Only 4 days are left to XAT 2015 which is going to be held on the first Sunday of January 2015 i.e. January 4, 2015. Syllabus for Verbal Ability in XAT is vast and extensive. You might have covered a lot but have you covered all the relevant topics to score a high percentile? Only 4 days are left to January 4, 2014 the day on which thousands of aspirants will appear in one of the most sought after management entrance test to coveted B schools. Almost everything must have been studied by now. Learn from Prof. S.K. Agarwal, Verbal Ability expert, what else you could do to improve your percentile by quickly revisiting a few important topics and questions on Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension in next 4 days.
Practice the Figures of speech and phrases
These are highly probable topics for XAT 2015. XAT in 2012, 2013 and 2014 placed 2-3 questions on use of phrases and Figures of speech. There is very high probability that you may have 3-4 questions to identify various figures of speech in Verbal Ability. It is suggested to go through at least a few important ones like Simile, metaphor, Personification, Hyperbole, Oxymoron, apostrophe, euphemism, alliteration. Practice a little to understand the difference among them.
Fill in the blanks and error corrections
Expected questions of this type in Verbal Ability section may be 4 to 6. Articles, prepositions, subject verb agreement and conditionals are a few core topics which need quick revision. Please remember there are sentences with four-five blanks in each question. You are supposed to have a good knowledge on usage of the same.
Jumbled sentences
You may find 3 to 4 questions in XAT 2015. Jumbled paragraphs are not very long but a little tricky. Tips to solve them are to find out the connectors to sentences e.g. conjunctions, personal or relative pronouns ( He/ she/ it /they /their /who / whose/that/which etc.) as they indicate that they must have been used in place of some nouns. So find the link between the sentences and practice more.
Reading Comprehension
Half of Verbal Ability section consists of questions on this part of English language. Concentrate on Reading Comprehension. Three or four passages in XAT are shorter say about 500-700 words than in CAT although they have rich and literary language. Questions are more direct and are based on information available in the passages. Aspirants are advised to regularly read the editorials, good literature and philosophy books. When you go on reading a passage, make it mandatory to write down the core sentences and difficult words on a piece of paper, their contextual usage should be understood. By the time you finish reading the passage you will have understood the greater part of it and this will save your time on answering the questions.
Practice the vocabulary
It is high time that you understood and practiced the Vocabulary words in right context. An aspirant may have good stock of vocabulary words but their correct synonyms, antonyms with understanding of contextual use are very much required. All the mugging will be irrelevant if correct usage are not known or the confusion still persists where to place the said word.
Need is the Regular revision
Revise whatever you have learnt and follow the tips to solve the questions based on various topics instead of going for something new. The need is to pay attention on the analysis of practice exercises that you have solved. Follow the expert’s tips given in analysis as they are meant to guide you in sorting the problem out.
Essay Writing
This is one of the neglected but most important part at least for those who wish to get admission in a very good B school. Although evaluation of essay writing is not accounted for in calculation of percentile immediately after written examination, questions on your writing piece will be asked in the personal interview round which is the final selection round.
You are supposed to write a well worded, coherent, meaningful essay in 20 minutes. There is no word limit but 300 to 400 words will be sufficient to express your ideas on a given topic. It is better to be brief but clear. If you want to express anything against the topic, your points should not criss-cross the ideas stated for the topic, this is a very important thing to remember.
Related Links
XAT 2015 Verbal Ability: Learn how to crack 3 questions on Articles
XAT 2015: Admit card is out; Login to download & take prints
XAT 2015: XLRI extends admission application process date to Dec 26; will conduct XL-RAPT for FPM
XAT 2015: 90K register; XLRI admission application process open; apply before Dec 21
XAT 2015: How to approach 25 questions in Decision Making section
Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more updates and tips on XAT 2015
