2024 January GMAT Update (GMAT Focus edition)
The latest update announces the launch of the GMAT Focus Edition, which replaces the old version of the GMAT exam. Prospective applicants must now prepare for and register exclusively for the latest GMAT Focus Edition. However, scores from the previous GMAT exam pattern will remain valid for five years. For more details on GMAT Focus dates and centres, readers are encouraged to explore our article.
Shifts in economic and legal frameworks are evolving businesses and their operations, prompting changes in B-schools and the GMAT exam. To address these demands, GMAC has introduced the GMAT Focus Edition. This new version will be shorter by about an hour, more efficient with only three sections (no Analytical Writing Assessment), flexible, and detailed in performance reporting. These are the updates regarding the GMAT-focus edition 2024:
GMAT Exam Syllabus
The GMAT exam syllabus is divided into four sections that cover topics such as data integration, problem-solving assessment, critical thinking, and more. The duration of the GMAT subjects is fixed at 3 hours and 8 minutes, and specific time frames are distributed for each section. The GMAT Focus Edition syllabus is lesser and different as compared to the current GMAT syllabus. The removal of AWA (Analytical Writing Assessment) and SC (Sentence Correction), and the introduction of Data Insights will change how you prepare for the GMAT exam. The following table will provide the GMAT syllabus for the GMAT Focus Edition:
GMAT Test Pattern - Verbal Reasoning
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The GMAT Verbal Reasoning Section is one of the four sections of the GMAT exam, which evaluates your skills and abilities in business management. It tests your ability to read and understand written material, analyse and evaluate arguments, and correct written material to express ideas effectively in English. You will have 45 minutes to answer 23 multiple-choice questions, which are divided into three types: Reading Comprehension, Critical Reasoning, and Sentence Correction.
This particular section revolves around the evaluation and checks of your skills and understanding based on conceptualising written information, conceptual assessment, and logical reasoning that comprise all arguments to measure students/candidates.
Verbal Reasoning - GMAT Critical Reasoning Section
The Critical Reasoning Section in the GMAT syllabus tests your ability to think critically and logically about arguments and to apply your reasoning skills to real-world scenarios. The section requires you to understand the structure of arguments, identify the premises and conclusions, recognise the assumptions and gaps, evaluate the evidence and implications, and draw valid inferences and conclusions. The GMAT exam pattern lets you identify the flaws and weaknesses in arguments and find ways to strengthen or weaken them. This verbal skills section in the GMAT syllabus consists of multiple types of discussions that skilfully check your traits to analyse the structure and evaluate arguments. These 36 Questions on assessing and computing reasonings, formulation to evaluate actions and structures to argue upon. Each candidate is provided with 62 minutes for this section.
Verbal Reasoning - GMAT Reading Comprehension Section
The reading comprehension section in the GMAT syllabus measures the individual’s reading skills that are tested under certain structural questions that include short and long passages that test your skills, test your skills, interference, application, main idea, supporting, logical structure and style. The GMAT Reading Comprehension Section is a part of the GMAT Verbal Section, which evaluates your skills and abilities in business management. In this section of the GMAT syllabus, you will have to answer it promptly. The Reading Comprehension Section requires you to read actively and critically and to apply your comprehension skills to complex and dense texts. The section challenges you to grasp the purpose and structure of the passages, to recognise the author’s tone and perspective, to evaluate the strength and validity of the arguments, and to draw logical conclusions and implications from the information given.
Verbal Reasoning - GMAT Sentence Correction Section
The GMAT Sentence Correction section tests your ability to identify and correct errors in grammar, usage, and style in written sentences. The Sentence Correction questions are part of the Verbal Reasoning section of the GMAT exam, which also includes Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension questions. The sub-syllabus section in sentence correction includes basic grammar, i.e.
- Nouns
- Pronouns
- Verbs
- Idioms
- Sentence structures
- Parallelism
- Grammar rules
- Modifiers
- Comparisons
- Sentence punctuation
The best option is the one that is grammatically correct and is intended to eliminate the rest. This section is quite scoring when it comes to correct sentences in the form of MCQs (Multiple Choice Questions).
The updated GMAT-focus edition exam will maintain its assessment of candidates' Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning abilities, although with a heightened focus on higher-order reasoning skills, particularly within the Verbal Reasoning section. This adaptation aligns with the changing expectations of business schools and employers, who seek candidates proficient in critical reasoning and data literacy skills at an advanced level.
GMAT Test Pattern-GMAT Quantitative Reasoning Section
The GMAT Quantitative Reasoning Section in the GMAT syllabus is one of the three sections of the GMAT exam pattern, which measures your ability to reason mathematically (algebra and arithmetic) and solve quantitative problems. The GMAT Quantitative Reasoning has one section, Problem Solving. The GMAT Quantitative Reasoning Section covers basic maths concepts that are generally taught in secondary schools, such as arithmetic and algebra. However, the GMAT Quant is not a maths test but a test of your logical and analytical skills. You will need to apply these skills to solve various types of problems, such as word problems, equations, inequalities, ratios, proportions, percentages, fractions, decimals, exponents, roots, functions, graphs, coordinate geometry, lines, angles, triangles, quadrilaterals, circles, polygons, solids, and data analysis. This part will have 21 questions completely based on problem-solving and you’ll have to solve them in 45 minutes.
Quantitative Reasoning - GMAT Problem Solving Section
The GMAT Problem Solving Section in the GMAT syllabus is one of the two types of questions in the GMAT Quantitative Reasoning Section which tests your ability to solve numerical and graphical problems using basic maths concepts. The GMAT Problem Solving Section consists of 15 or 16 multiple-choice questions with five answer choices each. It covers topics such as arithmetic, algebra, geometry, word problems, and question types. You will need to apply your maths skills and logical reasoning to find the correct answer while avoiding common traps and pitfalls. You will also need to use the best strategies and shortcuts to save time and avoid mistakes.
Quantitative Reasoning - GMAT Data Sufficiency Section
It is one of the two types of questions in the GMAT Quantitative Reasoning Section, which tests your ability to analyse problems and determine if the provided information is sufficient to answer them. It consists of 15-16 multiple-choice questions with five answer choices each. It covers major topics such as algebra, arithmetic, and geometry, where a candidate has to evade certain fall traps, like making calculations with no extra information.
GMAT Quantitative Reasoning Question Types
The Quantitative Reasoning section in the GMAT exam pattern tests the ability to solve problems involving arithmetic, algebra and data analysis. They feature two categories of questions: Problem Solving and Data Sufficiency.
1. Problem-Solving: Identifying the problem, Breaking the problem, generating potential solutions, evaluating the possible outcomes, and implementing.
GMAT Test Pattern-New Data Insights Section Starting Feb 2024
In addition to removing the AWA section and enhancing the Verbal Reasoning section, the new GMAT Focus Edition introduces an innovative Data Insights section. This segment in the GMAT syllabus is specifically crafted to assess candidates' proficiency in data analysis and interpretation, skills essential in today's rapidly evolving business landscape. By combining Integrated Reasoning and Data Sufficiency question types, this section evaluates a newly calibrated digital and data literacy dimension, highly sought-after in the business realm.
This segment, which comprises 20 questions to be solved in 45 minutes, challenges candidates to assess the interrelation between various sources and forms of information, including graphics, numbers, and language, to make informed decisions. Some questions may necessitate mathematical computations, data analysis, verbal reasoning, or a blend of these skills. An on-screen calculator is exclusively available for use within this section to aid candidates in their tasks.
The Data Insights section of the GMAT Focus Edition encompasses various question types tailored to assess diverse analytical skills:
1. Data Sufficiency: Measures the ability to analyse quantitative problems and determine when adequate data is available for solving them.
2. Multi-Source Reasoning: Evaluates the capacity to analyse data from different sources, identifying disparities or drawing inferences about relevant information.
3. Table Analysis: Assesses the capability to analyse and organise data presented in tabular form.
4. Graphics Interpretation: Tests the skill in interpreting graphical data to draw conclusions and identify relationships.
5. Two-Part Analysis: Measures problem-solving ability through quantitative or verbal reasoning.
This inclusion aims to offer business schools and employers a more comprehensive evaluation of candidates' abilities, which is crucial for the evolving demands of the business landscape. The Data Insights section now extends to 45 minutes, which is 50% longer than the 30-minute IR section in the current GMAT exam pattern, allowing for a deeper assessment of candidates' data literacy.
Furthermore, the GMAC is aligning the Data Insights section with the Quantitative and Verbal sections, which are considered the most critical parts of the current GMAT. The Quantitative and Verbal sections are graded on a scale from 6 to 51, offering a range of 46 distinct levels for candidate assessment (51-6+1). This alignment implies that the Data Insights section will be similarly rigorous on the new GMAT, highlighting the significance of data literacy skills in today's business environment.
These types of GMAT Analytical writing questions are sorted to test your analytical skills and properly segment how you can analyse an issue or an argument.
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