Taking the optional break at test center

Question

Hi all,

My GMAT FE at a test center is coming up this week.

Let's say I take the second optional break, but other test-takers decide to take the first break.

Will they just be getting up from their seats and moving about while I am continuing to take the exam?

Has anyone experienced distractions from focus due to this?

Thanks!

bb · Answer

Hi. Welcome to the interesting world of test-taking at the test center. It is not a choreographed event. By the time you enter, some people may already be taking a TOEFL test. Others will be starting their GRE test, and you will be taking GMAT focus. Everyone will be seated at a different time, and everyone will be taking breaks at a different time. The test center administers dozens or maybe even hundreds of tests.

Your neighbor may be typing up an essay for the GRE on the world's loudest keyboard. A proctor walking in and out and someone coughing, AC and lights buzzing . Welcome to the world of test-taking 😵

This is why there are earplugs and headphones at the test center. I recommend you practice with ear plugs. They worked great for me.

P.S. As to your exact question, there is no way to match the breaks.

pintukr · Answer

Using earplugs / headphones assists keeping yourself concentrated amidst all the buzz. I fully agree with  bb  opinion.

All the Best.

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

Multiple people may already be in the middle of different exams when you start yours. Ideally, when people get up and leave for their breaks or when they finish their exams, they do so in a way that creates little disturbance. You may not even realize a person who was taking the test behind you left the room.

AjiteshArun · Answer

Hi ilikeshoppingalot,

1.  You should assume that can happen. However, test takers are not allowed to spend any part of their break inside the testing room. So the moving about you mentioned is limited. It'll happen only when they're going out, and when they're coming back in.

2.  You will also see the proctor(s) moving around the testing room, for example to deliver replacement noteboards/pens.

3.  The test centre where I took my latest GMAT did not have any kind of noise protection available. If this happens, you'll be more likely to hear murmuring by other test takers and perhaps even noise from outside the test centre. If you think this is affecting your performance on the test, you should register a complaint at the test centre itself.

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi  ilikeshoppingalot ,

While what you are describing is certainly possible, I think you will be so in the zone that you won't notice if anyone gets up from their seat while you are taking the GMAT.

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Taking the optional break at test center

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