NMAT Preparation: Tips, Tricks & Section-wise Strategies

Updated on 13th September 2023 | 3:52 pm | #NMATPreparation

NMAT 2023 is a computer adaptive national-level MBA entrance exam held annually in a 70-day window. 3 attempts are allowed for all candidates with a 15-day gap between each attempt. The exam results are accepted in more than 45 B-schools in India along with institutes in South Africa, Morocco, Nigeria, Hungary, and the Philippines.

To prepare for NMAT, much like other MBA entrance exams, some basic tips should be followed:

  • Understand the syllabus & exam pattern
  • Brush up on the basic concepts
  • Study each section separately
  • Develop an exam strategy
  • Practise and analyze mock tests
  • Review the past year papers

Registration for the same is open from 1st August to 10th October 2023 and candidates can schedule their first attempt by filling out the application form and making the payment. The exam will be held from 12th October to 18th December 2023.

Prepare for NMAT 2023

NMAT Preparation Strategy

The best time to get cracking with NMAT preparation is now as there is little time left before the exam window opens. Also, the first and foremost step to prepare for NMAT is to have a clear-cut timetable and be consistent in whichever preparation technique you choose to pursue.

Here are a few effective tips compiled by us to gauge your NMAT prep:

  • Understand the syllabus & exam pattern:

Before beginning your preparation, the first thing that you should do is go through the exam pattern and the detailed syllabus. Get familiar with the topics you need to cover and their division in the exam.

  • Decide your mode of study

Choose whether you wish to study by yourself or enroll in a coaching program. The advantage of a coaching program is that you get a schedule, study material, and expert guidance for the exam.

  • Strengthen your fundamentals

Focus on understanding the basic concepts and revising them regularly. Having a fundamental understanding of the topics is essential to improving your performance and attempting the paper well.

  • Solve the last 5 years NMAT papers

Previous year papers are always helpful to revise and review your preparedness for the exam. It also helps you familiarize yourself with the actual exam and the types of questions that are set.

  • Attempt mocks & analyze your performance

Mock tests are necessary to not only familiarize yourself with the exam but also identify your weak areas and test your exam strategy. Make sure you dedicate enough time to analyzing your performance and improving accordingly.


NMAT 2023: Exam Pattern & Syllabus

The NMAT by GMAC™ exam is adaptive in nature, which means that the difficulty level of your next question will depend on your performance in the previous question. If your answer is correct, the next question will be of a higher difficulty level. If you struggle to find the right answer, the question will be easier than the previous one.

Here are some details regarding the structure and common topics of the exam:

Sections

Total Questions

Time (in minutes)

Score Range

Topics to consider

Language Skills

36

28

12 - 120

RC passages, tenses, para jumbles, odd one out

Quantitative Skills

36

52

12 - 120

Decision making, inferences, assumptions, blood relations

Logical Reasoning

36

40

12 - 120

Percentages, charts, equations, graphs, venn diagrams

Total

108

120

36 - 360

Important points to note;

  • The difficulty level of the questions is easy to moderate.
  • There is no negative marking scheme for the examination.
  • A candidate can select the order/sequence of the sections.
  • A candidate is allowed a maximum of 3 attempts for NMAT.
  • There needs to be a gap period of 15 days between 2 successive attempts.
  • You need to clear the overall and sectional cut-offs while preparing for NMAT.

Learn more about NMAT 2023, click here


NMAT Preparation: Section-wise Strategy

NMAT can only be aced by an aspirant who has a strong hold over language skills, quantitative skills, and logical reasoning skills. In lieu of this, it is important to devote time to every section to build confidence for the exam. Here is a personalized section-wise strategy curated for NMAT aspirants:

How to Prepare for NMAT 2023: Language Skills

In this section, you must solve 36 questions within a time span of 28 minutes. These questions mainly require speed solving as it has a greater number of questions than the allotted time.

Here is how you can prepare for this section:

  • For the reading comprehension section, it is important that you improve your reading speed and broaden your vocabulary. Ensure that you get into the habit of reading content about various topics and stay updated about world affairs.
  • Understand the syllabus well and see what topics must be covered. Identify the weak areas and build your basics before moving on to solving questions and practicing.
  • Constantly keep track of your areas of strength and areas of improvement. Make sure that with each analysis and effort, you are making progress and covering the concepts that need more conceptual clarity.
  • When attempting questions, the options can sometimes seem to be close-ended and very similar to each other. Instead of finding the right answer, try eliminating the options you know are incorrect.
  • Once you have covered the major topics from the syllabus begin attempting mocks to analyze your preparedness and see which areas need more attention and practice.
  • Build your vocabulary by subscribing to online vocabulary enhancers and "word of the day" alerts. Learn a word’s usage, synonyms, and antonyms along with various other vocabulary-based questions.

How to Prepare for NMAT 2023: Quantitative Skills

In this section, there will be 36 questions that a candidate needs to answer in 52 minutes. Here are some preparatory measures that you can keep in mind while preparing for the NMAT quantitative skills section:

  • Understand the basics well along with the various types of questions to improve your calculation speed.
  • Study the most frequently covered high school mathematical concepts and master the shortcuts and formulae.
  • Solve various types of case studies related to data interpretation to improve speed and accuracy.
  • Focus on high-scoring and frequently covered topics such as geometry, profit and loss, speed and distance, and percentage.
  • Earmark 2-3 mocks every week for thorough revision and spend time analyzing them to find areas of error and improvement.

How to Prepare for NMAT 2023: Logical Reasoning

In this section, there will be 36 questions that a candidate needs to solve in 40 minutes. This section will cover topics such as inferences from statements, choosing between strong and weak arguments, and identifying hidden assumptions.

Here is how you can prepare for the logical reasoning section:

  • Attempting numerous questions and practice can help you improve your prediction analysis and data interpretation.
  • Read the questions carefully and do not rush through them. Use the options provided and the data in the questions to make conclusions.
  • To improve your speed, start timing yourself. Set timestamps when attempting a set of questions and work towards reducing the time spent per set.
  • Pay special attention to words like 'all', 'some', and 'none' when you read facts in the question. Also, be attentive to other words like 'only', 'other than', and ‘unless’ that specify facts and help candidates draw inferences.
  • Try to eliminate the incorrect options based on the conclusions you make and reach the correct answer.

FAQS

It is advisable to have at least one point of reference for NMAT. NMAT's official guide consists of multiple aspects of the exam as described in detail. It is extensive in terms of types of questions that are incorporated across all the sections and previous year question papers.

NMAT test deliverance is a combination of speed and strategy. You should target the questions that you want to answer first to maximize your scores and manage time simultaneously, even though there is no negative marking.

A. Solving a paper and attempting a paper are two different things. As there is no deduction of marks for wrong answers, you can aim to attempt all questions. However, you need to decide which question you should solve first in order to maximize your accuracy and scores.

Yes, NMAT is a computer-adaptive test, like GMAT. It offers an individually designed test to all the candidates and the difficulty of the test depends on their performance in the test. This means if they answer a question correctly, the next question will be of a higher difficulty level. But, if they answered it incorrectly, the next question will be a bit easier.

Depending on the time you have on hand, you can prepare for NMAT in 3-4 months with rigorous practice and guidance of experts.

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