0The Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) is a computer-adaptive test (CAT) required for admission to many MBA programs.
The test consists of four sections in the following order:
- Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) section
- Integrated Reasoning section
- Quantitative (math) section
- Verbal section
Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) (one essay, 30 minutes)
In the AWA section, you must write an essay called Analysis of an Argument. In this essay, you must analyze the reasoning behind a given argument and write a critique.
For more information about the Analytical Writing Assessment Section, visit the official GMAT website.
Integrated Reasoning (IR) Section (12 questions, 30 minutes)
This section tests your ability to analyze information from multiple sources (tables, graphs, text, and so on). There are four question types:
- Table Analysis: Use and manipulate data from a table to answer a series of “True/False” questions.
- Graphics Interpretation: Use information from a graph, chart or some other source of visual information to complete a series of statements.
- Multi-Source Reasoning: Use data from several tabbed pages (which may include text, tables or graphics) to answer a series of “Yes/No” questions.
- Two-Part Analysis: Use a single set of data to answers two questions that may or may not be related.
Note: In the Integrated Reasoning section, you will have access to an onscreen calculator. This calculator is not available for any other sections of the test.
For more information about the Integrated Reasoning section, visit the official GMAT website.
Quantitative Section (37 questions, 75 minutes)
The Quantitative (math) section features two question types:
- Problem Solving questions present a mathematical problem and five answer choices.
- Data Sufficiency questions pose a question followed by two numbered statements. You must examine the statements and determine whether they provide enough information to answer the question.
For more information about the Quantitative Section, visit the official GMAT website.
Verbal Section (41 questions, 75 minutes)
The Verbal section features three question types:
- Sentence Correction questions present a sentence containing an underlined portion. You must determine whether the underlined portion contains any grammatical or stylistic errors; if it does, you must select the answer choice that best corrects the sentence.
- Critical Reasoning questions present a short, logical argument followed by a question stem. You must perform some sort of analysis on the argument.
- Reading Comprehension questions present a reading passage with up to 350 words. The question may ask you to summarize the author’s main point, strengthen or weaken an argument made in the passage, or identify what must be true based on the facts presented.
For more information about the Verbal Section, visit the official GMAT website.
GMAT Scores
Once you complete the test, you will receive five scores:
- Verbal Scaled Score: 0 to 60
- Quantitative Scaled Score: 0 to 60
- Total Scaled Score: 200 to 800
- Analytical Writing Assessment: 0 to 6
- Integrated Reasoning: 1 to 8
