kevincan wrote:
I take this seriously because it's my job to do so. If my students ask me about the exam, I want to be able to give them accurate, timely information. Pelihu happens to be right on this issue, even if diplomacy is not always his strong suit.
Have you noticed that there is a wide range of Verbal Scores (45-51) that correspond to 99% percentile, but only one Quant. Score (51) that does so? This is also the case in the GRE exam.
I didn't know about the GRE, but I did notice that about the GMAT. I guess the simple explanation is that a lot of people from outside the US take the exam, and that it seems to be increasingly popular with engineers and IT types (not surprising with all the successful tech companies needing more managers). Many of these people are extremely good at math, but English may not be their first language or concern.
I did also notice that at the top end, increases Q score seem to result in bigger increases in total score. For example, here at GMAT club we have seen 50/43=760, 50/47=770 & 50/51=780. So going from 43 to 51 V results in a 20 point gain in overall score. I guess once you get past the 99th percentile, the scoring increases compress. On the other hand, going from 43-51 Q would be a lot more points, but the competition in Q is certainly more pronounced.