## To Take the EA, GMAT or GRE—That is the Question

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### To Take the EA, GMAT or GRE—That is the Question

by Bara » Thu Aug 27, 2020 2:52 pm
We posted this on our blog https://citytestprep.com/blog/ and wanted to share it with the Beat the GMAT community.

Upon first glance, when comparing the EA to the other two tests, it may seem like the most attractive choice because it is so much shorter than the other two tests and has more scheduling flexibility. However, when looking at EA scores, schools consider whether the test taker’s EA passes a 150-point threshold. This is opposed to looking at a ranked score, as admissions officers would with the GRE or GMAT, which gives you an opportunity to stand out with a high score. For the GMAT, impressive scores are close to 800, while high scores for the GRE are close to 170.

Despite its attractive features, the EA still might not be the best test for your needs. First, if you’re applying to EMBA programs, you’ll want to find out directly which test your program accepts or prefers. For example, two extremely competitive schools may have different policies: Booth School of Business’s EMBA program at the University of Chicago prefers the EA exam, while Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania prefers the GMAT. There are also other factors as well, about the tests themselves. Consider the following factors to make the best decision in choosing between taking the EA, GMAT, and GRE. (For a detailed comparison of the GMAT and GRE, go https://citytestprep.com/ye-olde-gre-ve ... -you-take/).

Test Eligibility
Almost 100 schools in all https://www.gmac.com/executive-assessme ... ng-schools and even some full-time MBA programs accept the EA https://www.gmac.com/executive-assessme ... ng-schoolsas an option for entry, such as Columbia Business School, NYU’s Stern, University of Virginia’s Darden Business School, and Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management. Likewise, the GRE is accepted by many programs, but not all. The GMAT is the most widely accepted, used by over 2,100 schools. So check your MBA or EMBA programs to find out whether or not they require, accept, or prefer the GMAT, EA, or GRE before submitting your application.

Test Duration
The most obvious difference between the tests is duration: the GRE is longest at 3 hours and 45 minutes, the GMAT is 3 hours and 30 minutes with breaks, and the EA only 90 minutes—half the time, and number of questions of the GMAT test, which it emulates. (The EA contains 40 questions while the GMAT contains 80). The tests all cover similar content; For the EA and GMAT, the content is identical, so you won’t necessarily prepare less for the EA multiple-choice questions, but you might not get as fatigued when taking the shorter EA compared to the GMAT. While length might be a convincing consideration of whether to take the EA or one of the other tests, some students do better with a marathon-opportunity test versus the comparative EA sprint.

Content
Both the EA and GRE contain three sections, as compared with the GMAT that has four sections. Here are details on the content:
• All tests contain Quantitative and Verbal sections.
• The GMAT and EA have an Integrated Reasoning section.
• Both the GRE and GMAT have a writing section while the EA has no Analytical Writing Assessment section.
• The EA and GMAT’s verbal section focuses more on grammar, whereas the GRE’s focuses more on vocabulary. The verbal section of these EA and GMAT include the same question types: Critical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, and Sentence Correction. On the other hand, the GRE’s verbal section consists of Reading Comprehension, Text Completion, and Sentence Equivalence.
• The EA and GMAT’s math sections consist of Data Sufficiency and Problem Solving questions, while the GRE includes Quantitative Comparison questions and numeric entry questions.

Structure of Scoring
Once you decide that you’re more comfortable with grammar, you can dig deeper to compare the
presentation between the EA and GMAT. Movement through these tests and their computer adaptiveness is different. The EA is section adaptive, which means it adapts its difficulty after every group of seven questions answered. The GMAT, on the other hand, is item adaptive, which means it changes difficulty after every single question.

The GRE is also section adaptive. On this test, Verbal and Quant sections are each divided into two parts. The first parts of each section that is presented are of medium skill level, and the difficulty for the next section adjusts depending on your performance. For example, if you score highly on your first Verbal section, then you will get a harder second Verbal section than someone who scored lower on the first section. Therefore, your performance on the first part of each section is somewhat more important, as a high score in the first part allows for more difficult questions in the second section, leading to a higher score.

While knowing these patterns are useful, ultimately it’s important to remember that the most vital question at any point is the one you are working on. So, being present with each question is the best way to engage with any of these tests.

Furthermore, we approach EA and GMAT test content as a metaphor for how an applicant will perform as a business leader. The questions simulate executive reasoning skills and situations, such as whether you take smart risks or are reckless, how you prioritize, and if you think outside of the box, etc… The GRE, as stated earlier, is used as an admissions test for a myriad of graduate programs, so it’s more general, and while you’ll employ critical thinking skills, it’s not as obvious a metaphor for being anything other than a test taker!

Difficulty
Generally speaking, the GMAT will test your academic readiness more rigorously than the EA, which focuses on the applicability of your skills to real-life problems. You might also choose which test to take based on what math content is included or excluded. The EA Quantitative section doesn’t contain geometry, so if that is not your strong suit, the EA might be the test for you. Beyond that, Quant content does not vary much between all three tests. We won’t get into the weeds by comparing apples to oranges with any depth here, but some people swear the GRE is a little easier than the GMAT/EA tests.

Scoring
The EA was designed to be a readiness assessment, which indicates whether a student has the skills to perform at the graduate level. This means that it’s not about getting the highest score, but whether you pass a certain threshold. On the other hand, the GMAT and the GRE are looked at in terms of how high you score, and that indicates your relative comfort with material on the test.

Schools will often accept EA scores in which a test taker scores at least 150 points on a scale of 100-200. The GMAT score range is 200-800, and students who are aiming for entry into competitive programs desire 700+ scores, and for the most competitive, 750+. The GRE is scored on a scale of 130-170, and you’ll need to reach out to your desired school to find out their school’s desired score range. However, this is sometimes difficult to find out, or the range given is large.

All test scores are good for 5 years.

Test Retakes
The EA has a 2-test lifetime limit but you can take both the GMAT and the GRE significantly more times than that. You can take the GMAT exam once every 16 calendar days, but no more than five times in a rolling 12-month period and no more than eight times total. You can take the GRE once every 21 days, up to five times within any continuous rolling 12-month period (365 days). This applies even if you cancelled your scores on a test taken previously.

Cost
The tests have different fees: The GMAT costs $250, the EA costs$350, and the GRE costs $205. The$100 price difference between the GMAT and EA might be an important factor to consider, especially if you are applying to non-executive MBA programs. However, the higher cost of the EA brings you more features, including no rescheduling fee and no extra costs to send your results to schools.

Cancellation and Rescheduling

Some perks to the EA over the GMAT and GRE include it being very flexible to reschedule and it doesn’t carry a fee to do so, as long as you do this online more than 48 hours before your test date. Included in the test fee are the score reports sent to schools. You pay more upfront, but don’t need to pay anything later, even if you want to report your score to more schools. You can do this whenever you want, for free. And if you take the test a second, final time, you can choose to send that set of scores to schools—not your entire history.

Short and Long Term Consequences
Two reasons to choose one test over the others is their consideration in scholarship opportunities, as well as their importance for future internships and job possibilities. For scholarships, consider which tests are required or accepted by the program you’re planning. For job considerations, some companies in the fields of consulting or investment banking require an applicant to have exceptionally high test scores, and these companies often prefer the GMAT over the EA and GRE. Because of this, some enrolled students will even take the GMAT while in business school in order to meet this requirement, but if you don’t need to take 2 tests, then why would you?

The last consideration of the GRE over the other two tests if you choose to do a dual degree. Some programs, such as JD/MBA may require both tests, and even have a specific order with which to take these tests. Again: do your research! (to see a chart comparing these three tests, visit our blog article, https://citytestprep.com/to-take-the-ea ... -question/.

In this odd COVID-19 time, reach out to the schools you’re applying to find out their current requirements for tests. It’s been a moving target across the testing landscape. And remember: the test you take is only one data point of your application, so working with an effective admission consultant is something to consider to make your candidacy shine. If you’re not sure which test to take, take a diagnostic of each test and track your performance and how it feels taking each test. With all things being equal, take the test on which you score highest and feel the most confident.
Bara Sapir, MA, CHt, CNLP
Founder/CEO City Test Prep
GMAT Badass and Test Anxiety Relief Expert
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### Re: To Take the EA, GMAT or GRE—That is the Question

by GurbaniKaurSuri » Wed Oct 28, 2020 10:07 pm
If a student decides to study abroad for masters (management courses), a standardised exam is one of the first moves they have to take. GMAT and GRE are the two widely known tests. The uncertainty starts with questions such as which of the two tests is simpler or a better MBA choice.

The Differences Between GRE and GMAT
Full Names:
• Graduate Record Examinations or GRE