Are you planning to apply for a postgraduate degree in management abroad? You surely must’ve come across the statement “good GMAT scores” under the admissions criteria of the programme you’re interested in. Wondering what the GMAT is? Is it only for those with a STEM education background? Read this article to learn more about the GMAT exam, the GMAT syllabus 2021, and scores to clear all your doubts.
What is GMAT?
The Graduate Management Admissions Test or the GMAT is a globally conducted standard test by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC). Accepted by over 2300 business schools and for nearly 7000 master’s programmes in business and management, the GMAT is an essential for admissions into most business schools around the world. Divided into four sections and scored on a scale of 200-800, the GMAT exam is timed at 3 hours and 7 minutes.
GMAT Syllabus
The GMAT syllabus comprises the following sections:
- Analytical Writing Assessment
The analytical writing assessment section of the GMAT requires you to analyse and critique the given argument. Your essay must be cohesive and have a logical structure. Moreover, you should present your thoughts with relevant examples and supporting ideas. The GMAT AWA section is scored on a scale of 0-6 with a half-point increment and is timed at 30 minutes.
- Integrated Reasoning
The GMAT IR section or integrated reasoning is a 30-minute-long section of the GMAT wherein you’re required to analyse data presented to you in the form of graphs, tables, venn diagrams, etc. The IR section of the GMAT comprises 12 MCQs. And, there are four types of questions — two-part analysis, multi-source reasoning, graphical interpretation and table analysis. The IR section is scored on a scale of 1-8 with a single-point increment.
- Quantitative Reasoning
The quantitative reasoning section is designed to test your level of familiarity with mathematical concepts taught at the high-school levels such as arithmetic, algebra and geometry. While you’re not expected to be a mathematics expert, you are required to possess some level of proficiency over these concepts to successfully solve problem-solving and data sufficiency questions – two question types in which a question is framed on the GMAT quant section. With 31 questions to answer in 60 minutes, the overall scoring range of the quant section is 6-51.
- Verbal Reasoning
The verbal reasoning part of the GMAT tests your ability to read and comprehend the given information, evaluate and analyse arguments. More so, it tests how proficient you are in the English language. Furthermore, the verbal section comprises 36 questions, is 60-minute long and is scored on a scale of 6-51. You will be presented with three question types: sentence correction, critical reasoning and reading comprehension.
The above mentioned is the overall structure of the GMAT syllabus. Hopefully, this gives you a basic idea of the sections and the question types. However, to get a more detailed understanding, you can download the GMAT syllabus 2021 PDF. Check it out on credible sites such as the official website itself.
Now that we have explained to you about the GMAT exam and provided you with the complete syllabus structure, you’re better positioned to plan your GMAT preparation.
