XAT 2020 notification - Exam Dates, Exam Pattern, Syllabus | Here's all you need to know

The list of MBA entrance examinations will be incomplete without the mention of XAT, Xavier Aptitude Test. This exam is the key for admission to the top MBA institutes including SPJIMR, XLRI, TAPMI, XIMB, IMT, XIME along with other 150 colleges in India. The notification for XAT 2020 is out and the exam is set to be held on 5th January 2020. An entry-level examination for admission to all Xavier institutes, the complete schedule will be announced by XAT in the third week of August, 2019.

XAT 2020: Important Dates

Keeping the dates from the previous year in mind, the essential details are mentioned below:

Official Notification Date	2nd week of August, 2019
XAT 2020 Registrations start	3rd week of August. 2019
XAT 2020 Registrations close (Without late fee)	30th November 2019
XAT 2020 Registrations close (With late fee)	10th December 2019
XAT 2020 Admit Card download	3rd week of December, 2019 onwards
Date of Test and Time	January 5, 2020 (10AM to 1 PM)
Result Date	By 31st January, 2020

Key Changes

As revealed by the XAT 2020 notification, the following changes have been inculcated in the exam pattern this year:

The XAT 2020 exam will not consist of the descriptive essay writing questions (3 marks)

The negative marking in the section of general knowledge has been removed

The XAT exam will be computer-based this year

New type of questions have been introduced, ‘Numerical Answer Type’ (NAT Questions)

The exam details also specify that candidates can switch to the GK section (part 2) only after completing part 1 of the exam.

Exam Details

The XAT exam paper consists of 99 questions, divided into 4 sections. Every correct answer carries +1 and the penalty for wrong answers is -0.25. The time duration for the exam is set for 3 hours. The section-wise details of the exam are mentioned below:

XAT 2020 Exam Pattern	Number of questions	Time Duration
Part-1	74 MCQs in total	165 Minutes
Verbal and Logical Ability	26	No Sectional Time Limit
Decision Making	21	No Sectional Time Limit
Data Interpretation & Quantitative Ability	27	No Sectional Time Limit

Part-2	25 MCQs in total	15 Minutes
General Knowledge	25
Total questions (Part 1 + Part 2)	99

To get more information about the tips and tricks for preparation of XAT, refer to the following article. Time is short and you have a lot on your hands to work on. This is your chance to shoot for the stars. All the best!