Be Careful When Picking the GRE for Business School

Across the internet, students have gotten the idea that the #GRE is an "easier test" than is the #GMAT for impressing business school #adcomms. And while this may broadly be true, two recent MyGuru Test Prep students became cautionary tales of how moving to the GRE in the middle of test prep may not have the intended outcome - Switching from the GMAT to the GRE: Cautionary Tales.

For MBA candidates truly at the beginning of the #testprep process, the primary reason to consider the #GMATFocus over the GRE is simply relevance of the material you'll need to study. The GMAT with its "focus" on manual calculation, number sense, logical reasoning, and data analysis simply encourages improving skills that will be relevant in the #bschool classroom and executive board room, whereas the GRE prioritizes obscure vocabulary and geometry that will likely be of little value past any official test date.

Of course, the best way to get an idea of which exam will be better is to take a free GMAT? Focus Official Starter Kit | Diagnostic Exam from mba.com and a free POWERPREP Practice Tests: Prepare for the GRE General Test | Diagnostic Exam from ets.org/gre. If your performance on the GRE is significantly better than on the GMAT Focus, you may be in a better position to take that test. However, be aware that the margin for error on the GRE is significantly smaller than what is found on the GMAT Focus. As few as two questions missed on the short-form GRE can cause a test taker to drop to an 80th percentile Quantitative section score on this new version of the exam released in fall 2023. Furthermore, no more than three (and possibly two on the Quantitative section!) of the 12 questions in the first section can be missed for a student aiming to reach the harder second adaptive section of that type, and reaching the harder second section is basically a prerequisite for scoring 160+ on either GRE section.

Because of this lessened margin for error on the GRE, students seeking to reach top decile scores on the standardized prep aspect of their MBA application, may be better suited to work on the GMAT Focus. Additionally, non-native English speakers are likely to have a harder time with the GRE because more than half of its Verbal section tests nothing except arcane vocabulary. However, if you are seeking to attend a less selective MBA program and need a score closer to the 50th or 75th percentile, the GRE may offer an easier path forward. Ultimately, which test to take is up to each individual test taker, but anyone applying to an MBA should make this decision thoughtfully to avoid wasting months of time because they simply read or heard that the GRE is easier than the GMAT!