As you probably know already, GMAC are allowing GMAT and Executive Assessment tests to be taken online due to the coronavirus pandemic. One of our applicants took the EA exam online, and told us about his experience:

How did you book the exam?

You just go online to book it and pay the fee online using your credit card.

Was the scheduling easy?

Not all options were available, but I booked a few weeks in advance, and so I was able to find the time suitable for me.

What technological aids did you use? Did you buy a special camera?

I used only the laptop from work, which was suitable.

Describe the steps until the exam

  1. First, I went through the information about the EA exam on the ARINGO site. Then I went to the GMAC site and got questions from there to practice with, before taking the EA. That was a fantastic and excellent tool for preparing.
  2. My second advice would be to allot a sufficient amount of time for preparation. I spent like 40-50 total hours to prepare. I solved all of the GMAC questions 2 times, first just to understand what it’s all about, what were the dimensions and logic of the problems, and then again, just to do them while feeling much more comfortable.
  3. Next, you need to make sure you don’t spend too much time on any single question – don’t get bogged down. When I was solving those problems for the first time there were some really difficult ones, where I spent 10 minutes. Later, when actually taking the exam, you better skip these, because you have limited time for each part of the examination.

This is the way to success for preparation.

Tell about the course of the exam:

Being well prepared on the day of the exam is just as critical as taking the exam itself.

  1. Whatever time your appointment is, you should sign in early. The GMAC recommendation is to connect 30 minutes before the scheduled time. In my case, those 30 minutes were not really sufficient, because I had some computer problems, needed to reboot, etc. So my advice is to start plugging in and connecting not less than one hour before exam time. Otherwise you can become stressed. At certain moments I felt very stressed, feeling I was missing the opportunity.
  2. Firstly, you need to prepare the place where you will be taking the exam. In my case, that was a separate room. There should be nobody in that room. At one point, when my wife entered the room, the proctor questioned it.
  3. You have to make sure as well that there is nothing on the table except for the computer itself and the whiteboard.
  4. I would suggest to those taking this exam to put the table with PC right in the middle of the room, because the proctor will be asking to see room from all angles, including all round the For me this was difficult, since my computer is next to the wall. So spend time to arrange that. After I signed in, first I had to take photos of the room I was in. Then the proctor came in before the exam started and the first question they asked was: Show me your room. I then had to take the camera and show him around the room, from behind, left, right, etc. He had some questions about equipment in my room – I have speakers in my room and he asked me about them, was there a screen attached to them, etc. The less stuff you have in the room, the less questions you will be asked.
  5. The last but most important point: during the part of the examination, on the side of GMAC, what you are doing – by means of using computer mouse, you are marking the answers. And then if you want to proceed to the next screen or problem, you must press a specific problem. Right in the middle of my exam, part of my screen disappeared, so I was not able to either mark the answer to that question or move to the next screen. Because of that, I lost time and was not able to even read the last question on that part and I lost a few points. So my advice to the next generation would be to be prepared for this sort of thing to happen, and if a problem arises, know that you can, in real time, write to the proctor, so they can help you with the IT.

But my biggest advice: don’t let it stress you. If you have done everything right and are prepared, there should be no problem. You will have sufficient amount of time to do this test.