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The GMAC has revealed the launch of a next-gen GMAT exam, which is GMAT Focus Edition. It will launch somewhere between October and December 2023. however the registration would start August 29, 2023. Therefore, the existing version is expected to retire early next year.

The GMAT Focus Edition will strongly focus on executive decision-making and business skills that will help you in management education as well as your career.

Open the door to your future with the shorter, more flexible GMAT TM  Exam Focus Edition.

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Which test to take? Existing GMAT or GMAT Focus.

The GMAT Focus Edition will not launch before October 2023. So if you want to give the exam this year itself, go for the existing GMAT.

However, if you want to just start the preparations and will decide later about which exam to take, start with content areas and question types that are similar in both exams. We have discussed all those common topics in one of the sections below.

If you want to hold your preparation for some time or haven't started yet, you should definitely go for the Focus Edition.

Ignore the hype if you have already started preparing for GMAT. Don't fret!

Your GMAT scores are accepted for up to a period of five years. Keep in mind that the business schools are accepting both the editions of GMAT exam. Rest assured that the exam scores are valid for a period of five years.

What is the difference between the current GMAT Exam and GMAT Focus Edition?

Parameters

Current GMAT Exam

GMAT Focus Edition

Time limit

3 hours 7 minutes

2 hours 15 minutes

Study material

Available in plenty

Only official study material available right now

 

Sections

Quantitative Reasoning

Verbal Reasoning

Integrated Reasoning

Analytical Writing Assessment

Quantitative Reasoning

Verbal Reasoning

Data Insights

Introduction or removal of topics

-

Data Insights (Introduced)

Analytical Writing Assessment (Removed)

Sentence Correction (Removed)

Flexibility in test taking

Less

More (Test takers can select the sections order, and change a maximum of 3 answers in every section)

Validity of the score

Five years

Five years

Attempts

Eight (Five in one year)

Eight (Five in one year)

What is the syllabus of GMAT Focus Edition?

The syllabus of the Focus Edition is quite less than the existing version. It is also very different. As discussed in the table above, two topics are removed, i.e. AWA and SC, and Data Insights is introduced.

The QR section includes Algebra and Arithmetic. The VR section includes critical reasoning and reading comprehension. Lastly, the DI section includes data sufficiency, table analysis, multi-source reasoning, graphics interpretation, and two-part analyses.

Each of the sections has a 60-90 score range. And the total score range is 205-805.

What do both GMAT Exams have in common?

The common topics in GMAT current version and GMAT Focus Edition include Critical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, Problem Solving, Data Sufficiency, Tables, Graphs, Two-parts, Multi-source Reasoning, Arithmetic, Algebra, Statistics, Word Problems, Fractions, Ratios, and Percents.

Inference from the GMAT Focus Edition

It is expected that the new GMAT exam syllabus is comparatively easier as there are fewer topics. However, we cannot draw any conclusions right now unless the official test material is out. If you are weak in grammar, you can benefit from the new exam pattern as the sentence correction topic is removed. 

GMAT Focus edition official prep material has been launched and can be accessed on mba.com

Stay informed, Stay ahead and Stay inspired with MBA Rendezvous.