What is the JAP 2026 admission process for IIM Kashipur, Raipur, Ranchi, and Trichy?

JAP 2026 is the Joint Admission Process coordinated by IIM Raipur for four new IIMs: Kashipur, Raipur, Ranchi, and Trichy. The process runs in two mandatory steps, and missing either one permanently ends your candidature at all four institutes simultaneously.

How the Two-Step Process Works

After CAT 2025 results are declared, only candidates who listed these IIMs on their CAT application form AND clear minimum eligibility receive an invitation email from the JAP admission office. This email triggers Step 1: mandatory online registration.

Step 1 is NOT a PI call. It is a pre-filter, and if you miss the registration window (typically narrow, often 7-10 days), you are out of all four IIMs at once.

No extensions, no appeals.

Step 2 is shortlisting for Personal Interview based on CAT 2025 scores, evaluated separately across six reservation categories: GEN, EWS, NC-OBC, SC, ST, and PwD. Each IIM then runs its own PI and issues independent final offers, so you can receive an offer from Ranchi but not Kashipur, or all four, depending on your PI performance and composite score.

CAT Cutoffs and Category Expectations

General category candidates should target 90-95 percentile as a realistic floor; historically, strong calls have gone to candidates above 92 percentile in the open category. The table below gives approximate working ranges (not official published cutoffs, which vary year to year):

Composite scores include CAT score, academic performance (10th, 12th, graduation), work experience, and diversity factors. Freshers are not excluded, but work experience adds measurable points to your composite.

Don't pretend otherwise: if you have zero work experience and a 91 percentile, conversion is genuinely harder here than at older IIMs where PI performance can override profile gaps.

Fees, Placements, and What You're Signing Up For

These four IIMs sit in the new IIM tier. IIM Ranchi charges approximately ₹14 lakh in total fees, with a median placement around ₹17 LPA.

IIM Kashipur, Raipur, and Trichy are in a comparable range (₹14-16 lakh fees). Recruiters include names like Deloitte, KPMG, Amazon, and Hindustan Unilever, though bulge-bracket finance and MBB consulting (McKinsey, BCG) placements remain rare at this tier.

If you're targeting Goldman Sachs or BCG, the older IIMs are a better fit.

Documents and Compliance

• Original academic certificates (10th, 12th, graduation marksheets and degrees)
• Category/reservation certificates in the prescribed central government format
• Work experience documents (offer letter, relieving letter, salary slips)
• APAAR ID (mandatory for 2026 cycle)

Submit all originals on PI day. Incomplete documents mean instant disqualification. Misrepresentation at any stage, even discovered after joining, leads to expulsion. This is a zero-tolerance policy across all four JAP institutes.

The Honest Takeaway

JAP 2026 is a legitimate route to an IIM degree if you clear CAT 90+ and don't want a drop year. The process is administratively unforgiving, so treat the invitation email as urgent the day it arrives.