Fewer Indians Taking The GMAT

indian citizens sat for fewer GMAT exams last year, the second consecutive year of decline and the lowest number of GMAT exams taken by Indians since 2007. The Graduate Management Admission Council said today (April 9) that Indian citizens sat for 25,394 GMAT exams during the 2011 testing year, down 5.7% from 26,937 a year earlier and a 17.1% drop from the 2009 peak of 30,633.

The council, which owns and administers the GMAT, said that “GMAT testing in India has now stabilized and showed new signs of growth during the second half of testing year 2011.”

GMAT TEST TAKING TRENDS BY INDIAN EXAMINEES

Source: 2011 Asian Geographic Trend Report for GMAT Examinees

The  proportion of GMAT exams taken by Indian women grew slightly between TY 2007 and TY 2011, but remains the second lowest level of female participation in the region. The age distribution of Indian examinees was relatively similar in both years studied.

GREATER INTEREST IN REGIONAL PROGRAMS IN INDIA

The proportion of score reports that Indian citizens sent to US management programs fell from 67 percent in TY 2007 to 55 percent in TY 2011. During this time, there was growing interest for regional programs in India, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Outside of the region, opportunities in the United Kingdom, France, Canada, and Spain also attracted more score reports from Indian examinees, the GMAC report said.

Indian examinees sent 73 percent of their score reports to MBA degree programs in TY 2011. Although there has been a gradual decline in this level since TY 2007, it remains high by regional and global standards.=

GMAT SCORE REPORTS SENT BY PROGRAM TYPE: INDIAN CITIZENS

Source: 2011 Asian Geographic Report 

MORE WOMEN IN INDIA SENDING TEST SCORES TO U.S.

Indian women were more likely than Indian men to send their score reports to programs in the United States in TY 2011 (61% vs. 53%), while Indian men expressed greater interest in domestic programs (16% vs. 12%). Unlike many citizenship groups, study destination preferences among the various age groups of Indian examinees were relatively similar.