GRE / GMAT : Education Abroad: Pathway to a better future

CL Team February 21 2020
6 min read
This article is intended to take one on the tour, aboarding the nitty gritty’s and the essence of a post-graduate degree till the aspired destination of coveted B-Schools In this competitive world, it is very prime to have a post graduation degree. Back to even pass a SSC exam would be considered as a huge success, but whereas now it doesn’t have any value (academically). Gradually, importance of a graduate is decreasing. In order to get a great job, grow as an individual, Post Graduation is much needed. Moreover to sustain in this fast-growing and competitive world, Higher Education has become immensely Important. Mostly a Post Graduation allows one to specialise in a specfic area of study. It holds special value in subjects like natural sciences and law, where a strong expertise over the subject in question opens up hidden opportunities, mostly in research oriented environments. However for other subjects it entirely depends on what the employers in the market are looking for at any given point of time, and a quick study can be undertaken to figure out whether it is beneficial to add these credentials to one’s profile. Importance of any degree for an individual depends upon the one pursuing it. Post graduation is an addendum of graduation and amplifies the subject domain knowledge, understanding, analytical abilities and entitles an individual to exploit and utilize the greater opportunities which a graduate is unable to get. And thus for all those out there looking out to study abroad for the Management Courses, We have got something for you! GRE/GMAT is the numero uno solution answer to all the questions Let’s begin with and try to understand what is this GMAT that you have to take up and what better it holds for your future What is GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test)? The GMAT is a standardized exam for three and half an hour and which is designed and structured to prognosticate how the aspirants would perform academically in MBA (Masters in Business Administration) programs. GMAT scores are used by graduate business schools to formulate their decisions regarding the admissions of the test takers GMAT often is referred to as the GMAT CAT. No! this is not the CAT exam forIIM’s but whereas acronym CAT stands for the stands for Computer Adaptive Test. Only two of the exam's four sections (Quantitative and Verbal) are computer-adaptive, meaning that during those sections only the test adapts to your ability level as you go. However the GMAT now is administered only by computer, except for that in certain remote locations outside North America, there a paper-based version of the exam is available instead. GMAT is regarded as one of the most reliable and dependable entrance tests for the quality business programs offered by eminent B-schools worldwide. Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) is responsible for conducting GMAT. It is a Computer Adaptive Test that is quite different from the entrance exams of our country(CAT) . GMAT in its view has it to assess certain analytical, writing, quantitative, verbal, and reading skills in written English for admission in MBA in Abroad. Every aspirant out there who aspires to study abroad very often is mostly encountered by this question. Hence, having a proper and appropriate knowledge about these exams plays a pivotal role. For easier comparison, Let us list down the detailed understanding each of these exam! GRE It stands for General Records Examination and is necessary for students aiming to seek masters abroad. This is a test has total of 340 marks and a mark of320 and above is assumed reputable. GRE comprises General Tests and Subject Tests which include Verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, critical thinking, analytical writing skills, and general knowledge. GMAT Thename , Graduate Management Admission Test itself suggests and helps aspirants seek MBA abroad. Iit contains and includes an analysis of argument and has 3 section unlike GRE. The 3 sections include Analytical writing Section, Verbal section and quantitative section. The GMAT exam has always been the test of choice by and amongst the many business leaders of the business world to get into the world’s leading business schools for one reason – it works and that which is accepted by more than 6,000 business and management programs worldwide, for nearly 60 years, Quite simply, no other exam lets you showcase the skills that matter most in the business school classroom and in your career. An Icing on the cake; there has to be a cake, the icing alone wouldn’t suffice. GMAT is an icing on the cake and for an icing there has to be a cake as only icing wouldn’t suffice alone. And thus, profile is a must and has a very important part to play while looking to do GMAT As and when the Admission Committee reviews an application, it generally tries to view a person as comprehensively and holistically as possible. Which means it is not just the GMAT score alone that will work wonders during admissions but also your application as a whole would be considered and analyzed. Although it is undeniable that the other deficiencies in one’s profile can be balanced out with a great score in the exam, but a GMAT score solely cannot turn a indigent into a prince or a dynast. Whereas the reverse can be said to hold good. A great profile can offset a not-so-great GMAT score. So don’t worry, give away the anxiety and you will be able to give your best. Since a good profile can be a huge influencing factor at the time of admissions, it is must and essential that one ensures to spend and give enough time for building your profile. Keep in mind that while your GMAT scores contribute to a significant part of the admission procedure the Adcom gives equal consideration over other aspects of your application. For a further analysis and better understanding let us compare GMAT with the existing national levelled exams made; Eligibility The aspirant aspiring to appear for the GMAT exam is required to possess aBachelor’s degree in any stream or equivalent from a recognized university. The exam also provides for Final year Graduation candidates to be eligible to apply. There is no criteria as such for minimum cut off marks that required to appear in GMAT.To appear in CAT, it is a must for the aspirant to have a Bachelor’s degree in any stream but with minimum of 50% marks or equivalent from a recognized university. Here too, aspirants in their final year Graduation are also made eligible to apply. Frequency For GMAT the candidate can prearrange an exam slot for self from the given calendar as per their convenience as GMAT exam is held throughout the year. As also the exam can be re-taken five times by the aspirant within 12 months. But then the exam sets the restriction of a maximum of 8 attempts as allowed to any candidate in his/her lifetime.CAT on the other hand is held only once a year. CAT application process begins in August and the exam is held in the last week of November or first week of December. Exam Pattern GMAT question papercontains and includes MCQs from Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, and Integrated Reasoning and an Analytical Writing Assessment. Unlike CAT there is no such rigid order to take up the test as the candidate can choose the order in which they wish to answer each section. CAT exam whereas is known to have a very strict schedule and is held in online mode for three hours in 2 session on a scheduled date. The candidates are strictly required to follow the chronology of the question paper, i.e. neither can the candidate choose to answer the section of their choice, nor can he go back to questions left incomplete earlier. The CAT question papercontains of MCQs and a few number of key-in answer type questions. Syllabus for the Exam GMAT is addressed to assess a candidate on Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, and Integrated Reasoning and the Analytical Writing Assessment.CAT syllabusincludes topics from Quantitative Aptitude (QA), Data Interpretation & Logical Reasoning (DILR), and Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC). Duration GMAT is held for 187 minutes. And CAT is held for 180 minutes. In CAT one hour is judiciously dedicated to each section of the question paper. As soon as one hour of the given section gets over, the screen jumps to a new section. Level of Difficulty As in comparison to the other management entrance exams amongst them GMAT is considered to be the toughest management entrance exam. This is not only due to the toughness of the questions asked but also because to its peculiar marking scheme. CAT is known as a tough exam. The difficulty level of the questions remain on the higher side year on year. Marking Scheme GMAT has a unusual and strange marking scheme. The candidates appearing for the exam are scored between 200 and 800. Whereas candidates are scored Section Wise, i.e 0-6 for Analytical Writing Assessment, 1-8 for Integrated Reasoning 6-51 for Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning.it is not the same in the The CAT exam, it is of 300 marks. Each of the 100 questions carry 3 marks for a right answer. There also exists a negative marking of one mark for each wrong answer, but then here is no negative marking for unanswered question. Fee The exam fee for the GMAT exam is USD 250 for all countries.Whereas the CAT exam fee isRs 1900 for General and NC-OBC candidates and Rs 950 for Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Physically Disabled candidates. Validity of exam score Nearly and more than 2100 management institutes across the globe accept the GMAT score and which is valid for and up to 5 years for admission. And the CAT score is accepted by all the 20 IIMs and also by over 1500 management institutes in India. However the validity of the CAT score for admission lasts for only one year. Body Conducting the exam Talking about the body conducting the GMAT exam every year is by The Graduate Management Admission Council.And CAT the national level is conducted by the Indian Institute of Management on rotation. Before winding up and coming to conclusion, let us quickly take a glance at how GMAT and CAT are distinctively separate from each other: It’s believed and understood that the objective of the GMAT of is to equalize and not criticize.it is pertinent to note and Remember that GMAT generally tests and assesses only basic and general quantitative, verbal and reasoning skills. It is for to enable the Admission Committee to place everyone out there taking the test and aspiring for the same to be put up on one common platform to measure these skills in them. Most candidates are likely to believe that their simple academic skills would translate to poor performance on these components of the exam. On the contrary, the GMAT however tests the candidates on the skills that are majority of the skills that would come organically to someone with some years of work experience as he or she would be able to relate to the situations or scenarios given. It is important to note and remember that the whole objective of the GMAT behind assessing the candidates is to be fair and reasonable and not to find inadequacies or flaws in the candidate. GMAT creates an equal and a common platform for all candidates – Experienced and fresh graduates alike as GMAT aims to assess and test the competencies of candidates through various sections like – Quantitative, Verbal and Analytical Writing. You would therefore be expected to thus be prepared to get get grips with each of these sections as they all play a pivotal role in the exam. The syllabus for the exam has basic middle/high school maths topics for the Quantitative section is also not very advanced. The Verbal section is consists ad is divided in to Reading Comprehension, Critical Reasoning and Sentence correction. It evaluates and gauge your skills in basic grammar like parts of speech, Verb tense, Subject Verb Agreement, Modifiers etc. Thus, if you are looking to study broad and for a better future prospect then surely GRE/GMAT can build a great Pathway to a better Future for you.