XAT 2025 Last Minute Tips: XLRI Jamshedpur Students & XAT Toppers Reveal Effective Strategies to Improve Your XAT Score

1. Understand Revised XAT Pattern 2025
XAT Exam Pattern 2025 has been revised this year and can be divided in two parts with total four sections: Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning; Decision Making; Quantitative Aptitude & Data Interpretation and General Knowledge. Check table below. XAT Essay Writing Test has been remove from this year. Total number of questions in XAT Exam are 95 and exam duration is 3 hours. Check table below. 

XAT Exam Pattern 2025

Read complete details on XAT Exam Pattern and XAT Syllabus. 

2. XAT Decision Making (DM) Section in Key; Prepare with Previous Year Papers  
XAT Decision Making (DM) Section is unique and sets it apart from CAT and other MBA entrance exams. This section evaluates a candidate’s ability to assess situations objectively, make ethical decisions, and balance conflicting interests. XAT Decision Making 2025 Section will have 21 questions (out of total 75 questions), making it a very important part of XAT exam. Type of Questions can be divided into three main types:

• Ethical Dilemmas: These scenarios test how candidates handle situations involving moral conflicts, such as Caselet-5 (wrongful termination of household help). For example, would you prioritize justice or adhere to organizational rules?
• Business and Organizational Decisions: Caselets like those involving ABC Business School or the IT Firm test candidates on how they manage organizational goals, stakeholder interests, and performance outcomes.
• Analytical and Data-Based Problems: Some caselets, such as those related to sales targets or under water gas safety, require interpreting numerical or operational data to make decisions.

The key to answering these questions is identifying all stakeholders, understanding the context, and choosing an option that is ethical, logical, and practical. 

XAT Topper and XLRI Jamshedpur Student Nipun Garg (XAT 99.95%) told MBAUniverse.com, “For me, the past year papers were the best source for preparation for the exam. I tried to deduce a logically why the given answer was correct. I also relied on few of my friends to discuss the given case studies to gain a different perspective.”

XAT Topper Nandagopal V, 99.99%ile in XAT 2023, XLRI Jamshedpur Student told MBAUniverse.com, “Decision Making is the most important section in XAT. It can make or break your entire score. To prepare for DM, my recommendation would be to practise previous year papers, as many times as you want, specifically the DM section. Each of us has a unique perspective that might give us different yet valid answers for the questions in DM. Unless this perspective matches with the examiner’s, there is no point in our justifications. So, that’s why by practicing previous year papers, the candidate will be able to get into the mindset of the examiner.”

Read this article to understand XAT Decision Making preparation strategy and past year’s actual questions and answers.

3. Don’t Ignore General Knowledge Section 
The General Knowledge (GK) section in the XAT question paper requires focused presentation since GK questions do not appear in CAT exam. According to XAT 2025 exam pattern, there will be 20 GK questions in the XAT paper, which have to be solved in 10 minutes. While marks in XAT GK Section will not contribute to your overall percentile or cutoff score, but will be considered in the XLRI and other admission selection process. GK for XAT Syllabus is divided into two parts: Current Affairs and Static GK. Check question topics for both these sections below. 

XAT Static GK Topics 

• Science
• Economy
• Business 
• Politics
• Static GK
• Sports
• Prize and Award
• World
• Government 
• Constitution of India 

XAT Current Affairs GK Topics 

• Economics & Business
• Personality & Awards
• Science & Technology 
• Sports
• National & International Affairs
• Companies & People
• Nobel Prize
• Entertainment

Read this article for complete GK for XAT Preparation and to download free PDF previous year papers. 

4. Develop and Follow Your Revision Strategy 
The next XAT last minute tips focus on revising concepts effectively during last few days. Toppers recommend following XAT Last Minute Revision Tips:

• Create a Revision Schedule: Integrate regular revision sessions into your study plan. For instance, dedicate an hour or two each day to revisiting old topics.
• Summarize Key Concepts on Notes and Flashcards: Create concise notes or flashcards highlighting key formulas, concepts, and shortcuts. This makes quick reviews easier. 
• Mind Maps: Use mind maps to visualize connections between different topics, which can help in understanding and recalling concepts better.
• Daily Practice: Solve a few questions from different sections (Quantitative Ability, Verbal Ability, Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning) daily to keep all topics fresh. 
• Mock Test Revision: Go back to your old mock tests, and revise your mistakes. Revise why you made them and how to avoid them. 

5. Time to Focus on Strengths, Ignore Weaknesses 
The next XAT exam last minute tips is obvious but very important! As simple as it may sound, XAT toppers stress the importance of planning their last-minute XAT preparation based on individual strengths. Another related XAT last minute preparation strategy is that you should avoid focusing on your weaknesses in the last minute XAT preparation phase. Shreyasee Sarkar, IIM Calcutta student of MBA 2023-25 who also did well in other exams said, “Closer to the exam, I ignored my weak area in the exam. I had the target of solving 2 out of 4 problems which constituted 10 questions because that was enough to get a good percentile in DILR as this was my weakest Section.”

6. Take Mocks and Analyse Thoroughly 
This XAT last minute tips from several XAT Toppers stresses the vital role of mock tests in their preparation. They highlight the significance of these tests in identifying weaknesses, refining strategies, and enhancing problem-solving speed. XAT Topper and XLRI Jamshedpur Student Nipun Garg (XAT 99.95%) told MBAUniverse.com, “Mocks played a very important role in my final preparation. Especially after covering the syllabus once, I mainly relied on mock for strategizing how to attempt the exam and manage the time.” 

Take Free XAT Mock Test and XAT Previous Year Papers on MBAUniverse.com

7. Keep Yourself Free from Work & Study in Last Few Days to XAT 
Successful XAT candidates emphasize the importance of strategic planning for the days leading up to the exam. XAT Topper and XLRI Jamshedpur student Tanish Jain (XAT 99.99%) told MBAUniverse.com, “Purposefully I did not have any last-minute preparation. My strategy for the XAT day was to have a calm pre-XAT morning.”

8. How to Keep Stress Away in Last 48-24 hours to XAT! 
XAT toppers stress the importance of maintaining composure on the exam day. Strategies include ensuring adequate sleep, engaging in calming activities like listening to soothing music, watching motivational movies and consciously avoiding excessive stress to prevent making avoidable mistakes. 

XAT Topper and XLRI Jamshedpur Student Nipun Garg (XAT 99.95%) said: “My main emphasis during the exam day was getting a proper full night sleep as well as not worrying about the exam a lot. Also, during the last week I avoided studying anything new and tried to revise whatever I had already done.”

9. Follow XAT Exam Guidelines, Day Dos and Don’ts 
To take XAT exam without stress and last-minute hiccups, it is very important to follow the exam day dos and don’ts. Create a checklist and keep it handy to refer to it a few days before the exam. XAT Topper Amit Chakraborty (XAT 99.55%ile) told MBAUniverse.com, “The mantra for the XAT Day is keeping calm. Although it is easier said than done, it is quite natural to have some anxiousness for the exam that we have been preparing for months. Yet, I tried to keep my cool. On the day before the exam, I just spent some time revising the formulas for QA. The rest of the day I spent my time watching TV and listening to music.”

Read XAT Exam Day Guideline, Do’s and Don’ts on XAT admit card and on this article XAT 2025 article. 

10. Finally, Cut Down on Social Media time 
The final XAT last minute tip is that you should avoid using social media platforms and stop watching reels and other irrelevant content. For last minute XAT Tips and other important updates, you should regularly visit the official XAT website https://xatonline.in/ and credible information platforms like MBAUniverse.com. 

In summary, these XAT last minute tips 2025 will help you utilize your last few days to XAT effectively, increase your XAT Score and keep you stress free.  So, as you embark on your voyage armed with these last minute strategies, may you excel in your XAT 2025 attempt!