Highest female ratio of any top-10 IIM. Female mean CTC (₹31.04 LPA) actually exceeded the overall mean (₹28.18 LPA) in 2025 — a unique outcome reflecting strong female recruiting from Consulting and Finance.
🏔️
Hill campus
IIM K's campus sits on a forested hilltop in Kunnamangalam, near Calicut. Repeatedly voted one of the most beautiful B-school campuses in India.
🌍
"Globalizing Indian Thought"
Strategic positioning across 58 global university partnerships, 120+ student electives, FT Global Top-70 ranking, AMBA + EQUIS + AACSB triple footprint.
💼
Finance powerhouse
₹81 LPA highest 2025 came from Finance. 19.2% of offers in Finance (Goldman Sachs, JPMC, Citi, Deutsche Bank, Barclays, O3 Capital, Ambit, Equirus, NSE, CRISIL). PGP Finance is a dedicated 4th-year programme.
📚
PGP-LSM uniqueness
India's first MBA in Liberal Studies & Management. Blends philosophy, history, sociology with management — attracts arts/humanities students who typically wouldn't pursue an IIM PGP.
⭐
NIRF #3 · FT Global 68th
Consistently ranked among the top 3 IIMs by NIRF. FT Global Top-70 MBA ranking. EQUIS + AMBA accredited; AACSB Educational Alliance member.
IIM K Placements 2025 — Average Package, Sectors & Top Recruiters
Placement headline — Batch 2025 · PGP · institute-reported data
IIM Kozhikode summer internships for Batch 2024-26 reflected the diversity of the campus — strong representation across Consulting, Finance, FMCG/Pharma, IT/Analytics, Manufacturing, and General Management. PGP-LSM students added meaningful diversity into roles in policy and social impact alongside traditional pipelines.
IIM K Fees — Total Cost, Scholarships & Education Loans
IIM K fee breakdown
Tuition fee
₹16.50 L
Library, computing, materials
₹5.40 L
Total programme fee
₹22.50 L
Monthly living (on-campus)
Mess on actuals · ~₹4,000-5,000/month
Education loan available
Up to ₹30 L (collateral-free) · ₹40 L+ with collateral
Loan interest rate
8.5–10.5% (SBI, HDFC Credila, Axis, ICICI)
Fee-to-package comparison: ₹22.50 L equals 9.6 months of the reported ₹28.18 L annual package. This is not a repayment forecast: tax, living costs, loan interest, foregone earnings and variable pay are excluded.
Scholarships available
Aditya Birla Scholarship
Top performers across IIMs · merit-based · awards across A/B/C/L/K
₹2.4 L per year + Aditya Birla Group exposure
Need-Based Financial Aid (NBFA)
Annual family income below ₹6 L · means-tested · PGP-I and PGP-II
Up to 100% tuition fee waiver
Government SC/ST/OBC Scholarship
GoI scheme for reserved categories
Full tuition based on parental income slabs
IIM Kozhikode Merit Scholarship
Top academic performers in PGP-I
Partial fee waiver · ₹50,000 – ₹1.5 L
OPJEMS
Merit-based across top B-schools · competitive interview
₹1.8 L + networking with Jindal Group
Education loan information: Up to ₹30 L (collateral-free) · ₹40 L+ with collateral. Interest rates: 8.5–10.5% (SBI, HDFC Credila, Axis, ICICI).
IIM K Admission 2026-27 — Eligibility, Cutoffs, Selection Process & Important Dates
NIRF Management #3 · founded 1996 · 5th IIM. CAT 2025 entry. 3 flagship programmes — PGP · PGP Finance · PGP-LSM (Liberal Studies in Management). WAT + PI selection. Scenic Western Ghats campus in Kozhikode.
Programmes
PGP (Flagship)
2-year residential · CAT 2025 · for graduates
PGP Finance
Specialised Finance MBA · 2-year
PGP-LSM
Liberal Studies in Management · 2-year
EPGP (Executive)
For working professionals · executive format
Eligibility
Academic
Bachelor's with 50%+ (45% for SC/ST/PwD)
Tests
CAT 2025 mandatory for all 3 PGP programmes
Final-year
Eligible with provisional admission
CAT cutoffs (working band)
General / EWS
~93+ %ile overall + sectional minimums
NC-OBC
~82 %ile overall
SC
~62 %ile overall
ST / PwD
~45 %ile overall
Selection (Composite)
Stage 1 shortlist
CAT + Class 10 + Class 12 + Graduation + Work-ex + Diversity
Stage 2
WAT (Writing Ability Test) + PI
Final
Composite score across all stages
Important dates (2026-28)
CAT 2025 exam
November 30, 2025
Shortlist
January 2026
WAT-PI
February–April 2026
Final offers
May 2026
Classes begin
June 2026
Reservation policy
Policy
27% NC-OBC · 15% SC · 7.5% ST · 10% EWS · 5% PwD
Contact
Address
IIMK Campus, P.O. IIMK Kozhikode, Kerala 673 570
Apply
iimk.ac.in/admissions
CAT cutoffs (official, by category)
Category
VARC
DILR
QA
Total
General
80
80
80
90
EWS
80
80
80
90
NC-OBC
73
73
73
82
SC
60
60
60
65
ST
50
50
50
55
PwD
50
50
50
55
Sectional + total percentile minimums from the official admission policy. Meeting the cutoff is the FIRST gate — final selection depends on the composite score.
How selection works
Stage 1 — Shortlisting for PI
Scaled CAT 2025 Score55%
Class 12 Marks8%
Graduation Marks10%
Work Experience7%
Diversity: Academic5%
Diversity: Gender5%
Bonus (e.g. NIRF Top 30 institute)10%
Stage 2 — Final selection (post-PI)
Personal Interview (PI)40%
CAT 2025 Score30%
Writing Ability Test10%
Academic (12M + Grad)10%
Work Experience5%
Diversity5%
Eligibility + Exam details
Who can apply
Educational: Bachelor's degree with ≥50% (45% for SC/ST/PwD). Final-year eligible with provisional admission.
Cat Required: CAT 2025 mandatory for all 3 programmes (PGP, PGP Finance, PGP-LSM).
Detailed selection process — what to expect at each stage
Writing Ability Test + Personal Interview · Feb–Apr 2026 at multiple cities.
04
Final merit list
Final composite combines CAT + WAT + PI + Academics + Diversity · May 2026.
05
Offer + classes
Offers May 2026 · classes June 2026.
Batch profile — Class 2023-25
41% female (highest among top IIMs). 26% Commerce + 15% Arts (high non-engineering diversity). 98 CA/CFA/FRM holders. 17 months average work experience.
Reservations & diversity: GoI policy: 27% NC-OBC · 15% SC · 7.5% ST · up to 10% EWS · 5% PwD
IIM K Financial Aid 2026 — Loans, EMI Options & Scholarships
IIM K scholarships — published categories
Aditya Birla Scholarship
Top performers across IIMs · merit-based · awards across A/B/C/L/K
₹2.4 L per year + Aditya Birla Group exposure
Need-Based Financial Aid (NBFA)
Annual family income below ₹6 L · means-tested · PGP-I and PGP-II
Up to 100% tuition fee waiver
Government SC/ST/OBC Scholarship
GoI scheme for reserved categories
Full tuition based on parental income slabs
IIM Kozhikode Merit Scholarship
Top academic performers in PGP-I
Partial fee waiver · ₹50,000 – ₹1.5 L
OPJEMS
Merit-based across top B-schools · competitive interview
₹1.8 L + networking with Jindal Group
IIM K Programs — Fees, Duration & Eligibility
Program
Duration
Total Fees
Intake
Exam
Notes
PGP (Post Graduate Programme)
2 years · 6 terms · residential
~₹22.5 L
June
CAT 2025 (mandatory)
Flagship 2-year MBA · 27th batch · 561 total students across all 3 programs in 2025 · 41% female · 17 months avg work-ex · 100% placed at ₹28.18 LPA mean
Hilltop location near Kerala monsoon belt — dramatic seasonal weather
Faculty
95+
full-time faculty
Student-faculty ratio: ~10:1
PhDs from IIMs, IITs, Wharton, INSEAD, LBS, Kellogg, US/UK universities · supplemented by Indian industry practitioners
Hostel & Residence
Single AC rooms · mandatory residential
Wi-Fi, study desks, common rooms, laundry · hilltop views
All PGP, PGP Finance, PGP-LSM, EPGP students stay on-campus. Closed-loop community on the hilltop builds strong cohort bonds.
Exchange partners
13+
international B-schools
Including Audencia Business School, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cyprus International Institute of Management, EDHEC Business School, ESDES Business School, and more.
IIM K Notable Alumni — Leaders, Founders & Industry Veterans
Alumni network
13,000+ alumni since 1996 across PGP, PGP Finance, PGP-LSM, EPGP, FPM
Active chapters in Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Chennai, Kochi, Hyderabad, USA (Bay Area, NYC), UK (London), Singapore, UAE, Australia
Annual Alumni Day at the Kunnamangalam campus. Strong mentorship pipeline through CARE Committee. Recruiter-alumni-faculty interface for placements.
Pawan Goenka
PGP
Former MD, Mahindra & Mahindra · Chairman, IN-SPACe
Led Mahindra Automotive for over a decade. Currently chairs IN-SPACe, India's space sector regulator.
Sumant Sinha
PGP
Founder, Chairman & CEO, ReNew Power
Founded ReNew Power, India's largest renewable energy company by capacity. Listed on Nasdaq.
Anuradha Razdan
PGP
Executive Director · HR · Unilever South Asia
Senior HR leadership at Unilever covering India + South Asia operations.
Ravi Venkatesan
PGP
Co-Chair, Bank of Baroda · Former Chair, Microsoft India
Former Chairman of Microsoft India and Cummins India. Author, board director, and policy contributor.
Nipun Mehrotra
PGP
Former CDO, IBM India
Chief Digital Officer for IBM's India operations. Subsequently joined the start-up ecosystem.
Shyamal Mukherjee
PGP
Chairman & Senior Partner, PwC India
Led PwC India as Chairman. Senior leader in Indian audit + consulting sector.
Bhairavi Jani
PGP
Executive Director, Indian Express Group
Senior leadership at one of India's largest media houses. Active in entrepreneurship advocacy.
Anand Subramanian
PGP
Former CEO, NSE
Senior leader at India's National Stock Exchange — a JBIMS/IIM K crossover finance leader.
Kavi Reddy
PGP-LSM (1st cohort)
Founding team · Indian impact policy think tank
Among the first PGP-LSM cohort's notable alumni — building policy research organisations.
IIM K LinkedIn alumni
Multiple
CEOs / CXOs across BFSI, IT, Consumer Goods, Pharma
~13,000+ alumni network across senior leadership roles in Indian and global firms.
Is IIM K Worth It? — Honest Pros, Cons & Who Should Apply
IIM K is genuinely best for
✓
Consulting careers (32% of 2025 placements · MBB returns annually)
Female applicants: 41% female batch, highest among top IIMs
✓
Non-engineering applicants: 26% Commerce + 15% Arts (high diversity)
✓
PGP-LSM applicants: India's only MBA blending humanities + management
✓
CA/CFA/FRM holders: 98 in 2023-25 batch — recognised pipeline
✓
International exposure: 58 global university partnerships, FT Global Top-70
Watch out for
!
Kozhikode is Tier-2 and remote from major Indian metros
!
Bulge-bracket IB hiring smaller than IIM Calcutta (Finance is 19.2% here)
!
Kerala monsoon brings dramatic weather (great for some, hard for others)
!
PGP-LSM is newer (4th batch only) — pipeline still maturing
!
Operations placements small (4.5% of 2025) — not strong for SCM careers
!
Some engineering-heavy recruiters favor IIM A/B/C
Apply if
You're targeting consulting or finance in India and value a beautiful, peaceful hilltop campus over a metro setting. CAT 94+ percentile (with 80+ sectional) makes you competitive. Strong fit for female applicants (41% batch ratio), non-engineers, work-experienced candidates with CA/CFA/FRM, or anyone interested in the unique PGP-LSM programme blending humanities with management.
Consider alternatives if
Your CAT is below 90 percentile overall. If you specifically want metro-city access (Mumbai/Delhi/Bangalore) or larger Operations/SCM placements, look at IIM Mumbai or IIM Lucknow. If bulge-bracket IB at scale is your goal, IIM Calcutta has deeper pipelines. If you can't commit to hilltop residential life with Kerala monsoons, this isn't the right fit.