Top MBA Colleges Accepting NMAT : List, Cut-offs and Admission Insights
NMAT is one of the most popular MBA entrance exams for candidates targeting top private business schools in India. Conducted by GMAC, the exam is known for its flexible scheduling, multiple attempts, and moderate difficulty level. However, the real value of NMAT lies in the quality of institutes that accept its scores.
This guide covers the top MBA colleges accepting NMAT 2026, along with expected cut-offs, admission insights, and how to choose the right college based on your NMAT score.
Why Choose NMAT Colleges?
NMAT is widely accepted by leading private B-schools that offer strong industry exposure, modern infrastructure, and good placement opportunities. Key advantages include:
The candidate must be a graduate with 50% or identical CGPA in the first attempt. Candidates showing up for the last year of four year certification examination and the individuals who have finished degree prerequisites and are anticipating results can likewise apply (subject to clearing the last examination in the first attempt with 50% aggregate marks). Register & Schedule You must register and pay for the NMAT by GMAC exam before scheduling a test date and location. Retakes You will be allowed to take the NMAT by GMAC exam for a maximum of three times per test period. This includes the first attempt plus a maximum of two retake attempts. No shows are considered attempts.
1. SVKM's Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai (NMIMS):
Courses Offered
18 courses across 4 streams170 MBA Program – Finance, Information Systems, Marketing, Operations, and Decision Science and Analytics.
Fees
Rs. 19.05 LPA
Average Placement
Rs. 17.09 LPA
Not much needs to be said about NMIMS Mumbai. It is one of the leading B-schools in India and most coveted by NMAT aspirants. NMIMS is recognized among the leading Deemed-to-be–University in India. It has been ranked 8th Best B-School in India from a total of 150 schools in India by the Business. It has some of the best placements and every year they have managed to maintain their average placements. Top recruiters are Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, General Electric, Microsoft, Google, ITC, Dabur, L’Oreal, HUL, Marico, Asian Paints, Vodafone, Reckitt Benckiser, Deloitte, M&M, ICICI, Aditya Birla Group, Flipkart amongst others.
While the Mumbai campus is the only one that offers an MBA program, NMIMS also offers PGDM programs in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Navi Mumbai, and Indore. These colleges have been gaining a lot of demand in recent years. The Bangalore Hyderabad and Indore campus have been here for a while now, while the Navi Mumbai campus is just three years old; yet it has gained a lot of momentum. Top recruiters include Dell, Infosys, Airtel, ICICI Bank, Oracle, UNIBIC, Aditya Birla, etc.
3. SDA Bocconi Asia Center:
Courses Offered
International Master in Business – IMB (Previously PGPB)
Fees
Rs. 18.60 LPA
Average Placement
Rs. 14.30 LPA
No. of Seats
SDA Bocconi seats for IMB 2024-26 batch are 330 students.
SDA Bocconi is a leading institution that is an extended version of the famous SDA Bocconi school of management in Italy, which has also been mentioned in Forbes. It follows a similar curriculum and international standards to their International institutes. Some of the top recruiters than come here are H&M, PWC, Ador Group, ICICI Bank, SDF, Bausch & Lomb, KPMG, L&T, Tolaram, Deloitte USI, Ernst and Young, Future Group, Vodafone Idea, etc.
5. Xavier University, Bhubaneswar:
Courses Offered
29 courses across 10 streams
Fees
Rs. 12.2L - 19.3LPA
Average Placement
Rs. 20.03 LPA
No. of Seats
240
XUB has already gained a lot of reputation since it was established in 2013. It has been ranked 44 in NIRF 2019 rankings. It is one of the colleges that you can apply directly through the NMAT by GMAC page, which has a relatively good ROI than the other NMAT accepting colleges. Top recruiters are Deloitte, UHG, ICICI Bank, PWC, Royal Bank of Scotland, GAIL, Accenture, HSBC, etc. ALSO CHECK- Tips to crack XAT
6. ICFAI Business School (IBS), Hyderabad:
Courses Offered
MBA, PGDM, Exc. MBA
Fees
Rs. 14.04 LPA
Average Placement
Rs. 10.42
IBS, Hyderabad is one of the leading schools in Hyderabad. It has been re-accredited by SAQS (South Asian Quality Standards), rated A** by CRISIL, EB2 IN by ICRA, and as an “Excellent” Business School by Eduniversal. Top recruiters include Wipro, Zomato, Thomson Reuters, Arrows Group, Google, Oracle, Aditya Birla Group, Sterling Holidays, Amul, Cavin Kare, American Express, Amazon.in, Bank of America, Flipkart, KPMG, HDFC, and more.
7. Alliance University, Bangalore:
Courses Offered
MBA, PGDM
Fees
Rs. 13.50 LPA
Average Placement
Rs. 9.20 LPA
Alliance University has been ranked no. 2 among all B-schools in Bangalore. Their placements cover a variety of sectors like Consulting, IT Products & Services, Banking, Research & Analytics, Logistics, Real Estate, Retail, Media, FMCG, etc. Top recruiters are Aditya Birla Retail, Akamai, TCS, Mercedes Benz, WIPRO, Cognizant, Bosch, Oracle, E&Y, Honeywell, Federal Bank, HCL Technologies, CB Richard Ellis, KPMG, Salesforce, etc.
Q1. Which is the best college accepting NMAT? NMIMS Mumbai is the top institute accepting NMAT scores, known for strong placements, industry exposure, and competitive programs. A score above 240 is usually required for a safe shortlist.
Q2. What NMAT score is needed for top colleges? A score of 220 or above is considered competitive for leading NMAT colleges. For NMIMS Mumbai, candidates should aim for 235–245 with balanced sectional scores.
Q3. Are there government colleges that accept NMAT? Most NMAT-accepting institutes are private business schools. However, many of them offer strong placement outcomes and industry-oriented programs.
Q4. Can I get a good MBA college with 200 in NMAT? Yes, several reputed private institutes accept scores between 200 and 220. Candidates should also perform well in the interview round to improve selection chances.
Q5. Do NMAT colleges consider sectional cut-offs? Yes, top colleges like NMIMS have sectional cut-offs along with overall score requirements. Balanced performance across all sections is important.
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Author
Adarsh Singh
Adarsh is an IIMK convert and a CAT VARC 99.92%iler. He has been instrumental in growing CATKing Digital and MBAGeeks with his startup experience at Bombay Founder's Club
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