XAT 2014 Analysis

The LEADER in Online Test Prep

XAT 2014 maintained its reputation as the toughest exam of the season. The difficulty level of the overall exam
was somewhere between the last two years (which were easier) and 2011 (which was exceptionally difficult).
However, unlike last year, GK was a separate section in the main exam. Though there were 10 minutes allocated
to GK (officially), it could have been done at any time along with the other sections. Also, unlike earlier XATs,
differential marking for questions and progressive (or differential negative marking) were absent. Each
question had the same number of marks and negative marking was constant at one-fourth of the marks allotted
to each question.

Summary
Total Questions

Paper I

Paper II (GK)

83

20

103

Number of Sections

Options per Question

Negative Marking

1/4th of Marks for the Question

Marks per Question

Undisclosed

Expected Overall Cut-offs

24-26

Paper I
1. Verbal Ability 28 questions:
The Verbal Ability Section in XAT 2014 was tougher than that in XAT 2013 partly due to the subject matter
of the questions being more difficult to comprehend. There were new question types introduced which
tested the candidates fundamental understanding of Critical Reasoning by asking him/her to classify
various statements into categories mentioned in the question stem. The Fill in the Blanks questions were at
par with last years and a student with a good vocabulary could easily use them to boost his/her score. The
questions based on Grammar were fairly simple and required a lucid understanding of parts of speech and
their usage.
The Reading Comprehension passages were based on complex subject matter such as The Logic of Scientific
Discovery by Karl Popper, Thoreaus Civil Disobedience and studies on Consumer Behaviour and
Rationality. They required some familiarity with the subjects being discussed and would otherwise end up
being too time consuming. Certain questions, such as those from the passage on Consumer Passion
contained additional information besides what was given in the passage and were on the tougher side. Most
of the questions in the Reading Comprehension passages required good ability to reason and infer from the
subject matter, even more so with many questions having two extremely close options. Thus, selecting the
right questions was of utmost importance in this section and it was better to not attempt questions where
one wasnt certain of the correct answer. 14-17 attempts in this section with at least 8-9 being correct
would result in an adequate score in this section for XLRI. The cut-offs for this section are expected to be
around 7-8.

XAT 2014 Analysis

LO

Number of Questions

Reading Comprehension

15

Fill in the Blanks

Jumbled Sentences

Grammar

Critical Reasoning

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XAT 2014 Analysis

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2. Decision Making 24 questions:

This section was at par with the 2013 paper. It had 24 questions, out of which 15 were on pure decision
making (including two fairly tough questions on Critical Reasoning) and the remaining 9 were based on
analytical reasoning. All three sets pertained to contemporary issues and were not tough if solved with
diligence. The question set on Apple Inc. was lengthy but easy to understand and solve. The set on
Intercontinental Business Management was also on the easier side and could be attempted with ease. The
set on Bigmart was tougher than the others as one needed to be very careful while choosing the right
sequence of actions. With the question stems being seemingly innocuous, one had to be very mindful while
marking the answer to avoid silly mistakes. Among the questions based on analytical reasoning, the set on
Krishna Reddy and profits was based on probability and was quite simple. However, one of the questions in
this set did not have the correct answer in any of the options. There was a single question on linear
arrangements that was a sitter and should definitely have been attempted. The set on the teacher and
students was slightly tricky and could have been avoided. 15-16 questions could have been attempted in
this section. The cut-offs for this section are expected to be 9-10.

Question Type

Number of Questions

Decision Making

15

Tables and Caselets

Charts and Diagrams

Probability

Linear Arrangements

3. Quantitative Ability 31 questions:

This section was of moderate level of difficulty. Most of the QA questions required sound knowledge of the
topic. Both the Data Sufficiency questions along with the questions on increasing arithmetic sequence,
Absolute value, Ratio and Proportion, Coordinate Geometry, finding length of the diagonal of the
quadrilateral, finding number of quizzes (Prof. Suman), finding sum of digits of x(Amitabh and Sashi),
finding value of
etc. were manageable and could have attempted. However, the 9 DI
questions in the section were trickier. Selection was critical among the DI sets. The table-based set (on
tourism) looked calculation-intensive but was probably the easiest of the lot. The set with multiple bargraphs was observation-based but the graphs were such that even calculating basic values became very
difficult. Hence, it should have been partially attempted. The set on democracy and poor-rich was based on
regression. A student with a good statistics background could have solved this faster. Approximately 12-14
attempts would be a good performance in this section. The cut-offs for this section are expected to be the
lowest at around 6-7.

XAT 2014 Analysis

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XAT 2014 Analysis

The LEADER in Online Test Prep

LO

Number of Questions

Averages

Ratio and Proportion

Quadratic and Higher Order Equations

Inequalities

Linear Equations

Number Systems

Quadrilaterals and other polygons

Coordinate Geometry

Trigonometry

Circles

Mensuration

Sequences, Progressions and Series

Probability

Data Sufficiency

Charts and Diagrams

Tables and Caselets

Paper II
The GK section was given within the main paper but was to be solved separately in the last 10 minutes.
However, the way the entire paper was given, one could have even attempted a question or two from the main
sections in the time devoted to GK.
Like IIFT, XAT this year has 5 Match the Column type GK questions (given without the columns). However, these
were doable as knowing even a single value helped eliminate some options. The questions were very heavily
skewed towards static GK but were from a vast variety of areas including business, politics, social service,
finance, geography, history and the Indian Constitution.
Hence, a well-read person would have been able to attempt at least 8-10 questions easily.

XAT 2014 Analysis

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