Hey ayushiitm (and all),
Great questions - I've always found that you can tell a lot about the way the GMAT is written before you even click "Begin" on the AWA essays.
When you arrive at the test center, it will feel official and sterile...and, in some respects, it's like reporting for prison:
-They'll check your ID against your registration (make sure that your name is spelled the same, your birthdate is correct on both, etc.)
-They'll take a digital photograph of you for their records (your "mug shot")
-They'll take a fingerprint or palm scan (I believe that most centers are on palm scans now) for security purposes
-You'll be given a locker for anything other than, really, the clothes you have on - watches, cell phones, hats, jackets, etc. all go in the locker and you can only visit them during breaks
-Even during breaks, you need to get your prints taken when you return to your seat
Some of this is done for security reasons (it's a high stakes test, and you should be happy as an honest test-taker that you won't be competing against inflated-due-to-cheating scores), but I'd argue that a lot of it gets to the heart of the test, of which the mission is:
Determine which candidates will be the most successful b-school graduates
B-school graduates will go on to be managers: traders, CEOs, entrepreneurs, etc. In those capacities, you'll need to make sound, reasoned decisions under pressure - there will be thousands, if not millions, of dollars at stake; your employees and clients will depend on your decisions; your career may be defined on your choices; and you may have limited time or incomplete information. The GMAT tries to replicate that by adding pressure up front on the check-in, and by asking you to make a series of logical, comprehensive decisions under timed and high-stakes pressure.
So...know going into the test that they want you to feel pressure. I remember telling myself, actually, that the very fact that they had to go to such lengths to artificially create pressure (really? fingerprints?) was a signal that the questions themselves couldn't be that hard...if they need the pressure to keep my score down, than in the absence of pressure my score would be higher, right? So I used the pressure to my advantage - I saw behind the curtain and called their bluff on the difficulty level, and at the very least countered their artificial pressure with artificial confidence.
Good luck!
Brian Galvin
GMAT Instructor
Chief Academic Officer
Veritas Prep
Looking for GMAT practice questions? Try out the Veritas Prep Question Bank.
Learn More.
