XAT 2018 Exam Analysis and Expected Cut-off

Xavier Aptitude Test is one of the most popular and competitive MBA entrance exams, after CAT. XAT is being conducted on 7th January, 2018 for admission into XAMIs (Xavier Association of Management Institutes). XAT is going online this time, having been a pen-paper test since last 19 consecutive years. XAT is also the only major MBA entrance to include essay writing before the shortlisting stage.

XAT is routinely described as one of the toughest MBA entrances in India and for good reasons.

  • XAT 2017 exam had two separately timed papers, first was an objective test of 170 minutes comprising 3 sections – Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation, Verbal and Logical Reasoning, and Decision Making; second was a partly subjective test of 35 minutes which includes Essay Writing and General Awareness.
  • There is no sectional time limit but there are sectional cut-offs.
  • Only the scores of the first part (overall as well as sectional) are used for shortlisting for GD-PI round, whereas the scores of both first and second part are used for final admission.
  • The total number of questions in XAT are not fixed and have fluctuated from year to year.
  • The Decision Making section of XAT is one of a kind wherein a mix of behavioral, managerial and mathematical questions are present. These questions require meticulous analysis and generally consist of situations in which multiple courses of action arise. These questions mostly pose ethical, management or human resource related dilemmas.
  • XAT scoring pattern for 2017 can be a little perplexing to understand at first. Each question carried 1 mark. For every wrong answer, 0.25 marks were deducted. Also, 0.05 marks were deducted for every unattempted question, beyond 12 questions.
  • XAT offers 5 options for each objective question, as opposed to the 4 options in CAT.

XAT 2017

XAT 2017 had 72 questions in total, down from 78 questions in 2016. The overall difficulty level fell down by a significant margin, as compared to previous years. For PGDM-HR, the percentile cut-off fell steeply this year by 1.85 percentile points. The reason for this could be the desired expansion of the candidate pool to interview for PGDM-HR. The cut-off marks this year were around 37 for BM program and 33 for HRM.

Section Number of Questions Marks/Q Total Marks Cut-offs* (percentiles)
PGDM-BM PGDM-HR
Verbal and Logical Reasoning 24 1 24 79.46 79.69
Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation 27 1 27 88.7 70.07
Decision Making 21 1 21 76.84 71.628
Total 72

72 96 92.55

*The cut-offs in the above table are for XLRI PGDM programs.

XAT 2016

XAT 2016 was deemed to be a tough nut to crack, even by XAT standards. The paper was considered to be significantly tougher than previous years' papers and was the cause of anxiety among many students. The score required to be shortlisted for BM program was around 30 and the corresponding score for HRM was around 27.

Section Number of Questions Marks/Q Total Marks *Cut-offs (percentiles)
PGDM-BM PGDM-HR
Verbal and Logical Reasoning 26 1 26 77.47 69.128
Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation 29 1 29 88.60 69.00
Decision Making 23 1 23 78.042 68.978
Total 78

78 96 94.4

*The cut-offs in the above table are for XLRI PGDM programs

XAT 2015

XAT in 2015 was judged to be tougher than CAT 2014 (both for admission to the session 2015-17). The quantitative Ability section was especially tough. Scores of around 29.5 and 27.5 were enough to fetch one a shortlist call for BM and HRM programs respectively.

Section Number of Questions Marks/Q Total Marks Cut-offs* (percentiles)
PGDM-BM PGDM-HR
Verbal and Logical Reasoning 28 1 28 - -
Quantitative Ability and Data Interpretation 33 1 33 - -
Decision Making 23 1 23 - -
Total 84

84 94.23 90.04

*The cut-offs in the above table are for XLRI PGDM programs

 

XAT pattern for 2018 is going to remain similar to that of last years with the only exception that it'll be a computer-based test. For 2018, format of the essay will remain pen-paper based. Since the format is stated to be along the same line as last years', we can expect 2 separately timed tests with the latter test comprising essay and General Awareness section. The marks awarded to each question and the penalty for wrong answers will probably remain the same. XAT administrators will release a document containing information about the paper pattern in December and that will grant more clarity to the aspirants. Keep watching this space for a dissection of what exactly we can expect in XAT.

 

The total time for XAT 2018 has been increased by 10 minutes making it a total of 3 hours 35 mins instead of 3 hours and 25 minutes last time. Candidates shouldn't read much into this change as the ten minutes are probably kept as a buffer time to distribute sheets for the second part of the exam, which will still be conducted in pen-paper mode.

 

XAT is a very different exam compared to others in terms of pattern and level of difficulty. To ace XAT, extra effort, apart from preparation for CAT, is required. XAT as an exam, tilts a little toward language skills. Furthermore, there is no sectional time limit in XAT and time allocation in a way that would maximize one's score also falls on the candidate's shoulders. A good strategy for cracking XAT with your target percentile would be to take mocks and assess where you stand and according to that assessment, draft a winning strategy. Decide the time to be allocated to different sections and how many questions at the least to attempt in different sections. The 'Decision Making' section isn't something that a candidate should come face-to-face only on the exam day. Ample practice and understanding of the different types of questions is of paramount importance for a section such as this.

 

Keep tuned for more on XAT 2018!

 

CL wishes luck to all XLRI aspirants!