Cycle update · 17 September 2026

What Changed in MBA Admissions: 17 September 2026

By Piyush Agarwal, 10 years in direct admissions counselling · 17 September 2026

The short answer

On 17 September 2026: KMAT admit cards are out and its practice test runs today and tomorrow ahead of Sunday's test; MAT's September CBT admit cards open today at 5 pm for the 20 September test. ISB Round 1 closes 20 September. SNAP's mock needs an application by 22 September. Masters' Union's Rs 38,56,692 fee stands.

What changed?

Item	Before	Now
KMAT 2026 — admit cards and practice test now live	Admit card date marked TBA and the practice test marked TBA on the official key-dates page as of 15 September	Re-opened today: the admit card was released on Tuesday 15 September 2026, and the practice test runs today and tomorrow, 17-18 September 2026. The home-proctored online MBA test sits Sunday 20 September 2026, 2-4 pm, across 189 member institutions
MAT September 2026 — CBT admit cards open today	Registration closed (PBT 7 September, CBT 14 September); the paper test sat 13 September	AIMA's MAT page re-read today: CBT admit cards open today, 17 September 2026 at 5 pm, on mat.aima.in; the CBT tests Sunday 20 September 2026; September scores are due by the last week of September 2026. The same page now carries the B-school registration link for the December 2026 session — the next window is forming
ISB Round 1 — three days left	Round 1 closes 20 September 2026 for the PGP Class of 2028	Re-verified on ISB's official deadlines and fees pages today: Round 1 closes 20 September 2026; anything submitted after rolls automatically into Round 2 (deadline 6 December 2026); Round 3 closes 17 January 2027. The AY 2027-28 programme fee stands at Rs 34,48,000 plus GST with a Rs 20,000 refundable deposit
SNAP 2026 — mock test in a week, application deadline sooner	First official mock test announced for 24 September	Re-verified on the official SNAP pages today: sit the mock on 24 September only if your SNAP application is complete by 22 September — five days out. Registration proper closes 25 November 2026; admit cards 7, 11 and 18 December; tests 13, 19 and 26 December; result 12 January 2027
XAT 2027 — a 48-hour edit window, and a banner conflict that persists	Registration open to 6 December 2026; exam 3 January 2027, 2:00-5:00 pm per the registration page	Re-read today: the registration page still prints the exam at 3 January 2027, 2:00-5:00 pm — that timeline governs — while the homepage banner continues to show a stale 'January 5, 2027 / 2 to 5:30 pm' line. New today: a 48-hour edit window for submitted applications opens 28-29 September 2026, and a second edit window is printed for 7-8 December
Masters' Union fee watch — the reprint stands	Total programme fee reprinted upward to Rs 38,56,692 on 12 September	Re-checked on the official admissions-and-fees page today: tuition Rs 37,66,692 plus admission fee Rs 90,000 (due 28 October 2026) — total Rs 38,56,692, unchanged since the reprint. Round 1 closes 27 September 2026 at 11:59 pm; the 10% early-bird tuition benefit deadline is 18 November 2026

What should you do now?

If you are registered for KMAT 2026: download your admit card (released 15 September) and use the practice test today or tomorrow — the MBA test is Sunday 20 September, 2-4 pm, home-proctored.
If you sit MAT's September CBT on 20 September: the admit card opens today at 5 pm on mat.aima.in. Watching the next session instead? December 2026 registration has begun at the B-school end on AIMA's page.
If ISB is on your list: Round 1 closes 20 September 2026 — three days. Missing it is not fatal; the same page says late submissions roll into Round 2 (6 December 2026).
If SNAP is in your plan: finish the application by 22 September to sit the first official mock on 24 September; registration runs to 25 November.
If you have already submitted your XAT 2027 form and spot an error: the 48-hour edit window opens 28-29 September 2026.

The mid-September pile-up is here. Two admit-card systems switched on inside 48 hours — KMAT’s is already out, MAT’s CBT cards open this evening — and Sunday 20 September now carries three separate events: the KMAT online test, the MAT CBT, and ISB’s Round 1 deadline. Today’s note is the logistics map, every line re-read on the official pages this morning.

KMAT: the practice test is live today, not TBA

The KMAT key-dates page has filled in its two blanks since we last read it: the admit card was released on Tuesday 15 September 2026, and the practice test runs today and tomorrow, 17-18 September 2026. The test itself is Sunday 20 September 2026, 2-4 pm for MBA — a home-based remote-proctored exam across 189 member institutions. If you are registered, treat the practice test as mandatory: a home-proctored format punishes first-time technical surprises.

MAT September: admit cards at 5 pm today, December session forming

AIMA’s MAT page re-read today confirms the September CBT chain: registration closed 14 September, admit cards open today, 17 September 2026 at 5 pm, the CBT tests Sunday 20 September, and scores are due by the last week of September 2026 on mat.aima.in. The same page now carries the B-school registration link for the December 2026 session — the next window is officially forming, which matters if September was never your plan.

ISB: three days to Round 1

ISB’s deadlines page, re-opened today, keeps Round 1 for the PGP Class of 2028 at 20 September 2026. Two mercy clauses are printed on the same page: anything submitted after 20 September rolls automatically into Round 2 (deadline 6 December 2026), and the last door is Round 3, 17 January 2027. The fees page stands too — Rs 34,48,000 plus GST for AY 2027-28, shared accommodation, with a Rs 20,000 refundable deposit.

SNAP: the mock has its own deadline

The first official SNAP 2026 mock test runs 24 September — but the homepage’s eligibility line is the trap: your SNAP application must be complete by 22 September, five days from today. Registration proper closes 25 November 2026; the three tests sit 13, 19 and 26 December, with the result on 12 January 2027. All re-verified on the official pages today.

XAT: an edit window opens 28-29 September

For candidates who have already submitted: a 48-hour edit window opens 28-29 September 2026, with a second printed for 7-8 December. The registration page still prints the operative timeline — registration to 6 December 2026, admit card 20 December (tentative), exam 3 January 2027, 2:00-5:00 pm — while the homepage banner continues to show a stale ‘January 5, 2027 / 2 to 5:30 pm’ line. We flag the conflict every time we re-read it; the registration page governs.

Masters’ Union: the reprinted fee stands

This week’s fee watch: the PGP TBM page still prints tuition Rs 37,66,692 + admission fee Rs 90,000 = Rs 38,56,692, unchanged since the mid-cycle reprint we caught on 12 September. Round 1 closes 27 September 2026 at 11:59 pm; the 10% early-bird tuition benefit deadline is 18 November 2026. If you are budgeting against an older screenshot of this page, re-budget — the fee moved once already this season.