GMAT Focus Edition: New Format and Score Scale for ASEAN MBA Applicants
By Muntasir • Published Jan 18, 2025 • Updated Sep 20, 2026 • Admissions & Applications, Study in Southeast Asia
The GMAT Focus Edition, launched November 7, 2023, replaced the classic GMAT with a shorter, three-section test and a new score scale. It runs 2 hours 15 minutes across Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning and Data Insights, with no separate essay section, and Total Scores now run 205-805.
⏱️ Total time: 2 hours 15 minutes, plus one optional 10-minute break
Three equally weighted sections: Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, Data Insights
64 questions total: 21 Quant, 23 Verbal, 20 Data Insights
No Analytical Writing Assessment, no separate Integrated Reasoning section
New Total Score scale: 205-805, in 10-point steps, every score ends in 5
Section scores run 60-90, each weighted equally toward your Total Score
What the GMAT Focus Edition Changed
GMAC launched the GMAT Focus Edition on November 7, 2023, replacing the classic GMAT for new test takers. The redesign shortens the test, drops the standalone essay, and rebalances the sections so Quant no longer dominates your score the way it did on the older exam.
The Three Sections
| Section | Questions | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Quantitative Reasoning | 21 | 45 minutes |
| Verbal Reasoning | 23 | 45 minutes |
| Data Insights | 20 | 45 minutes |
Total exam time runs 2 hours 15 minutes across the three sections, plus one optional 10-minute break you can place after Section 1 or Section 2. There is no separate Analytical Writing Assessment and no standalone Integrated Reasoning section. Data Insights absorbs the skills those two used to test, including data sufficiency, table analysis, graphics interpretation, two-part analysis and multi-source reasoning, in one combined section.
A New Score Scale
GMAC changed the Total Score scale specifically so a GMAT Focus Edition score cannot be confused with a classic GMAT score. Total Scores now run 205-805, given in 10-point increments, and every possible Total Score ends in a 5, according to mba.com's explanation of the new score scale . Each of the three sections scores 60-90, and all three carry equal weight toward your Total Score, per mba.com's guide to understanding your score . This is a real shift from the classic GMAT, where your Quant and Verbal scaled scores combined unevenly and Integrated Reasoning sat outside your Total Score entirely.
Because the scales differ, GMAT Focus Edition scores and classic GMAT scores are not directly comparable. If a program's published score expectation still references the old 200-800 scale, treat it as outdated or check with the admissions office for their current Focus Edition benchmark.
What This Means for ASEAN MBA Applicants
Data Insights carries the same weight as Quant and Verbal now, so applicants who leaned entirely on strong Quant scores to carry a weaker Verbal section under the old format need a more even skill set for the Focus Edition. Data Insights blends quantitative and verbal-style reasoning around tables, graphs and multi-source data, so practice for it separately rather than assuming your Quant prep covers it.
The test also gives you more control during the exam: you choose which of the three sections to sit first, you can bookmark and edit answers within a section before submitting it, and you get an on-screen calculator throughout, including in Quant. None of these existed in the same form on the classic GMAT, which locked you into a fixed section order.
Dropping the separate essay section means schools that still want a graded writing sample from you may ask for one separately, through an admissions essay or a supplementary writing task, rather than reading it off your GMAT report. Check each program's application requirements rather than assuming the absence of an AWA section changes what materials you owe them.
Retakes and Where to Sit the Test
You can take the GMAT Focus Edition up to five times in a rolling 12-month period, with at least 16 days between attempts, and there is no lifetime cap on total attempts, a change from the classic GMAT's 8-attempt lifetime limit, according to mba.com's retake policy page . One exception applies: if you score a perfect 805, you cannot retake the exam for five years.
Pearson VUE runs GMAT Focus Edition testing through physical test centers across the region, including in Manila, Jakarta, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore, alongside an online proctored option for test takers who prefer to sit the exam from home. Book your slot with your application deadline in mind, since popular centers fill up fastest around September to December, the peak MBA application season.
How to Prepare
Use only GMAT Focus Edition practice material. Classic GMAT question banks do not cover Data Insights and use the retired score scale.
Practice Data Insights as its own skill, since it blends data interpretation with quantitative and verbal reasoning rather than testing either in isolation.
Decide your section order strategy in practice tests before test day, since you choose the order once and cannot change your mind mid-exam.
Since all three sections weigh equally, avoid over-preparing one section at the expense of the other two.
If a target MBA program's published GMAT expectation predates November 2023, confirm their current Focus Edition benchmark directly rather than assuming a like-for-like conversion.
Build your prep timeline around the 16-day gap between retakes, so a low first score still leaves room for at least one more attempt before your application deadline.