Top Six Myths About the GMAT

The GMAT is a business test

Good news: The GMAT isn’t a business test; you aren’t required to know any business concepts outside your college years. However, you’ll be asked to pay close attention to details. Consider this test a series of questions made up of riddles and brainteasers aimed at making your brain work, and to measure analytical and critical reasoning. For example, on the reading comprehension section you’ll be provided with a paragraph of text, then be asked to explain the primary purpose of the prompt as well as extract and analyze key data. Familiarize yourself with some fundamental formulas and more importantly, know how to be flexible enough to adapt these formulas to fit the questions thrown at you.

The GMAT is a math test

Students often approach the GMAT with trepidation if they’ve struggled with math. We’ve all been there—ignoring the forsaken years of Trigonometry and Calculus during high school. One positive thing to note about the GMAT is it tests quantitative skills that are conceptually basic and easy to review, learn, and master. You’re tested on high-school level math and how you apply these foundations. The quantitative section is also designed to assess analytical and critical thinking, the only difference is word problems are replaced by numbers.

The GMAT is an intelligence test

The GMAT isn’t an IQ test of intelligence. Some people might prepare minimally for the GMAT if they view it like an IQ test, which it isn’t. The brain is essentially a muscle—you need to practice and flex it for it to work in your favor to master the exam. Even if some people are born with an inclination to absorb new information faster, that’s still just raw talent; it must be honed. You should prepare for the GMAT and treat it as a skill you need to develop. Rarely does anyone ace this exam without preparation, so dedication is the key to success.

Focus on the specifics of the questions

Although it’s important to practice test questions and master the methods, you shouldn’t forget to see the whole forest as beating the GMAT requires real-time strategy. The GMAT has a very specific design of four sections where each one is timed, so pacing oneself correctly is critical for navigating through the forest efficiently. The whole test is more important than any individual question, so don’t get bogged down by one question—just keep moving. For example, a correct answer that took up too much time at the cost of three missed questions at the end is worse than one wrong answer and time leftover to possibly answer three questions correctly. Also, each question isn’t created equal in terms of difficulty, so you might be bogged down with a really difficult question when it’s time to move on.

Keep on practicing

The environment you simulate the test in is very important; simulating likely test situations is too. To prepare for how the test will be, you must mimic the test taking conditions as much as possible. Some people find it most useful to study in a strenuous/difficult situation. Training yourself to concentrate under strenuous conditions is just as important as solving a riddle. It’s tempting to study on the couch and not use a timer, but your pacing will be strained, and that’s nothing like how it’s going to be for the actual test. Do study questions slightly higher than your current level to push yourself.

A month is enough to prepare for the GMAT

The GMAT is a skills test, so like any set of skills—it can’t be developed over such a short time frame. Four weeks of cramming is useless. The test requires a minimum of 120-150 hours of total prep time spread over two-three months. Many 700+ scorers often devote closer to 200 hours of work rationed over four-six months. You can’t treat the system like speed reading, you need to sit down with the GMAT and treat it like a musical instrument through practice to see progress.

You might think the GMAT doesn’t accurately reflect your abilities; however, it’s still an absolute-must to enter business school. There’s a reason the GMAT exists since business schools want to measure how well you perform in simulated real-world conditions: making decisions under time constraints, determining what information is relevant to problem solve, maintaining focus, using sound logic, etc. These skills are all relevant for business (and real life), so try to view the GMAT positively, it scales the qualities of an MBA candidate which these business schools find valuable. All it takes to succeed on the GMAT is steady patience, inner resolve, and a reasonable chunk of time. The higher you aim for your score, the more time you'll need to spend studying.

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