One of the major requirements to study an MBA or other popular management courses abroad is the GMAT score accompanying the application form. Often, scoring a 700 or higher on the GMAT exam qualified aspirants to be selected by highly-selective B-schools around the world. However, a recent study reveals that scoring 700 or higher on GMAT has become a common milestone.
According to the data available, 18% of the candidates globally who had attempted the GMAT 2021 test scored 700 or higher, a 5% increase over the total number of candidates achieving the milestone in GMAT 2017. The hike was even more pronounced in the US, where a 22.5% rise was seen in the number of students achieving 700 or higher on the test.
Of the 156,453 tests taken in 2021, GMAC reveals that 28,072 students achieved 700 or higher, compared to 32,490 out of the 250,761 that achieved the same milestone. Talking in terms of the average GMAT scores sent across B-schools in the world, a jump of 35% had been witnessed from 613 to 648 in the past five years.
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Unsurprisingly, among all the countries, the biggest jump in average GMAT scores had been seen among applicants for US business courses. According to the data, the average GMAT scores sent to US b-schools jumped 45 points from 613 in 2017 to 658 in 2021.
The rise in Indian test-takers achieving 700 and higher also increased significantly, with 21.1% of the candidates achieving the milestone. Other countries where a spike in the number of test takers earning 700 or higher GMAT scores had been witnessed include Brazil (23.1%), China (16.7%), Australia and Pacific Islands (31.7%), New Zealand (26.9%) and many more. A rise in the number of test takers achieving the score had been witnessed in nearly every country.
Speaking on the “inflation of GMAT scores”, Stacey Koprince, Content and Curriculum Director, Manhattan Prep, emphasised not calling the rise as inflation, “as that may suggest the exam has gotten easier, which it definitely has not.” Instead, Koprince shed light on the changing data set for the calculation of the average GMAT score. She added that “the weakest scores are dropping out of that set.”
Koprince highlighted that a number of alternatives have popped up for GMAT tests, such as GRE, but another contributing factor included the rise in the number of MBA programmes going test-optional as a result of the pandemic. With the availability of such options, Koprince suggested that those less confident in achieving high scores on the GMAT often drop out of taking the test, thus, leading to higher average GMAT scores.
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Koprince also highlighted a common step taken by many B-schools, where even though a GMAT score is a mandatory requirement, often offer test waivers, especially to candidates who either are further into their careers or have taken up non-traditional career paths. She also highlighted data that support the narrative that “average scores decline the longer that someone has been out of school”.
Apart from the negative connotations that have risen from the increasing average GMAT scores, Koprince suggested that the stigma around attempting the GMAT multiple times no longer seems to affect aspirants.
Data about the overall numbers of tests and score-sending trends, it was witnessed that 2021 numbers saw a sharp decline in the number of candidates attempting the tests as well as the number of overall attempts. Data revealed that 106,565 candidates attempted the test, with a total of 156,453 tests conducted in 2021. Meanwhile, in 2017, 175,200 candidates sat for a total of 250,761 tests. Experts suggest that the drop in numbers could be attributed to the public restrictions laid down by governments around the world due to the pandemic. The decline had been even more pronounced as a result of the schools changing their testing requirements and application timelines because of Covid-19.
Source: Poets and Quants
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