When it comes to the GMAT, raw intellectual horsepower helps, but it is not everything. In this weekly blog series, Manhattan GMAT’s Stacey Koprince teaches you how to perform on test day by using some common sense.
It’s changing?!? How? When?
Don’t worry—you still have time to take the GMAT before it changes, as long as you get started soon. The test will add a new section beginning 5 June 2012.
Currently, the GMAT consists of two essays, as well as a multiple-choice quantitative section and verbal section. Most people study for about three to four months for the test, and a good idea (if possible) is to study far enough in advance that you give yourself a chance to take the test twice (in case you don’t like your first test score for any reason). We’re required to wait 31 days before taking the test a second time.
Let’s work backward from that 5 June date. A second test date would have to be in early June, so the first test date would have to be no later than early May. That’s about three months from now, so if you want to take the test before the change, it’s time to get started!
The new test will drop the Analysis of an Issue essay but keep the Analysis of an Argument essay. The quant and verbal sections will also remain the same. A new 30-minute Integrated Reasoning section will be added, though, and this is why a lot of people want to take the old test—you’ll have to study for an entire new section if you wait to take the new test.
If you do plan to take the test after the 5 June date, note that the quant and verbal sections aren’t changing, so you can start studying for those portions of the test at any time. Study materials for the new Integrated Reasoning section should be available in March or April.
Good luck and happy studying!