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Location: Manhattan Beach, CA
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28 Feb 2006, 10:50
Here is my letter to GMAC and Pearson VUE. If you have the same feelings, then I encourage you to write or call GMAC and Pearson VUE.
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GMAT Program Coordinator:
I am writing to express my absolute frustration and utter confusion over the recent decision to discard the pencil and scratch paper in favor of laminated sheets and markers.
This past Thursday, I attempted the GMAT under the new policies enacted January 1st. After months of preparation that included over 150 hours of studying, 25 hours with a private tutor, 3 days of vacation from work, and a trip from Los Angeles to San Diego, I had no choice but to cancel my exam during the Quantitative section. This occurred not due to a lack of understanding of the content presented on the test, but solely to an external factor – GREASY LAMINATED SHEETS OF PAPER AND INCONSISTENT ERASABLE MARKERS!!!
If I had to summarize the overall goal of GMAC and Pearson VUE, I would say it is to further education. Given this, I have no doubt that you understand my complete shock and disappointment to have something as simple as the writing utilities provided to me to ultimately stand in the way of my dreams of attending a top business school.
I would also imagine that a goal of GMAC and Pearson VUE is to provide a fair and equal mode of evaluating candidates for graduate studies. The use of laminated sheets and erasable markers not only creates an absolute frustrating challenge when completing the algebraic and geometric equations required by the GMAT, but also creates an unequal and unfair comparison to those who took the exam prior to Jan. 1st.
I strongly believe that the change of vendors to Pearson VUE is a positive move forward for the GMAT. The new technology and new user interface provide marked improvements to the exam. However, in the name of cost and security, GMAC and Pearson VUE went too far. If cost is the main concern, then I encourage both groups to consider cost takeout in areas that do not directly impact a test takers score. If security is the main concern, then I remind both groups that convicted felons walk through airports with only a fraction of the security I am subjected to when taking the GMAT.
To understand fully the impact of using laminated sheets and erasable markers, you must recognize that this affects mostly men who tend to write very small. Also, you must appreciate the fundamental fact that paper and lead create friction, which practically guarantees a mark to be made when attempted, whereas greasy laminated sheets and wet markers do not. Each of us has made use of pencil and paper since the very beginnings of our respective educations. To be introduced to something so foreign and so impractical as laminated sheets and erasable markers on test day is beyond comprehension.
For those of us that write small and/or extensively during the Quantitative section, the GMAT just became ten times more difficult. If your hand touches the ink, it smears. If you attempt to write where your hand or arm previously rested, a layer of film prevents the marker from working properly. If you make a mistake during a calculation, you must start over – marking over a letter or number just compounds the problem and you’re left with blob of ink. If you write too small, you can’t see the numbers when the ink bleeds together. If you write too large, the marker becomes inconsistent.
During my attempt this past Thursday, I spent 6 minutes on the first problem and not because I didn’t understand the question. I almost conceded to doing the problem in my head because the ink blobs on my laminated sheet were incomprehensible. I requested a new pen, further slowing my pace, only to realize the same results. When a test taker is required to redraw a single number or letter over and over before it actually appears on the sheet, there’s a serious problem here.
I appreciate that the GMAC understands the heart and emotion that goes into taking the GMAT exam. For me, as for many others, there is a dream business school out there within reach. Completing the GMAT exam with high marks allows each of us to move one step closer to realizing that dream. It is here where I ask both GMAC and Pearson VUE, if an external factor, such as laminated sheets and erasable markers, stands in the way of just one person in realizing that dream, should this continue to be a policy? How many more people need to put the heart, the hours, and the money into chasing a dream only to have a ridiculous policy stand in the way?
I have full confidence that GMAC and Pearson VUE will team together and put the true mission of the GMAT exam at the forefront and remove this policy. At the very minimum, I strongly ask GMAC and Pearson VUE to offer pencil and scratch paper on a request-only basis. Personally, I am formally requesting to be refunded from attempt this past Thursday in the form of a free next attempt. The GMAT is a requirement. I must pay $250 for this exam prior to gaining admission to business school. Bottom line, I did NOT receive a fair and equal opportunity for the money I spent.
I look forward to continuing my progress towards business school once GMAC and Pearson VUE agrees to revert to a fair and equal system.