The introduction of the GMAT online test-taking procedure was done on the 20th of April due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Recently, GMAC also stated it will be launching its retake policy by the end of this month which makes the availability of the GMAT exam twice a year. But recently a fuss has shown up regarding a loophole which has been come across by a Reddit user and presumably it is working a weapon for cheating for certain GMAT test-takers.

The Reddit user named ‘mbathrowawaycbs’ has recently discovered the loophole that GMAT online question bank is only revamped every two months which facilitates the candidates who have already taken the test to circulate the questions as per their remembrance to the ones who are yet to take the test. This whole series of action opens the door to the second batch of test-takers to come across similar questions.

In a recent post by the above-mentioned person, which was instantly cleared away a day later, it has been stated that the offline GMAT exams accessed question banks which were remodeled every 10 to 15 days prohibiting the dissemination of the questions, though it still kept a hairline passage for cheating. But GMAC which administers both the offline and online versions of GMAT has made the mistake of remodeling the question banks every 60 days or so. This initiated the mechanism of sharing probable questions among the candidates who’ve already taken the test and the ones preparing to take - thereby boosting the fortune of the promising cheaters.

The Reddit user further states, “Now with the GMAT online, GMAC decided for whatever reason to use a completely different test bank than their offline tests, and only change the bank every 2 months!” let’s assume that the content of the offline question bank will be comparatively way lesser than that of the online ones. For instance, if the offline version compile 300 in quant and verbal, the online will contain around 1,000. This creates the possibility for the previous test-takers to share the known questions. As it has been noticed from the last month that over 80% of test-takers have bumped into known questions as they were practicing from the compiled questionnaire which already had these questions. Now that is some level of unfairness.

Audience wondering about the mode of exam of the Reddit user, that person took the offline mode and is indeed among the top 1% scorers. He or she has further stated in this regard, “I just find it frustrating that GMAC decided to create such a loophole with the online version that would potentially dilute the higher test scores. Like why can’t they keep a consistent test bank and switch it every 2 weeks to prevent this kind of cheating that would obviously happen?”

GMAC’s Response in This Regard

GMAC has acknowledged the incident with the age-old axiom “If you’re not cheating, you’re not trying,” and has added that the GMAT exam is no exception to that. Cheating cases and attempts are nothing new, and GMAC has previously handled cases too.

With regard to this case, GMAC has stated that it has regulated its scanning and evaluation techniques which will chastise the offenders. If an internal investigation states that there has been a loophole, actions like cancellation of scores, forbidding of future exam testing, and notifications to schools and lawful actions will be taken.

GMAC Has Always Been Aware of Everything

This Reddit incident opened the path for additional shocking incidents which states that GMAC has always been aware of what was going around. Information derived from another Reddit user named ‘bananaasteroid’ states that a Chinese website named Chasedream.com was operated by candidates who took the exam and shared the real GMAT questions as per their remembrance on the website.

This website which is 10 years old, is quite popular among the internationals and it indeed ‘an open secret’. When this person took the exam in 2015, there were numerous Chinese sites doing their part of circulating the original questions, and certain test-takers were highly beneficial.

Though, previously GMAC frequently refurbished its questionnaires every 10 to 15 days which made it highly complicated for the test-takers to keep a watch on similar questions.

At-home GMAT Testing Will Increase the Possibility of Cheating

Due to this post, certain identical posts have followed in the Reddit space. One of the commenters stated that GMAT test-takers posted the real questions right after taking the test, and the concerned person has asked the moderators to delete the posts.

Similarly, a GMAT test-taker who took the offline exam just a week prior to the online version noticed similar passages. Another candidate has stated that he or she is content with the very fact that cheaters will enjoy a boost of 10 to 20 score points. But GMAC’s inertia which is resulting in similar question patterns for innumerable times is creating a rift between the GMAT aspirants and the conducting body.