[EDITED]

Hi all,

I just wanted to share with you my online GMAT experience so that you realise what can happen.

I did the exam on May 2nd at around 21:45h Lisbon time (there was no other slot when I registered)

1) Before the exam
I am not going to bother with all the login details since these are thoroughly covered in other reviews. Basically I did the check in process, took a couple of pictures and a nice guy (Yoshito?) verified everything was okay.
Afterwards, my proctor (Deborah) connected me to the exam and shortly after, the exam began.

2) Quant
Started of okay although with some issues with the whiteboard (since it’s a page that sits on top of the exam app, it’s tricky to find the correct area balance so that you are still able to see the questions). Additionally, Deborah (the proctor) interrupted me to say “keep you eyes on the screen” - very annoying since I had my eyes on the screen the entire time. What happens is that when you put the whiteboard next to the corner of you screen, it looks like you are not looking at the screen (that’s my understanding of it).
Ended quant 6-7 min early which led me to believe that I’d probably failed miserably in this section (I am pretty sure I got my last 12 questions correct but since they were pretty easy, I must have got plenty wrong in the first 19 questions). Anyway, that’s GMAT

3) Verbal (things start going wrong here)
I was feeling confident in verbal and was able to always pick out 1 correct answer in any question (at least that is my perception)
By the time I reached min 33 (counting down), the VUE App freezes - I am stuck between 2 questions. No need to panic (I thought), I only need to contact my proctor and she will take care of me. After 5 min of trying to contact my proctor (there is a button you use to raise tour hand, which I pressed frenetically) she eventually comes up in the chat and says that I am experiencing a technical issue and that she already contacted the technical team.
Another 10 min go by (we are at t + 15 min as t marks the technical issue beginning) and nothing. I sent various messages in the chat asking what was going on and if there were any news but nothing - my proctor took always >10 min to respond my messages.
At t + 30, she said she was going to restart my exam and that everything was going to be okay (yeah right!).
She restarted the VUE app, meaning that the camera and the micro turned off for a couple of min, but after logging in again, I was experiencing the same problem - at this point, the problem had evolved to a no internet access kind of problem as the VUE app showed a similar page to the chrome page when you don’t have access to internet. My internet was fine (I was still able to talk through the chat), my firewall wasn’t causing problems, etc.
After several attempts to restart my exam (several here means something around 15 times! - the proctors have no idea what they are doing there and they don’t give a sh** about you), I eventually come back online (1 question behind of when I left off - very strange). I only came back online at t + 65 minutes. It was unacceptable. It made me very nervous plus I was had to go to the restroom really bad (I planned to go during the 5 min break before the IR - in normal conditions, that would be at t + 33 but we were now at t + 65 with 33 minutes to go)
I finish the verbal part and despite the situation, I felt I did okay.

4) The grand finale
After finishing the Verbal section, I selected the option that allowed me a 5 min break. After the break started, I raised my hand to inform my proctor that I was going to the restroom. Since no one answered and time was running out, I left the room for less that 2 min to go to the bathroom.
When I got back, my exam had ended and I had a message from a new proctor (his name was Francis - Deborah’s shift must have ended) saying: “I revoked your exam because you left the room”. Just like that, he closed the VUE app and barred me from getting in again (I tried using my credentials but the session had expired)
I was so mad. Not only did I had a terrible experience, but now that I got passed it, my exam got revoked without reason! As per GMAC policy, you are allowed to leave the exam room during the 5 min break.

I tried to call every number I found on Pearson and GMAC bust since it was 1am May 3rd (Sunday), nobody answered. I also sent emails explaining the situation to Pearson and GMAC but I reckon they will only get back to me on Monday (in the best scenario).

I think I am being greatly penalised here. I took 3 days off work to study for this exam. Even if they let me repeat the exam, I will not be able to prepare any further because I will start a very intense project on Monday (it will last for 8 weeks and I need a GMAT score right away).

I am sharing this because I want everyone to be aware of what could happen to you during your online GMAT exam.

I will keep you posted on how this situation folds.

Best,
M

-----------------[Edited part]------------------

Hi all,

GMAT Online customer service (from Pearson) contacted me on May 15th (2 weeks after I took my GMAT online exam - May 2bd). Here it is:

"Dear Miguel
First and foremost, we want to sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you may have faced during your GMAT Online exam.
At this time, we have refunded your full exam fees back to the card used at the time of registration. Refunds will be issued back to your financial institution within 24 - 48 hours, although it may take 1 - 2 billion cycles for it to appear on your billing statement.
We have also contacted GMAC and requested an authorization to retest on your behalf. GMAC will process this request within 1 to 2 business days. Once you are approved to retest, you may log in to your account and schedule a new appointment. If you have any questions regarding your eligibility to retest, please email customercare for assistance.
Due to the nature of this exam delivery mode, we want to emphasize to all customers the importance of reviewing the GMAT OnVUE landing page and the available resources to determine if OnVUE is right for you. This includes reading through our minimum system requirements and completing a system test to ensure your computer and network will be able to support delivering your exam. We suggest completing these checks prior to checking in for your next OnVUE appointment.
Again, we sincerely apologize for the hurdles you faced during your GMAT Online exam. We appreciate your understanding and willingness to work with us to improve this service.

Thank you,"

There you have it. I wasn't even able to recover my score (I completed the Quant and Verbal sections remember?) and these 2 weeks in stand-by completely derailed my GMAT preparation. My recommendation would be that you should only take the online GMAT exam if you really need the score in that time period. Otherwise, you are better off waiting until the test centres open.

Best,
M


Posted from my mobile device

It's precisely a horrible experience. Thank you for your debriefing. I don't rush, so I'm waiting until the COVID-19 goes away to take the GMAT exam.
_________________

Hi Miguel,

I'm really sorry to hear about what you experienced with your At-home GMAT - and I imagine that it's incredibly frustrating. There have been a number of incidents of technical and functional issues with this version of the GMAT, so you're not alone. Unfortunately, since each of these incidents requires a certain amount of 'investigation time', it could be weeks before the investigators ultimately assess your situation and inform you of their decisions.

I think that everyone here would certainly like to know how all of this ends up. In addition, while you might not be thinking in these terms right now, you can always retake the GMAT later (once the Test Centers reopen). While all of this clearly doesn't fit your original timeline, it doesn't mean that your MBA goals are gone forever - it just means that they've been delayed.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
_________________

Hey Miguel, I hope everything works out for you! I think you have only IR left to do if they let you complete the exam from where you left off. I know how terrible it can be when you need to go to washroom that urgently. I hope they see everything on the camera, check the chat messages and they let you give the exam.

Do let us know what you hear from them. I am still contemplating whether to appear for online exam. This gives me yet another reason to wait for test centers to open.

Thanks for the debrief and All the best.
_________________

Hi Miguel,
This is truly horrible experience. Seems everything went wrong that day.

I hope you got reply from gmac soon, otherwise the score will indicate that when you submit the score to any schools

Posted from my mobile device

miguelruzlucas
Sorry for your bad experience.
The Proctor experience in GMAT online looks more cumbersome than tech. issues. Hope they consider your case since nothing went as it should be plus the extra time you had to spend waiting - the horror it must have been - and experience both mental ans physical pain. Looks like GMAT's proctor policies are too biased - they revolve around the notion everyone's cheating without any consideration for exceptions as has been your case.

For them it is easy to reschedule the exam but test taker's mental preparation would not be same.

Thanks for sharing it here. Hope for the best.
_________________

Not okay. You did everything right. The worst part is having to hold your bladder for hours.

The suggestion that you can always take it in person later is irrelevant and not comforting.

The session is recorded. You can raise a formal complaint. GMAC does state that there is a review process. The review process might take some time. If you don't get a satisfactory resolution, there are legal recourses.

Posted from my mobile device

I actually experienced something similar. In my case however the proctors were not familiar with the GMAT online requirements and made this test a horrible experience.

It will take a long time for you to receive an answer by GMAT. I already wait
2 weeks, and have not received any answer.

hope you will receive an answer very soon!

Posted from my mobile device

Miguel - Did you hear anything from GMAC about the situation? Were you allowed to give the remainder of your test?
_________________

Hi, still haven’t heard from GMAC.

I will edit the post once they contact me.

Best,
Miguel

Posted from my mobile device

Hi Miguel, wish you get favorable reply from gmac. Review of gmat online has been mixed, some favorable and other not.

Posted from my mobile device

Hello Guys,

The GMAT online version seems to be a nightmare for many. I had a horrible experience this morning. I had registered for the exam at 4 AM, Indian Standard Time. Logged into the system at 3.30 AM, even though I did all system requirements checks earlier, clicked pics as required and kept looking at the OnVue screen for next 95 minutes. I successfully passed the test of patience, but there was response from the proctor or anyone. After 95 minutes, the message read " Hmmmm...something's wrong. Pls fill the form and we will contact you".

Such a waste of effort. Have been preparing for this day since last 05 months. I donno what to do now.

Posted from my mobile device

Hello Guys,

The GMAT online version seems to be a nightmare for many. I had a horrible experience this morning. I had registered for the exam at 4 AM, Indian Standard Time. Logged into the system at 3.30 AM, even though I did all system requirements checks earlier, clicked pics as required and kept looking at the OnVue screen for next 95 minutes. I successfully passed the test of patience, but there was no response from the proctor or anyone. After 95 minutes, the message read " Hmmmm...something's wrong. Pls fill the form and we will contact you".

Such a waste of effort. Have been preparing for this day since last 05 months. I donno what to do now.

Posted from my mobile device

The proctor first revoked my exam for leaving work station ( which I did not ). In fact the exam never even started. I asked her politely to remove the lan cable from router , which is in the workstation ( as evidence they have photos of entire workstation). She said yes.when I came back she revoked my exam.. today, after twenty days I got a response stating that my exam has been cancelled, and I can never appear for online exam again.

Lost money.
Lost chance.
Have nott beeen offered a rescheudle or a refund. I don't even want a refund , I just want my fair chance like everyone else ...
Horrible !!!

Posted from my mobile device
_________________

Your pain is understandable.

At this point, you can attempt to appeal the decision. Write out a detailed report. Provide as many details as you can. Include everything that you experienced and were told to do.

They have a recording of the test. They will examine that and other things when they receive your appeal. You will be provided a decision after the investigation. This may take a long time. Therefore, you should be prepared with alternative options.

I have mailed them describing how the technical difficulties abruptly arose and that the proctor was not available to reply and the time was passing as well( 9:15 was the exam time , if it didn't start by 9:30 automatically cancellation happens ). It takes days for such appeal to accede ? Alternate option is going to Mumbai, which is flooded with rains and has the Highest corona cases in the nation. Moreover, I work for the government and I cannot relinquish my duties as that wd be unethical and immoral on my part . So what's the alternative ? There is no alternative I feel. I think I should drop the gmat plan and concentrate on something else. GMAC/ Pearson has innocently murdered my three year long struggle basically. I am demotivated to the extent incomprehensible. 3 yrs wasted
_________________