EA vs GMAT

[deec887]

Hi Stacey,

Thanks for your detailed articles on EA; they are really helpful. As a followup, I do have few questions and was hoping you could clarify. I searched in this forum and did not find a related topic. I believe the questions below are generic and your responses would help candidates preparing for GMAT and considering EA.

My info to provide some context. I am 36 yr old with 10+ yrs work-ex and considering part-time MBA/EMBA in top 4 schools, who are accepting EA scores.
I took the in-person manhattan gmat class and had planned to take GMAT. At the end of 6-CAT's, my top score was 610 and average around 590-600 [610,570,590,590,610]. My target was 680+ and i feel i am plateauing around 600-610. Recently i learnt about EA and was wondering if it is better option compared to GMAT since either of the scores are accepted. Few questions in followup to your EA-articles

1. If there is an option, is it advisable to take EA with 4-5 week extra preparation targeting EA format. [assuming 3-4 month [~100hrs] of prep for GMAT]
2. Should IR be taken more seriously? Aim for 10 right Answers instead of 6-7 in GMAT?
3. Do you recommend any EA specific material that is must have /highly recommended in addition to gmat material ? eg 1&2 test bundle
4. [specific to my case] Having taken the gmat classes and mentally trained for GMAT, Is it better to continue working on improving GMAT score to reach the target or use GMAT preparation and take EA[target 150+/155]. or take both and pick the better one?

Thanks for your help

[StaceyKoprince]

Hi! Good questions.

The first and most important thing is probably obvious but I'll say it anyway: Make sure "your" schools do accept the EA. (It sounds like you've already checked this—I'm just mentioning that for anyone else reading.)

Next, all of the question types are the same on the two exams and the content tested is almost the same. The EA content is a subset of the GMAT content—there are some things you don't need to study for the EA that you do need to study for the GMAT. But the reverse is not true: There's nothing you have to study for the EA that doesn't appear on the GMAT.

It is true, as you noted, that the IR section is more important on the EA than on the GMAT; more on this below.

If you have already prepped for the GMAT, the major difference has to do with how you handle certain timing / executive reasoning decisions will taking the exam. And that can be practiced / learned in a month or so, yes.

You said you've read my articles, so I'll assume you've read this series? It talks about the major differences and the time management / decision-making considerations for the EA.
https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/blog/how-to-study-for-the-executive-assessment-ea-part-1/

Many EMBA programs are saying that they want to see a score of 150 or greater. Not as many MBA programs accept the EA; for those that do, we've been hearing ranges of 150 to 155 or greater.

There isn't an easy way to correlate between the GMAT and the EA, but it seems to be the case that, for many students, a score of around 600 is somewhere around a score of 150 on the EA. So you may already be about where you need to be for EMBA programs.

On the EA, the IR section is equally weighted with the Q and V sections in determining your total score. So yes, you do need to do okay in this section. The scoring range for the IR section on the EA, though, is 0 to 20 (though, in practice, 18 appears to be the highest possible score you can earn). So to earn a score of 10 is still only about "half" of the scoring range. (On the GMAT, you're looking to beat the mean score, which is about 4.5, but the GMAT IR score only goes up to 8.)

There are 12 questions in the EA section on both the GMAT and the EA. So you're looking to answer half or more of them correctly on either test.

You should definitely get the official practice tests, yes. At least 2 and possibly all 4.

Re: materials, when did you get our books? We published new editions in September 2019 and, in particular, the IR book covers strategy and time management for both the GMAT and the EA. (The prior edition covered only the GMAT.) A lot of the lessons for each question type are very similar to the prior edition (although there are some new problems in the book). If you're interested in that new strategy / time management material, you could buy the ebook, which is less expensive. Other than that, though, it's fine to keep working from the prior-edition books in your case.

Re: What to take. If all of your schools accept the EA, I'd personally try that first. There's a little less to learn (most geometry isn't tested, for example) and the requirements aren't as stringent—schools aren't looking for you to get as high of a score. So if you can get it done with that test, why not? (Note: There is a two-test lifetime limit for the EA. The GMAT has an eight-test limit.)

You can always then take the GMAT if that doesn't work out, since all of the content you need to study for the EA is also tested on the GMAT.

[deec887]

Hi! Good questions.

The first and most important thing is probably obvious but I'll say it anyway: Make sure "your" schools do accept the EA. (It sounds like you've already checked this—I'm just mentioning that for anyone else reading.)

Next, all of the question types are the same on the two exams and the content tested is almost the same. The EA content is a subset of the GMAT content—there are some things you don't need to study for the EA that you do need to study for the GMAT. But the reverse is not true: There's nothing you have to study for the EA that doesn't appear on the GMAT.

It is true, as you noted, that the IR section is more important on the EA than on the GMAT; more on this below.

If you have already prepped for the GMAT, the major difference has to do with how you handle certain timing / executive reasoning decisions will taking the exam. And that can be practiced / learned in a month or so, yes.

You said you've read my articles, so I'll assume you've read this series? It talks about the major differences and the time management / decision-making considerations for the EA.
https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/blog/how-to-study-for-the-executive-assessment-ea-part-1/

Many EMBA programs are saying that they want to see a score of 150 or greater. Not as many MBA programs accept the EA; for those that do, we've been hearing ranges of 150 to 155 or greater.

There isn't an easy way to correlate between the GMAT and the EA, but it seems to be the case that, for many students, a score of around 600 is somewhere around a score of 150 on the EA. So you may already be about where you need to be for EMBA programs.

On the EA, the IR section is equally weighted with the Q and V sections in determining your total score. So yes, you do need to do okay in this section. The scoring range for the IR section on the EA, though, is 0 to 20 (though, in practice, 18 appears to be the highest possible score you can earn). So to earn a score of 10 is still only about "half" of the scoring range. (On the GMAT, you're looking to beat the mean score, which is about 4.5, but the GMAT IR score only goes up to 8.)

There are 12 questions in the EA section on both the GMAT and the EA. So you're looking to answer half or more of them correctly on either test.

You should definitely get the official practice tests, yes. At least 2 and possibly all 4.

Re: materials, when did you get our books? We published new editions in September 2019 and, in particular, the IR book covers strategy and time management for both the GMAT and the EA. (The prior edition covered only the GMAT.) A lot of the lessons for each question type are very similar to the prior edition (although there are some new problems in the book). If you're interested in that new strategy / time management material, you could buy the ebook, which is less expensive. Other than that, though, it's fine to keep working from the prior-edition books in your case.

Re: What to take. If all of your schools accept the EA, I'd personally try that first. There's a little less to learn (most geometry isn't tested, for example) and the requirements aren't as stringent—schools aren't looking for you to get as high of a score. So if you can get it done with that test, why not? (Note: There is a two-test lifetime limit for the EA. The GMAT has an eight-test limit.)

You can always then take the GMAT if that doesn't work out, since all of the content you need to study for the EA is also tested on the GMAT.

I am not sure why my earlier posts are not showing up, so reposting as reply. Apologize if this is a repeat post [assuming my earlier post appear with a delay]

Hi Stacey,

Thanks for the detailed responses to my earlier questions. Quick update on my test experience and few follow up questions.

I took the EA test online and got 150 [IR-7, V-12, Q-11]. Online was not as bad as i thought it would be. Occasional proctor messages in the chat window is a bit disturbing. Even though there is review option for each subsection, i did not have much time to review. I tried to stick to the 15 min deadlines. Your EA article series [4-part] was very helpful. I did feel real test was a bit more difficult compared to the practice tests. In practice tests my IR scores were 15 [test1] and 12 [test2] [Q and V similar to real test score above] with 30-40% of the questions in table format questions but on the real test I got unlucky and got 2 [1 in each section] MSR type [my weakest type] with 3 questions each and NO table format questions [my strongest type].

Most of the top schools indicate that 150 is an acceptable score for EMBA / EWMBA programs [even you mentioned the same in your articles], however I am wondering if I should retake the exam and improve my scores to be safe. Since i took the online version of the exam, i have 2 more chance for test center based exam.

Given the results, could you kindly suggest how to improve in MSR-type question and IR overall. My strategy was to skip MSR type questions [as its my weakest type] in sub section and come back once i answered others. I still think this is good strategy, else i would have spent lot more time on these and missed others. Unfortunately i got hit with 2*3 MSR questions which were too many to get them wrong.

I reviewed EA prep bundle,which has 40-45 IR questions along with other IR questions in EA practice bundle. It takes ~3 mins to just read and understand the given info in MSR type question, so strategies to quickly digest the information and answer the question would be greatly helpful. I do have 6th edition manhattan prep material that does not have EA focused section. I can get the September 2019 IR book if it contains additional info.

Finally, I came across a in gmat club post executive-assessment-ea-exam-all-you-need-to-know-322673 about EA percentiles, do you think its accurate? 150 is ~50th percentile and 155 is ~80th percentile.

Thanks

[StaceyKoprince]

Hi! For some reason, your first two attempts got caught in our spam filter—not sure why. The first time, it may have been because you had a link. And then maybe the second time was because you posted very quickly after the first time? Anyway, your third try got through!

(I did also see the first two—they were waiting for me to approve. But I deleted them because they were the same as the one that did get through. )

Oh, that is unlucky that you got more of your weaker question type and not your stronger one. :/ I am still hearing that EMBA programs just want to see a 150+. They're not as hung up on the "higher and higher" scores trend that we've been seeing for years with regular MBA programs. The EMBA programs just want to know that you have the needed skills to be able to do well in their program.

But I would also just ask the schools to which you plan to apply. They like to interact with interested candidates, so they'll be happy to answer your questions. They likely won't give you a super-direct answer (they're usually not just going to say "yes" or "no"), but you'll probably be able to read between the lines. If they say something like, "We encourage all candidates to score 150+"and they don't say anything else / don't seem concerned—well, you have that score, so great. If, on the other hand, they say something like "We are looking for a minimum of 150; a score of 155 is considered a strong score"—then maybe you try again to see whether you can get a bit closer to 155.

I'll also add: It's good that your Q score is 11. I have heard a few schools specifically say that they want the Q score to be in the double digits.

(Note: All of the above assumes that you are not applying to a "regular" full-time MBA program, some of whom now take the EA. Those schools do seem to be looking for higher scores.)

Re: percentiles, I have specifically heard the head of the EA at GMAC say in a presentation that a 150 is about the 50th percentile. He did not give out any other percentiles (and he indicated that they don't have plans to release any percentile tables or other info about percentiles). This was last October, so it's possible that they have also released info about 155—if so, I haven't heard it. (I last spoke with the EA head in late April of this year, but we didn't talk about percentiles at all—we were talking about the EA Online! )

Re: MSR, I agree that it's still a good idea to leave those ones for the last in that section. And (if you take it again) when you go to take it next time in the testing center, chances are you won't get that unlucky again—you'll probably see some tables next time.

Next: When someone does see 2 MSR sets on one exam, it's almost certainly the case that one of the two sets was experimental. You don't know which set—but even if you get all 6 wrong, you're really only getting the three MSRs wrong that you'd already planned to get wrong (since the other three won't count). So you could still keep to your plan to bail on MSR.

Bailing on MSR (whether you get one set or two) does mean that you only have 6 questions on which to earn points (assuming that you don't have just one MSR and that it is experimental). So if you make a couple of careless mistakes or just see another difficult problem or two in those remaining 6...you can see that it wouldn't be that hard to drop below 10 on IR. (That's especially true if you do try those MSRs and use up brain energy and time that could be better spent on other problems.)

So I would assume that you *might* choose to do MSR—but only if you think the topic / information looks okay to you. You might also decide that you will do some but not all of the problems. For example, you might see that one problem requires you to use information from all three tabs, so you bail on that problem. But then another problem requires you to use information from just one tab, and you're okay with that tab, so you answer it.

It's also not unusual for MSRs to include tables of information and you like tables. So if you see an MSR with a table, consider answering questions that involve the table. In that case, think of the problem as a table problem with a paragraph of info explaining the table—that paragraph might just be on a different tab, that's all.

The new IR guide that we published in Sep 2019 was updated, yes—as you noted, we added strategy information specifically for the EA (mostly around time management, bailing, marking and returning to problems, etc). Most of the strategy is stuff that I also put in my articles on our blog, so if you're familiar with those, you're probably okay.

We did also add some new problems to the book and more information / strategies about how to solve the different types of problems. If you're looking for new info / strategies about all of the problem types, then it could be worth getting the new book. But if you're really just looking for more on MSR, I don't know that I'd buy the whole book just for that one problem type (especially given what we discussed above—that you're still probably going to bail on most MSR and only consider going for the topics / types of info that you're more comfortable with).

Go talk to the schools first before you decide anything. Maybe you don't even have to take it again.

[deec887]

Hi Stacey,

I am happy to share the good news that i scored 158 (13-IR, 13-V, 12-Q) on EA. This time i got only one MSR type question bundle and was slightly easier than online version. I haven't taken the real GMAT test but based on my experience with the GMAT CAT's and EA, I would highly recommend EA over GMAT if one has an option. I hope GMAT evolves to EA format with 3 or 4 sub sections and option to review after each sub section. May be you can suggest this to GMAC council . I would like to thank you for your detailed timely responses, excellent articles and the tutoring.

Thanks

[StaceyKoprince]

Yay! Congratulations and great work!

I agree that anyone who can take the EA should probably choose the EA over the GMAT. And I hope more schools pick up the EA. It wouldn't surprise me if, in a few years, we see a lot more people taking the EA.

Good luck with your applications! Let us know how it goes!