The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is a standardized test that helps business schools assess the skill level of students looking to pursue an MBA.
The GMAT evaluates a number of skills including mathematical, verbal, and analytical writing skills. These are skills that have been cultivated throughout your academic and career, as well as your professional life, and will be put forward in the test.
The GMAT is comprised of three main parts: the Analytical Writing Assessment, the Quantitative Section, and the Verbal Section. The exam is a computer-adaptive test, meaning that it is administered solely on the computer and takes five hours to complete, including periodic breaks and test details given by the administrator. Students are able to take the test year-round at GMAT® test centers around the country. Students can register for the exam by visiting www.mba.com/mba/TaketheGMAT.
Students taking the test must begin with the Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA), and must complete two different writing sections of the AWA—including analysis of an issue and analysis of an argument. Students are allotted 30 minutes to complete each section of the test.
After completing the AWA section, students are given an optional ten-minute break before beginning work on the quantitative section of the GMAT. Students are allotted 75 minutes to complete 37 multiple-choice questions. The multiple choice questions are given in two different question types—data sufficiency and problem solving.
Students are also given an optional ten-minute break after completing the quantitative section of the GMAT and before beginning the Verbal Section of the test. Students are allotted 75 minutes to complete 41 multiple choice questions. The multiple choice questions are given in three question types—reading comprehension, critical reasoning, and sentence correction.
