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The admission process to the Master in Management Studies (MMS) programs at business schools across Maharashtra is likely to be delayed this year due to the Common Management Admission Test (CMAT) scheduled for May 2013, the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE), Government of Maharashtra confirmed today.

Last year, the interview process had started in the second week of the month of May. But since the May 2013 CMAT is scheduled between May 19 and 22 and the final results will be declared on June 1, 2013, the final interview rounds will most probably begin from the last week of May 2013, said Dr SK Mahajan, DTE director.

“All students who are appearing for the May 2013 CMAT have equal right to be a part of the admission process to b-schools in the state,” Dr Mahajan said. He added that the DTE will take a final decision in the matter by the end of this month.

How are the affected b-schools planning to deal with the delay? The admissions team at the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS), Mumbai maintained its stand that the institute will follow the directives issued by the DTE, Maharashtra.

KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research, Mumbai will accept May 2013 CMAT scores only for the MMS program but not the PGDM program. “Our admission process to the PGDM program will be over by the end of this month. It will not be practically possible to accept the May 2013 CMAT scores for the same,” a KJ Somaiya spokesperson said.

SS Mantha, chairman, All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) however insisted that all b-schools accepting previous CMAT scores for the next academic session were expected to consider the May 2013 CMAT scores as well.

“Almost 67,000 students have registered for the test. Institutes should keep this in mind before framing their admission strategies,” he told this reporter.

But even outside Maharashtra, not all b-schools are willing to toe that line. Prof Easwer Krishna Iyer, who manages admissions for Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai said that his school’s candidates had already been told that the dates of the May 2013 CMAT made it impossible for the institute to consider its scores for admission to the coming academic year.