Introduction

The GMAT, or the Graduate Management Admission Test, is one of the key components of the business school application process. The test evaluates certain basic skills and academic abilities of prospective MBA students, including general knowledge garnered during college and high school; it does not include any business questions. This document provides a thorough introduction to the GMAT, including the test format, question types, categories of knowledge tested, scoring algorithm, and more. It also examines the general business school admissions process.

The GMAT consists of three sections: Analytical Writing Assessment, Quantitative, and Verbal. The first section requires the student to compose two essays, while the Quantitative and Verbal sections are multiple-choice. The multiple-choice sections of the test are given in a Computer Adaptive format: the exam actually adapts itself to each student as the student takes the test. The exam begins with a random question but the computer chooses each subsequent question based upon the responses the student has given to that point in the test. Later in this document, we discuss all of the test sections, as well as the Computer Adaptive format, in detail.

The GMAT is administered 6 days a week, 52 weeks per year, for a fee of $250. While it isn’t typically offered on Sundays or holidays, certain testing sites may provide accommodations for religious purposes; check www.mba.com for these and other details about how to register for the exam. Essentially, you can take the GMAT whenever you want, though you are limited to one test in any 31-day period, with a maximum of five tests per 12-month period. (If you happen to score an 800, you won’t be allowed to take the test again until your score expires 5 years later!)

All together, the test itself takes 3 hours and 46 minutes: 60 minutes for the Analytical Writing Assessment, 75 minutes for the Quantitative Section, 75 minutes for the Verbal Section, and two 8-minute breaks. The sign-in security process and other procedures, such as selecting schools to receive score reports, can add up to an hour to the process.