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XAT Paper Pattern – What is the structure of XAT Exam?

Friday, November 22nd, 2019

XAT exam is one of the most important MBA entrance exams. However, a lot of MBA aspirants do not give it due credit – some of it because of lack of knowledge. In this series of blogposts and videos, we will try to answer some of the basic questions about XAT.

XAT Paper Pattern – Video Tutorial

Time distribution in XAT Exam

XAT is a 3 hour exam. It is divided into two parts:

• Part 1 is for 165 minutes
• Part 2 is for 15 minutes

Part 1 is considered for calculating the XAT percentile, whereas part 2 consists of GK. GK is considered only by XLRI and by no other college. Although, there are multiple sections in Part 1 but there are no time restrictions on it. If you want to spend the entire 165 minutes on Quantitative Aptitude – you are allowed to do so. It gives the student the freedom to maximize their score by giving more time to the section they are good in.

Let me add, since XAT has only 74 questions – 165 minutes are more than enough to go through the entire paper.

An ideal time distribution would be 50 minute for all the three sections and the last 15 minutes should be used to maximize your score in whichever area you are best.

Sections in XAT Exam

 
As you can see from the above table, there is no separate section for Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation. Logical Reasoning questions are typically clubbed in the Decision Making section (a section unique to XAT). Data Interpretation questions are mixed in Quantiative Aptitude. It would be fair to say that not too much importance is given to LRDI in the XAT exam. Although, the first section is called Verbal and Logical Ability – it does not include any questions on Logical Reasoning. It includes questions on Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension, and a little bit of Critical Reasoning.

In the next post, we will talk about the unique marking scheme of the XAT exam. If you are planning to prepare for XAT, do not forget to have a look at our XAT Crash Course (link it to XAT page). It includes videos on all sections along with 5 mock tests in the pattern of the XAT exam.