Passing a GMAT exam can be quite difficult but with the help of the GMAT score chart, you will be able to determine where you need to improve.
Getting a good GMAT is one of the few things to consider before applying for any graduate business program, especially MBA programs.
Most business schools use GMAT score to assess the quality of candidates who are interested in their programs.
In this article, we will be sharing with you easy tips on how to use the GMAT score chart to achieve a good GMAT score.
Before we discuss about the GMAT score chart, let us briefly give you an overview of GMAT.
Table of Contents
What is GMAT?
The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is a computer-based standardized test designed to assess the skills most relevant to succeed in a graduate management business program.
GMAT is used to access candidate’s analytical writing, quantitative, verbal, and reading skills in written English.
Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) was created by Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) in 1953.
Sections of GMAT
| Section | Duration in minutes | Number of questions |
|---|---|---|
| Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) | 30 | 1 essay |
| Integrated Reasoning | 30 | 12 |
| Quantitative Reasoning | 62 | 31 |
| Verbal Reasoning | 65 | 36 |
GMAT consists of four sections, which includes:
- Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA)
- Integrated Reasoning (IR)
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Verbal Reasoning.
Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) has only one question; analysis of an argument. This section measures your ability to think critically and communicate your ideas.
Integrated Reasoning (IR) is a section introduced in June 2012 to measure candidates’ ability to analyze data and evaluate information presented in multiple formats.
The Integrated Reasoning section includes four question types: graphics interpretation, two-part analysis, table analysis, and multisource reasoning.
Quantitative Reasoning measures candidates’ ability to analyze data and draw conclusions using reasoning skills.
This section consists of two question types: problem solving and data sufficiency.
Verbal Reasoning measures candidates’ ability to read and understand written materials, to evaluate arguments and to correct written material to conform to standard written English.
The verbal reasoning section includes three question types: reading comprehension, critical reasoning, and sentence correction.
GMAT Score Chart
What is a GMAT Score Chart?
The GMAT Score Chart will help you understand how your scaled scores in the Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning sections map to your total score.
Integrated Reasoning (IR) and Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) scores are not included in the GMAT score chart because they don’t influence your total GMAT score.
You can use the GMAT score chart to compare your results to the results of other test takers. Also, GMAT score chart can help you to better understand your GMAT score, percentiles, and areas you need to improve.
What are GMAT Percentiles?
The percentile linked with a particular GMAT score is the percentage of people you have outperform by obtaining that score.
GMAT Percentiles are calculated based on candidates performances for the most recent three years. Every year, each candidate’s score is updated with the most recent year’s percentile.
GMAT percentiles range between 0% and 99%.
Let us take a look at this example:
If your GMAT percentiles are 85th in Verbal and 68th in Quantitative, that means that you performed as well or better than 80% of the test takers in the Verbal section and 60% of the test takers in the Quantitative section.
Quantitative Reasoning Score and Percentile
| Quantitative Score | Quantitative Percentile |
|---|---|
| 51 | 97% |
| 50 | 87% |
| 49 | 74% |
| 48 | 67% |
| 47 | 59% |
| 46 | 56% |
| 45 | 53% |
| 44 | 47% |
| 43 | 44% |
| 42 | 39% |
| 41 | 37% |
| 40 | 35% |
| 39 | 31% |
| 38 | 29% |
| 37 | 28% |
| 36 | 25% |
| 35 | 22% |
| 34 | 21% |
| 33 | 20% |
| 32 | 17% |
| 31 | 15% |
| 30 | 15% |
| 29 | 13% |
| 28 | 12% |
| 27 | 10% |
| 26 | 10% |
| 25 | 8% |
| 24 | 8% |
| 23 | 7% |
| 22 | 6% |
| 21 | 5% |
| 20 | 5% |
| 19 | 4% |
| 18 | 4% |
| 17 | 3% |
| 16 | 3% |
| 15 | 3% |
| 14 | 3% |
| 13 | 2% |
| 12 | 2% |
| 11 | 1% |
| 10 | 1% |
| 9 | 1% |
| 8 | 1% |
| 7 | 1% |
| 6 | 0% |
Each candidate’s score in the GMAT Quantitative section is determined by their performances in the 31 questions. Quant score ranges from 0 to 60, in 1-point increments. The mean quant score is 40.7.
Verbal Reasoning Score and Percentile
| Verbal Score | Verbal Percentile |
|---|---|
| 51 | 99% |
| 50 | 99% |
| 49 | 99% |
| 48 | 99% |
| 47 | 99% |
| 46 | 99% |
| 45 | 99% |
| 44 | 98% |
| 43 | 98% |
| 42 | 96% |
| 41 | 94% |
| 40 | 90% |
| 39 | 88% |
| 38 | 84% |
| 37 | 82% |
| 36 | 80% |
| 35 | 75% |
| 34 | 70% |
| 33 | 68% |
| 32 | 65% |
| 31 | 60% |
| 30 | 58% |
| 29 | 55% |
| 28 | 50% |
| 27 | 48% |
| 26 | 42% |
| 25 | 38% |
| 24 | 35% |
| 23 | 31% |
| 22 | 29% |
| 21 | 25% |
| 20 | 22% |
| 19 | 18% |
| 18 | 17% |
| 17 | 14% |
| 16 | 11% |
| 15 | 9% |
| 14 | 8% |
| 13 | 6% |
| 12 | 4% |
| 11 | 3% |
| 10 | 2% |
| 9 | 2% |
| 8 | 1% |
| 7 | 1% |
| 6 | 0% |
Each candidate’s score in the GMAT Verbal section is determined by their performances in 36 questions. Verbal score ranges from 0 to 60, in a 1-point increments. The mean verbal score is 27.26
Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) Score and Percentile
| AWA Score | AWA Percentile |
|---|---|
| 6 | 88% |
| 5.5 | 81% |
| 5 | 57% |
| 4.5 | 47% |
| 4 | 18% |
| 3.5 | 12% |
| 3 | 4% |
| 2.5 | 3% |
| 2 | 1% |
| 1.5 | 1% |
| 1 | 1% |
| 0.5 | 1% |
| 0 | 0% |
Each candidate’s score in the GMAT AWA score is determined by their performances in 1 question. The AWA score ranges from 0 to 6 with a mean score of 4.43, in 0.5-point increments. AWA is provided as an independent score, it’s not included in your total GMAT score.
Integrated Reasoning (IR) Score and Percentile
| IR Score | IR Percentile |
|---|---|
| 8 | 90% |
| 7 | 79% |
| 6 | 64% |
| 5 | 48% |
| 4 | 31% |
| 3 | 18% |
| 2 | 8% |
| 1 | 0% |
Each candidate’s score in the IR section depends on their performances in 12 questions. The IR score ranges from 1 to 8 and the mean IR score is 4.6. Just like the AWA, IR is provided as an independent score, it is not included in your total GMAT score.
What to do with GMAT Score Chart
You can use the GMAT score chart to do the following:
To calculate your desired score
There are different verbal and quantitative scores that map to a particular total score.
From the chart, you will see that there are different quantitative and verbal scores that map to the total score “650”.
You can decide to go for a higher quant and a lower verbal score or a lower quant and a higher verbal score, depending on which section you can perform better in.
Let take a look at a this example:
Mr A is very good in verbal section but not that good in the quantitative section. If his desired total score is 700, then he can choose a higher verbal score and a lower quantitative score. One of the combinations Mr A can go for is a high verbal score of “50” and a low quant score of “36”
To select the best GMAT score
You can use the GMAT score chart to select the best total GMAT score Incase you have taken the GMAT exam several times.
Let take a look at this example:
Mr A has the following total GMAT scores, Should Mr A submit the 690 or the 700?
| Name of Exam | Total score (percentile) | Quant score (percentile) | Verbal score (percentile) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Exam | 700 (88%) | 43 (44%) | 42 (96%) |
| 2nd Exam | 690 (85%) | 48 (67%) | 36 (80%) |
Even though the total score of “700” is higher than the total score of “690”, it is advisable to submit the total score of “690” because of the high quant percentile “67%”, the quant percentile “44” is way too low.
To determine the area that needs improvement
If you have taken several GMAT exams before, the GMAT score chart can help you determine the areas where you need improvement.
Let take a look at this example:
Mr A has the following GMAT score, Should Mr A put more effort in the verbal section or the quant section?
| Section | Score | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Verbal | 28 | 50% |
| Quantitative | 40 | 35% |
Even though the verbal percentile is higher than the quant percentile, Mr A should put more effort in the verbal section. This is because the verbal score is lower than the quant score.
A high score doesn’t always correspond to a high percentile ranking, due to the fact that the GMAT percentiles are distorted.
According to David While, the admission consultant and founding partner of Menlo Coaching, “GMAT percentiles are distorted by the large number of international test takers with the STEM backgrounds who score highly in Quant but poorly in Verbal”
He further explained that “Many of those test takers are unlikely to be admitted to MBA programs because their pre-MBA work experience is unsuitable, and you should do your best to ignore their impact on percentile calculations”
So, in a case where you have a low quant score and high quant percentile, and a high verbal score and low verbal percentile, you should focus on the section with a lower score.
Tips on How to Use the GMAT Score Chart
Below are 5 tips on how to use the GMAT score chart:
-
Determine the area that needs improvement
If you have written a GMAT exam before, check your scores to know the section where you performed good or bad.
For new GMAT test takers, you can take GMAT practice exam online, use the scores to determine the area that needs improvement.
-
Determine your target score
The next step to take is to determine your target score. Your target score depends on your choice of school and program requirements.
If your choice of school requires minimum of 650 GMAT score, then your target score should be selected from 650 and above.
-
Check your target score on the GMAT score chart
Use the GMAT score chart to check the different quant and verbal scores that map to your target score.
You should also check the percentiles of the different quant and verbal scores. This will help you know how competitive your target score is.
-
Map a verbal and quant to your target score
Pick a combination out of the different verbal and quant scores that map to your target score.
If you had a high quant score and a low verbal score in the previous exam, it is advisable to map a high quant score with a low verbal score and vice versa.
-
Work towards your target score
You can take GMAT prep courses, buy GMAT starter kit or download GMAT practice questions with answers.
If you had a high quant score and low verbal score in your previous exam, then you should put more effort in the verbal section.
GMAT Score Chart Frequently Asked Questions
What is the GMAT score range?
The total GMAT score ranges from 200 to 800. Two-third of test takers score between 400 and 800. Total GMAT scores are calculated based on performances in the verbal and quantitative sections. The Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) and Integrated reasoning sections are independent scores and are not included in the total GMAT score.
How is the total GMAT score calculated?
According to GMAC, the developer of GMAT, total scores are based on your calculated performance before scores are given for the Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning sections. Your GMAT score is determined by three factors: 1. The number of questions answered correctly, 2. The number of questions attempted, 3. The difficulty levels of questions answered correctly. The raw calculation is converted to a number in the Total score range. Scores are reported in interval of 10 (for example 540, 550, and 560). The standard error of measurement is 30 to 40 points.
How long does it take to get the GMAT score report?
You can print the unofficial scores immediately after completing the GMAT exam. The unofficial score report includes scores from the verbal and quantitative sections, along with the Total score. Official GMAT score reports are available to test taker and his or her designated score-report recipients (schools) approximately three weeks after the test.
What is included in the Official GMAT Score Report?
The Official GMAT score report sent to schools includes the following scores from every reportable exam completed in the past five years: 1. Total score, 2. AWA score, 3. Integrated reasoning score, 4. Verbal and quantitative scores. It will also include the most recent AWA essay response, and the background information you provided when you created your GMAT profile.
Do GMAT percentiles change?
GMAT percentiles are subject to changes because they are calculated based on the performances and number of the test takers in the previous three years.
How long can I use a GMAT score?
A GMAT score is valid for five years only.
What GMAT score is a good score?
The idea of a good score depends on your choice of school and program. Most business schools accepts the minimum of 700 as GMAT score.
Can I take the GMAT exam online?
GMAC recently introduced the online version of the GMAT exam. However, it is not all business schools that accepts the online version of the GMAT exam. Check your school's requirements before you take the online version of the GMAT exam.
We also Recommend:
- 5 things to consider when choosing an online Business School
- List of the Best career options after MBA.
Conclusion
The first step to take when planning to further your education in business is to register for a GMAT exam.
Most Business Schools require GMAT score for graduate business programs. More than 5000 programs offered by 1500 universities use the GMAT exam as part of their requirements for their business programs.
However, there are few MBA programs you can enroll in without GMAT.
We have now come to the end of this article, if you have any question on how to use the GMAT score chart, do well to drop your questions in the Comment Section.
