The graphics interpretation section is the most visual part of the integrated reasoning section. You're asked to interpret bar charts, line graphs, scatterplots, segmentation charts, pie charts, venn diagram, and all kinds of custom graphs. 3 of the 12 integrated reasoning questions will be of this type. At 2 minutes and 30 seconds per question, you should budget a total of 7 minutes and 30 seconds for this section.
The difficulty in this section is not necessarily reading the graph. It's what comes after it. For example, you might work with numbers in different units/metrics. One number might be in billions and another number might be in units of ten-thousand. How do you combine multiple numbers in different units? And what happens when you divide that number by .9% ?
So at first glance, this section might seem fun - and it is. But remember, there will be two parts to these graphics interpretation questions. You'll need to answer BOTH parts to get credit for each of the 3 questions you'll see in this section. This scoring algorithm makes it that much more difficult to "accidentally" get the right answer. Having said that, there are usually only 3 answer choices for each fill-in-the-blank dropdown, rather than 5 answer choices in your typical multiple choice question.
These questions are very practical for your future business career. Understanding how to interpret graphs is very important for your own good. The graphs themselves are usually not too difficult to interpret. Some of them may be types of graphs that you haven't seen before so you'll need to get used to them. More challenging will be the types of questions and calculations you'll need to make to answer the question.
GMAT Graphics Interpretation Cons:
You'll only see ~2-3 of these questions on your exam. Each question has two drop downs with a few answer choices each. Some of them may involve working with big numbers or percentages that you may not be used to working with. You'll need to develop good judgment about when and how to use the calculator. In some cases, it may not make sense to type into the onscreen calculator 3,200,000 divided by 8.75%. Find ways to make your calculations a bit simpler without opening the doors for potential calculation errors.
What It Means For You
Graphics interpretation questions are one of four question types you will see in the GMAT integrated reasoning section, which will take place during the first half of your GMAT exam. You will first start off with an essay on the analysis of an argument for 30 minutes. Then you will proceed with the integrated reasoning section, which will include four question types - of which one of them will be graphics interpretation. These visually appealing questions may be of various difficulty. Unlike the quant/verbal section, this section is not adaptive based on your performance on the previous question.
Remember, the quant/verbal section is still the main show. You want to do well with IR, but you don't want to get so caught up with it that it psychologically affects your performance on what really counts towards your 800 score - and taht is the quant and verbal sections.
FAQs
How do I keep a personal logbook of my question attempts and wrong answers
Create an account - it's free! That's right, just click the "register" button at the top of this page and create an account. You can even login with facebook and create an account with just one click.
Once logged in, you will see checkmarks next to each question that you got right and you will see x marks next to each question that you got wrong. Click the yellow stars to mark the questions you would like to revisit at another time. These are your favorited questions.
Like these GMAT questions? Share and challenge your friends!
Got a question? Need a study plan? Need some advice? Ask GMATPill.
If you haven't done so yet, create a Disqus profile and ask GMATPill. Be sure to check out whether the SC, CR, RC, PS, DS, and IR Pills might help you.
GMATTM is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admission CouncilTM. The Graduate Management Admission CouncilTM does not endorse, nor is it affiliated in any way with the owner or any content of this web site.
