IPMAT 2026 Complete Roadmap: How To Prepare For IPMAT?

IPMAT 2026 Complete Roadmap: IPMAT stands for Integrated Programme in Management Aptitude Test. It’s an entrance exam conducted by the top Indian Institutes of Management for students who want to get into their undergraduate management programmes. This test allows students to pursue their management careers after finishing secondary school.

The IPMAT exam assesses candidates’ abilities in areas such as Quantitative Ability, Verbal Ability, and Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation. It is usually multiple-choice and taken online. 

How To Prepare For IPMAT- Exam Structure:

IPMAT Indore

IPMAT Rohtak

JIPMAT

Read More: IPMAT Paper Pattern 2025: Marking Scheme, Number of Questions, Details

How To Prepare For IPMAT- Syllabus Breakdown:

The syllabus for these exams is limited to testing aptitude level and stream neutral. Hence, the majority of the topics are those covered in class 9th and 10th. 

Quantitative Ability 

The topics covered are Number systems, Divisibility, HCF and LCM, Surds and Indices, Percentages, Profit and Loss, Simple Interest and Compound Interest, Ratio Proportion, Averages, Mixtures, Time Speed and Distance, Time and Work, Triangles, Circles, Quadrilateral, Mensuration, Functions, Inequalities, Logarithm, Sequence and Series, Trigonometry, Set Theory and Venn diagrams, Permutation, Combination and Probability. 

Verbal Ability

The topics covered are Reading Comprehension, Grammar, Antonyms, Synonyms, Fill in the blanks, Idioms, Phrasal verbs, Summary, Para completion, and Parajumble. 

Logical Reasoning & Data Interpretation

The topics covered are Blood Relations, Direction Sense, Arrangement, Groups and Conditionalities, Series completion, Odd one out, Sequential Input and Output, Decision Making, Cubes and Dices, Calendar, Verbal Reasoning, Visual Reasoning, Graphs and Tables. 

Read More: IPMAT Syllabus 2025: Section-wise Syllabus, IIM (Indore & Rohtak)
JIPMAT Syllabus: Section- Wise Important Topics

How To Prepare For IPMAT- Difficulty Level and Trends:

IPMAT Indore is the most difficult non-engineering and non-medical UG entrance exam. IPMAT Rohtak and JIPMAT are comparatively easier. However, the sectional time limit and the sectional cut-off marks make IPMAT Indore more difficult. 

The last three year’s cut-offs for General category students are as follows:

IPMAT Indore

IPMAT Rohtak 

JIPMAT

Setting Up a Timeline: When to Start and How to Progress

18-24  Months Before the Exam (Foundation Phase):

The focus should be on building a strong foundation of Mathematics, especially the topics learnt in classes 9th and 10th. The focus should also be on developing reading habits – these can be done by reading editorials daily and one book/novel weekly. This will not only help improve reading speed but also improve Vocabulary. Attend classes and devote 1-2 hours daily to IPMAT/JIPMAT preparation. 

12-18 Months Before the Exam (Early Prep Phase):

Increase the frequency to 2-3 hours daily. The focus should be on targeted preparation in the Quantitative and Verbal sections, emphasising achieving 85%+ accuracy. Also, one should start with a topic-wise test to gauge the understanding and preparedness of that topic. 

9-12 Months Before the Exam (Intermediate Prep Phase):

The focus should be on writing module and sectional tests to build test familiarity and muscle memory and solve tests under time constraints. Even the regular practice should also be on a timer to start building speed without compromising accuracy. 

6-9 Months Before the Exam (Intensive Prep Phase):

The focus should be on taking one mock test every fortnight. The key after the mock test is to Analyse the test. The Analysis should take 4-6 hours per mock, working on weak areas and practising high-weightage and challenging topics. 

Postboard (Revision Phase):

The focus should be weekly mock tests, intensive revision of challenging topics, solving past papers, and finalising exam strategies. The most critical aspect is adjusting the test-day strategy based on mock performance. 

Read More: Top Colleges Accepting IPMAT Score in India

Section-Wise Strategy: Key Concepts and Approaches

Quantitative Ability:

This is a crucial section in all entrance exams, as the number of attempts and accuracy in this section can be the game changer. The ideal way to start preparing for Quantitative Ability is to go through the past-year papers or watch last year’s exam analysis video to get used to the type of questions. One should take one topic at a time, master that topic, and then move on to the next topic. The aptitude exam tests the aptitude level, not whether you can solve the questions step by step. So, learning shortcut techniques and speed calculation will help you save time. 

Suggested books: RS Agarwal, Arun Sharma, IMS study material

Verbal Ability:

This is a high-scoring, less time-consuming section that can boost overall marks. Before you start the preparation, you can learn Vocabulary through targeted word lists and Vocabulary apps. You need to make sure that you read a mix of fiction, newspapers, editorials, and essays and work on improving your comprehension and reasoning skills through regular practice. 

Suggested books: Wren and Martin (for Grammar), mobile app (for Vocabulary), The Hindu (for Editorial), Aeon (for online reading) and IMS study material (for comprehensive study) 

Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation: 

This section requires regular practice as it can be built over time, and there are no formulae or shortcuts. Rather, you must master the art of identifying the logic by looking at the question. The best way to improve logical reasoning is to solve Sudoku, Kakuro, and KenKen puzzles daily. You should also regularly practice various question types, as mentioned above. To improve your Data Interpretation skills, you need to work on calculation skills by learning fractions to percentage equivalent and vice versa and using them while solving questions. 

Suggested books: RS Agarwal, IMS study material

How To Prepare For IPMAT- Daily and Weekly Study Routine

This is a crucial part of the preparation journey. Building a habit takes time. You should follow the schedule for several weeks before gauging success.

Moreover, as rightly said by Arnold H. – “Success is simple. Do what is right, the right way, at the right time.” 

The schedule should always be backtracked. Define what you want to accomplish by the end of the month and then backtrack the weekly and daily schedule. You should practice Quant, Logical Reasoning and Verbal Ability every week. You can divide the time according to the strong and weak areas. The video below will help you to understand how to create an effective study plan. 

The Importance of Mocks and Analysis

The best way to learn to swim is to jump in the pool. Similarly, the best way to gauge your preparedness is to write a Mock Test and Analyse the performance. Writing mocks will help you try new strategies, test your content, build muscle memory, form fresh content, understand your potential, and build psychological strength. Analysing mocks will help you understand strong and weak areas and plan accordingly to improve your weak areas. The key to success and improvement of performance is to analyse the test. The video below will help you understand the ideal way to Analyse the test. 

Managing Stress and Staying Motivated

It is important to stay motivated throughout the preparation journey. There will be days when you must prioritise the 12th board preparation, as scoring good marks in the 12th board is equally important. Preparing for IPMAT and the 12th board might get overwhelming, and you may feel burned out. Hence, you should keep pursuing your hobbies and rest properly. It is important to peak at the right moment and not get exhausted on D-day. Keep rewarding yourself for achieving a monthly milestone. 

In a nutshell, starting to prepare early for IPMAT is the key to success, and one should avoid falling for common pitfalls such as ignoring test analysis, allowing backlog, not creating a schedule, or not following the schedule. 

Always remember, if it is to be, it is up to me !! Opportunities don’t happen. You create them !!