SDA Bocconi Asia Center Mumbai Course Admission 2027: Dates, Fees, Eligibility, Application Process, Selection Criteria

SDA Bocconi Asia Center Admission 2027 runs through three separate routes, each with its own form and its own calendar.

• International Master in Business (IMB) admission is based on a Common Admission Test (CAT), Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), Graduate Record Examination (GRE), NMAT by GMAC or Bocconi Test score, followed by an artificial intelligence interview and a panel interview.
• International Executive Master in Business (IEMB) admission is based on 9 or more years of full time work experience, a GMAT, GRE or SDA Bocconi test score, a manager recommendation and an interview.
• Executive programs are filled by direct enrolment through the institute, with no entrance exam and no merit list.

IMB applications generally open in November for the batch that starts the following June. CAT 2026 is held on November 29, 2026, and the NMAT by GMAC 2026 window runs from November 2 to December 20, 2026. GMAT and GRE are taken on demand through the year.

The institute declares no qualifying percentile for the IMB program and publishes no merit list, so an average test score can be offset by academics and profile. Its own Bocconi Test is offered free of extra charge to applicants who hold no usable score. The hardest filter is academic rather than competitive: a candidate needs 55 percent in each of Class 10, Class 12 and graduation, plus a 70 percent average across the three. One application covers both the admission decision and the tuition waiver decision, so there is no separate scholarship form.

Admission Update

• IMB: Round 1 applications for the 2027-29 batch close on November 30, 2026. Round 2 closes on January 25, 2027.
• IMB Round 3: The institute has not released the Round 3 deadline. It is expected in March 2027, in line with the previous cycle.
• IEMB: The next intake begins in January 2027, and its main application round closes in October 2026.

SDA Bocconi Asia Center IMB Admission 2027

The International Master in Business is a 22 month full time program taught in English at Powai, Mumbai. The batch that enters in June 2027 is the 16th edition of the program. Four of those months are spent at Bocconi in Milan, between September 2028 and December 2028, and the program ends in May 2029. Course level detail for this route is covered on the SDA Bocconi Asia Center IMB page.

The institute does not release a public seat matrix for the IMB program. Scale is visible in the graduating batch instead: 378 students received the IMB diploma in the Class of 2026 at the 13th convocation, drawn from 25 Indian states and union territories. Admission is handled end to end by the institute's own admissions committee.

IMB Admission Dates 2027

Applications for the 2027-29 cycle open in November 2026, and the cycle runs in rounds until the seats are filled. Each round closes on a fixed date, and applications submitted in a round are evaluated against that round alone.

The Round 1 and Round 2 deadlines are fixed by the institute for this batch. The Round 3 month follows the previous cycle, when Round 3 closed on March 23, 2026. A fourth round may be opened after that, subject to seat availability, and no date has been published for it.

Editor's Tip: Round 1 closes on November 30, 2026, which is the day after the CAT 2026 test. Your CAT 2026 result reaches you only in January 2027, so Round 1 works only if you already hold a valid CAT 2025, NMAT, GMAT or GRE score, or you opt for the Bocconi Test. If you are waiting on CAT 2026, Round 2 on January 25, 2027 is your round.

IMB Entrance Exam Dates 2027

Five scores are accepted for the IMB application, and each carries its own validity window. A candidate submits any one of them, and holding more than one score is allowed.

Registration for the CAT 2026 exam ran from August 3, 2026 to September 22, 2026, and admit cards are released from November 4, 2026. CAT 2026 results are declared in January 2027, which comes between the Round 2 and Round 3 deadlines.

Registration for the NMAT by GMAC 2026 exam closes on October 10, 2026, and slot scheduling stays open until October 22, 2026. The test runs across a seven week window, so a candidate books a slot of their choice inside it.

Scores from the GMAT exam are accepted when the test was taken after January 1, 2023, and the GRE window is narrower at January 1, 2024. Both tests are taken on demand, so a candidate applying in Round 2 or Round 3 can still sit one of them.

The Bocconi Test is the institute's own screening test and carries no additional fee beyond the application fee. It runs about 70 minutes and has 54 questions across verbal reasoning, numeric reasoning and inductive reasoning, with 18 questions in each section. The test is computer adaptive, there is no negative marking, and it is delivered online in every city. Results are reported as a pass or a fail, and no score is disclosed. Applicants who hold a valid CAT, NMAT by GMAC, GMAT or GRE score need not take it, though candidates whose scores sit below the institute's own averages are asked to attempt it before the application proceeds.

IMB Eligibility Criteria 2027

Academic eligibility is checked at three levels and then again on the average of all three. Both tests have to clear, and there is no relaxation published for either.

The program is built for freshers and young executives, so experience beyond 5 years after graduation takes a candidate outside the intended profile. Only full time remunerative employment is assessed as work experience. Self employment is counted where the applicant substantiates it with income tax returns. Internships and training stints do not count towards the experience assessment.

Editor's Tip: Add your Class 10, Class 12 and graduation percentages and divide by three before you pay the application fee. The 70 percent average is checked alongside the 55 percent floor at each level, and failing either one ends the application. If your graduation marks are on a grade scale, use your university's own conversion formula rather than a thumb rule.

IMB Selection Criteria 2027

Selection runs in two interview stages after the application is screened. An artificial intelligence based interview comes first, and the panel interview follows only for candidates who clear it.

• Application screening: the test score, curriculum vitae, transcripts and essays are reviewed together.
• Bocconi Test: scheduled by email after submission, for applicants who need it.
• Artificial intelligence interview: an online assessment round that precedes the panel stage.
• Personal interview: conducted by the admissions panel, covering communication, problem solving and overall profile.
• Admissions committee review: the final decision and the tuition waiver decision are taken together.

Five things are weighed in the final call: academic ability and consistency, the entrance test score, the significance of any work experience, extra curricular achievement and soft skills, and performance across the two interview rounds. No numerical weightage split is published for any of them. The institute is explicit that a high test score helps but is not decisive, and that an average score can be compensated by strength elsewhere in the profile.

Editor's Tip: Treat the artificial intelligence round as a real stage, not a formality. It gates the panel interview, so record it in a quiet room with a stable connection and answer in complete sentences. Keep two or three concrete examples from your work or college projects ready, because the panel round reuses the same ground in more depth.

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