{"id":14803,"date":"2012-10-19T09:00:45","date_gmt":"2012-10-19T16:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=14803"},"modified":"2012-10-12T16:05:34","modified_gmt":"2012-10-12T23:05:34","slug":"pre-exam-procedure-for-the-gmat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/pre-exam-procedure-for-the-gmat\/","title":{"rendered":"Pre-Exam Procedure for the GMAT"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"As readers of the blog know, I recently\u00a0took the GMAT<\/a>.\u00a0 This is a brief description of the testing location and the experience of going to take the test, for those who have never done so.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Pearson VUE<\/h2>\n

If you take an official GMAT, the location you will use is\u00a0Pearson VUE<\/a>.\u00a0 I found the Pearson employees in the downtown Oakland branch particularly friendly and supportive --- those folks were great! \ud83d\ude42 \u00a0Nevertheless, it\u2019s just the nature of the way we practice security in the modern world: you are subjected to an experience that is not too different from what TSA puts you through at the airport.\u00a0 You have to empty your pockets and lock everything you are carrying in a small locker. When you go to take you GMAT, carry as little as you possibly can.\u00a0 Leave anything extra at home or in your car.<\/p>\n

You need to have your\u00a0legal picture ID<\/strong>\u00a0(e.g. a US State issued Driver\u2019s License).\u00a0 In the course of the procedure, Pearson will take your picture at the beginning, and scan the palm of your hand every time you enter and leave the testing room.\u00a0 Every time you leave the testing room, you will have to show that your pockets are empty before entering the room, and you are not allow to carry anything into the testing room except your picture ID and the key to the locker.\u00a0 If you have any \u201clucky charm\u201d item ---- a rabbit\u2019s foot, a favorite small stuffed animal,\u00a0dragon\u2019s bones<\/a>\u00a0--- forget it: that\u2019s going in the locker.\u00a0 You want something lucky you can take into the testing room?\u00a0 Wear lucky underwear or get a lucky tattoo!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Breaks<\/h2>\n

On the GMAT, you begin with the AWA (30 minutes), and that\u2019s followed immediately, without break, by the IR section (30 minutes).\u00a0 At this point, you are offered optional 8-minute break #1.\u00a0\u00a0 After this break, you take the Quantitative section (75 minutes), and then you will be offered the second optional 8-minute break before the final Verbal section (75 minutes).\u00a0 At each optional break, you can choose to work straight through, or you can choose to get up, step out of the testing room, and take your break.<\/p>\n

I highly recommend taking both optional breaks.\u00a0 On both my breaks, I got up and moved around a little.\u00a0 On the first, I did some stretching in the hallway.\u00a0 On both breaks, I drank some water, and during my second break, I ate an organic protein bar that I had brought.\u00a0 Food and water will have to go into the locker, but you can get your water & snacks out during each break.<\/p>\n

Moving your body, just simply walking, gets blood & lymph flowing, and introduces oxygen into your blood, which helps you think.\u00a0 Of course, throughout the test and on your breaks, it\u2019s important to keep up quiet\u00a0slow deep breathing.<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Summary<\/h2>\n

If you haven\u2019t taken a live GMAT before, it\u2019s good to know what to expect, and how it\u2019s different from taking a practice GMAT on your own computer in the comfort of your own home.\u00a0 Know what to expect, so all the security measures don\u2019t jar you and psyche you out on test day.\u00a0 And for actual content of the test itself, trust\u00a0Magoosh<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This post was written by Mike McGarry, GMAT expert at\u00a0Magoosh<\/a>, and originally posted\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As readers of the blog know, I recently\u00a0took the GMAT.\u00a0 This is a brief description of the testing location and the experience of going to take the test, for those…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,783,243],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gmat","category-magoosh-blog","category-blog","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/133"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14803"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14803\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14805,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14803\/revisions\/14805"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}