'NMAT by GMAC' may go global

Governing body in talks with African Association of Business Schools

'NMAT by GMAC' may soon go international as its governing body, the Graduate Management Admission Council, is in talks with business school associations abroad to take the test global. 

Sangeet Chowfla, President and CEO of Graduate Management Admission Council said that they are in talks with with the African Association of Business Schools to evaluate if the test could be used in the market. 

"About 130 professors from African business schools are in discussion with us to see if 'NMAT by GMAC' is compatible with the skills they need. They want to ensure that skills measured by the test are in tandem with their requirements," he said. 

If the deal is finalised, it would be one of the few Indian business school aptitude tests to be recognised globally.

Chowfla said a concrete plan should be in place by the early part of next year, adding that their goal is to have a standardised format. 

For the NMAT by GMAC exam, candidates will get three attempts in the 75-day test cycle from this year onwards, so that they can submit their best scores to the B-School of their choice.

GMAC is also looking at developing professional development programmes for admission officials in business schools. 

Starting this July, GMAC  has also introduced three new features to the GMAT exam. It has removed cancel score from score reports; allowed candidates to retake the GMAT exam after a 16-day time period rather than the previous 31-day retake period; and enabled test takers to view their official score report online using their date of birth instead of an authentication code.

GMAC acquired this test from NMIMS earlier this year.

The registrations for 'NMAT by GMAC' began on July 2, 2015. Registration for the exam will close on October 5, 2015. 

Conducted by GMAC, the test scores are now accepted by NMIMS University, Alliance University, SRM University, BML Munjal University, VIT University, ICFAI University, Ansal University, Mody University, NIIT University, Thapar University, Shoolini University and Woxsen School of Business for their graduate management programs.