GMAT Basics – About the GMAT
GMAT Purpose
The GMAT is a standardized test used to assess prospective graduate business students, primarily those who seek Master of Business Administration, Master of Finance, Master of Accountancy, or doctoral-level business degrees. First offered in 1953, the GMAT is now taken annually by about 115,000 applicants to more than 8,000 programs at 2,400 universities in the United States and 114 other countries in Europe, Asia, the Americas, and Africa. Though many business schools will also accept the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), the GMAT is the test of choice among most business school applicants.
The GMAT consists of three sections: Quantitative, Verbal, and Data Insights. All three evaluate general academic skills rather than business knowledge, but these GMAT skills are seen as important to success in graduate business programs. As a standardized assessment, the GMAT is believed to control for variance in the undergraduate curricula and professional experience of applicants. The GMAT is also used to rank business schools. The methodology of U.S. News & World Report weighs "student selectivity" at 0.25, meaning this category accounts for 25% of an institution's total ranking score. Almost two-thirds of the student selectivity score (.1625 of the total) is drawn from standardized tests, most of which are GMAT scores.
GMAT Scoring
Students who take the GMAT receive a total score as well as scores on each of the three sections. The total score falls between 205 and 805 and is calculated from the Verbal, Quantitative, and Data Insights sections, each of which are comprised entirely of multiple-choice questions. Section scores range from 60 to 90 and are converted to total scores using a formula that accounts for the difficulty level of the questions.
There is also an optional Business Writing Assessment (BWA) section that can be completed, should a business program require it. This is a 30-minute online writing task designed to evaluate a test-taker''s ability to effectively analyze, evaluate, and critique arguments. The BWA does not factor into the total GMAT score. It is evaluated using a standardized rubric and scored in 1-point increments using a scale of 0 to 6.
GMAT Averages
According to the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), the average total GMAT score is 553.35, with two-thirds of test-takers scoring between 485 and 605. The average Verbal section score is 79.28, the average Quantitative section score is 78.05, and the average Data Insights score is 74.89. All three sections—Verbal, Quantitative, and Data Insights—count towards the Total GMAT score.
The GMAT was most recently updated in 2023, and it is important to note that, according to the GMAC, scores from the current Focus Edition cannot be compared to scores from previous versions of the exam (meaning any version taken prior to November 7th, 2023). The score scale on the Focus Edition has been adjusted to better reflect changes in the test-taking population, which has become increasingly diverse and global. Scores have risen significantly over the time the GMAT has been in use, and this has resulted in an uneven score distribution. Updating the score scale has the benefit of evening out the distribution, helping schools to understand and differentiate test performances more accurately.
According to the GMAC, "645 is the new 700." When taking previous versions of the GMAT, students often sought to achieve a score of 700. Based on the 2023 update to the GMAT Focus Edition, students are now encouraged to aim for a score of 645, which is at the 88th percentile.
GMAT Percentiles
The GMAC released its first major percentile update to the GMAT Focus Edition in August 2024, providing valuable insights based on actual test-taker data.
- Total Score: A GMAT Total Score at the 25th percentile is 495 and at the 75th percentile is 610.
- Verbal section: A Verbal score at the 23rd percentile is 76 and at the 76th percentile is 82.
- Quantitative section: A Quantitative score at the 26th percentile is 74 and at the 76th percentile is 82.
- Data Insights section: A Data Insights score at the 26th percentile is 71 and at the 77th percentile is 79.
GMAT Scores Required for Business School Acceptance
Most business schools do not have set minimum GMAT score requirements, but the average scores of accepted students strongly indicate the GMAT expectations of these institutions. There is a clear relationship between a business school's degree of selectivity and the typical GMAT performance of its students.
The most highly ranked business schools are: Harvard (median score of 740, which equates to approximately 685 under GMAT Focus Edition scoring); Stanford (average score of 738, equates to approximately 685 under Focus Edition scoring); the University of Pennsylvania''s Wharton School (average score of 732, equates to approximately 675 under Focus Edition scoring); the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago (average score of 729, equates to approximately 675 under Focus Edition scoring); the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (median score of 730, equates to approximately 675 under Focus Edition scoring); and the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University (average score of 733, equates to approximately 675 under Focus Edition scoring).
As more business programs report scores using the updated GMAT Focus Edition, the median or average scores of accepted applicants may fluctuate slightly, but until more data is published, students are encouraged to remember the GMAC''s "645 is the new 700" advice and aim to achieve their own similar score.