Official GMAT test center rules are extremely strict to prevent students from smuggling anything in or out. Upon arrival, you must put all belongings into a locker; the only items permitted inside the testing room are your ID and the locker key. All aids, including calculators, notebooks, protractors, and personal watches are prohibited. You are not permitted to study any notes or to write anything down during the breaks, nor are you allowed to use cell phones or other communication devices. Do not store any study notes or GMAT prep materials in your locker; do not even bring such items to the test center. (And if you can’t stop yourself from checking your email or voicemail, don’t bring those devices into the test center either.) Students caught cheating face invalidated scores and the possibility of being denied admission to business school.
GMAC, the organization that administers the GMAT, is very serious about securing test-takers’ identities. The extent of the security process can be off-putting for a first-time test-taker, which is why it is important to be prepared for this ahead of time. All test-takers will be asked to submit appropriate ID. You should check www.mba.com for the requirements in your country, noting that requirements can vary based upon citizenship. You will also have to undergo digital verification, including a fingerprint or palm vein pattern, signature, and photo. Every time you enter or leave the testing room, the digital fingerprint or palm vein pattern will be taken again, and the proctor will check you against your digital photo.
If you are concerned about distractions as others enter or leave the testing room, you can request earplugs; it’s best to make this request before entering the testing room.
As you are about to enter the testing room, you will receive one laminated scratch paper pad and one pen to take notes and solve problems during the exam. The laminated booklet consists of five sheets of legal-sized (8.5 inch by 14 inch) yellow graph paper bound together along the top edge. Note that pen marks cannot be erased from this booklet without water, which you won’t have access to in the testing room. If you make a mistake, don’t attempt to erase and correct your work; just begin working again from the point at which you made the error. But be sure to use space wisely! Although you may request a new booklet or pen at any point during the exam, swapping booklets in the middle of a section can waste valuable time. It is advisable to stick to one booklet and pen per section, only swapping for new ones during each 8-minute break. This way you can begin each section with fresh materials. Note that you will have to return the old booklet or pen when given a new one.
Before the test begins, you will be able to select which schools you want to receive your GMAT scores; you may select up to five schools for free. (There is a $28 per-school fee for any additional score reports after that point.) Score reports contain all valid GMAT scores, as well as an indication of any cancelled scores. GMAT scores are valid for 5 years from the date of the test.
Students often question whether to report their scores because they are selecting schools before they know their test score. That’s a natural response, but it actually makes sense to select five free schools anyway. The score you get will end up on your official GMAT “transcript”; you cannot remove or hide anything. You must submit this transcript if you want to apply to a school, which means they will eventually see all of your scores. Because you have to give them access anyway, you might as well give them access before you know the score, when it doesn’t cost you anything extra! Don’t worry — admissions offices have no time to look up your score before you’ve even applied. In fact, some schools do not even verify your self-reported score until after they’ve accepted you.
Before you get started, you will also have the option to complete a short tutorial explaining how the exam will work. During the test, a countdown clock on the screen will display the time remaining (in minutes and seconds) in a given section. You can choose to turn this clock off if desired. When answering questions, you must first click “next” when finished with a question and then click “confirm” before a new question will appear on the screen.
When you’ve completed the exam, you will have to choose whether to accept that day’s test results before seeing the actual score. If you choose to accept the results, your Quantitative and Verbal scores will appear on the screen immediately and, after leaving the testing room, you will be given a printed copy of the scores. If you choose to cancel theresults, your score will not be calculated and you will not be given any information as to how you performed. Your score report will still show that you took the exam on that day, but it will indicate that you chose to cancel the score. You will still have to wait 31 days before taking the exam again, and no refund will be provided.
The essay score will not be provided on test day; when registering, your will choose to receive your essay score either online or in the mail. If you choose the online option, you will receive the score within 20 days, though it’s not uncommon to receive the score within a week. It typically takes longer to receive the essay score by regular mail.
Because of the adaptive format of the test, the GMAT feels hard for everyone, even those scoring at the highest levels. It is not uncommon for people who end up scoring very well to feel as though they performed poorly on the exam; you should keep this in mind when deciding whether to cancel your score. Even if you do not do as well as you would have liked, you will benefit from receiving scoring information that can help you prepare to retake the test. If you cancel your scores, you will not receive any data as to how well you performed on the Quantitative and Verbal sections. In general, we advise that test-takers who finish the exam accept their scores, even if they feel they may have to take the test again. We only recommend canceling scores in unusual circumstances (for example, if the test-taker is too ill to finish the exam).
After the test is over, you will be asked to answer a series of demographic questions. If you previously provided the answers to any of these questions (for example, during the registration process), the test will already display those answers and you will be asked to confirm the data if the information is accurate or to correct the data if the information is inaccurate.
There are a number of things you should do, and other things you should avoid, on the day of your official test and the days leading up to it.
Things to DO Right Before or During the Exam
What to DO | Why |
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Mimic test conditions on practice tests | When taking practice tests, mimic test conditions as closely as possible, including the time of day you take the tests. Do the essays, take only 8-minute breaks between sections, and leave your seat during the break. (Do not look at notes or write on your scrap paper during the break!) |
Sleep and eat like an athlete | In the several days before the exam, it's important to have a consistent sleep schedule and to eat foods that will give you good mental and physical energy; eat enough before and during the exam that you're not hungry but not so much that you become sluggish or sleepy. |
Eat energy food | Appropriate foods include those that contain complex carbs (whole grains) or good fats within moderation (nuts, olive or other oil high in monounsaturated fats). Consider eating avocados, dates, raisins, tuna or chicken salad with small amounts of mayo, peanut butter, or your favorite Powerbar (one you've had before). |
Get everything ready the night before | ID (check the requirements, depending on your country and citizenship status, at www.mba.com), directions to the testing center, money, food and drink, practice problems. |
Arrive early at the test center | The most basic reason: you don't want to be late. For another reason, see below. |
Warm up just outside the test center | After you arrive (early!) but before you enter the test center, do about 5 very easy practice problems; rip out the first page of a section from one of the Official Guides for GMAT Review and bring it with you. Do NOT bring the answers. (You are merely warming up your brain; you are not testing yourself.) Also, do NOT bring the practice problems into the testing center with you; leave them in your car or throw them out. |
Take the breaks | Technically, the breaks are optional, but you should absolutely take the breaks. After leaving the testing room, stretch, eat, drink, and do whatever else necessary to lift your energy/mood going into the next section. |
Eat and drink during breaks | See above for what to eat; eat and drink a small amount during the break, even if you aren't hungry or thirsty. |
Things to AVOID Right Before or During the Exam
Things to AVOID | Why |
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Burning yourself out | Don't over-train in the few days before the exam. This can include: taking a practice test within 3 days of the real exam; reviewing for more than 30 minutes on the day of the exam; studying for more than 2 hours on the day before the exam; studying for more than 4 hours per day in the several days before that. |
Changing your routine | Don't suddenly change the way you do basic things. Keep to the same sleep schedule. Don't take a sleeping pill for the first time the night before. Don't have three cups of coffee when you'd normally have one. |
Bringing GMAT notes into the test center | You're not allowed to look at notes or practice problems even while on a break; the proctors can cancel your exam if they see you doing this. So don't bring any notes into the test center in the first place! And again, make sure you don't touch your cell phone or anything else electronic during the breaks. You may just be checking the score of the game, but the proctors may cancel your exam on the spot. |
Dwelling on past problems | Focus on the problem on the screen in front of you; don't think about problems that have already come and gone. If you find yourself obsessing about a past problem (or anything), tell yourself: "I can think about that all I want, but first I have to finish the problem I'm on right now." If you're still thinking about the past problem when you finish the current one, tell yourself the same thing for the new problem on the screen. |
Trying to figure out your score | Don't even think about it! It's almost impossible, even for a 99th percentile expert, to figure out one's performance during the exam. Most likely, you'll remember only the hardest problems and think you're doing poorly — this increases anxiety and will likely hinder your performance. |
© 2010 by MG Prep, Inc