Scott Edinburgh
September 17, 2021

How to Prepare for the Executive Assessment

A Student preparing for the EA

In recent years, the Executive Assessment has grown in popularity. While the GMAT and GRE remain the two more widely accepted MBA admissions exams, many top business schools have started to welcome the Executive Assessment test.

Wondering if the Executive Assessment is the right option for you? Below, Personal MBA Coach explores how to prepare for the Executive Assessment and what sets it apart.

What Is the Executive Assessment Test?

The Executive Assessment, also referred to as the EA, was originally designed for experienced professionals interested in pursuing advanced education. Therefore, it is most often used by those applying to Executive MBA programs. In recent years, however, some full-time and part-time programs have started to accept the EA.

The 90-minute exam aims to assess the skills and knowledge of experienced professionals and evaluate business school readiness as a whole.

Test takers receive results for each section of the Executive Assessment: Integrated Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, and Verbal Reasoning, as well as a total result ranging from 100 to 200, which is determined by the results on the three sections.

While Executive Assessment score percentiles are not released, according to Poets&Quants, a score of 150 is about the 50th percentile.

executive-assessment-test

How Does the Executive Assessment Differ from the GMAT and GRE?

Unlike the GMAT and GRE, candidates can only take the Executive Assessment test up to two times. Given the limited number of times that you can take the test, Graduate Management Admission Council does not permit you to cancel your scores. The EA Online can also be taken up to two times.

That said, if you do not want your EA scores sent to your target schools, GMAC suggests that you do not select any schools or programs before your appointment. You can instead add more schools or programs to a score appointment afterwards.

The Executive Assessment is also a shorter test so if you have limited time, you may want to explore whether the EA could be right for you.

What Should Executive Assessment Prep Entail?

Personal MBA Coach offers customized one-on-one Executive Assessment prep. In fact, we were one of the first companies to provide Executive Assessment test preparation services.

If you are wondering how to prepare for the Executive Assessment, we find one of the best things to do is to write out a study plan so you can stick to a schedule. Be honest with yourself in terms of how much time you can dedicate to studying.

We strongly encourage test takers to familiarize themselves with the structure and content of the assessment. With 30 minutes to complete each of the three sections of the test, time management is a must. Completing practice tests with a timer can help you get comfortable with the 90-minute timeframe.

Personal MBA Coach EA tutor Nikhil gives the following advice:

When it comes to the EA or GMAT Exam, success is dependent on addressing 3 equally important steps: knowledge gaps, timing/question strategy issues and “careless” mistakes. Many students and tutors fall into the trap of focusing exclusively on the first – knowledge gaps – and feel frustrated when scores don’t improve. Given the competitive nature of the EA exam, all students end up learning the theory but what truly differentiates the best students is that they also focus their preparation on systematically developing tools to pre-empt traps, minimise “careless” mistakes and identify shortcuts to problems.

If you are looking for guidance, our dedicated Executive Assessment tutor can provide you with the skills necessary to ace the exam. Our Executive Assessment MBA private tutoring sessions are currently conducted remotely via Zoom, Skype and our whiteboard sharing software. As with all of Personal MBA Coach’s services, satisfaction is guaranteed with our Executive Assessment prep.

executive-assessment-test

What Schools Accept the Executive Assessment?

Currently, Berkeley Haas, Chicago Booth, Columbia Business School, Duke Fuqua, INSEAD, London Business School, MIT Sloan, Kellogg, NYU Stern, UCLA Anderson, UVA Darden, Wharton and Yale SOM are among the top programs that accept the Executive Assessment test for EMBA candidates.

In certain cases, applicants must have a certain amount of work experience to submit the EA. For instance, Wharton requires EMBA candidates to have at least 8 years of work experience by the start of the program if they want to opt for the Executive Assessment.

Columbia Business School, Duke Fuqua, MIT Sloan, NYU Stern, and UVA Darden also accept EA scores for full-time MBA applicants.

Looking for help with the test prep process? Whether you are studying for the GMAT, GRE or EA, Personal MBA Coach is here to help you reach your goals. Visit our tutoring services to begin raising your score today!

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