According to a recent release from the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC), which owns the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT), business faculty from around the world have shared their opinions on what skills should be tested in the 10th generation GMAT exam, currently under development.

GMAC has solicited responses from roughly 750 business faculty at programs from around the world as it embarks upon its next major redesign of the GMAT exam. GMAC expects to roll out the next generation exam by 2013.

GMAC asked business school deans worldwide to nominate faculty members who teach core classes in a range of graduate business programs to participate in its skills survey. Participants were asked to review and rate specific academic skills that future business leaders will need to succeed.

Respondents to the survey represent the full spectrum of business school faculty: 89 percent have doctorates, 40 percent were full professors, 36 percent were associate professors, 17 percent were assistant professors, and 10 percent were deans, according to GMAC. 

“I have been impressed by the efforts of GMAC to listen to the opinions of business school faculty members when it comes to what skills are most important and useful to test on the GMAT,” Peter Klibanoff, associate professor of managerial economics and decision sciences at the Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management, said in a statement.

In designing its 10th Generation GMAT, GMAC hopes to harness advances in technology and graduate business education to build on the strengths of the existing exam. According to GMAC, the 10th version will introduce new ways of presenting questions and responding, calling on test takers to generate solutions rather than simply recognize answers. GMAC is also considering new question types, which would undergo pilot testing to gauge operational readiness.

“The survey response from faculty at graduate management programs around the world has been overwhelming,” Ashok Sarathy, GMAC vice president, said in a statement. “This survey helps us refine the measurement of skills on the GMAT and continue to make the exam entirely relevant for business school admissions,” he continued.

To learn more, click here.

Go to Source