Computer Crashed in middle of GMAT - lost Marks

[jauntybush]

Hi all,

I sat the GMAT exam on Friday and had a computer crash which caused me to lose marks in the quant section - has anyone experience something like this or had to go through the issues lodging and registering process with Pearson Vue?

The big problem is I have had to fly 3000kms to sit this exam (from Darwin to Melbourne as Darwin does not have a Pearsons Vue testing centre) and spend over $1000 to sit the exam in the first place. Obviously I want to avoid needing to spend this money again.

The computer I was working on crashed and rebooted during the quantitative section of the exam - to give you an example of the disparity, my verbal was 92% and my maths was 32%. The reason I know that this is an issue - aside from the obvious - is that my quant score was far and away under anything I have scored previously in the GMAT official and test exams (including the first one I did 4 months ago before I did any study!)

I've lodged an issue with GMAC and they're investigating this, but I was wondering if anyone could offer any advice. I understand that the grades are temporarily stored on a database while the exam is undertaken, and I've asked the team to investigate if there's any double records or any unusual results in my records around the time the crash occurred.

Can anyone offer me any advice, insight or comparable experiences?

Thanks,

Noel

[DanaJ]

Wow, that sucks! Did you report the problem right when it occurred? I think you stand a better chance of getting your current score cancelled + a free retake if the people in the testing center were aware of the issue. I'd also try to get my trip back paid. In the end it's their fault!

[bblast]

I have given the GMAT thrice. I am also a small town entrepreneur and the Pearson centre here is pathetic. The first time I sat for the test the light when out twice in quant and there was no UPS !!! As far as I remember the test resumed properly from the point where the light was cut. and I managed to get an at par score - 47.

The third time I sat for the test there was a UPS, but the light went out twice during verbal and the multiple UPS's making the beeps were really irritating during the verbal section. I think the power cut retake would be allowed. Especially if u scored much below ur par level.

[jauntybush]

Thanks for your advice!

Yeah I reported it straight away and logged the issue with Pearson that day. I'm pursuing this at the moment - interesting to note the Asia/Pacific contact number does not work (6038318 9961).

More information about the crash - there was an error message when I sat down at the computer before my exam started. It is likely that this was the cause of the lost answers - a computer crash in itself shouldn't cause answers to delete as they are stored in case the exam needs to be paused/resumed. I have requested that the Pearson team investigate the answer tables in the exam database (I work in Information Management so I am familiar with how this data would be stored and accessed) to determine where the problem lies.

I'll update this thread as and when this issue is resolved - hopefully no one else has to go through this frustrating experience themselves!!

[jauntybush]

I received a response from Pearson Vue this morning. Unfortunately they haven't chosen to investigate this matter very deeply, which is concerning given the issues on the day - I've responded back to them so the ball is now back in their court.

Pearson Vue:

Thank you for contacting Pearson VUE GMAT Customer Service with your concern. We have researched your request and would like to let you know that there were no errors found when we reviewed your exam. We are able to confirm that the exam was restarted once during the exam, however, this had no effect on the exam time or the scoring of the exam. Please contact us at your earliest convenience if you have any other questions at +44 (0) 161 855 7219. Please reference incident number 203688966. The incident number is our way of tracking this situation. We will be closing this incident at this time.

My response:

Hi Michelle,

Good morning and thank you for your response. I appreciate your efforts however I believe it is in both my own and Pearson Vue's interests that this investigation continue. I am sure your organisation is equally concerned by a situation where the software product you use for your exam has had a number of issues, and the risk that a perceived insufficient investigation would undermine the credibility of the issues resolution process. I have contacted my exam centre who will be providing additional evidence into this matter to add to the investigation - I am eager not just for a resolution to this matter but it would benefit all of us to identify a cause as well.

So we are clear on what the issues here are:

1. The test computer had an error right at the start of the exam, before I sat down to begin.
2. Between the AWA and the Quant section my timer screen did not become visible. Again, I contacted the test centre people who resolved this, however by this stage I had lost a minute on the Quant section.
3. The computer crashed during the Quant section.
4. Finally, the extremely and unusually low Quant score, which I believe the above contributed to.

The following areas would be a starting place to investigate the issues with my exam - I work in Information Management so I understand how these programs and the data they deal with are stored and processed.

1. First and most importantly is the low mark in the quant section. I would like someone on your end to inspect the database records of my answers for abnormalities. This would include null or default or non-valid values for long strings of answers in this section, along with any 'non-answers'. I want to confirm I answered all questions during the quant section within the allotted time. All database investigations above are simple and quick matters.
2. For you to confirm the point at which - and the question number - at which the computer rebooted

Thanks, and much appreciated.

Noel Francis Hanssens