GMAT Purpose: 3 Main Uses of the GMAT Exam

Do you know nearly 100,000+ candidates sit for the GMAT™ examination annually to apply for graduate management or MBA programs? According to reports by GMAC (the official body conducting the GMAT™ exam), 9 out of 10 new enrollments in MBA programs are done with the GMAT scores. 

Read on if you want to know the purpose of the GMAT exam and how it is advantageous, especially to study abroad.

GMAT Exam and Pattern

The Graduate Management Admission Test, or the GMAT, is highly popular among students as well as institutions. Before answering the why part, let’s dive into a few details about the exam.

• It has the following sections:
• Integrated Reasoning (12 questions and 30 minutes), 
• Analytical Writing Assessment (one essay and 30 minutes), 
• Quantitative (31 questions and 62 minutes), and 
• Verbal (36 questions and 65 minutes) 
• It is an adaptive computer test, i.e., the difficulty levels of the next questions are based on the earlier responses of the candidate. 
• The overall scores vary between 200-800 points in increments of ten points. Scores range from 6 to 51 for the Quant and Verbal sections with one-point increments. The Analytical Writing Assessment scores range between 0 and 6 with half-point increments, while the Integrated Reasoning scores range between 1-8 with one-point increments. 
• The total test time is 3 hours and 7 minutes.

Main Purpose of GMAT 

Let’s now discuss what the GMAT exam is used for. The exam is most commonly used to apply for graduate management programs or MBA courses at leading institutions worldwide. Here are some key points regarding its purpose: 

1. Selection Criteria

• Numerous business schools use GMAT as a criterion for admitting students into business and management programs. 
• GMAT is used for admissions across 7,700+ programs at 2,400+ global institutions in 114 countries.

2. Scholarships

Many institutions use the GMAT exam scores to offer scholarships for pursuing MBA programs. A good GMAT score increases your chances of getting scholarships at your dream MBA institutions.

3. Test Your Knowledge & Business Aptitude

• Business schools trust the examination as it tests skills like problem-solving, analytical writing, data sufficiency, and critical reasoning, which are necessary to succeed in the corporate industry. 
• Taking the exam is also a good way to understand where you stand and how well you can pursue a management program.

How to Prepare for GMAT? 

Preparing for the GMAT exam requires strategic planning and hard work. Here are a few general guidelines for the same: 

1. Create a study blueprint- The first step is to build a personal study blueprint covering all the examination sections. A concrete and comprehensive plan with timelines is vital to determine the efforts and time required to prepare for the exam satisfactorily. 
2. Choosing good study materials- Choosing the GMAT official materials for preparation can help to acquaint yourself with the exam pattern and types of questions asked. Along with the official study guides, there are ample books and online resources available that you can use to practice.
3. Working on weaknesses- Students must zero in on their shortcomings concerning the GMAT exam sections. Consistent practice with mock tests can help to overcome these weaknesses. 
4. Time management and actual examination practice- You should focus on time management while appearing for simulated or practice tests. With mock testing options that use similar algorithms as the actual exam, you can efficiently evaluate the approximate time to complete your test. 
5. Penalty aspects- You should remember that there are penalties for not finishing every section of the examination. For every unanswered question, the score goes down.