Repeat Test Taking

Much of the conference hosted by the GMAC that we discussed earlier also focused on the extensive research that the GMAC has conducted on test takers, and how they score on the GMAT. The GMAC included 27,763 candidates in its comprehensive study. The retake rate is 18%.

Who retakes the GMAT?

• Candidates with lower than average Total scores
• Higher percent of non-native speakers of English
• About the same number of men as women
• Test takers that did not finished Quantitative section
• Test takers with a high discrepancy between Verbal and Quantitative scores

27.4% of retake candidates took their second exam between 31 and 60 days after their first test date while 20.4% of candidates retook within the first 30 days. Only 15% of students retake after 180 days from their first exam date.

The highest gains in score for retake candidates usually occur in the GMAT Quant percentile.

Who gains the most from retaking?

• High discrepancy score
• Below-average first scores
• Did not finish Quantitative section
• Young test takers who are 24 years and younger
• Native English speakers