When you have solid background information about Graduate Management Admission Test, which is popularly known as GMAT, the big assurance is that you will have virtually nothing to worry about as it is said that we only fear what we don’t understand. We certainly become masters of what we have a standard grasp of knowledge of.
The Graduate Management Admission Test exam is designed to test skills that are highly important to business and management programs. It assesses analytical writing and problem-solving abilities, along with the data sufficiency, logic, and critical reasoning skills that are vital to real-world business and management success.
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The Definition
By concept, the exam is a computer adaptive test (CAT) intended to assess certain analytical, writing, quantitative, verbal, and reading skills in written English for use in admission to a graduate management program, such as a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program.
Answering the test questions requires knowledge of English grammatical rules, reading comprehension, and mathematical skills such as arithmetic, algebra, and geometry. It can be taken up to five times a year but no more than eight times total. Attempts must be at least 16 days apart.
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Historical Sketch of the Exam
In 1953, the organization now called the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) began as an association of nine business schools, whose goal was to develop a standardized test to help business schools select qualified applicants. In the first year it was offered, the assessment (now known as the Graduate Management Admission Test), was taken just over 2,000 times; in recent years, it has been taken more than 230,000 times annually.
Initially used in admissions by 54 schools, the test is now used by more than 7,000 programs at approximately 2,300 graduate business schools around the world. On June 5, 2012, GMAC introduced an integrated reasoning section to the exam that aims to measure a test taker’s ability to evaluate information presented in multiple formats from multiple sources.
In April 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the closing of in-person testing centers around the world, GMAC quickly moved to launch an online format of the GMAT exam.
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Is It a Registered and Recognized Exam?
GMAT is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admission Council. More than 7,000 programs at approximately 2,300+ graduate business schools around the world accept the GMAT as part of the selection criteria for their programs.
Business schools use the test as a criterion for admission into a wide range of graduate management programs, including MBA, Master of Accountancy, Master of Finance programs and others. The GMAT is administered online and in standardized test centers in 114 countries around the world. According to a survey conducted by Kaplan Test Prep, the GMAT is still the number one choice for MBA aspirants.
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Sections, Score, and Durations of the Exam
Apart of the pieces of details to know about Graduate Management Admission Test, these are some of the sections into which GMAT is broken. The GMAT exam consists of four sections, including:
Section
- Analytical writing assessment
- Verbal reasoning
- Integrated reasoning
- Quantitative reasoning
Score
The maximum score achievable for the GMAT is 800, and exam scores are generally valid for five years following the exam’s completion.
Read Also: Things to Know About MPRE
Duration
On average, the exam takes three and one-half hours to complete.
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Requirements for the Exam
The Graduate Management Admissions Council requires identification to take the test. These are:
- International travel passport—a passport is always required when taking the exam at a location outside of your country. Expired passports are not acceptable.
- Green Cards (Permanent Resident Cards) for non-citizen residents
- Government-issued driver’s license
- Government-issued national/state/province identity card
- Military ID card
