The Test
Total Score
Required Scores
Registration and preparation

The Test

The exam measures basic verbal, mathematical and analytical writing skills that the examinee has developed over a long period of time in his/her education and work. Test takers are given 3.5 hours to answer questions in each of the three tested areas, and there are also two 10-minute breaks; in general, the test takes about four hours to complete. It does not measure specific knowledge of business, job skills, or subjective qualities such as motivation, creativity, and interpersonal skills. If a test taker's first language is not English, he or she may still perform well on the exam; however, the GMAT exam may not accurately reflect the abilities of someone whose first language is not English. Business Schools with a high proportion of non-native English speaking students tend to have a lower average GMAT score.

Scores are valid for five years (at most institutions) from the date the test taker sits for the exam until the date of matriculation (i.e. acceptance, not until the date of application). The Stanford University Graduate School of Business website offers a "test results calculator"

The maximum score that can be achieved on the exam is 800, and the 2005/2006 mean score was 533.[4]

Verbal Section

The verbal section consists of 41 multiple choice questions, which must be answered within 75 minutes. There are three types of questions: sentence correction, critical reasoning and reading comprehension. The verbal section is scored from 0 to 60 points with a current mean of 27.3/60.

Sentence Correction

This tests grammar and expression. Sentence correction items consist of a sentence, all or part of which has been underlined, with five associated answer choices. The test taker must choose the best way of rendering the underlined part. This question type tests the ability to recognize standard Written English. The task is to evaluate the grammar, logic, and effectiveness of a given sentence and to choose the best of several suggested revisions. Choice (A) repeats the original; the other answer choices vary. It tests the ability to recognize correct and effective expression. It follows the requirements of Standard Written English: grammar, word choice and sentence construction. The goal is to choose the answer that results in the clearest, most exact sentence and does not change the meaning of the original sentence.

Critical Reasoning

This tests logical thinking. Critical thinking items present an argument that the test taker is asked to analyze. Questions may ask test takers to draw a conclusion, to identify assumptions, or to recognize strengths or weaknesses in the argument. It presents brief statements or arguments and ask to evaluate the form or content of the statement or argument. Questions of this type ask the examinee to analyze and evaluate the reasoning in short paragraphs or passages. For some questions, all of the answer choices may conceivably be answers to the question asked. The examinee should select the best answer to the question, that is, an answer that does not require making assumptions that violate common sense standards by being implausible, redundant, irrelevant, or inconsistent.

Reading Comprehension

This tests the ability to read critically. Reading comprehension questions relate to a passage that is provided for the examinee to read. The passage can be about almost anything, and the questions about it test how well the examinee understands the passage and the information in it. As the name implies, it tests the ability of the examinee to understand the substance and logical structure of a written selection. The GMAT uses reading passages of approximately 200 to 350 words. Each passage has three or more questions based on its content. The questions ask about the main point of the passage, about what the author specifically states, about what can be logically inferred from the passage, and about the author's attitude or tone.

Quantitative Section

The quantitative section consists of 37 multiple choice questions, which must be answered within 75 minutes. There are two types of questions: problem solving and data sufficiency. The quantitative section is scored from 0 to 60 points and the current mean score is 35.0/60

Most international MBA programs take only the quantitative section into account, as the degrees they offer will not be taught in English. These areas normally demand a higher quantitative score and ignore the verbal sections.

Problem Solving

This tests the quantitative reasoning ability. Problem-solving questions present multiple-choice problems in arithmetic, basic algebra, and elementary geometry. The task is to solve the problems and choose the correct answer from among five answer choices. Some problems will be plain mathematical calculations; the rest will be presented as real life word problems that will require mathematical solutions.

Numbers: All numbers used are real numbers.

Figures: The diagrams and figures that accompany these questions are for the purpose of providing useful information in answering the questions. Unless it is stated that a specific figure is not drawn to scale, the diagrams and figures are drawn as accurately as possible. All figures are in a plane unless otherwise indicated.

Data Sufficiency

This tests the quantitative reasoning ability using an unusual set of directions. The examinee is given a question with two associated statements that provide information that might be useful in answering the question. The examinee then must determine whether either statement alone is sufficient to answer the question; whether both are needed to answer the question; or whether there is not enough information given to answer the question.

Data sufficiency is a unique type of math question created especially for the GMAT. Each item consists of the questions itself followed by two numbered statements. The examinee must decide whether the statements � either individually or in combination � provide enough information to answer the question.

(A) If statement 1 alone is sufficient to answer the question, but statement 2 alone is not sufficient.

(B) If statement 2 alone is sufficient to answer the question, but statement 1 alone is not sufficient.

(D) If either statement by itself is sufficient to answer the question.

(E) If not enough facts are given to answer the question.

Analytical Writing Assessment

The Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) section of the test consists of two essays. In the first, the student must analyze an argument and in the second the student must analyze an issue. Each essay must be written within 30 minutes and is scored on a scale of 0-6. The essay is read by two readers who each mark the essay with a grade from 0-6, in 0.5 point increments with a mean score of 4.1. If the two scores are within one point of each other, they are averaged. If there is more than one point difference, the essays are read by a third reader.

The first reader is Intellimetric, a proprietary computer program developed by Vantage Learning, which analyzes creative writing and syntax of more than 50 linguistic and structural features.The second and third readers are humans, who evaluate the quality of the examinee's ideas and his or her ability to organize, develop and express ideas with relevant support. While mastery of the conventions of written English factor into scoring, minor errors are expected, and evaluators are trained to be sensitive to examinees whose first language is not English.

Most business schools do not weigh the AWA as heavily as the verbal and quantitative sections of the test. Some schools ignore the AWA altogether.

Each of the two essays in the Analytical Writing part of the test is graded on a scale of 0 (the minimum) to 6 (the maximum):

0 An essay that is totally illegible or obviously not written on the assigned topic.
1 An essay that is fundamentally deficient.
2 An essay that is seriously flawed.
3 An essay that is seriously limited.
4 An essay that is merely adequate.
5 An essay that is strong.
6 An essay that is outstanding.

Total Score

The "Total Score", comprising the quantitative and verbal sections, is exclusive of the analytical writing assessment (AWA), and ranges from 200 to 800. About two-thirds of test takers score between 400 and 600. The score distribution resembles a bell curve with a standard deviation of approximately 100 points, meaning that the test is designed for 68% of examinees to score between 400 and 600, while the median score was originally designed to be near 500. The 2005/2006 mean score was 533

The quantitative and verbal sections comprise a computer-adaptive test. The first question may be difficult. The next few questions in each section may be around the 500 level. If the examinee answers correctly, the next questions are harder. If the examinee answers incorrectly, the next questions are easier. The questions are pulled from a large pool of questions and delivered depending on the student's running score. These questions are regularly updated to prevent them from being compromised by students recording questions.

The final score is not based solely on the last question the examinee answers (i.e. - the level of difficulty of questions reached through the computer-adaptive presentation of questions). The algorithm used to build a score is more complicated than that. The examinee can make a silly mistake and answer incorrectly and the computer will recognize that item as an anomaly. If the examinee misses the first question his score will not necessarily fall in the bottom half of the range.

Also, questions left blank (that is, those not reached) hurt the examinee more than questions answered incorrectly. This is a major contrast to the SAT, which has a wrong-answer penalty. Each test section also includes several experimental questions, which do not count toward the examinee's score, but are included to judge the appropriateness of the item for future administrations.

Verbal and Quantitative Section scores range from 0 to 60. Analytical Writing Assessment scores range from 0 to 6 and represent the average of the ratings from the two GMAT essays. Because the essays are scored so differently from the verbal and Quantitative sections, essay scores are not included in the total score.

Required Scores

GMAT scores will depend on several characteristics of the questions presented to the candidate, including difficulty level, your answers to those questions, and the number of questions you answer.

The GMAT test results comprise four different scores

Total score
Verbal Ability score
Quantitative Ability score
Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) score

Each of these scores is reported on a fixed scale. The total score is the combined verbal and quantitative scores and it is reported on a scale from 200 to 800. The Verbal and Quantitative Scores are reported on a scale of 0 to 60. The AWA (Analytical Writing Assessment ) performance is not reflected in the total GMAT score (on 800). Analytical writing scores, which range on a scale from 0 to 6, are computed separately.

One can get his/her total, verbal, and quantitative score immediately after taking the test. Official GMAT score reports, which include the AWA scores will be available approximately 20 days after the test.

In addition to these scores, the score report also contains percents (%) below. These "% below" indicate the percentage of examinees who scored below you based on the scores of the entire GMAT testing population for the most recent three-year period. These percentages are important in considering how an applicant for admission to a particular management school compares with everyone in the specified period, with all other applicants to the same school, and with students already enrolled at the school.

A candidate can report their GMAT scores to a maximum of five universities of their choice. But they have to select these universities before taking the test. The cost of sending the copies of the score report is also included in the GMAT test fee that has to be paid. For reporting to each additional university, the charge is US $28, payable by an international credit card or a dollar denominated draft.

The desired GMAT score by the abroad universities is 700 and above. Though the GMAT score is valid for 5 years, most of the universities insist on a score not more than 2-3 years.

One can take GMAT exam every 31 days, but no more than 5 times in a 12-month period. If you score an 800 on the exam, you are not eligible to test again for 5 years from the test date. If you repeat the test, your scores from the latest test date and the two most recent test administrations in the last five years will be reported to the institutions you designate as recipients.

Registration and preparation

The test taker can register in either of the following two ways:

Online at mba.com test registration by credit card
By calling one of the test centers listed on mba.com