Will the adaptive test pattern for NMAT backfire?

For the new NMAT pattern, one confronts questions as per his/her aptitude level. So that the candidates are not disheartened/demotivated when they can’t solve a series of questions during the exam.

By Anisha Mukhija

Backfire? There is no test pattern that would ever backfire. It’s only your preparation that can go wrong or right. Sometimes, even after next to perfect preparation there are chances that a candidate panics and messes up the paper. This happens a lot many times. That is where the multiple attempts for NMAT come to your rescue. So, firstly, it is recommended that when you prepare for CAT, always appear for some other MBA entrance exams, NMAT being the first choice out of the rest.

Speaking of the adaptive test pattern of NMAT 2020, I’ll talk about the pros and cons of the same.

Adaptive Test Pattern of NMAT: Pros

For the new NMAT pattern, one confronts questions as per his/her aptitude level. So that the candidates are not disheartened/demotivated when they can’t solve a series of questions during the exam. That’s a plus. Previously, the difficulty level of NMAT exam was constant for all candidates with jumbled up questions. Many a time it happened that students were not able to solve a lot of questions in one go which demotivated them and they would give up the hope of clearing the NMAT even before completing the entire assessment. One can be happy about the fact that this situation is least likely to arise this year.

Secondly, the NMAT exam is conducted by GMAC, which is the same authority that conducts the GMAT. This leaves absolutely no option for a candidate to not trust the process. The NMAT 2020 question paper would be as friendly and competitive as possible.

The concept of multiple window exams is over, hence the ‘doubted’ process of score normalization washes away. Candidates can be sure of ‘performance based results’. If a candidate trusts his/her preparation and has worked hard, there is absolutely no reason that he will not be able to clear NMAT.

Also, in NMAT 2020 there will be 108 questions which are to be solved in 120 minutes. Isn’t that good news already? Students have more time to solve each question as compared to the previous NMAT pattern where there were 120 questions to solve in 120 minutes. The number of questions has gone down and the time duration is the same. So, even if the difficulty level is to rise, you have more time in your bucket to solve the questions!

Also Read: MBA Colleges Accepting NMAT Score

It’s not only the NMAT pattern that has changed but the syllabus for NMAT has changed as well. Syllabus for Quants has reduced with the removal of ‘Geometry’ which should be a relief to candidates who struggle with this topic. There are many students who didn’t opt for Mathematics in high school, so the process is made fair to them as well. Now the NMAT exam has given a level playing ground with reduction of the syllabus in Quants and more emphasis on Verbal which makes complete sense.

Another bonus of NMAT 2020 is the scorecard which earlier took more than a month to be out, will now be released within a few hours! Re-appear for the limited number of times and ace the exam if you couldn’t in the first attempt. Also Read: NMAT Result 2020

Adaptive Test Pattern of NMAT: Cons

It is a new format with the changed syllabus, so candidates have less credible references or patterns to draw a parallel from. There are only limited ideas and tips that different coaching centers can help you with. You need to rely on your own preparation for NMAT, which anyways you should always do (Advisable to solve more ‘all India mocks’).

Enroll for any coaching center’s test series and appear for full-length NMAT mock tests. Also, give as many all India mocks as you can so you always know where you stand in terms of your preparation. This would be your best help for NMAT 2020.

Plus, for the new NMAT pattern, the weightage of any question is based on its difficulty level. Hence one might end up answering most of the easy questions and still not get selected for admission. So, you can’t assume that the NMAT question paper would be easy to moderate level. It is recommended that you level up your NMAT preparation and solve all types of questions so that your performance is at par with the expectations.

Not to mention that the new NMAT pattern has increased emphasis on Verbal, a topic which students generally don’t prepare for. This time Quants won’t be able to pull off your overall NMAT cut off. You need to prepare for Verbal as much as you prepare for Quants for NMAT.

There is an addition of new topics under the Verbal section and it is advisable that you check some credible sources so that you are up to date with the latest.

One not so good news for the applicants can be that there is no ‘expected cut-off’ for which students need to prepare this time. No one can bet on an NMAT score that will get you into NMIMS, Mumbai. But the lack of reference is never a good excuse to discredit a competitive exam. Get your study material and start preparing!

Bottom line: Focus on your NMAT preparation and perform to the best of your abilities.

All the best!!

Also Read:

• How Will the New NMAT Pattern Affect NMAT 2020 Cut Offs
• Will slow down in economy due to COVID-19 increase the competition for NMAT 2020?

About the Author:

Anisha Mukhija is a Strategic Mentor at a reputed Mumbai-based institute for MBA entrance exams preparation. She pursued MBA at NMIMS (MBA Core 2013-15) and PMNO at Harvard Business School. She has also been a key speaker at IIM Indore and has been awarded with Global Champions at NUS, Singapore and was o25 winner-Pepsico Digital Strategist-India Challenge.