off lists
• reporting college in case you clear the cutoff
• SUBSEQUENT ROUNDS which follow the same procedure

There is not a fixed number of CAP rounds, some year it is 3+1, other times 2+1, where 1 is the last round which can be applied by all, only with few exceptions. That is a long procedure and is irrelevant to the question.

Now let's have a look at the eligibility criteria for appearing in MBA/MMS-CET:

• Bachelor's degree (at least 3 years) from any UGC/AIU recognized universities/institutions.
• At least 50% aggregate or equivalent, 5% relaxation for OBC/disabled
• Final year students of any UGC/AIU recognized universities can also apply

So, considering you've 50%+ at hand, you're an eligible candidate to appear for the exam. You're in benefit as ranking is based only on CET scores, and not on both CET+boards which would have affected your ranking a big deal.

The admission process is primarily based on your ranking, so as long as you're on top in the ranking (like, less than 25 for JBIMS) your chances of getting admitted is strong. However, whether or not you'll be admitted into your preferred college, that depends on the college itself and the rank you score in the test. Most top B-schools frown upon low academic scores (but since I don't know what is your actual performance, I can't tell exactly how it would make much difference), but if your rank is, say less than 5, why would they want to lose such a capable candidate?

Here's a fact you need to consider, there is more competition in CET than there is in, say, CAT. Every year, CAT is taken by 50,000 aspirants whereas in CET, more than 75,000, hence more brains and struggles to get better rank. Competition aside, the CET aspirants have more questions and less time frame, which is opposite in case of CAT. And the cut off for JBIMS is 99.87 percentile, and only 150 right answers will give you 99.99%ile.

The point is, CET is a tough nut to crack which is the reason why a good CET rank will definitely get you the college of your choice.

Generally, academic performance does affect the admission process but even if odds are stacked against you, the key is to make sure you force them against rejecting you when they look at your report. Strive hard to get an AIR rank that is appreciable enough for the college to overlook your poor previous performances and give what you deserve.

Hope it helps.