The XAT exam is scheduled for 4th January, 2026. With only 1 month left for preparation, students need to get strategic and time bound. The last one month strategy for XAT preparation must involve mock tests, mock test analysis and solving previous year papers. Each year, 70,000+ students show up for the XAT exam. With such a high competition although lower than CAT, your career prospects including securing a seat at top management institutions is at stake.
Students must not waste their last few days on either learning new concepts or panicking. Remember that the XAT exam is about strategic and critical thinking similar to other management exams. If your last 1 month strategy for XAT is accurate, you will easily score 34+ marks resulting in a 99+ percentile. Students must aim for a 31-38 XAT 2026 score for admission into top MBA colleges like XLRI, SPJIMR, and IMT Ghaziabad.
During your XAT preparation, the last 1 month strategy must focus on DM as it requires more preparation. Don’t just practice DM to score marks, also revise current affairs and work on improving your reading speed and vocabulary. Math questions in management exams are typically CBSE class 10th level, focus on deep revision of all formulas and key concepts used under the Quant section.
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XAT Preparation – Last One Month Study Schedule
It is important to focus on the most essential aspects of your XAT preparation during the last 1 month. Revise the concepts, practice previous year papers and build the skill of reading faster. Not only is it important to read well but it is also crucial to understand the context, extract its essence and solve a question in an average of 1.5 minutes.
| Focus Areas | Last 1 Month for XAT Plan |
| Foundations | Revise the foundations of the XAT exam. It includes core concepts in DM and Quant. |
| Reading Skills | Before you take the XAT exam, you must work on your reading and comprehension skills in the last month. Read for at least 1 hour daily. |
| Previous Papers | Students must solve at least 1 XAT previous year question paper every 2 days during the last 1 month before the exam. |
| DM Skills | Focus on understanding all about logic and greater good to improve your DM skills and score 99+ percentile in XAT 2026. |
| Avoid Theory | For the best XAT last month preparation, avoid theory and focus on practice combined with previous year papers. |
XAT Preparation – Last One Month Note Taking
Consolidate all that you have learned into 1 manageable document. This helps with the last 30 days of learning before the XAT exam date. XAT is scheduled for the next month, January 2026. How should I make my last one month notes for XAT preparation is an excellent question which students may ask. Note taking during your last month before XAT must focus on consolidation of previous notes, formulas.
Here are some quick tips for effective note making as part of your XAT preparation last one month strategy.
- Keep your notes minimal. 4-5 sentences per topic or 1 formula and 1 liner explanation.
- Place easy to remember ideas on top of your revision sheet for quick recall.
- An excellent way to organize your revision notes during the last month of preparation is to colour code your entries.
- Use different colours for different subject areas. XAT 2026 will require 4 colour codes for revision notes of 4 different subjects.
- Maintain an error log also known as a mistake journal. This journal must record all the mistakes you make when taking mock tests 30 days before the exam.
- Create cheat sheets for XAT QA revision and formula maps for quick recall of essential XAT exam formulas to solve QA questions.
XAT Preparation: 80/20 Rule Last Month Strategy
This strategy is crucial for students in their last month of preparation for the XAT 2026 examination. The 80/20 rule refers to a learning strategy which involves focusing on 20% high weightage topics to cover 80% of the syllabus. It is a proven strategy which produces positive results for all those who are able to execute it successfully.
| Important Areas to Focus on for the 80/20 Rule | |
| XAT 2026 Sections | High Weightage Topics (20% Focus Area) |
| QADI | Arithmetic, Algebra, and DI |
| VALR | RC, Critical Reasoning, and basic Grammar or vocabulary |
| DM | Ethical dilemmas, Real life problems, managerial dilemmas, HR issues, etc. |
| GK | Current Affairs (last 6-12 months), Business, Economy, History, Geography, etc. |
Know the XAT Exam Pattern 2026
With a total of 95 questions, students must know the XAT exam pattern 2026 to avoid panic, delay or mismanagement of time during the XAT exam day. For the best practice material and information on XAT exam pattern, students can check either the official website or the previous year XAT exam papers.
| Details of the XAT Exam Pattern 2026 | ||
| XAT Sections | Number of Questions | Time Limit |
| VALR | 26 | 170 minutes |
| DM | 21 | |
| QA & DI | 28 | |
| GK | 20 | 10 minutes |
| Total | 95 | 180 minutes |
DM XAT 1 Month Preparation Strategy
The DM section of the XAT 2026 exam demands practical answers. Students must avoid making decisions based on emotions, personal bias, etc. Consider all the stakeholders before making your final decision in a given DM section question. Students must know how to simultaneously read and practice 1-2 facts from assumption or opinions. Among the given options, choose a balanced answer. Solve at least 2-4 DM caselets every other day during the last 1 month left before XAT 2026.
- Derive your decision based on ethics and logic.
- No emotions must influence your decision making skill no matter how critical a question is.
- When answering DM questions, you must consider the situation from the perspective of all the stakeholders and think about the greater good.
- While certain solutions are better for the short term, always focus on a reliable long term sustainable decision.
- Learn to differentiate the core problems and facts
- Choose a balanced practical answer
- Answer the DM question through leadership + management skills.
Quant XAT 1 Month Preparation Strategy
While some students find the XAT Quant section hard due to math, others are able to fetch marks in this section as it is straightforward. Utilize 60-70% of your last 1 month of XAT preparation towards revising/practicing Arithmetic and Algebra. DI practice is equally important. Know the Quant XAT 1 month preparation Strategy given in the table below.
| Quant XAT 1 Month Preparation Strategy | |
| Particulars | Details |
| Important Topics | Percentages, P&L, Time & Work, SICI, Ratios, Averages, and linear/quadratic equations |
| DI Sets | Solve at least 1-2 DI sets daily for improving accuracy and speed. |
| Week-wise Plan | Weeks 1 & 2 – Core concepts learning and topic-wise practice Weeks 3 & 4 – Work on speed, accuracy & Mock Tests |
| Revision | For revision in the last month, use your final notes, previous papers for practice, etc. Important formulas and concepts must be revised deeply. |
Verbal XAT 1 Month Preparation Strategy
Read daily for at least 25 minutes in 2 slots, 25 minutes 1st reading slot, 25 minutes 2nd reading slot. VARC has long reading passages and as this section is common in most entrance tests like CAT, SNAP, etc, students must consider this section easy and doable. Where students most falter in this section is in the reading and comprehension of the text part. These are essential skills which help score 99 percentile or higher in the XAT 2026.
- Previous year papers are an excellent source to gather reading material for improving speed.
- Solve a minimum of 2 RCs daily. Remember you have to complete VARC along with QA & DI and DM all within 170 minutes.
- Reading takes time, learn to read fast to solve faster in under 1.5 minutes per question.
- Plain reading is not enough, students must also be able to identify the main idea, tonality and segregate details into separate categories in minutes.
- Also solve questions on critical reasoning, grammar and vocabulary.
GK XAT 1 Month Preparation Strategy
Use 15-20 minutes daily for GK section preparation. You cannot miss or ignore the GK prep for XAt 2026. Without a proper GK XAT 1 month preparation strategy, you lose marks, motivation and your seat in your favourite management college. The XAT GK section is to be completed in 10 minutes and you have to answer approximately 20 questions. With less time you need to be fast, within 30 seconds you should be able to get the answer in your mind.
- Go through all the events political, business related, economic, global, etc which have taken place during the last 6-12 months.
- Keep at least 15 to 20 minutes for GK fact learning and revision during the last 30 days before XAT 2026.
- Attempt all 20 questions or more in the GK section as there is no negative marking. So, don’t leave any question, make your best guess and move on.
