XAT Preparation 2026: There are only 15 days left to give an attempt for the XAT exam which will going to be commenced on 4th January 2026. This XAT exam is crucial for the beginners who are new to their management journey or for those also who want next chance to improve their competitive scores after CAT exam. So, In which stage you are relying?
Well, whatever stage you are currently on, but the XAT preparation requires a streamline approach and for getting 34+ marks in XAT 2026 require a solid focus across Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation, and General Knowledge. This is a second chance for the candidates who have already appeared for the Common Admission Test but are really not sure about their attempt. The Xavier Aptitude Test or XAT exam is the second opportunity for the candidates to target the top management institutes in the country like XLRI Jamshedpur, XIMB, IMT Ghaziabad, MICA Ahmedabad, GLIM, FORE Delhi, IRMA Anand, and more. This blog is highly focused on the XAT preparation strategy across sections for the students in the last 15 days. So, let’s discuss everything in a detailed manner.
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XAT 2026 Exam Pattern
The Xavier Aptitude Test is one of the important examinations to be a part of top management colleges like XLRI Jamshedpur, XIMB and more. The whole exam is classified into 4 major sections and those are Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation and General Knowledge. Now it is quite important for the candidates that they should well aware about the number of questions asked across sections in the XAT exam with specified time limit. Let’s discuss the number of questions here with respect to their section – “VALR : 26“, “DM : 21“, “QA & DI : 28“. “GK : 20“. The total number of questions asked in the Xavier Aptitude Test is 95 with total time duration of 180 minutes where 170 minutes well assigned to the Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning, Decision Making and Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation). Rest, 10 minutes assigned to the General Knowledge.
Well many candidates think – “Marks for the General Knowledge is not counted towards the overall XAT percentile“. So, it is really important to get focused for the particular section?
Well question is practical but XAT GK marks is not getting counted for the final XAT percentile calculation does not mean it is not an important part during the XLRI admission process. Although, due to not having negative marking for the section boost overall confidence by getting maximum questions correct without any guesswork. The complete information about the XAT 2026 exam pattern is mentioned in the table specified below. Understanding the same is very important for starting the XAT preparation.
| Details of the XAT Exam Pattern 2026 | ||
| XAT Sections | Number of Questions | Time Limit |
| VALR (Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning) | 26 | 170 minutes |
| DM (Decision Making) | 21 | |
| QA & DI (Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation) | 28 | |
| GK (General Knowledge) | 20 | 10 minutes |
| Total | 95 | 180 minutes |
XAT Preparation – Last 15 Days Plan
For Day 1-3: Candidates should focus on giving the full-length mock analysis where attempting 1-2 XAT full mocks is crucial with deeply analyzing each sections to align themselves towards the exam-like conditions.
For Day 4-6: Next, strengthen core sections whether it is Quantitative Ability, Decision Making, Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning. This involves in revising important formulas, DM Frameworks, and Verbal Ability rules to fulfill XAT preparation.
For Day 7-9: Solve Previous Year Questions (PYQs) for the XAT preparation where you should also focused towards the sectional practice.
For Day 10-11: Decision Making is quite complex but scoring section of the XAT exam where you will going to practice intensive DM sets with time-bound attempts. Solving sets will give you a flow for solving questions based on the patterns in a real exam without disturbing the last minute XAT preparation strategy.
For Day 12-13: General Knowledge is the second half part of the XAT exam where candidates should focus on revising the static GK along with current affairs which will really helpful during the admission process. Now, talking to the preparation strategy where you should cover last 6-8 months information bulletin, news, magazines with valid information. You will have an add-on advantage to this section due to not having negative marking.
For Day 14-15: The last phase for the XAT preparation journey is the light revision and mental preparation where you will be covering the revision notes, formulas and DM principles. At last, No heavy study just glance at short notes.
| Last 15 Days Plan | Focus Area | XAT Preparation Strategy |
| Day 1–3 | Full-Length Mock Analysis | Attempt 1–2 XAT full mocks and deeply analyze each section |
| Day 4–6 | Strengthen Core Sections (QA, DM, VALR) | Revise important formulas, DM frameworks, and VA rules |
| Day 7–9 | Sectional Practice & PYQs | Solve XAT previous year questions (2018–2024) |
| Day 10–11 | Decision Making Intensive | Practice only DM sets with time-bound attempts |
| Day 12 | GK Preparation | Revise static GK + current affairs (last 6–8 months) |
| Day 13 | Final Mock + Revision | Attempt last mock and revise mistakes |
| Day 14 | Light Revision & Mental Prep | Revise notes, formulas, and DM principles |
| Day 15 | Exam Day Strategy | No heavy study, just glance at short notes |
Also Check : XAT Mock Test Series 2026
XAT Preparation: Section-Wise Strategy (Last 15 Days Schedule)
This section covers the detailed section-wise strategy for the candidates who want to go the XAT preparation across Decision Making, Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning, Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation and General Knowledge in just last 15 days. Let’s cover in-depth XAT preparation journey here to make these last 15 days to the XAT exam effective.
XAT Preparation – Decision Making (DM)
Decision Making is an important part of the XAT exam where the focusing areas include the framework building, accuracy improvement, mock analysis and final strategy. Along side practicing 5-6 DM sets per day affects the overall XAT preparation and leads to the increment of final XAT scores. The detailed XAT preparation plan is specified in the table mentioned below.
| Last 15 Days Plan for DM | Important Aspects | Key Focus Areas | Daily Practice |
| Days 1–5 | Framework Building | Ethical dilemmas, stakeholder analysis | 5–6 DM sets/day |
| Days 6–10 | Accuracy Improvement | Elimination technique, neutrality check | 1 sectional DM test/day |
| Days 11–13 | Mock Analysis | Option bias, consistency across sets | Review past XAT DM sets |
| Days 14–15 | Final Strategy | Avoid extremes, balanced decisions | Revise decision frameworks |
XAT Preparation – Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning (VALR)
The Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning covers the Critical Reasoning, Para Jumbles, RC fundamentals, Inference-based RCs, Assumption, Conclusion questions and more. Candidates ideally should covers 2 RCs+ 10 CR questions daily to get the intensive result. The whole preparation comes under the light practice + error free revision. The detailed XAT preparation effective strategies for the VALR section is specified in the table given below.
| Last 15 Days Plan for VALR | Important Aspects | Key Focus Areas | Daily Practice |
| Days 1–5 | Concept Revision | Critical Reasoning, Para Jumbles, RC fundamentals | 2 RCs + 10 CR questions |
| Days 6–10 | Strengthening Accuracy | Inference-based RCs, Assumption, Conclusion questions | Sectional test (30–35 Qs) |
| Days 11–13 | Mock-Based Learning | Identify traps, improve attempt selection | Analyze 1 sectional mock/day |
| Days 14–15 | Final Polishing | High-frequency question types | Light practice + error revision |
XAT Preparation – Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation (QA & DI)
The Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation is a practical termed section where candidates should cover Arithmetic, Algebra basics, Geometry, DI sets, time-bound QA questions, along with identifying the high ROI topics. The detailed XAT preparation covers revising formulas and shortcuts and you should find the detailed information about QA & DI in the table given below.
| Days 1–5 | Formula Revision | Arithmetic, Algebra basics, Geometry | 15–20 mixed Qs/day |
| Days 6–10 | Question Selection | DI sets, time-bound QA questions | 1 QA sectional test/day |
| Days 11–13 | Mock Optimization | Identify high ROI topics | Analyze QA mistakes |
| Days 14–15 | Confidence Boost | Easy–moderate questions only | Revise formulas & shortcuts |
XAT Preparation – General Knowledge (GK)
General Knowledge is really important when it termed towards the admission process because this section covers 20 questions which needs to be completed in 10 minutes and not covering negative marking scheme. The marks for the General Knowledge is not specified in the overall XAT percentile calculation but this is one of the important section in the XAT exam for building overall confidence for getting maximum questions correct that will going to result in the final phase of admission to the top institutes that are accepting the XAT scores. The detailed last 15 days strategy for the General Knowledge is specified in the table below.
| Last 15 Days Plan for GK | Important Aspects | Key Focus Areas | Daily Practice |
| Days 1–5 | Static GK | Business, Economy, Awards, History | 20–25 GK Qs/day |
| Days 6–10 | Current Affairs | Last 12–18 months (national + international) | Daily GK quizzes |
| Days 11–13 | Consolidation | Repeated topics & factual revision | Revise notes |
| Days 14–15 | Light Revision | No new topics | Quick scan of key facts |
XAT Preparation – Common Mistakes to Avoid
XAT stands for the Xavier Aptitude Test where you will able to apply in top management colleges like XLRI Jamshedpur, XIMB, GLIM, MICA Ahmedabad, and more. There are some common mistakes to avoid during XAT preparation in these last 15 days.
- Studying without a proper plan is the initial mistakes that candidates should avoid.
- Starting newer topics which are time taken is a complete negligible part because getting started with the new one will require good amount of time and reflects as a hurdle in overall revision during the XAT preparation.
- Ignoring accuracy over speed should not taken care by the candidates as it is a giant mistakes which reflects your overall scores and might you displace your dream of getting 99+ percentile.
- Don’t miss your preparation for solving daily mock test papers and sectional tests. This will help you cover your strength and weaknesses which leads to the strong revision in these last 15 days without any hassle.
Conclusion – XAT Preparation Strategy for Last 15 Days
These last 15 days are way to important for covering your overall revision that would increase your overall confidence for attempting the XAT exam. Targeting good colleges like XLRI Jamshedpur, XIMB and more require 34+ marks in XAT exam which reflects the 99+ percentile. So a proper revision and learning shortcut formulas are the key factor for candidates.
FAQs – XAT Preparation
General Knowledge is really important when it termed towards the admission process because this section covers 20 questions which needs to be completed in 10 minutes and not covering negative marking scheme. The marks for the General Knowledge is not specified in the overall XAT percentile calculation but this is one of the important section in the XAT exam for building overall confidence for getting maximum questions correct that will going to result in the final phase of admission to the top institutes that are accepting the XAT scores.
The Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning covers the Critical Reasoning, Para Jumbles, RC fundamentals, Inference-based RCs, Assumption, Conclusion questions and more. Candidates ideally should covers 2 RCs+ 10 CR questions daily to get the intensive result. The whole preparation comes under the light practice + error free revision.
The Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation is a practical termed section where candidates should cover Arithmetic, Algebra basics, Geometry, DI sets, time-bound QA questions, along with identifying the high ROI topics. The detailed XAT preparation covers revising formulas and shortcuts
Decision Making is an important part of the XAT exam where the focusing areas include the framework building, accuracy improvement, mock analysis and final strategy. Along side practicing 5-6 DM sets per day affects the overall XAT preparation and leads to the increment of final XAT scores.
