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IIFT Previous Year Question Paper with Solutions Free PDF

Aspiring candidates of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) Entrance Examination must prioritise practising the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions for thorough preparation. Each year about 40,000 plus students appear for this exam, but only 4,000 candidates are selected; this shows the competition and difficulty level of the IIFT question papers. 

Everyone preparing for their upcoming IIFT exam, should definitely go through the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions to be familiar with the IIFT exam pattern, duration, and difficulty level of questions. Use the links mentioned on this page to download the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions free PDF.

Note: For 2024 IIFT admission, the authority has chosen the CAT 2023 score. 

Key Details about the IIFT Exam

Before, we deep dive into IIFT PYQs; it's important to gather the basic details about the IIFT exam.

IIFT previous year question paper

IIFT Exam — Key Details

Purpose

It facilitates the admission to MBA (International Business) program by the IIFT campuses. 

Exam Conducting Body

NTA (National Testing Agency)

Language

English

Mode of Exam

CBT (Computer-Based Test)

Eligibility Criteria

A bachelor's degree holder in any discipline with a min. of 50% marks; 45% for reserved categories.

Exam Pattern

  • Quantitative Analysis
  • Reading Comprehension & Verbal Ability
  • Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning
  • General Knowledge & Current Affairs

Negative Marking

Yes

Exam Duration

2 hours.

Participating Colleges

IIFT Delhi, Kolkata, and Kakinada

IIFT Website (Official)

http://www.iift.ac.in

Note: For detailed information refer to the www.iift.ac.in

Year-Wise IIFT Exam Previous Year Question Paper

At Selfstudys, we have IIFT exam previous year question papers from 2008 that you can download and practice the questions. Solving the year-wise IIFT previous year question paper PDF gives you an idea of what the actual question paper will look like, what will be their difficulty levels and how you can improve your time management skills to answer all questions within 120 minutes. Here is a list of year-wise IIFT question papers with solutions in PDF to download for free.

Breaking Down IIFT Exam Pattern

When you understand the IIFT exam pattern, understanding and solving the IIFT previous year question paper PDF becomes easy. Let’s break down the exam pattern for clarity.

IIFT PYQs PDF Download The IIFT question paper has four sections — (I) Quantitative Analysis, (II) Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension, (III) Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning, (IV) General Awareness. The IIFT paper contains a total of 110 questions to be answered in 120 minutes. The question paper format is MCQ and the language is English. The IIFT entrance exam difficulty level is moderate-difficult.

Sections

No. of Questions

Marks per Question

Negative Marking

Total Marks

Quantitative Analysis

25

3

-1

75

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension

35

3

-1

105

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning

30

3

-1

90

General Awareness

20

1.5

-0.5

30

Overall

110

300

Procedure to Solve IIFT Previous Year Question Paper on SelfStudys

You can get your hands on the IIFT PYQs PDF download and solve it for success in the exam by following the steps that are given below one by one. 

  • The first step is to open any of your preferred web browsers on your device. Then, you can type www.selfstudys.com in its search space to directly reach our website. 

IIFT exam previous year question paper 

  • On the main page, a number of elements will be visible from where you have to click on the ‘Navigation’ icon. 
  • After the click, you can check out our list of several categories and select the ‘CAT’ section. 

IIFT previous year paper

  • Under this section, you will find a number of study resources. Here, you need to tap on the ‘IIFT PYQs’ option. 

IIFT previous year question paper with solutions 

  • Now, your screen will showcase the IIFT exam previous year question paper PDF for several years. 

IIFT previous year question paper PDF 

  • You are free to choose any IIFT previous year paper from the given options. 
  • Again, a new page will open up on your screen with the IIFT previous year question paper PDF in normal and HD quality. You can select the quality of the PDF file as per your preference. 
  • Finally, the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions will be available and you can start solving the given questions free of cost. 

Note: The whole process that is mentioned above for the download of the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions PDF can only be completed after you Log In or Sign Up with your Gmail ID on SelfStudys. 

Detailed Analysis of IIFT Question Papers 2022, 2021, 2020

In this section, we are sharing a detailed analysis of IIFT question papers from 2022 to 2020 to help you better understand the IIFT previous year question papers. Let’s begin

IIFT Question Paper 2022

IIFT 2022 question paper can be divided into VARC (Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension), DILR (Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning), and QA (Quantitative Aptitude). IIFT question paper 2022 has questions from these topics as per the IIFT Syllabus. Here is the section-wise analysis:

VARC (Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension)

The VARC section of IIFT 2022 question paper has a total of 35 questions out of which 16 questions are based on reading comprehension. All those sixteen questions are distributed in four passages; a pair of passages has three questions each and the remaining passage has five questions each. 6 questions are from Vocabulary, 5 from Etymology, 3 from Grammar, 2 are Match the following, 1 from Spelling and remaining 1 is correct usages.

To master the IIFT VARC questions ensure you have adequate practice to the IIFT previous year paper.

IIFT 2022 VARC Topic

No. of Questions

RC passages (4)

16

Vocabulary

6

Etymology

5

Grammar

3

Match The Following

2

Spelling

1

Correct Usage 

1

Total

35

DILR (Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning)

The below break up of DILR section of IIFT question paper 2022 indicates how the questions in DI and LR sections are divided in 2022 IIFT question paper. 16 questions are from Data Interpretation and 14 questions from Logical Reasoning.

Section

IIFT 2022 DILR Topics

No. of Questions​

Data Interpretation​

2 Pie charts on crops

4​

4 Line graphs on Basmati

4​

Stacked bar graph & table in crime

4​

2 Bar graphs

4​

Logical Reasoning​

Games & Tournaments​

3​

Blood Relations​

2​

Matrix & Arrangements​

4​

5 People​

3​

Coding & Decoding​

1​

Assumptions​

1​

QA (Quantitative Aptitude)

Here is the detailed analysis of IIFT 2022 Quantitative Aptitude. In the QA section, the maximum number of questions are asked from the Arithmetic.

IIFT 2022 QA Topics

Number of Questions

Geometry

4

Probability

4

Log

2

Profit-Loss-Discount

2

Ratio

2

Time & Work

1

Time & Distance

1

Quadratic

1

Height & Distance

1

Series

1

Average

1

P&C

1

Set Theory

1

Co-ordinate

1

Number System

1

Total 

25

IIFT Question Paper 2021

All the 110 questions in the IIFT 2021 question paper are distributed into 4 sections — Quantitative Aptitude, Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning, and General Awareness. For a detailed overview of IIFT 2021 question paper structure go through the below table.

IIFT Sections

Number of Questions

Total Marks

Good Attempts

Quantitative Aptitude

25

75

10 - 12

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension

35

105

25+

Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning

30

90

12 - 14

General Awareness

20

30

8 - 10

Overall

110

300

50 - 55

VARC

The VARC section in the IIFT 2021 question paper is formed by combining VA (Verbal Ability) and RC (Reading Comprehension). As per our analysis, the IIFT 2021 question paper has an easy to moderate difficulty level. To get a detailed analysis of the Verbal Ability part of the IIFT 2021 question paper check the table below.

IIFT 2021 Verbal Ability Topics

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

Identify the Synonym - Root Word

4

4 Easy

Identify Grammatically Correct Sentence(s)

3

3 Moderate

One-Word Substitution 

3

3 Easy

Jumbled Paragraphs

3

2 Moderate, 1 Easy

Table of Words (Crossword and Synonyms)

2

2 Moderate

Identify Grammatically Incorrect Sentence (Question Tag)

2

2 Easy

Match the Synonyms

2

2 Easy

Data Interpretation-Logical Reasoning

The DILR section contains a total of 30 questions which are divided into 2 parts — Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning. Most of the questions are between moderate to difficult; however, a few portions from the Linear arrangement, Coding, Puzzle, etc. are easy.

Type of Sets

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

IIFT Data Interpretation

Line graph + Bar (on Average sales)

4

Moderate to Difficult

Bar graph + Line

4

Difficult

Table

4

Moderate

Pie chart + Table

4

Easy to Moderate

IIFT Logical Reasoning

Circular Arrangement

4

Moderate to Difficult

Tournaments

4

Moderate

Scheduling

2

Moderate

Linear arrangement

1

Easy

Coding

1

Easy

Puzzle

2

Easy to Moderate

Quantitative Aptitude of IIFT 2021 Question Paper

In the 2021 IIFT question papers, the quantitative aptitude sections are moderate to difficult. Check out the below table for more details:

IIFT 2021 QA Topics

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

Arithmetic

11

7 Easy

2 Moderate

2 Difficult

Geometry

5

1 Easy

4 Moderate

Algebra

4

2 Easy

1 Moderate

1 Difficult

Modern Mathematics

4

2 Easy

2 Easy

Numbers

1

1 Moderate

Total

25

Moderate to Difficult

IIFT Question Paper 2021: General Awareness

The general awareness section contains combined questions of current affairs and static GK for a total of 20 marks. 9 questions in Static GK and 11 questions in Current Affairs. 

IIFT Question Paper 2020

In 2020, the IIFT question paper had seen drastic changes compared to 2019. The IIFT exam was conducted online for the first time in 2020. The total number of questions were asked, 110 which were distributed among four sections. Let’s deep-dive into different sections of IIFT 2020 question paper.

VARC Section of IIFT 2020 Question Paper

A total of 16 questions were asked in Reading Comprehension and a total of 19 questions from Verbal Ability. The Verbal Ability contained questions from Analogy, Vocabulary, Para-Jumbles, Grammar, Idioms and Fill in the Blanks. Overall the VARC section of IIFT 2020 question paper had an easy to moderate difficulty level.

IIFT 2020 VARC Topics

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

Reading Comprehension

16

Easy

Analogy

4

Moderate

Vocabulary

4

Moderate to Difficult

Para-Jumbles

3

Easy to Moderate

Grammar

3

Easy

Idioms

3

Moderate to Difficult

Fill in the Blanks

2

Easy

DILR Section of IIFT 2020 Question Paper

The difficulty level of the DILR section in the 2020 IIFT question paper was easy to moderate. The whole section is divided into two — Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning. To get a closer look at how many questions were asked from each topic refer to the table below.

IIFT 2020 DILR Topics

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

Bar Graph & Line Graph

7

Easy

2 Pie Charts and 1 Table

4

Moderate

Table (shirt & colour)

4

Easy

Blood Relation and Data Arrangement

4

Moderate to Difficult

Linear Arrangement

3

Easy

Set Theory

2

Easy

Lift and Timing Based Question

2

Easy

Table (products and customers)

2

Easy

Machine Input and Output

2

Difficult

Missing Number

1

Easy

Quantitative Aptitude Section of IIFT 2020 Question Paper

In order to assess candidates’ Mathematical skills and analytical ability the QA section in the IIFT 2020 question paper had 13 moderate difficulty levels of questions from Arithmetic topics; 6 moderate to difficult from Geometry, 3 modern Math, and more. Refer to the table below to get in-depth information on the IIFT 2020 question paper for Quantitative Aptitude.

IIFT 2020 QA Topics

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

Arithmetic

13

Moderate

Geometry

6

Moderate to Difficult

Modern Math

3

Moderate to Difficult

Algebra

2

Easy

Number System

1

Easy

General Knowledge Section of IIFT 2020 Question Paper

In the 2020 IIFT question paper the General Awareness section has 20 questions out of which 15 are Static GK and 5 are Current Affairs. Overall, the difficulty level was moderate. Refer to the original IIFT previous year question paper PDF to practice the 2020 General Knowledge section.

IIFT 2020 GK Topics

Number of Questions

Difficulty Level

Static GK

15

Moderate to Difficult

Current Affairs

5

Easy to Moderate

Why Is Solving IIFT Previous Year Question Papers Important?

Solving IIFT previous year question papers enables you to prepare for the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade entrance exam with confidence. It helps you to be ready for the challenges that will come to you during the IIFT exam. Here are a few key reasons you should practice the IIFT exam previous year question paper.

  1. With a thorough practice of IIFT PYQs understanding the exam structure and weightage become easy. After being thorough with the syllabus, refer to the IIFT PYQs PDF Download file to begin practice.
  2. A better analysis of how well you are prepared for the exam. Doing the self-assessment with the help of IIFT previous year paper reflects your preparation for the actual exam. It also assists you in finding the weak areas to improve.
  3. The more you practice using IIFT previous year question papers, the better your speed and accuracy will become.
  4. When you refer to the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions, you learn about various shortcuts and tricks to answer questions quickly in the actual exam.
  5. Solving the IIFT previous year question papers creates an exam-like environment that enables you to be ready to handle the stress and for surprising questions — practising PYP helps you be calm and handle stress.

Difference between the IIFT Exam Pattern and the CAT Exam

Both the IIFT exam and the CAT exam are for admission to MBA, but IIFT focuses on International Business, while the CAT exam focuses on general management. Let’s learn about the basic differences between the IIFT exam pattern and the CAT exam pattern.

IIFT previous year question paper with solutions PDF

Feature

IIFT

CAT

Number of Sections

4 (Quantitative Ability, Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning, General Awareness)

3 (Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning, Quantitative Ability)

Total Number of Questions

110

66

Total Time

120 minutes

120 minutes

Sectional Time Limit

No

Yes

Marking Scheme

+3 for correct answer, -1/3 for incorrect answer (except General Awareness)

+3 for correct answer, -1 for incorrect answer

Difficulty Level

Moderate to High

High

Focus

International Business

General Management

What Are the Key Topics Covered in the IIFT Question Papers?

The IIFT entrance test examines candidates based on quantitative, verbal, logical reasoning, and general awareness skills. To give you a better understanding, here's a breakdown of the key topics covered in each section of the IIFT Exam. You will find the same format while practising the IIFT previous year question paper.

Key Topics Covered in IIFT Question Papers

Section

Main Topic

Subtopics

Quantitative Ability

Arithmetic

Number systems, percentages, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, ratios and proportions, averages, mixtures and alligations

Algebra

Linear and quadratic equations, functions, logarithmic and exponential functions, progressions

Geometry

Coordinate geometry, mensuration, trigonometry

DILR: Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning

Data Interpretation (DI)

Pie charts, bar graphs, line graphs, tables

Logical Reasoning (LR)

Seating arrangements, blood relations, puzzles, syllogisms, input-output, coding-decoding

Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension

Reading Comprehension (RC)

Passages from various fields like science, history, economics, and social sciences

Verbal Ability (VA)

Vocabulary-based questions (synonyms, antonyms, analogies), grammar, sentence correction, fill in the blanks

General Awareness or GK

Current Affairs

National and international news, economics, business, politics, sports, and culture

Static GK

History, geography, polity, and science

How to Prioritise Preparation for Each Section of the IIFT Exam?

In this section, we will understand how to prioritise your preparation for each section of the IIFT exam.

  1. Quantitative Ability (QA)

Having a strong foundation in Math can help you score higher marks in this section; however, if you lack confidence in Mathematics, you must prioritise mastering the basics of Math. Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and number systems are the fundamental concepts of Quantitative Ability to ensure you have conceptual clarity of these topics.

  1. Data Interpretation (DI)

If you are good at logical reasoning and data analysis, this section can be a game-changer. To master the DI questions you must practice a plethora of Data Interpretation questions regularly. While practicing and learning DI, ensure you master to quickly interpret graphs, charts, and tables.

  1. Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC)

This is a versatile section that examines candidates in all aspects — Reading, ability to comprehend phrases and question answers, word play, and use of grammar rules. This is a crucial section in the IIFT question paper. Here’s a strategy to prepare for the VARC section:

  • Build a habit of reading by adding reading newspapers, magazines, and books to your daily routine to improve your reading speed and comprehension.
  • Refer to the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions free PDF to solve a variety of RC passages. It will help you understand the complex paragraphs faster. Also, ensure you are spending enough time brushing up your grammar skills and improving your vocabulary by learning new words regularly.
  1. General Awareness (GA)

Refer to newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, and Business Standard; watch online news channels as well to stay updated on current affairs.

Strategies for Tackling the Reading Comprehension Passages for IIFT Exam

This section covers practical tips to help you improve your answering in reading comprehension for the IIFT exam.

  • Develop a Reading Habit: Building a reading habit is crucial for gathering general knowledge and to familiarize yourself with different genres and writing styles. In an ideal condition, you should spend adequate time reading newspapers, magazines, books, and a variety of topics. It helps you boost your comprehension skills as well as prepare you for the GA section.
  • Improve Reading Speed and Comprehension: Learn how to skim through the passage quickly to identify the key points. It also helps you utilize most of your time. Other than this, you can boost your reading speed and comprehension by practising several RC passages. Refer to the IIFT previous year question papers to practice RC.
  • Understand the Passage Structure: While reading the reading comprehension passage pinpoint the main idea of the passage and try to understand why the author has written that passage.
  • Analyze the Questions: For RCs, it is always the best method to begin reading the questions first. It helps you understand what answers you need to find out when reading the passage. You can also try to predict the answers before looking at the given options.
  • Master Time Management Skill: While answering the RC questions, you might waste lots of time with tricky questions. With time management skills, you can easily master answering the RC questions; ensure, you are practising IIFT previous year question papers within a time limit to track how much time you are spending with RC passages.

Mistakes to Avoid When Solving IIFT Previous Year Papers

It’s very important to keep in mind certain common mistakes that most candidates make when they solve the IIFT previous year question paper. Knowing these shortcomings will help you be prepared for the actual exam.

IIFT previous year question papers with solutions PDF free download

  • Not focusing on sectional scores — IIFT question papers have sectional cut-offs, but many make the mistake of considering the question paper as a single paper. Any candidate having low performance in one section can be a reason to disqualify. Ensure, you are paying attention to each section carefully. Take a look at the IIFT Sectional Cut-Off: VA & RC (32-35), LR & DI (20-22), QA (15-16) and GK (5-7).
  • Trying to remember answers from IIFT PYQs — Many students do it: they try to memorize all the 110 questions from IIFT PYQs instead of understanding the concepts behind solving problems. Keep in mind that understanding concepts is key because the conducting body can introduce any new questions, so focus on learning the methodology to answer the question.
  • Imbalance between speed and accuracy: Having a balance between speed and accuracy is crucial because attempting too many questions without focus on accuracy, or being overly cautious can cause loss of marks. The best solution to this mistake is to refer to the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions free PDF.
FAQs
Need answers? Find them here...
The IIFT previous year question papers with solutions PDF free download is considered to be a valuable resource for exam preparation. If you solve these papers, then you can learn how to tackle the problems within a time limit. This skill is very important to build your speed and accuracy for the exam. Also, with the review of these past papers, you will be able to understand the exact pattern of questions that are asked in different sections.
The number of IIFT PYQs PDF download that you should include in your practice totally depends on your preparation strategy. The experts at SelfStudys recommend you to solve at least 5-10 years of previous year question papers. By doing so, you can develop a strong grasp of the exam structure and question formation. Additionally, solving the papers from different years helps you practice various difficulty levels and enhance your problem-solving skills.
Once you have solved the IIFT previous year paper, doing an analysis of your performance is quite important. Because, this way, you will be able to learn about the areas where you need to improve. For this process, you should start by reviewing the questions that you found difficult or were not able to answer correctly. You can also note down the types of questions that were challenging across the sections and focus on the related topics to increase your understanding.
In the IIFT previous year question paper with solutions, the difficulty level ranges from moderate to difficult. Through this examination, your ability to think critically and solve problems within time limits is tested mainly. While some questions in the paper are quite straightforward, many of them require advanced problem-solving skills as well as a strong knowledge of various concepts. The key to scoring well is the consistent practice of PYPs and familiarity with the varied difficulty of the exam.
Absolutely, you can refer to the IIFT previous year question paper while preparing for exams like CAT, XAT, SNAP, etc. The reference will be useful because while every exam might have a unique structure, the core areas that are tested are almost the same. With the practice of these papers, you can build a strong foundation in different sections and take other MBA exams as well. However, you need to be aware of the specific differences in the syllabus and patterns of the exam that you are about to take.
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