XAT Exam Pattern 2019

The Xavier Aptitude Test (XAT) 2019 Exam Pattern is prescribed by XLRI Jamshedpur, the conducting body of the exam. Those who are planning to take the exam must know the details related to the exam such as its structure, marking scheme, time duration, etc. Knowing these details beforehand will help you in being more organised with your preparation.

The XAT examination will be 3 hours long and it will comprise of a single paper with four sections. All the sections will have Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs). 

XAT's exam pattern and the difficulty level is slightly different from other management entrance exams like CAT, MAT, CMAT. Those who successfully clear the XAT exam are invited for further selection rounds, which may include Group Discussion and Personal Interview.

XAT, which is meant for admission to XLRI and associate institutes, has been an offline test for more than 60 years but it was conducted online for the first time in 2018. 

Highlights of XAT 2019 Exam Pattern

• The medium of the XAT exam is English.
• The exam has only one part and it is divided into 4 sections.
• All the four sections have Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs).
• The total duration of the exam is 180 minutes.
• The exam will have 100 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
• A total of 100 marks have been allotted to the paper.

Changes Introduced in XAT 2019

The exam pattern of XAT 2019 has undergone some change, which is an important news for all those who are gearing up for the exam next year in January. 

As per the latest news, the section having Essay Writing in XAT 2019 has been scrapped and there will be only one section now consisting of 100 MCQs. 

The popular management entrance exam will have four sections only - Decision Making, Verbal & Logical Ability and Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation and General Knowledge.

Until 2018, the XAT question paper used to be divided into two parts, where Part 1 had sections including Decision Making, Verbal and Logical Ability and Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation; while Part 2 had sections like General Knowledge and Essay Writing.

In the Essay Writing section, candidates had one question to tackle along with 25 MCQs in the General Knowledge section.

Now that the essay writing bit has been removed, the XAT 2019 question paper will be divided into four subjects as given in the table provided below.

For the next year's XAT paper, one extra question will be asked in the Decision-Making section in order to round up the total number of questions to 100. 

Sectional Break-Up of Questions in XAT 2019 Exam Pattern

Sections	No. of Questions
Decision Making	22
Verbal and Logical Ability	26
Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation	27
General Knowledge	25

XAT Marking Scheme 2019

It is important for candidates to have a clear understanding of the XAT marking scheme before they take the examination. For every correct answer, candidates will be awarded one mark. A negative marking of 0.25 marks or 1/4th marks is applicable for every incorrect response. There will also be a penalty of 0.05 marks for every unanswered question if the number of unattempted questions exceeds 8. 

• For every correct answer, one mark will be given to the candidates.

• There is 0.25 (1/4) negative marking for every incorrect answer.

• Candidates can leave only 8 questions unattempted during the XAT Exam. Beyond this number, every unattempted question will lead to a deduction of 0.05 marks.

XAT Exam Pattern Trend of Previous Years

Year	No. of Questions & Marking Scheme	Duration
XAT 2018	74 MCQs, 25 GK & 1 Essay 1 mark for every correct answer 0.25 negative marking for every wrong answer Negative Marking of 0.05 mark per question is applicable if the maximum of 8 questions left unattempted	210 minutes
XAT 2017	72 MCQs, 25 GK, 1 Essay 1 mark for every correct answer 0.25 negative marking for every wrong answer Negative Marking of 0.05 mark per question is applicable if the maximum of 12 questions left unattempted	210 minutes
XAT 2016	78 MCQs, 25 GK, 1 Essay  1 mark for every correct answer 0.25 negative marking for every wrong answer Negative Marking of 0.05 mark per question is applicable if the maximum of 13 questions left unattempted	210 minutes
XAT 2015	84 MCQs 1 mark for every correct answer 0.25 negative marking for every wrong answer	140 minutes
XAT 2014	83 MCQs, 20 GK, 1 Essay  1 mark for every correct answer 0.25 negative marking for every wrong answer	150 minutes