GMAC Cancels GMAT Scores [Mass cancellation in India]

bb ,

I did get a mail from Pearson that "the code will be T and that it is not viewed negatively by institutes as it is out of the candidate's control".The rest of the mail was dedicated to making us feel better by "offering a retest free of cost".I'd rather pay again and have my score back. No status is visible on the mba.com appointment as of now.

As for the retest,all the dates in July and June are gone already as are all weekends in August.All this planning to stay ahead of the game has come to this now.

According to my knowledge cheating on GMAT is almost impossible for any test taker. If the centre is responsible for all this mess, then why the candidate will suffer? GMAT requires a lot of sacrifices and such incidences are demoralising not only for that particular student but also for other, who are preparing for GMAT.

jimmy

No, this is limited to the centers concerned and we are taking the necessary precautions to avoid this kind of incident from happening again. You can feel confident to go ahead with scheduling as you planned.

Hello,

I know that this is incredibly difficult news and I understand your concerns. We are limited in the amount of information we can provide at this time as this is still a developing situation and is currently being investigated, but I wanted to give you as much as I can. This sounds like it may be the same information you are getting from the Customer Care team, but just in case it's helpful, I would like to provide it for all of you here as well. Due to irregularities in test administration, we had to cancel some scores on or around the affected test dates. The score is being cancelled for Reason Code 'T' (Testing Issue), which includes testing circumstances leading to questionable validity of scores. On your official score report the reason code for this cancellation will be designated as a 'T' for Testing Issues. This designation signifies score cancellations due to issues affecting the administration of the rest. Examples include, but are not limited to, administrative errors, equipment problems and other emergencies. Schools do not view 'T' negatively as that encompasses testing administration errors and circumstances outside the candidates' control. Please see the link below for further information on the GMAT score cancellation policy https://www.mba.com/the-gmat-exam/gmat-e ... cores.aspx. As promised, I will be sure to update this thread with any and all information I have available.

Thank you, and I would again welcome you contact Customer Care for help in scheduling your retest.

Jeremy

beattheheat / OfficialGMAT

Would like to point out that this is not true apparently. jaysiddharth took the test in Mumbai and his score was cancelled as well.

You are correct, that was my mistake, which I realized a few minutes after posting and have corrected with an edit to my post. Sorry for the confusion on this. The overall point I intended is the same though, that this is limited to the test centers affected, but yes, it did extend beyond Bangalore, as you correctly noted. Thank you.

Jeremy/ OfficialGMAT,

This is being "investigated" means there is a chance that our scores might be reinstated as we might not even be the ones affected by " irregularities in test administration"?I have come across one such instance where the score was reinstated so i know that it is not an out-of-the-world scenario.Is it possible still?How long do you think this "investigation" will take and will we be given any more info on this later as the casualties of this mishap ?

Hi OfficialGMAT ,

If this is a continuously developing scenario , then our scores have been cancelled without taking into account all the available information ? Moreover , the rescheduling of the exams is now being done at a great personal cost to the affected candidates. Moreover it has come to our notice that the Think Advisory Center , Mumbai is likely to open by next week. Can it be assured that in case one were to take exam there , "testing irregularities"would not be observed ?

Moreover , there are other candidates whose scores are likely to be cancelled then ?

Also according the the GMAT website : https://www.mba.com/india/the-gmat-exam/ ... cores.aspx

Challenging a Decision to Cancel or Withhold Scores

In some, but not all, situations, GMAC and/or Pearson VUE will notify the test taker in writing in advance about a planned score cancellation or invalidation, give the test taker an opportunity to submit information that addresses the concerns raised, consider any information that is submitted, and offer the test taker a choice of options. The options may include voluntary score cancellation, a free retest, and appealing the cancellation decision through procedures provided by GMAC or Pearson VUE. In any such appeal, the issue to be decided would be whether GMAC and/or Pearson VUE had a good faith reason to question the validity of the GMAT score.

Request you to help us and let me know the said procedure for Appeals.


Siddharth J

Well, Jeremy/official GMAT, you have almost copy pasted the mail each of us have got.. just for the record , the people replying to one of the mails did not even bother reading the name of the person sending the mail, and in the reply used another person's name. This seems really unprofessional behaviour from a very professional organization and it is very contradictory to everything I have heard about GMAC. Since you are the only one who seems to be bothered about this issue from GMAC side, I hope you take efforts from our side and hopefully get our scores reinstated.. But if not. Atleast give us a concrete reason/explanation for what happened...

Sorry to hear guys, I can't even imagine how upset I would be to find out my score (especially if it was high) is being cancelled.
You probably invested 100s of hours of time and money into this, only to have it waived.
Is there not some level of compromise here? e.g. if the scoring algorithm was inflated, then re-calibrate?
How was your test experience? Were you getting alot of easy questions or something, that could explain why the score needs to be waived.

Hello OfficialGMAT,
I had planned to give GMAT in 2nd week of July at Pearson Centre ,Bangalore . Is the centre available for scheduling ?

Regards,
Manish Khare

Hi thank you for your concern. Well speaking to the others, and reporting my own experience. I can't Say that I found the test easier than usual, quant seemed easy but I am quite decent at quant, so I dunno about that and the verbal for me was quite tough.. I did not find a lotta difference between the actual exam and the Gmatprep software, I would say Gmat was a bit harder which is what most people who give the exam say..

But lets say tht the exam.was easier. And tht maybe our scores were inflated. Okay so tell us that!!! Tell us tht there was an issue with the algorithm or whatever.. so tht atleast we know what happened.. there is absolutely no reason whatsoever to not tell us anything at all. And then they confiscate all the systems and stuff.. also the website doesn't list the testing algorithm issues as reason for any sorta cancellations.. its more about keeping their candidates informed and taken care of than just playing around with their careers.. anyway it's good tht so many people are reading this.. atleast awareness is being spread tht such stuff can happen... Always find out abt the centers u are giving the exams in before booking them.

Regards
V.k

Also,now there seems to be no credibility to the process.The issue as told is "administrative errors".This happened to someone on the 2nd May(Jaysiddharth) but was not rectified.Happened to me on 9th May but was not rectified and so on.It is like they act when they discover the problem with no regard to where in the process the poor test taker might be now.

The Mumbai center might function again and the same might happen again.Or worse,it might happen anywhere.The test takers will bear the brunt of their negligence and lack of a robust system time and again it seems.Instead of a score cancellation they should hand out a score report and an apology letter that candidates can submit in their applications even though they HAVE to retake.

To me, this seems like some fraud was being committed at the centers where the tests were being conducted.
Something like an deliberately infected PC or some sort of recording of the questions in the current question bank.

I remember the GMAT brochure says something like revealing the questions that appeared in the exam is a violation of the code and can lead to action being taken.

Feel sorry for you guys
It must be so frustrating to have your score cancelled after all the preparation and hard work you guys put in.
Although, there is a chance that they might take every case individually and restore the scores.
Hang in there

Hello,

I have a bit more information, although not as much as I'm sure you are all looking for. I do not have any further information to share because the investigation is ongoing. We are pushing for this investigation to be completed as quickly as possible. However, I have been notified that the scores that have been cancelled will remain cancelled and will not be reinstated as a result of the investigation findings. I strongly encourage you to take advantage of the free retest being offered as part of this cancellation. We are waiving the 31-day retest policy for affected test takers, but you need to call and schedule the free test immediately, since you only have 15 days from the date of your letter to schedule it. As a reminder, those numbers are +1 (703) 668-9604 (International) or +1 (866) 739-0238 (U.S. toll-free) and are staffed between 8:30 a.m and 4:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern time Monday through Friday. As promised, I will provide as much information as I have available whenever I have it available.

Thank you, and please know that I am sharing all of your messages and comments with our operations and customer care teams so they are aware of the details of your experiences.

Hello,

The test centers and available test dates shown on our website at mba.com/register reflect the current status of available centers. So, if you see one listed there, you are able to take the exam there.

Thanks,
Jeremy

Thanks Jeremy / OfficialGMAT ,

I guess I won't be hoping explicitly now.

I had put up a excerpt from the mba.com . Could you please verify the same ? Could you also let me know how the redressal mechanism works ?

Siddharth J