After the recent changes to the GMAT exam fee, let’s explore the related services and products to plan in your budget. So, what is the real cost of the GMAT and what can you get for free?
GMAT pricing varies across different locations. For instance, taking the test in Bulgaria costs USD 285, while a student in Brazil has to pay USD 250. The same goes for some of the services such as rescheduling and appointment cancellation. Let’s dig a little deeper.
Scheduling an exam
To schedule a GMAT exam, you will first need to create an account. The account allows you to register, reschedule, or cancel a GMAT exam, but also access free test prep materials. If for some reason you are unable to schedule your test online and prefer to do it over the phone, you will need to pay a USD 10 surcharge.
Rescheduling an exam
You have scheduled your exam, but then you have decided to take it on another date. You may reschedule your exam online and by phone. However, if you choose the second option, there will be a USD 10 surcharge. Rescheduling fees and policies differ by country. To find out the fees for your region, check the location specific pricing & regulations page.
Rescheduling prices also depend on the specific timing. For instance, test takers in India who want to reschedule their exams 60 days before the appointment need to pay USD 50 and USD 100 15 days before the appointment. The fee for changing the date two weeks and less before the original appointment is USD 150.
Cancelling your appointment or score
You can cancel your appointment and receive a partial refund whose amount differs by country. If you have scheduled an exam in Germany and decide to cancel it 60 days before the appointment, you will get a EUR 100 refund. A cancellation 14 days or less before the exam will result in a refund of EUR 50.
You can also cancel your score, either at the test center or later. You can do it at the test center for free for up to two minutes after you see your unofficial GMAT scores. If the two minutes expire before you decide whether to accept or cancel your score, your score will be automatically canceled.
If you accepted your score at the test center, you have the option to cancel it online up to 72 hours after the completion of your exam. There is a fee to cancel scores after leaving the test center, which for most countries is USD 25.
Reinstating your score
Cancelling your score does not mean it is lost forever. You can reinstate a canceled score for USD 50. You can also do it by calling the customer service number for your region for an extra USD-10 fee. Canceled scores can be reinstated up to four years and 11 months from the exam date. Bear in mind that if a score is reinstated, the score report will be sent to the initial list of schools that you selected on test day.
At the test center before you take the test, you can select up to five programs to receive your score reports at no additional charge. Any additional score report costs an extra USD 35.
You can also buy a so-called Enhanced Score Report for USD 30. The report is designed to give you a better understanding of your performance on the GMAT exam. The enhanced score report enables you to benchmark against other test takers from the past three years and see your performance according to fundamental skills, among other features. You can buy the report for up to five years after your exam date.
Latest GMAT price increases
Europe and Canada
The price of the exam increased by 10% (USD 25) in the US and Canada, starting from 4 February 2020. The GMAT fee is now USD 275 in the two countries following the first price increase since 2005. Fees for the other products and services detailed above remain the same. The US territories Virgin Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico and Mariana Islands will not be included in the price change, GMAC, the owner of the GMAT exam, said.
Check out: GMAT Fee Increases 10% in US, Canada
Europe
GMAC last year also increased the GMAT price in some European test-center locations by about USD 35, from USD 250 to USD 285.
The locations impacted by these changes are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
PrepAdviser advises all test takers to make the necessary research on price specifics for their respective location and the possibilities they have regarding the services and products associated with the GMAT.
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