MAT Exam Pattern 2025 (Available): Check Total Marks, Sections & Marking Scheme

Registration - 23 Oct '25 - 7 Dec '25

Updated on Nov 20, 2025 17:52 IST

By Vipra Shrivastava, Senior Manager - Content

MAT pattern 2025 has been prescribed by the All India Management Association (AIMA). As per the latest pattern of MAT, the exam is of 2 hours and the number of questions are 150. The exam is conducted in CBT and PBT modes. Earlier, AIMA conducted MAT in IBT mode as well, but from this year onwards, that exam mode has been scrapped.

in MAT, there are five sections and every section has 30 questions. The difficulty level of MAT exam is easy. But since there is no sectional time limit, candidates may find it tough to balance time between five sections. Get here all the details of MAT 2025 exam pattern.

Table of contents

MAT Pattern 2025: Key Highlights
MAT Pattern 2025: Section-wise Weightage
MAT Marking Scheme 2025
FAQs on MAT Pattern 2025

MAT Pattern 2025: Key Highlights

MAT is one of the most student friendly MBA entrance exams in India. All questions are objective type having 4 options to choose the right answer from. Overall, difficulty level is easy. Check below the key highlights of MAT pattern and test structure.

MAT Features	MAT Exam Details
Exam modes	Paper Based Test (PBT) Computer Based Test (CBT)
MAT sections	Language Comprehension Data Analysis & Sufficiency Mathematical Skills Intelligence & Critical Reasoning Economic and Business Environment
Total number of questions	150
Number of questions per session	30
Exam duration	120 minutes
Total marks	150
Marking scheme	+1 for each correct entry -0.25 for each incorrect entry 0 for not attempting a question

MAT Pattern 2025: Section-wise Weightage

MAT question paper has all questions in MCQ format. All the sections of MAT exam carry equal weightage so one section cannot be ignored for another. However, candidates can keep Economic and Business Environment section as their last priority because its score is considered for MAT percentile calculation. Check the table below for sectional weightage of MAT 2025 exam pattern:

MAT Sections	Number of Questions
Language Comprehension	30
Intelligence and Critical Reasoning	30
Data Analysis and Sufficiency	30
Mathematical Skills	30
Economic and Business Environment	30
Total	150

MAT Exam Pattern 2025: Sectional Details

MAT has five sections. In other MBA entrance exams, Data Interpretation is clubbed with either Quantitative Ability or Logical Reasoning. In MAT, Data Interpretation is a separate section. Take a look at key topics of the five sections of MAT question paper below:

Language Comprehension: This section has two parts – Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension. Topics included are - Grammar, Antonyms & Synonyms, One Word Substitution, Idioms/Phrases, Vocabulary, Fill in the blanks, Sentence Correction, Para Jumble and Reading Comprehension.

Also Read: MAT 2025 Preparation for Language Comprehension

Intelligence & Critical Reasoning: This section of MAT carries questions based on Family Tree, Course of Action, Arrangement, Pie Chart, Calendars, Statement Conclusions, Strong Arguments and Weak Arguments, Puzzles, Series, Blood Relations, Coding & Decoding, Visual Reasoning, Syllogisms and Graphs.

Also Read: MAT 2025 Preparation for Intelligence & Critical Reasoning

Data Analysis & Data Sufficiency: This section is divided into two parts – Data Analysis and Data Sufficiency. Questions are based on Line Graph, Bar Graph, Caselet, Pie Chart, Data Comparison, Quantitative Comparison and Data Sufficiency.

Also Read: MAT 2025 Preparation for Data Analysis & Data Sufficiency

Mathematical Skills: The Mathematical Skills section of MAT known as Quantitative Aptitude in other MBA entrance exams. In this section, questions are asked from various topics of Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Mensuration and Modern Maths.

Also Read: MAT 2025 Preparation for Mathematical Skills

Economic and Business Environment: The Indian & Global Environment has been renamed as Economic and Business Environment. It is essentially a General Awareness section and includes questions from Current Affairs and Static GK. It carries 30 marks and should not take more than 10 minutes to solve as all questions are memory based.

Also Read: MAT 2025 Preparation for Economic and Business Environment

Commonly asked questions

Q: Is MAT exam easier than other MBA entrance exams?

Yes, the difficulty level of MAT exam is lower than other MBA entrance exams. The question paper is usually of easy to moderate difficulty level. The exam is now held for 120 minutes. There are now 150 questions in the exam paper. There is no sectional time limit in MAT which allows the candidate to plan a strategy according to their strengths and weaknesses. The score of Indian and Global Environment section is not considered for percentile calculation thus candidates don't have the stress of fifth section. Also, solving 150 questions is not mandatory so candidates can choose to solve only those questions which they know they can solve accurately. Sectional difficulty level of MAT is also lower than other MBA exams. Candidates can attempt the exam multiple times in the same academic year to improve their score. They also have the option to choose the mode of test - CBT, IBT, PBT - which makes it the most student friendly exam. Also, the MAT cut offs for admission are much lower as compared to other entrance exams.

Q: Is the MAT IBT mode exam pattern different from CBT and PBT exams?

No. The exam pattern of MAT IBT is not different from CBT or PBT. In fact, the MAT exam pattern of all test modes is the same. The duration of MAT exam (PBT, CBT and IBT modes) is 2 hours or 120 minutes. The marking scheme is - plus one for correct attempt and minus 0.25 for incorrect attempt. There is no sectional time limit in MAT so candidates can utilise the 2 hours as per their own strategy. They should ideally, spend 25 minutes each on the top four sections and 15 minutes on the GK section. However, there may be slight difference in difficulty level because the questions in each MAT session are unique. No question is repeated in any session across CBT, PBT or IBT. This is to prevent any candidate from getting advantage or facing disadvantage due to leaking of the questions or in case of a candidates re-attempting the exam.

MAT Marking Scheme 2025

MAT is an MCQ based exam so candidates are marked per correct attempt. Given below are the key highlights of MAT marking scheme as per the latest MAT paper pattern:

The marking scheme is same for all three exam modes
Every section carries equal weightage of 30 marks
For each correct answer, 1 mark is awarded
For each wrong attempt, 0.25 marks are deducted
No marks are deducted for unanswered questions
Economic and Business Environment score is not considered for calculating MAT percentile
It is not mandatory to solve all 150 questions.

FAQs on MAT Pattern 2025

Check here Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on MAT exam pattern:

Commonly asked questions

Q: What is MAT Syllabus?

Since, MAT exam is conducted only for admission to MBA and PGDM/PGP courses. It is a post graduate level business aptitude test comprising Quantitative Aptitude critical reasoning, data interpretation, data sufficiency, language comprehension and general awareness.

Given below are the topics included in the MAT syllabus:

MAT Syllabus for Language: Comprehension Verb, Noun, Pronoun, Adjective, Adverb, Parts of Speech, Sentence Correction, Fill in the Blanks, Antonyms and Synonyms, One Word Substitution, Idioms/Phrases, Para Jumbles, Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary, Grammar, Verbal Ability, etc.
MAT Syllabus for Intelligence and Critical Reasoning: Family Tree, Course of Action, Arrangement, Pie Chart, Calendars, Statement Conclusions, Strong Arguments and Weak Arguments, Puzzles, Series, Blood Relations, Coding and Decoding, Column Graphs, Multi-Dimensional Arrangements, Visual Reasoning, Numeric Grid, Critical Reasoning, Syllogisms, Graphs Representing Areas MAT Syllabus for Data Analysis and Sufficiency: Tables, Charts, Pie Charts, Caselet-based Data, Graphs - Line X-Y Graphs, Venn Diagram, Bar Diagrams, Data Analysis and Data Comparison, Data Sufficiency
MAT Syllabus for Mathematical Skills: LCM and HCF, Commercial Maths Complex Numbers, Percentages, Permutation and Combinations, Binomial Theorem, Profit and Loss, Simple Interest and Compound Interest, Heights and Distance, Inequalities, Speed, Time and Distance, Triangles Set Theory, Number System Circles, Mixtures and Alligations, Elementary Mathematics, Geometry, Venn Diagrams, Trigonometry Equations, Linear Programming
MAT Syllabus for Economic and Business Environment Section: Current Affairs World Records, Business and Economy, Companies and CEOs, Awards and Winners, Books and Authors, Company Punchlines, History, International Organisation, Quotes and Personalities, Social Issues, Geography, Sports, Arts, Entertainment, Technology.

Q: What is the marking scheme of MAT exam?

Total marks of MAT exam is 150. Every question carries one mark for correct attempt and there is negative marking of 0.25 marks for each wrong answer. No marks is deducted for skipping questions. The MAT question paper has 150 questions equally divided into five sections - Language Comprehension, Intelligence & Critical Reasoning, Data Analysis & Data Sufficiency, Mathematical Skills and Economic and Business Environment.

Language Comprehension: 30 questions

2. Intelligence & Critical Reasoning: 30 questions

3. Data Analysis & Data Sufficiency: 30 questions

4. Mathematical Skills: 30 questions

5. Economic and Business Environment: 30 questions

Every section therefore has 30 questions which means every section carries 30 marks. The scores of GK section is not considered for MAT percentile calculation. So candidates can keep GK section as their last priority.