How to Prepare for IIFT 2024 Exam in 6 months

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade Entrance Exam 2025 ( IIFT )

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Vipra
Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content
Updated on Apr 24, 2023 17:04 IST

IIFT 2024 exam is a moderate to high difficulty level exam. It requires at least a year to prepare for the exam but if you don't have one year to prepare you need not worry. You can prepare for IIFT entrance exam in six months too. Get here complete plan on how to prepare for IIFT exam in 6 months.

IIFT preparation in 6 months

The IIFT entrance exam for admission to Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT)'s MBA-IB programme is one of the top MBA entrance exams in India and its difficulty level is considered to be high. Thus, one needs at least six months to prepare for IIFT exam. The syllabus and pattern of IIFT entrance exam is similar to other MBA entrance exams like CAT and XAT. Most of the students who have previously qualified the IIFT entrance exam say five-six months of dedicated hard work is a good enough time to prepare for IIFT exam.

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The IIFT 2024 exam is expected to be held in third week of December 2023, so get on with your IIFT exam preparation. So, if plan to appear for IIFT 2024 exam but don't know how to prepare for IIFT exam in 6 months, you need not worry. Here's a detailed strategy for 6-month IIFT preparation.

Q:   If I am preparing for CAT, do I need to prepare separately for IIFT?

A:
Hello, Most of your task is done for IIFT if you are preparing for CAT. Difficulty level for both the exams is at par. The only difference is the General Knowledge section which can be easily covered by Reading newspapers on a daily basis. Ensure to solve mock papers for IIFT to get a look and feel of how the pattern is, what the difficulty level of the exam is. Focus on your CAT preparation and IIFT preparation will follow. Remember, do not try to put your leg into both the paper as far as preparation is concerned. Just focus on your CAT preparation. Try to complete your syllabus well before time so that you have time to agile yourself to set for IIFT also. Hard work and smart work will definitely make your way for both of the entrance exams.

Q:   What is the difficulty level of IIFT exam?

A:

The difficulty level of IIFT exam is usually high, with tricky VARC and calculation intensive Quants. The IIFT 2023 question paper was also of moderate difficulty level. VARC was moderate to tough, so was the DILR section. The Quant section was tougher than VARC, DILR and GA.

The IIFT entrance exam is considered one of the high difficulty level MBA entrance exams in India. The syllabus and pattern are prescribed by the institute. It also sets the test paper. Considering IIFT is one of the top colleges for MBA in India, the only moderate to high level questions are selected to prepare the test.

Q:   Will the difficulty level of the IIFT question paper affect the cut offs?

A:

Yes, the difficulty level of the IIFT question paper may affect the admission cut offs.  If the difficulty level of the IIFT question paper is high, the admission cut off may be lower and if the question paper is easy the admission cut off may be high. The IIFT cut offs also depend upon overall scoring trend and pass percentage of the given year.

 The difficulty level of IIFT 2023 question paper was moderate to high, similar to IIFT 2022, thus the cut offs were in same range as previous years. 

How to Prepare for IIFT 2024 Exam in 6 Months?

To prepare for IIFT in six months, you need to make a three step plan. It should include completing the syllabus, practicimg mock test and revision of important chapters. 

Know the IIFT Syllabus, Pattern and Marking Scheme

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The IIFT question paper will consist of questions from four subjects, divided into six sections:

  1. English Comprehension (Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension)
  2. Logical Reasoning (Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation)
  3. Quantitative Aptitude
  4. General Knowledge & Awareness

The duration of IIFT exam is two hours and the total number of questions is 110 MCQs. For each right answer, 3 marks will be allotted. There is negative marking of -1 mark.

Also Read: IIFT Exam Pattern

How to Prepare for IIFT Exam in Six Months: Make a Month-Wise Plan

Complete the IIFT syllabus of all the subjects by September end. In October and November, practice IIFT previous year question papers, sample papers and mock tests. Practice about 20-25 of them, at least. Devote last 15-20 days before the exam to GK and revision.

Q:   Which section of IIFT exam has maximum weightage?

A:

The Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension section of IIFT entrance exam has the maximum weightage. There are 35 questions in this section and total marks is 105. Each question carries 3 marks for correct attempt and -1 for incorrect attempt. This section is usually of moderate difficulty level. The questions are asked from Reading Comprehension passages, Identify the Synonym, Identify Grammatically Correct/Incorrect Sentence, One Word Substitution, Jumbled Paragraphs, etc. The Reading Comprehension passages are simple and fact based so there's not much pressure on candidates to get the gist right. Verbal Ability and Grammar questions are usually easy and can be completed within minutes.

Q:   How many months are required to prepare for the IIFT exam?

A:

Ideally, a candidate must prepare for the IIFT exam for at least six to nine months. They must study for the exam diligently for six to eight hours every day and the daily plan should include studying a chapter, solving related sample questions and memorising formulae. The first few months should be spent in covering the IIFT syllabus. An important aspect of IIFT preparation is practicing sample questions that are based on the important topics of IIFT syllabus. After that candidates must spend about two months in solving practice questions and mock tests. In the last month before the exam, candidates must make time for revision of all the important chapters and have problem solving sessions to tie up the loose ends. In the last month, keep the focus on important topics from which maximum questions are asked.

Q:   How many questions should I attempt to get a decent score in IIFT?

A:

If the IIFT question paper has 110 questions, you should attempt 65-70 questions with 100 per cent accuracy for a decent score. Ideally, candidates must attempt to solve about 2/3rd of the total questions in each section to be able to meet the sectional as well as overall cut off.

Since, there is negative marking in the IIFT exam candidates must make sure that they don’t waste marks by choosing incorrect options. If they are not sure of the answer, they should skip the question instead of making a guess because there is no negative marking for skipping questions. Negative marking can severely hamper your overall score.

Q:   Which is the best book to cover IIFT Verbal Ability syllabus?

A:

The Pearson Guide to Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning by Nishant Sinha and Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning by RS Aggarwal, are highly recommended for IIFT exam’s Verbal Ability preparation. Candidates must study from books which are recommended by experts and toppers only as this exam requires focused preparation and you can't afford to waste time.

The Verbal Ability section of IIFT includes Reading Comprehension. The Reading Comprehension passages of IIFT are long and tough so it is important that you have a good control over English comprehension and reading speed. For this, you need to start preparations early on by reading books, novels, magazines and newspapers. Target reading about 20 pages of a book every day. Do it for six months.

Q:   How is the infrastructure of IIFT Delhi?

A:

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade offers various facilities to postgraduate students. Currently, over 60 students are residing in the newly constructed hostel. IIFT has computer centres and offers various other facilities to the students. One of the major USPs of Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT Delhi) is its Foreign Trade library which is a knowledge bank for several resources in the field of WTO-related issues, Foreign Trade, Management, and others. IIFT's library has 84,000 volumes and subscribes to around 800 journals. There are 17,581 bound periodicals and 255 periodicals. 

The most important thing that aspirants should keep in mind while preparing for IIFT is the sectional cut-off. The test-takers have to perform well in all four sections of the IIFT question paper. Therefore, during preparation they have to devote time to all four sections equally. 

Get Free PDF of Section Wise IIFT Exam Syllabus

Download Now

First of all get hold of IIFT books for preparation and study material. Start studying from June onwards and complete the syllabus by mid-September. Take a look at the list of best books for IIFT preparation below.

Best Books for IIFT Exam Preparation 2024

The table includes books for Quantitative Aptitude, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension, Logical Reasoning and Data Intepretation.

Books for IIFT Preparation

Author/ Publisher

The Pearson Guide to Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning

Nishant Sinha

Word Power Made Easy

Norman Lewis

High School English Grammar & Composition

Wren & Martin

30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary

Wilfred Funk and Norman Lewis

Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning

R. S. Aggarwal

Data Interpretation for The CAT

Arun Sharma

Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation for CAT & other MBA exams

Nishit K Sinha

Data interpretation and Logical Reasoning for CAT

Pearson

How to prepare for Quantitative Aptitude for CAT

Arun Sharma

Quantum CAT

Sarvesh K Verma

The Pearson Guide To Quantitative Aptitude And Data Interpretation 

Nishit Sinha

Quantitative Aptitude

R.S. Aggarwal

Quantitative Aptitude For Competitive Examinations

Abhijit Guha

How to Prepare For Logical Reasoning For CAT

Arun Sharma

Verbal Ability And Logical Reasoning For The CAT

Nishit K. Sinha

Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning

R. S. Aggarwal

How to Prepare for IIFT Exam 2024 in 6 Months: Tips and Strategy

There are a few important tips that IIFT aspirants must keep in mind while preparing for the exam. Read six key points for IIFT exam preparation here:

  • Read in Abundance

Reading is very important for any aspirant taking IIFT exam. Reading useful content helps the test-takers to score well in English Comprehension. Reading newspapers, blogs, editorials, magazines etc. improves the vocabulary of students. Also, this way candidates can stay in touch with current affairs and prepare for General Knowledge section.

  • Try Out a Number of Exam Strategies

Tips from IIFT exam toppers or students who have already taken the exam really helps. But that doesn’t mean what worked for them will definitely work for you as well, especially the exam strategy. Exam strategy may vary from student to student. Thus, to find a suitable one for yourself.

  • Complete Syllabus on Time

In six months, dedicate the first three months on completing the IIFT exam syllabus. Start with basics of QA topics. Once you attain conceptual clarity, move to Data Interpretation. Keep a couple of hours for Verbal Ability and English Grammar daily. By the end of three months, you'll know your strong and weak areas which you can work on with the help of mock test and sample paper practice.

  • Practice Mock Tests in the Last Leg of Exam Preparation

Dedicate the second half of the six month duration to mock tests and sample papers. It is a known fact that the preparation for any competitive exam is incomplete without mock test practice. Attempt at least 25-30 IIFT mock tests to gain control over all the topics and all types of questions. 

  • Increase Speed of Solving MCQs

IIFT aspirants are expected to answer 110 question in two hours. This means that an aspirant gets to spend less than a minute on each question. Therefore, most experts suggest students to attempt maximum number of mock test before appearing for test.

  • Maintain Accuracy of Solving MCQs

Working on increasing speed for IIFT exam should not compromise accuracy. It is important for IIFT 2023 test-takers to keep in mind the aspect of negative marking in the exam. One must not forget that wrong answer will cost 1/3rd of the marks allotted to that question. Thus, think before answering. If you are not confident of the answer then skip the question and move to the next.

DILR Questions with Answers for Practice Quantitative Aptitude Questions with Answers for Practice VAR Questions with Answers for Practice

Take Free IIFT Mock Test

Shiksha has created a mock test for the aspirants to practice and strengthen their hold on IIFT exam. Click on the link below to start free IIFT mock test. 

IIFT Exam Mock Test will help you to get an idea about the type of questions asked in the exam. After taking the test, you can check your score. You can also download the Question Paper for free. Click below to start the free online test now.

Free IIFT Exam Mock Test

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About the Author
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Vipra Shrivastava
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Vipra is a massive Breaking Bad fan. When not watching crime drama series, she spends time in updating the list of places she wants to visit and people she wants to meet, but she is happiest in the company of dogs. ... Read Full Bio

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