The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) will be rolling out a new format for the GMAT later this year, as shared in an email update from the CEO, Joy Jones. The revamped test is called the GMAT™ Focus Edition.
In explaining the decision-making process for the changes, the GMAC CEO shared, “…over the past two years, we have been working collaboratively with business school professionals representing a wide mix of program types and sizes from around the world and conducted in-depth concept testing with candidates globally representing a mix of demographic characteristics.”
What will change?
“Redesigned with candidates and business schools in mind, the GMAT™ Focus Edition is shorter, more flexible, and more insightful by homing in on the higher-order critical reasoning skills and data literacy especially relevant and applicable in the business environment of tomorrow,” says the announcement.
From the website, the GMAT Focus Edition will have three 45-minute sections and consist entirely of multiple choice questions. While the current GMAT format takes just over three hours to complete, the new format shaves off about an hour. Test takers will also be able to choose the order in which they complete each of the three sections. They will also have the ability to bookmark and review questions freely, and change up to three answers per section. Each Official Score report will only contain one exam score and scores can be sent to up to five schools for free.
Clear Admit Co-Founder Graham Richmond notes, “This is very exciting news, as it’s been quite some time since the GMAT was given a full overhaul. I’m looking forward to learning more about the new format, and to better understanding how the new sections and question types will measure the skills business schools seek. From the limited information we have this point, I will say that it’s notable that the test will now be just 2 hours and 15 minutes long – making it 90 minutes shorter than the GRE.”
When will the new GMAT format launch?
The current GMAT format will be available until early 2024, and GMAC plans to roll out the GMAT Focus Edition later in 2023.
Stay tuned for more info about the new GMAT format as it becomes available.
