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MAT Exam Analysis 2024

Last Updated on March 10, 2024 by Prof. SK Agarwal

MAT Exam Analysis 2024: MAT CBT 2024 Exam held on March 10; Check Exam Pattern, Exam Analysis, Cut Offs

MAT 2024 Exam is accepted for MBA Admission 2024 by 500+ MBA colleges across India, and is held in three modes: Computer Based Test (MAT CBT) and Paper Based Test (MAT PBT) and Internet Based Test (MAT IBT). Both MAT Paper Based Test and MAT Computer Based Test were held on February 25 and March 10. This MAT February 2024 Exam Analysis covers: MAT Exam Pattern, Difficulty Level of MAT exam and Percentile & Cut Off Scores for Top MAT Accepting Colleges. 

MAT CBT (March 10) and MAT PBT (February 25) Exam Pattern were as follow:  

  • Duration: The test paper has a time duration of 2½ hours.
  • Sections: Test paper is divided in 5 sections with 40 questions in each section
  • Total No of Questions: There are 200 objective type questions in MCQs form in MAT question paper
  • Marking Scheme: Each correct answer is awarded +1 Mark. Each wrong answer is penalized with negative marking of -0.25 mark

Table of Content

  • 1. MAT CBT (March 10) and MAT PBT (February 25) Exam Analysis: Key Highlights

  • 2. Management of Time: Important

  • 3. MAT Exam Scores for 90%

  • 4. Top MBA Colleges accepting MAT February 2024

  • 5. Scoring in MAT & MBA Admission with MAT

  • 6. Previous MAT Exam Analysis

1. MAT CBT (March 10) and MAT PBT (February 25) Exam Analysis: Key Highlights

  • Test contained 4 RC Passages of 400-500 words followed by 20 Questions in Language Comprehension section 
  • 2 RC Passages were opinion based and were on Abstract ideas, while 2 were fact based
  • Reasoning had a few tricky questions otherwise the section was moderate
  • Reasoning had 18-20 questions based on Family Relations and Statements – Cause & Effect
  • Data Analysis and Data Sufficiency as separate section had more questions on Graphs and Pie charts
  • Data Sufficiency had a few difficult questions on Graphs and Pie charts
  • Arithmetic had major share of questions of moderate difficulty level in Mathematical skills section 
  • MAT contained some of the difficult questions in Language and Data Analysis also.
  • Overall raw score of 110 is expected to fetch 95 percentile cut off in MAT exam

MAT 2024 February Exam: Question Paper Composition

Section no.
Section Subject
Number of questions
Suggested time to solve
1
Language comprehension
40
30
2
Mathematical skills
40
40
3
Data Analysis and Sufficiency
40
35
4
Intelligence and Critical Reasoning
40
30
5
Indian and Global Environment
40
15
 
Total
200
150

 Section-1: Language comprehension
There were 40 questions in the section. Major topics and number of question are:

Topic
Number of Questions
Difficulty level
Reading Comprehension
20
Moderate
Number of RC Passages
5
Easy to Moderate
English Language
20
Moderate
Errors in Sentence formation
3-4
Moderate
Antonyms
2-3
Moderate to difficult
Synonyms
2-3
Moderate
Fill in the Blanks with correct vocabulary words
2-3
Moderate
One word substitution
2-3
Moderate
Phrases & Idioms Substitution by words
3-4
Moderate to Difficult
Jumbled Paragraphs
3-4
Moderate
  • Except a few questions the section had moderate difficulty level and could be answered in time
  • A score of 26-27 marks could lead to 90 percentile in Language Comprehension section

Section-2: Mathematical Skills

  • Out of the 40 questions in the section, more questions were based Arithmetic. As such Arithmetic commanded higher weightage in MAT Mathematical skills section
  • Around 15 questions were based on Arithmetic like Interest, Percentages, Time and Work, Profit, Loss, Partnership. The questions were a little time consuming although were moderate.
  • Other questions were based on topics like Equations, Ratio, Proportion & Variation, Geometry & Mensuration, Permutation and Combinations, Probability etc.
  • The questions were of moderate difficulty level
  • The section could prove to be a percentile booster for the candidates who did this section well
  • A score of 28-29 marks could earn 90+ percentile in this section

Section-3: Data Analysis and Sufficiency

  • This section had maximum questions on Data Interpretation
  • More prominent in this section were Graphs, Pie charts, bar diagrams, charts, line graph, data comparison
  • Time remained the major hurdle to solve these questions with speed and accuracy
  • Questions on Data Interpretation (DI) occupied more than 50% space in the section, rest of the part covered questions on data sufficiency and data comparison
  • A score of 21-22 marks is expected to get 90 and above percentile

Section-4: Intelligence and Critical reasoning

  • This section had 40 Questions
  • More questions were on Analytical and Logical reasoning and fewer questions were there on Critical reasoning
  • 10 Questions were based on Family Relation, 10 on Statements-Cause & Effect, and others were Statement –Assumptions, Reasons, analogies, direction, series, Incorrect Terms.
  • The questions were formed in sets as well as individual questions
  • The section was a little lengthy with moderate level of difficulty
  • A score of 25-26 marks may lead to a percentile above 90 in this section.

Section-5: Indian and Global environment
This section is not counted for percentile calculation in MAT exam. Many Candidates skipped or answered very few questions in this section to save time for other sections.

  • Suggested time limit by AIMA to answer the 40 questions in this section was 15 minutes but 10 minutes were enough to attempt this section
  • Questions were formed on G-20 Summit, Climate Change Summit, Central Vista, SCO Meet, Recent elections, JIO-Facebook deal, Awards, Government policies, rules, regulations, Budget, GST, CAA, Constitution of India, Appointments, Capitals, Current National and International Events, US Trade Policy, Russia-Ukraine War; Israel-Hamas conflict among others
  • No re-thinking or recalling was required for what you do not know or are confused on it.
  • Ideal time to attempt one question was less than 30 seconds

No Surprise Element
The MAT 2023 Dec exam had no surprise element and was on the same pattern as was in December 2023 exam. 

2. Management of Time: Important

  • The time limit to attempt 200 questions was 150 minutes. Less than 1 minute was available before the test takers to answer each of 200 questions.
  • Candidates who could not manage time well, had to skip many questions and could not maximise their attempts across the sections.
  • Those who adhered to the time limit to solve questions in each section helped them to do better in the exam as with this strategy more number of questions could be attempted with accuracy
  • Many of MAT test takers could not attempt more questions despite knowing their answers in MAT as they struggled for time

3. MAT Exam Scores for 90%

Following table consists of the broad MAT guideline to achieve cut off above 90 percentile, ideal attempts according to the difficulty level of questions in each section and suggested time limit to solve each of the 5 sections to score high in MAT 2023: 

S.no
Section
No of Qs
Ideal time (in minutes)
Ideal attempts
Score required to get 90+ percentile
1
Language Comprehension
40
30
 28
27-28
2
Intelligence and Critical Reasoning
40
35
 27
26-28
3
Data Analysis and Sufficiency
40
38
 24
22-24
4
Mathematical Skills
40
37
 30
30-32
5
Indian and Global Environment
40
10
 15
Separate sectional marks, not counted for percentile calculation
 
 
200
150
124
105-112
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4. Top MBA Colleges accepting MAT February 2024

You can use your MAT 2023 exam score in accordance with your score range in the top MBA Colleges accepting MAT with their admission status open. These colleges can be divided into four broad categories:

  • Colleges Accepting MAT score above 700 or the Colleges accepting MAT score above 90 percentile
  • Colleges Accepting MAT score above 600 or the Colleges accepting MAT score 80 percentile
  • Colleges Accepting MAT score above 500 or the Colleges accepting MAT score 60 percentile
  • Colleges Accepting MAT score above 400 or the Colleges accepting MAT score below 50 percentile

Top MBA Colleges Accepting MAT Colleges

MBA Colleges
Fees  (Rs.in Lakhs)
Placement (Rs.in Lakhs)
BIMTECH Greater Noida
13.00
9.38
JAGSoM
15.95
13.30
XIME Bangalore
11.50
9.09
Rajagiri Business School Kochi
7.50
7.11
Woxsen University Hyderabad
19.90
9.09
Jaipuria Lucknow & Noida
14.50
11.08
Indus Business Academy - IBA Bangalore
9.78
7.80

Top MBA Colleges Accepting MAT: 80-90 Percentile
There are highly ranked and internationally accredited MBA/ PGDM colleges among the MBA colleges accepting MAT score. Some of the prominent MBA colleges accepting MAT percentile 80 & above are:  

MBA Colleges
Fees (Rs.in Lakhs)
Placement (Rs.in Lakhs)
BIMTECH PGDM-Insurance Business Management
13.00
11.00
Amrita School of Business Coimbatore
12.86
6.72
IPE Hyderabad
8.00
6.12
Chandragupt Institute of Management - CIMP Patna
7.65
7.00
SIES Mumbai
9.00
9.11
Delhi School of Business (DSB) Delhi
9.25
8.25
NTPC School of Business Noida
15.30
12.00
St. Joseph’s Institute of Management (SJIM) Bangalore
8.80
9.00
SCMS Cochin School of Business
7.95
7.8

Read More: Top MBA Colleges accepting MAT  

5. Scoring in MAT & MBA Admission with MAT

  • Admission to good B schools out of the list of B schools available at the AIMA site can be explored with a percentile of 80 and above. 
  • MAT score card will contain 6 scores. For each of the 6 scores, a percentile score is given. This shows the percentage of examinees who scored below the candidate based on the entire MAT testing population. The percentile figure can change with each administration for the same scores.
  • MAT 2023 exam would award scores keeping the Indian and Global environment section out from percentile calculation.
  • The scores are to be awarded out of 160 marks and accordingly the test takers will get their merit position where their scores are sent by AIMA.
  • Raw score of 70+ is expected to award the percentile of 80+ and the raw score of 110 can award you the percentile of 90

Exam Difficulty Level
MAT exam had a moderate difficulty level. Besides, there was no change in the MAT exam pattern which had 200 questions in MCQ format divided in 5 sections. The MAT test takers found the exam easy to moderate difficulty level although parts of Verbal, Data sufficiency were rated as bit difficult. 

Dec 2023 IBT MAT Exam
Candidates appeared in the IBT-MAT from the convenience of their home instead of going to an exam centre. The morning slot was from 10.00 AM to 12.30 PM and evening slot was from 4.00 PM to 6.30 PM. AIMA had introduced MAT Remote Proctored Internet Based Test (MAT IBT) since 2020 due to the spread of Covid-19 pandemic:

Opting for IBT MAT: Take from Comfort of Home

  • Candidates can appear in IBT Dec MAT 2023 exam from the comfort of their homes with their computers or laptops having fast internet connections and webcams. 
  • The exam time and duration is strictly adhered to.
  • A constant watch on the conduct of the exam by the remote proctors is kept through the candidates’ webcam displaying their live test taking attempts, surroundings to ensure that there is no malpractice that could impact the sanctity of the exam. 

Candidates Appeared in IBT MAT after Taking Official Mock
Since most of the candidates who appeared in IBT MAT exam were not aware about the key requirements to appear in the exam, AIMA has offered MAT IBT mock test to enable the candidates to understand how they should attempt the exam. An IBT MAT Mock Test registration and Mock test taking window is enabled at AIMA MAT website for the candidates who have registered and applied for Dec IBT MAT

Taking IBT MAT 2023: Key Requirements
For taking the test in IBT mode, instead of going to a test centre candidates can take the exam from the safe confines and convenience of their homes subject to certain conditions. Following are the key requirements to get ready for MAT IBT Exam: 

  • Network: A stable internet connection with proper speed. Minimum Upload Speed should be 512 kbps or above.
  • Supported Browsers: Use only Browser Version Chrome version 63 and above; Firefox version 52 and above
  • Operating System: WindowsOS Version7 and above
  • Memory: 65MB permanent free space on the default hard drive  

Guidelines to Take the Test

  • Once the test starts, MSB will not allow to move out of the application before the test is finished MSB will close all the applications running in background
  • Please note that only the candidates with a computer together with webcam and internet facilities meeting specifications can appear in IBT exam.
  • The sanctity and security of the test is effectively maintained through remote proctoring in dual mode i.e., by employing robust Artificial Intelligence (AI) based tools as also human proctors.

The IBT MAT Exam was rated as easy to moderate with no surprises and was on the same pattern of PBT/CBT MAT. A few questions in English Language, Data Analysis and Quant were found a bit difficult. A score of 108-110 is expected to fetch 90+ percentile. The IBT MAT exam has longer testing window as shared above. Registrations for further exam dates of MAT IBT exam are also open.


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