- Mar 28, 2023
- 3 min read
Details Of New GMAT Exam Revealed, Including Content, Structure & Test Prep
GMAC announced further details about the upcoming changes to its flagship GMAT Exam, scheduled to launch in late 2023, including test content and prep materials
New details of the GMAT Focus Edition, scheduled to release later this year have been revealed ©fizkes/iStock
New details of the GMAT Focus Edition, the next evolution of the GMAT Exam scheduled to arrive in late 2023, arrived today.
Following the recent announcement of the new test, the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) confirmed official test prep materials will be available towards the end of the second quarter of 2023.
Registrations for the test will follow in the third quarter, while appointments will be available in the final three months of 2023, it was announced. GMAC added that currently available prep materials will also be relevant for the new exam.
Confirming details of the new, streamlined exam structure, GMAC revealed 64 questions will be spread across the three test sections—Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and the new Data Insights component. Each section will take 45-minutes to complete, bringing the total test time to two hours and 15 minutes, with candidates allowed an additional 10-minute break.
Adding greater flexibility to the exam, the new ‘Select Section Order’ option will allow test-takers to choose the order they complete the exam. As previously revealed, GMAT Focus will have no essay requirement and all questions will be multiple-choice, focusing on key business skills. GMAC confirmed the questions will be similar in format to multiple-choice questions on the current test.
The announcement also revealed details of the content contained within each exam section.
The Quantitative Reasoning section will comprise 21 questions—this section is 31 questions on the current exam—measuring candidates’ arithmetic and problem-solving ability as well as elementary algebra, however it will contain none of the data sufficiency questions that appear in the current GMAT. As with the current exam, this section will not test math skills and will therefore not require a calculator.
The Verbal Reasoning section, which measures reading comprehension and critical reasoning, is set to have 23 questions, down from 36 in the current exam. Within the GMAT Focus Edition this section will no longer include sentence correction questions.
The new Data Insights section will have 20 questions, some of which will test integrated reasoning—a core section in the current exam—while others will test data sufficiency. GMAC said this section is designed to measure candidates’ digital and data literacy skills, which are fundamental to business today.
Data Insights will require test-takers to analyze information provided in a range of formats—including text, graphics, datasets, and tables— to find connections and make informed decisions. An on-screen calculator will be available for the section, and questions will test a combination of math, data analysis, and verbal reasoning skills.
GMAC also confirmed some details of the new ‘Question Review & Edit’ feature the GMAT Focus Edition will offer throughout the exam. This new addition will give test-takers the ability to bookmark questions as they move through the test and review them later.
Each time a test-taker finishes a section they will be taken to the ‘Question Review & Edit’ page, which will display a numbered list of all questions and indicate any bookmarked questions. Candidates will be able to review as many questions as they like and edit a maximum of three answers per section.
A number of other new exam features were revealed in a previous announcement, including a new method for sending scores to schools and more detailed insights to be included on the Official Score Report.
Find out more about the new GMAT Focus Edition
Matt Kefford is Deputy Editor for GMAC.com, responsible for writing, editing, and producing multimedia content as well as driving content strategy for the website. A business education journalist for 5+ years, he regularly features as a judge on education industry awards and speaks at industry events.
Previously, Matt has written and produced content for national news organizations including The Sunday Times, i News, and Sky News, as well as a number of regional titles. Matt has a B.A. in History from the University of Leeds and an M.A. in Journalism from the University of Sheffield. He is also a gold standard accredited journalist with the National Council for the Training of Journalists.