GMAT stands for Graduate Management Admission Test and is conducted by Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC). If you are serious about earning an international MBA or Masters in Management (MiM) degree from a leading Business School in USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, Singapore or other international destinations, taking the GMAT exam is a good first step.
Apart from seeking MBA admission abroad, you have the opportunity to explore admission opportunity to the flagship MBA/PGDM programmes in many top MBA colleges in India through GMAT like SPJIMR, XIMB, IMI, IMT, Great Lakes among others.
Besides, GMAT exam scores are also valid for One Year MBA equivalent programs at top Indian B-schools like ISB, IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Calcutta, IIM Bangalore, XLRI and others for MBA applicants in India.
On the same lines, International applicants who wish to pursue MBA from IIMs, ISB, XLRI, MDI, FMS or other top MBA colleges in India, need to take GMAT during the specified time period as suggested on the admission website of these top B-schools to get admission in their preferred flagship 2 year or 1 year MBA programme.
GMAT: Exam Details
GMAT exam duration is 3 hours 7 minutes excluding two 8 minutes break which are optional. GMAT exam has four sections: Analytical Writing Assessment, Integrated Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning.
GMAT Exam dates 2020 in India are available throughout the year and the candidates as per their convenience can choose the GMAT Exam Date. Besides, if not satisfied with the GMAT score, you can also choose the preferred GMAT exam date to appear again in GMAT.
GMAT Score: MBA Admission Eligibility for Indian Students
For MBA aspirants in India, with GMAT exam scores you can apply to following types of management programs:
- International MBA (MBA Abroad)
- International Masters in Management programs
- One Year MBA in India at ISB, IIMs, XLRI, SPJIMR, Great Lakes
- Two Year MBA in India at 100+ B-schools/Universities
So if you considering to take GMAT test, this section on MBAUniverse.com will help you on your journey.
GMAT: A Costlier MBA Entrance Exam
GMAT exam is more expensive than CAT, XAT, SNAP, NMAT taken together. GMAT exam fee is US $250 which is approximately Rs 17,500. This is much higher than CAT (Rs 1,900) or XAT (Rs 1,700). Also, top international B-schools have a longer admission cycle, typically running into 18-24 months. So, advance planning, serious preparation and focus is the key to crack GMAT.
Skills Measured by GMAT
At this juncture, it will be useful to understand GMAT exam pattern and skills it measures. GMAT exam measures “higher-order” reasoning skills. According to GMAC, “English-language and math are two key skills that GMAT tests. However, the test measures your ability to reason with these skills. All sections of the test, including the AWA (Analytical Writing Assessment) and Integrated Reasoning sections, involve reasoning. “Higher-order” reasoning skills involve complex judgments and include critical thinking, analysis, and problem-solving.” So GMAT is a test to assess your quality and speed of reasoning, and not formulas and academic knowledge.
GMAT is a ‘computer-adaptive’ exam and not just computer based. This means that the level of the difficulty of the questions which you will see depends on your previous response to the question. If the question you attempted is correct next question will be of higher difficulty level & if the question you attempted is incorrect next question will be of lower difficulty. Your total score will depend on the level of difficulty of questions which you have attempted correctly.
GMAT Test Takers in India
About 30,000 students take GMAT exam in India. Globally more than 200,000 students take GMAT exam. The average GMAT score for Indian test takers is 583.
Table: GMAT Test Takers in India & Average Scores
| Year | Average GMAT Score | Test Takers | Men | Women |
| 2017 | 583 | 32,514 | 22,585 | 9,929 |
| 2016 | 577 | 33,123 | 23,159 | 9,964 |
| 2015 | 578 | 29,042 | 20,730 | 8,312 |
GMAT Exam Pattern:
GMAT exam pattern consist of 4 sections namely, Integrated Reasoning, Analytical Writing Assessment, Quantitative Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning. There is a separate sectional time limit for each section i.e you cannon change the section in between. Quantitative Reasoning & Verbal Reasoning section is of MCQ type questions which are computer adaptive.
GMAT Scores:
You can score 800 as maximum total marks in GMAT. 700+ is considered as a good score for both Top International B-schools and One Year MBA Programs in India at ISB, IIMs, XLRI. The average GMAT score for Indian test takers is 583.
Table: GMAT scores for Top 10 US MBA programs
| Institute | 2017 GMAT |
| Penn (Wharton) | 730 |
| Harvard Business School | 729 |
| Stanford GSB | 737 |
| Chicago (Booth) | 730 |
| Northwestern (Kellogg) | 732 |
| MIT (Sloan) | 722 |
| Dartmouth (Tuck) | 722 |
| Columbia | 724 |
| UC-Berkeley (Haas) | 725 |
| Yale SOM | 727 |
GMAT Scores at Top One Year MBA Programs in India
| Institute | Program | Average GMAT Score |
| ISB Hyderabad and Mohali | POST GRADUATE PROGRAMME IN MANAGEMENT (PGP) | 709 |
| IIM Ahmedabad | PGPX-Post Graduate Programme in Management for Executives (PGPX): One Year Full Time Executive MBA | 700 |
| IIM Bangalore | Executive Post Graduate Programme (EPGP) – One Year Full Time Executive MBA | 709 |
| XLRI Jamshedpur | PGDM (General Management) – 15 Months Programme | 700 |
| SPJIMR | PGPM – 15 Months Programme | 700 |
| Great Lakes Institute of Management Chennai | PGPM- 15 Months Programme | 600 |
