GRE vs GMAT Exam: Structure | Difficulty Level | FAQs

GRE vs GMAT Exam: It is a known fact that for taking admission to any college or university abroad, one needs to appear for certain entrance examinations. Of these, the two very common exams are GRE and GMAT and students often face the dilemma of choosing one between these two. As thorough research is required on these examinations before applying for them, today we have brought to your answers to all your doubts regarding GRE and GMAT. By the end of this article, you will be able to surely choose the correct option for yourself.

What is GRE?

GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) tests verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing. Top business schools of the world accept GRE scores for MBA programs now apart from GMAT scores. 

What is GMAT?

GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) is an exam that needs to be given for joining business schools. Its score these days is acceptable for all the institutes which provide MBA and other management-related programs.

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GRE vs GMAT for MBA

• The score of the GRE & GMAT Exam is accepted by all business schools. In other words, if you want to pursue all your career in business or entrepreneurship in the future and pursue MBA for that, then GMAT is the perfect choice of examination for you as it would guarantee your admission to the institute of your choice (of course if you score well).
• On the other hand, as per a survey, out of all the business schools, there are around 1200 such institutes (such as MIT, Harvard, and Stanford) that accept the GRE scores also for giving admission MBA. The other institutes still don’t.  Hence if you go for GRE for MBA, then your choice will be limited as all the institutes do not accept its score.

GRE vs GMAT for PhD/M.Sc.

• GMAT is exclusively an entrance examination for getting into a Business School but if you want to build to be a research scholar or pursue a career in the academic line by going for Masters’s in science or PhD, in that case, you have to appear for GRE. Universities abroad accept your GRE scores to give you admission in such M.Sc. / PhD programmes.
• For such academic courses, the GMAT won’t work.

GRE & GMAT: Structure

First of all, GRE is a computer-based test. On the other hand, GMAT is a computerized adaptive test where the difficulty level of the upcoming questions depends on the IQ level of the student which is judged on the basis of how he answers the previous questions.

In other words, in the case of the GRE vs GMAT Exam, the system automatically adapts itself to each individual who appears for it, but that is not the case for GRE. Now coming to the test structure which is more or less the same but there are differences in the difficulty levels of each section.

In GMAT, there is one analytical writing, one quantitative, one verbal, and one integrated reasoning section. On the other hand, in the case of GRE, there is an analytical writing section along with two verbal sections, two quantitative sections, and one experimental section.

ALSO CHECK: Graduate Management Admission Test Details (GMAT): Eligibility & Pattern

GRE & GMAT: Difficulty Level

• In case of the GMAT exam, the quantitative section is quite tough as compared to that of GRE and one needs to be more dedicated and hard working towards this section.
• In GRE, examinees are allowed to use calculators.  But the level of difficulty of the verbal section in this case is higher. You need to have a strong vocabulary, first of all, to crack GRE.

Now, it of course depends on you which test you will consider tougher and it will, in turn, depend a lot on the academic subject in which you may have specialized. For example, if you studied mathematics in graduation, it would, of course, be an added advantage for you to solve the quantitative section with ease. Similarly, an English Hons. or a relevant discipline student jury may find the verbal section of GRE easier.

GRE & GMAT: Number of Attempts

You are eligible to appear for these exams as many times as you want and this is one of the main advantages of both GRE and GMAT.

• In the case of the former, you can appear a maximum of five items in a year after every 21 days.
•  In the case of the latter also, you can appear the same number of times a year after every 31 days. After the concerned year, one can again repeat this cycle of attempts.

GRE & GMAT: Institutes’ Acceptance

• There are some (around 12) of the reputed Indian business schools which accept GMAT scores as of 2020 for providing MBA admissions. These include FMS, New Delhi; IIM Ahmedabad; IIM Bangalore; IIM Calcutta; IBS Hyderabad; School of Management (NMIMS) Mumbai, etc.
• On the other hand, as of 2021, there are around 24 Indian educational institutions that accept the GRE scores. These include Christ University, Bangalore; IIM Shillong; IBS Hyderabad; IIM Ahmedabad; Bennet University Greater Noida; IIM Bangalore; Presidency University, Bangalore, etc.