GMAT Quick Links:
The GMAT Quantitative Section — Skills Tested and Math Topics Covered
- Your basic math and algebra skills
- Your understanding of basic quantitative concepts
- Your ability to reason quantitatively, solve quantitative problems and interpret data presented graphically
Time limit: 75 minutes
Where: After the AWA (essay) sections and before the Verbal section
Number of questions: 37 available questions (approximately 2 minutes per question, on average)
Basic format: All questions are multiple choice (five choices)
Skills tested:
Knowledge Levels and Math Topics Covered
The GMAT Quantitative section covers quantitative concepts typically covered in basic high-school math coursework. It does not cover trigonometry, calculus or other advanced math topics.
A GMAT Quantitative question might involve any of the math topics listed below. The number of questions from each broad category (in bold face) can vary slightly from the ranges indicated here because some questions will fit into more than one category.
- arithmetical operations
- the number line and ordering
- integers, factors and multiples
- decimals, percentages, and ratios
- exponents and square roots
- mean, median, mode, range, standard deviation
- basic probability
- number patterns (series, permutations, factorials)
Interpretation of graphical data (3-5 questions)
- tabular data (tables)
- line charts, bar charts and scatter charts
- pie graphs
Algebra (11-12 questions)
- operations on variables
- factorable binomials and polynomials
- algebraic equations
- algebraic functions
- algebraic inequalities
Geometry (6-8 questions)
- lines and angles
- triangles, quadrilaterals and other polygons
- properties and characteristics of circles
- 3-dimensional solids
- coordinate geometry
The Two Formats for GMAT Quantitative Questions
Every GMAT Quantitative question conforms to one of the following two basic formats:Problem Solving (23-24 questions). Questions in this format require you to work to a solution, which will appear among the five answer choices. Only one answer choice can be correct.
Data Sufficiency (13-14 questions). Each question in this format consists of a question followed by two statements (labeled 1 and 2). Your task is to determine whether the information provided in the two statements suffices to answer the question.
During the GMAT CAT, Problem-Solving and Data-Sufficiency questions are intermingled rather than grouped separately, and there's no set pattern or sequence.
