Exam Pack 2 consists of two additional computer adaptive tests(CAT) that can be added to the official GMATPrep software. I have taken the Exam Pack 2 test multiple times and in this article I summarize my experience with Exam Pack 2. My comments are restricted to the quantitative section of the Exam Pack 2 only.
Having pointed out some of the drawbacks of Exam Pack 2, I still like these two new tests and fully endorse these tests and urge students to make Exam Pack 2 an integral part of their GMAT preparation. With the release of Exam Pack 2, students now have six full length official practice tests at their disposal.
- Database size: The database of quantitative questions in the Exam Pack 2 is around 220 questions. This is close to the 200 in Exam Pack 1 database.
- Repetition: When I took Exam 5 once followed by Exam 6, I encountered one repeat question. On closer inspection, I found that the questions were 99% identical, they were testing the exact same concept with the same answer. The only difference was the letter used for the variable, and one of the answer choices that was different. I think these two questions, although technically different but 99% identical, are a bad choice and at least one of them should be deleted.
- Difficulty: Exam 5 quantitative section is significantly harder than Exam 6. This means the average difficulty of the questions I faced was much higher in Exam 5 vs Exam 6. For example, I had 12 minutes left at the end of Exam 5 compared to 20 minutes in the case of Exam 6. GMAT does have differences in difficulty level from test to test, however the difficulty level of an exam is normalized against other students, and the overall score of a particular student will be the same. The only difference is the actual test experience of the students, for example in Exam 5, I was under a lot of pressure and stress, whereas in Exam 6 I was fairly relaxed. That difference can impact students differently and can throw off the pacing during the exam. I personally would like to see GMAT test difficulty to be more or less the same for a given student that is performing at a given level.
- Error: One question was written poorly and can be misinterpreted. I have omitted its description here. The test writers need to use a parentheses to clarify the order of operation. Of course, a similar mistake can happen in the exam. And the key thing to remember is not to let one question throw your flow in the exam.
Having pointed out some of the drawbacks of Exam Pack 2, I still like these two new tests and fully endorse these tests and urge students to make Exam Pack 2 an integral part of their GMAT preparation. With the release of Exam Pack 2, students now have six full length official practice tests at their disposal.
Last edited by dabral on Wed Mar 23, 2016 11:16 am, edited 2 times in total.
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