Gmat Essay Book
Julia Heaslet
Many GMAT essay prompts will contain more than one of these flaws. Your critique should consist of an in-depth analysis that exposes them, and (if applicable) suggestions of ways to fix the flaws or otherwise improve the argument.
As you may already know, your GMAT AWA essay is graded on a scale of 0-6 in half-point increments, once by a human reader (usually an English or Communications professor) and once by a computerized grading program called E-Rater. If the two different scores differ by less than one point, the two scores will be averaged to get your final scaled score. If they differ by greater than one point, a second human reader will step in.
In short, a GMAT writing template gives you a proven plan of action to take with you on test day, so that you can write an essay that hits all the right notes while conserving mental energy for the sections that matter most: the Integrated Reasoning, Quant and Verbal sections.
You might find that not every flaw can be fixed, or that some of your suggestions for improvement cover more than one flaw. If this is often the case for you, consider starting with this second template instead, as it saves the suggestions for the end of the essay.
In writing your own essays, you may find that one of the templates given above works best for you, or you may find it more effective to combine different elements of each. The most important thing is to formulate and practice with a set GMAT essay template well before you take the real test.
GMAT Write is a writing tool provided by GMAC. It gives you access to 2 unique essay prompts and a chance to write 4 essays. The good thing about this tool is that it scores your essay based on the scoring algorithm used by the official GMAT exam. But, it costs $29.99 to subscribe to this tool.
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The GMAT Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) provides clear instructions on how you should plan and write your essay. Kaplan students learn these instructions long before Test Day and do not waste precious testing time reading them while the clock ticks.
So how should your objective critique be constructed? Because one of the hallmarks of a standardized test is the repetition of patterns across test administrations, you can rest assured that your Test Day AWA prompt will follow the pattern described here. The instructions will be the same, the argument presented in the prompt will contain familiar flaws, and as a result, you will be able to plan how you will fit the necessary pieces together in your essay.
Third-person pronouns (he, she, one) are appropriate in a GMAT essay. First- (I, we, us) and second-person (you) are inappropriate; in fact, unnecessary self-reference (I believe) is part of what makes the first example above less effective than the second. This is a form of qualification that diminishes the strength of your point.
Graders can tell whether you had a plan before you started typing, so spend time planning before you write. If you break down the argument, decide on your points, and arrange your ideas into paragraphs when the clock starts, then you will have written a polished AWA essay before 30 minutes elapse.
Before you begin writing your response, take a few minutes to evaluate the argument and plan your response. You will then have 30 minutes to organize your ideas and develop them fully in your essay. Pacing is key. You want to leave time to re-read your response and make any revisions.
Note that the AWA score is not factored into the general GMAT score out of 800. Instead, it is a separate score, wherein the test-taker earns points on a scale of 0 to 6, moving in half-point increments (that is, 0-0.5, 0.5-1, 1-1.5, etc). Both a computer and a human will evaluate and grade your essay, and you'll receive your AWA score along with your official scores from GMAC, any time within 15 days of taking the exam. In some cases, there is a score disparity of more than one point between the computer score and the human score. If this happens, a second human scorer is asked to evaluate the writing.
On your GMAT writing assignment, the test will present an argument, often in the context of a newspaper editorial or the statement of a company. The nature of this argument will generally allow you to argue for either side, and the side you choose does not affect your score. You will have 30 minutes to read the prompt and construct your essay. Later, your essay will be graded by both a computer and a person on a scale of 0 to 6; your AWA test score will be an average of these two scores.
Both the computer and the human reviewer are looking for particular elements in a good GMAT AWA essay. In short: a successful Analysis of an Argument essay will be clear and cogently argued; it will present the individual critiques in a logically consistent order; it will identify all the points in need of consideration, and it will use word choice and variety of syntax to effectively communicate.
The first bullet point tells us: a good AWA essay is well-organized, has a natural flow from point to point, and is clear and unambiguous about what it is saying. Those are all important points to keep in mind.
A GMAT analytical writing sample essay, whether well done or flawed in itself, can help you polish your own GMAT writing and bring your essays to the next level. The important part of reviewing example GMAT essays is in analyzing them (and expert analysis is even more helpful, particularly at the beginning).
Where can you find sample GMAT analytical writing prompts? Easy! The GMAC (the GMAT test-maker) actually provides all possible AWA essay topics on their website. So if you need examples of analytical questions for the GMAT, look no further!
In particular, if English is not your native language, I realize that this makes the AWA essay all the more challenging, but of course, a solid performance on the AWA by a non-native speaker would be a powerful testament to how well that student has learned English. Toward this end, non-native speakers should practice writing the AWA essay and try to get high-quality feedback on their essays.
Devoting 30% or more of your available study time to AWA is likely unwise, but devoting 0% to AWA might also hurt you. Between those, erring on the low side would be appropriate. If, in a three-month span, you write half a dozen practice essays, and get generally positive feedback on them with respect to the GMAT standards, that should be plenty of preparation.
The test-taker's ability to formulate an appropriate and constructive critique of a specific conclusion based on a specific line of thinking. A specific knowledge of the essay topic is not necessary; only the capacity to write analytically is assessed.
AWA essays are scored by a combination of a machine algorithm and professional human essay raters. All essays will be scored using an electronic system, which will evaluate the structural and linguistic features of the essay, including organization of ideas, syntactic variety and topical analysis. Some essays are then randomly selected for auditing to ensure the quality, consistency, and performance of the algorithm. The audit is conducted by trained and approved human raters to ensure the algorithm is constantly evaluating AWA essays in a manner that meets both GMAC and ACT standards and upholds the integrity of the AWA section score. If there is a disparity between the algorithm score and the human score for an audited essay, the score will be reviewed, and may be adjusted.
The Official GMAT Score Report show five scores: Total, Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA), Integrated Reasoning, Verbal and Quantitative within the last five years, the most recent AWA essay responses, and the following background information: country of citizenship, gender, date of birth, telephone number, undergraduate institution, grade point average, major, date of graduation, intended graduate study, and highest level of education attained.
If you wish to provide further information or additional context around your application to the Admissions Committee, please upload a brief explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or personal history. This does not need to be a formal essay. You may submit bullet points. (Maximum 500 Words)
Please note: GMAT scores are valid for five years. Your scores must be valid at the time of application submission. Reapplicants are not required to submit additional essays. Only the reapplicant essay is required.
Generally speaking, your AWA essay is evaluated on the basis of the overall strength of your analysis of the given argument, the relevancy of the points you make, how your essay is organized, and the effectiveness with which you communicate your ideas.
The GMAT Analytical Writing Assessment is scored in half-point increments on a scale of 0 to 6. Your AWA score is not factored into your total GMAT score and is not included in the unofficial score report that you see on test day immediately after you finish your exam. The reason the AWA score is not included in your unofficial report is that, unlike the other sections of the GMAT, which are scored by the computer, the AWA is scored by both a computer and a human scorer. A trained human reader scores your essay using whole points from 0 to 6, and a computer algorithm scores your essay using half-point increments from 0 to 6.
Then, the two scores are averaged to produce your final score. If there is a large disparity between the human score and the computer score, a second human scorer evaluates your essay, and your score may be adjusted. Additionally, if you feel that your AWA score does not accurately reflect your essay, you can submit a request to have your essay rescored by an independent reader, for a fee of $45. Rescoring requests can be made only once per essay and must be submitted within 6 months of your test date.
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