Is The NMAT by GMAC Exam Difficult?

A quick question to all the readers: What do you think is the point of asking logic, math, and English-based questions to graduates? Think about your reason before you read the next part.

The reasons are two-fold: One, it is a common ground on which, every student who has cleared their school can be tested. This is the commonly held perception which is true to an extent. In my opinion, the more important reason is that these questions test the planning and execution skills of a managerial aspirant. You are expected to handle a product, create a financial roadmap, ensure operational efficiencies, look after attracting, hiring, and retaining the best talent as a manager. How do colleges, and in effect, companies come to figure out all of these? Simple! They test your ability to understand and improve a product that you know everything about: YOU. That’s where the beauty of any test lies; some are simply attritional and test your persistence, some expect you to think faster than others and test your stamina, and some do both.

Having taken the NMAT by GMAC Exam over the last decade and a half, I have had the privilege of experiencing the test in its paper-based, computer-based, and now in its most-evolved computer-adaptive form. I will be assessing the perceived level of difficulty of the test but at the onset, I thoroughly believe in the test being the fairest experience of the test-taking season. It tests your persistence and stamina and expects you to be perfect in terms of execution.

How difficult is the test though? Let’s dive deeper.

There are four aspects that build the perception of a test being perceived as easy or difficult:

1.    Competition
2.    Nature of the test
3.    Range and depth of concepts tested
4.    Time per question

Competition

The NMAT by GMAC Exam is a highly competitive test which is taken by thousands of aspirants who wish to get into multiple renowned universities. Considering the stakes involved, it’s natural that almost all serious aspirants take the test. That should make it seem to be difficult to crack, right?

The reason why I mention that the NMAT by GMAC Exam is the fairest test of the season, is primarily because of the adaptive nature of the test. The level of difficulty of the questions is pre-determined (post rigorous testing) and that ensures that the question set experienced by each test taker is unique and personalised.

The objective of the exam is to place you within a band and not to just tell you how many answers you got right or wrong. If you are a well-prepared test taker with a good grasp of basics and time management, the test will challenge you and will ultimately move you to higher bands if you handle those challenges well. So, it’s YOU who will influence how the test perceives you instead of others.

The other thing that is unique to the test is the flexibility that you get in terms of being test-ready. You get to choose the time and place when you will be most comfortable to face the test. As the level of difficulty of the test is independent of ‘when’ you take it, you can take the test when you are prepared.

Range and depth of concepts tested

Would you say this question is easy or difficult?

Annual income of ‘A’ is Rs. 2,00,000 and he saves Rs.40,000 annually. Savings up to 15% of the income is exempted from the tax and rest of the savings is charged at the rate of 5% tax. On the remaining income, tax is calculated 10% up to Rs. 1,00,000 and 20% for the rest of the income. What is the annual tax paid by ‘A’?

(A) Rs. 30,500
(B) Rs. 22,500
(C) Rs. 27,000
(D) Rs. 22,000
(E) Rs. 30,000

Someone who loves numbers will be excited at the prospect of being able to solve this question. Someone who is scared of numbers will want to run away as far as possible from this Brobdingnagian monstrosity!

This I believe, is one of the most unheralded reasons why the NMAT by GMAC Exam is not exactly an unnecessarily difficult test and should be taken by every serious aspirant.

The NMAT Official Guide gives you a concise overview of the concepts that are going to be tested which ensures that there won't be any surprises when you take the exam. How good you are in terms of execution and time-management is going to decide how you fare at the test. If you are well-versed with all the concepts, have a way of tackling each expected question type, and take a few mock tests, you should not find the test very difficult. I would not say it’s going to be easy but I would say it would easily be the smoothest test-taking experience.

Time per question

How much time do you think you will take to solve this jumbled paragraph question?

(A) Suspicions aroused, local governments sent out teams to check on their elderly residents.
(B) His 81-year-old daughter had hidden his death and pocketed more than 9m yen ($106,000; £68,000) in pension payments, police said.
(C) It was a hot summer’s day in late July that police in Japan found the mummified corpse of Sogen Kato - still lying in the bed where he had died 30 years earlier.
(D) At 111 years old he was believed to be Japan’s oldest man.

(A) CBDA
(B) ACBD
(C) CDBA
(D) ABCD
(E) DACB

If your answer is less than 45 seconds, you are possibly going to be among the top test takers. Now magnify this by 120 times and you will get a feel of what the NMAT feels like.

The timer is possibly the most nerve-racking part of the test. The time per question on an average is slightly more than 1 minute (although in the Language Skills section, it’s around 46 seconds), which makes it a challenging test to face. Also, there is a penalty attached to not attempting questions which makes it almost mandatory to answer all the questions in a section. That makes it a test of content AND decision making.

You have to be alert throughout and even one slip might mean that you won’t be able to showcase your full potential. Spend more time than what’s required on a question you are finding difficult and you will be faced with even worse odds come the next question. The unique nature of the test is also something that makes it more challenging than the other tests that you would be taking throughout the season.

So, what’s the bottom-line? Is NMAT easy or difficult?

Like most questions in life, there’s no one right answer. If you are mentally prepared, have a good hold on content, and are disciplined you will find it to be really easy and exciting. If you are dreading solving questions, chances are high that you won’t enjoy the test and subsequently won’t end up scoring well. That would also hint towards the fact that maybe you need to be a tad better at solving problems in general if you are to handle a business.

Boost your NMAT score and learn how to strategize for your NMAT prep with our '5 Study Tips For The NMAT by GMAC Exam' article.

Author Bio: Dr. Shashank Prabhu, Point99 Learning. Shashank is an MBBS (from Grant Medical College)-MBA (from FMS, Delhi) by qualification and has been training students preparing for aptitude tests since the last 16 years. He is also an aptitude test veteran and among his many laurels are a CAT 100%ile and a 297 at the NMAT.