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!