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Many students mistakenly think that there is an easy answer to the question: “How long per question in the Executive Assessment?” Read on to discover that there is more to the answer than you might think!
The Executive Assessment (EA) debuted in 2016. It was created for those seeking an Executive MBA (EMBA) as a shorter, more succinct assessment than the GMAT or GRE of a candidate’s ability to handle the academic rigor of EMBA programs. Since that time, its use has expanded. The EA has become an acceptable substitute for those applying to some MBA programs and Master of Finance or Master of Data Analytics programs.
Thus, a greater number of individuals are curious about the structure and format of the Executive Assessment, as well as what topics are tested. Also, they want to know how to optimize their performance on test day. In this article, we’ll look at all these topics, but we’ll focus our attention on test-day pacing. We’ll consider many tips and techniques you need to incorporate EA pacing strategies and time management into your test-day performance.
Here are the topics we’ll cover:
- Executive Assessment Facts
- The 3 Sections of the Executive Assessment
- The Executive Assessment Has a Unique Pacing Strategy
- The Ultimate Executive Assessment Pacing Strategy
- In Conclusion
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- What’s Next?
Before we can discuss test-day pacing, let’s make sure we know the facts about the exam itself.
Executive Assessment Facts
The Executive Assessment caters to the needs of busy, experienced business professionals who want to apply to an EMBA program. Overall, it assesses critical thinking and logical reasoning skills by testing basic math and verbal knowledge. Notably, these basic skills are required for success in business school and the workplace. By studying them, you’ll be able to sharpen some skills that may have gotten rusty since college.
The Executive Assessment is a readiness exam. Unlike the GMAT and GRE, you don’t need a very high score. As long as you score at or above your program’s cutoff (often 150 or 155), you will demonstrate that you are ready for the academic rigor of the program for which you are applying.
Coming in at just 1 hour 30 minutes, the Executive Assessment is much shorter than either the GMAT (2 hours, 15 minutes) or the GRE (1 hour, 58 minutes). There are no breaks on the EA. Additionally, you should add about 15 minutes for check-in.
KEY FACT:
The EA is a readiness exam. A super-high score is not necessary.
Now, let’s look at the Executive Assessment format in more detail.
Components of the Executive Assessment
The Executive Assessment time breakdown is 30 minutes for each of the three sections of the exam. Thus, the answer to the question “How long is the Executive Assessment?” is 90 minutes. The three sections are:
- Integrated Reasoning (IR), with 12 questions, which tests both Quant and Verbal skills.
- Verbal Reasoning, with 14 questions, which tests reading comprehension, critical reasoning, and grammar.
- Quantitative Reasoning, with 14 questions, which tests math topics and logical reasoning.
KEY FACT:
The EA has three sections: Integrated Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and Quantitative Reasoning.
Before learning Executive Assessment pacing strategies, you need to first understand the section adaptivity of the exam. Let’s now learn more about this aspect of the assessment.
The Executive Assessment Is Section-Adaptive
The EA’s first section is always Integrated Reasoning (IR), which has two panels. The first panel contains 6 questions, which are a mix of easy, medium, and hard levels. If you do well on the first IR panel, then the second panel will contain more challenging (and score-enhancing) questions. However, if your first-panel performance isn’t so good, then the six questions on the second panel will be easier and will be worth fewer points. This example describes the section-adaptive nature of the Executive Assessment.
The second Executive Assessment section is always Verbal Reasoning. Just like the IR section, there are two panels, and each panel has 7 questions. Notably, the first Verbal section’s difficulty will be based on how well you performed on the IR section. The second Verbal panel’s difficulty level will depend on how well you did on the first Verbal panel.
The third section, Quantitative Reasoning, is patterned after the Verbal section. Each panel has 7 questions. The first Quant panel’s difficulty level is dependent on your performance in the Integrated Reasoning section.
KEY FACT:
If you perform well on the first panel of a section, you will see more difficult (and score-enhancing) questions on the next panel.
Before we work on Executive Assessment timing, we need to be familiar with the question types you’ll encounter on the assessment. Let’s look at those now.
The 3 Sections of the Executive Assessment
Integrated Reasoning (IR): 30 minutes, 12 questions
Like most students, you may find Integrated Reasoning to be the most challenging of the Executive Assessment sections. But note that it is also the most important. First, because it is the first section, you’ll find that it sets the stage for your entire testing experience. A solid IR performance will give you confidence. It will also calm any anxiety you might have anticipated.
Second, your performance on the IR section will determine the difficulty levels of both the Verbal and Quant sections. Thus, you’ll want to pace yourself appropriately on the IR section to maximize your score.
The IR section tests both Quantitative and Verbal concepts, using four question types. They are Multi-Source Reasoning, Table Analysis, Two-Part Analysis, and Graphics Interpretation.
KEY FACT:
The Integrated Reasoning (IR) section tests you on both Quantitative and Verbal concepts.
Let’s now look at the four IR question types individually.
Multi-Source Reasoning (MSR) Questions
Multi-Source Reasoning (MSR) questions use a variety of formats, including tables, charts, and text. Your job is to analyze the material from multiple sources, which are displayed on distinct tabs. You’ll need to access each tab’s material and integrate the information to answer the questions correctly. Here are examples of Multi-Source Reasoning questions.
Table Analysis (TA) Questions
Table Analysis (TA) data is presented on a spreadsheet, which you must sort and analyze. You’ll be asked three Yes/No questions based on the data. The key to answering a TA question is to sort the data appropriately. By doing this, you can analyze the information efficiently. Here’s an example of a Table Analysis question.
Two-Part Analysis (TPA) Questions
Two-Part Analysis (TPA) questions present you with a scenario, either mathematical or textual. You must answer two related questions about it. Of five answer choices, you choose one correct answer in the first column and one correct answer in the second column. Here are examples of Two-Part Analysis questions.
Graphics Interpretation (GI) Questions
Graphics Interpretation (GI) questions present you with a graph or diagram. You’ll be asked two questions, each of which has one blank. You’ll choose your answer from the choices presented in a drop-down menu. Here is an example of a Graphics Interpretation question.
You should complete your Verbal and Quantitative studying before focusing on Integrated Reasoning. The IR section requires mastery of Quant and Verbal topics, to be sure. However, don’t think that just because you’re good at Quant and Verbal you’ll automatically do well in IR. You need to get a lot of practice with the four IR question types to cement your mastery of Integrated Reasoning.
KEY FACT:
Familiarity with the four IR question types will lead to mastery in this tough section.
Verbal Reasoning: 30 minutes, 14 questions
The Verbal Reasoning section of the Executive Assessment assesses your verbal skills by way of three question types. They are Sentence Correction (SC), Critical Reasoning (CR), and Reading Comprehension (RC).
Sentence Correction (SC) Questions
A Sentence Correction (SC) question presents a sentence, part or all of which is underlined. In the answer choices, you are given five versions of the underlined part. You must select the choice that makes the sentence grammatically correct. Here is an example of an SC question.
KEY FACT:
Sentence Correction questions test you on grammar and your ability to choose a sentence that has a clear and logical meaning.
Critical Reasoning (CR) Questions
A Critical Reasoning (CR) passage presents an argument or a set of claims. You must use logical reasoning to evaluate the content of the passage. For example, a CR question might ask you to identify the paradox in the passage. Then, you will choose one of the five answer choices that are presented. Here is an example of a CR question.
KEY FACT:
CR questions require you to examine claims, arguments, and conclusions.
Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions
Reading Comprehension (RC) questions test whether you can correctly interpret the information contained in a 200-300-word passage. You’ll be asked two or three questions, each with five answer choices, per passage.
KEY FACT:
RC passages test you on your ability to interpret information.
Quantitative Reasoning: 30 minutes, 14 questions
The EA’s Quantitative Reasoning section uses two question types to assess your mathematical skill level. They are Problem-Solving (PS) and Data Sufficiency (DS). The 14 Quant questions on the EA can be pulled from any of 20 Quant topics, ranging from arithmetic and algebra to statistics and probability. You can find the complete list of EA Quant topics in this article.
KEY FACT:
The Quantitative Reasoning section of the EA uses two question types: Problem-Solving (PS) and Data Sufficiency (DS).
Let’s look at each of the Quant question types.
Data Sufficiency (DS) Questions
Data Sufficiency (DS) questions present a specific question and then present two statements, each of which may or may not provide sufficient information to enable the question to be answered definitively.
For example, a DS question might ask “How many questions did Cecelia answer correctly?” Then you would analyze each of the two factual statements following the question. One, both, either, or neither of the statements would provide enough additional information to definitively answer the question about how many questions Cecelia answered correctly. Here is an example of a Data Sufficiency Question.
KEY FACT:
A Data Sufficiency question presents you with a question and two additional statements. You must determine whether one, both, either, or neither of the statements is sufficient to provide a definitive answer to the question.
Problem-Solving (PS) Questions
PS questions are traditional multiple-choice questions with five answer choices. Here is an example of a Problem-Solving question.
KEY FACT:
A Problem-Solving (PS) question is a traditional 5-option multiple-choice question.
Now that we are familiar with the structure, format, and question types on the EA, we’re ready to discuss its pacing strategy.
The Executive Assessment Has a Unique Pacing Strategy
The Executive Assessment has some aspects that no other test has, and we must understand these before we can create an effective pacing strategy.
Considerations in Creating Our Timing Strategy
Integrated Reasoning Drives the Executive Assessment
We previously noted that your IR performance determines the difficulty level of both the Verbal and Quant sections. Thus, a strong performance on IR, especially the first panel, is critical.
KEY FACT:
Your IR performance drives the difficulty level of the rest of the exam.
You Have Flexibility in Allocating Your Section Time
Even though you are given 30 minutes to complete each section, you don’t have to split the section time in half to complete each panel. For example, we know that the Verbal section has two panels, each with 7 questions. You may choose how much time you spend on each panel from the total time of 30 minutes allocated. For example, you might take 20 minutes to answer the 7 questions on the first Verbal panel and then spend the remaining 10 minutes answering the 7 questions on the second panel.
Do note that once you move to the second panel, you may not return to questions in the first panel.
KEY FACT:
You may choose how much time you spend on each panel of each EA section.
The Question Types Are Not Equal!
Most students find the IR section’s Graphics Interpretation questions faster and easier to answer than the other three IR question types. Similarly, they find Sentence Correction questions easier and faster to answer than Reading Comprehension or Critical Reasoning questions in the Verbal section. And nearly every test-taker prefers the Problem-Solving questions to the brain-busting Data Sufficiency ones in the Quant section. The relative ease of answering each question type is of paramount importance in creating a pacing strategy.
KEY FACT:
Some questions are easier and faster to solve than others. This fact drives the EA pacing strategy.
Our Goal Is to Maximize Our Score on Each Section
To maximize our section scores, we don’t want to waste time trying to answer questions that we have a low probability of answering correctly. The assumption here is that we can quickly assess our ability to answer a particular question. We choose to first work on the questions we’re comfortable with, leaving the tougher ones for the end.
TTP PRO TIP:
You must be able to quickly assess your probability of answering EA questions correctly.
We Need a Balance Between Panel Times
We want to ensure that we score well enough on the first panel to qualify for seeing harder (and score-enhancing) questions on the second panel. But we know that those harder questions will require more time to answer, so we may need more time on the second panel. There is an inherent conflict. We need enough time on the first panel to get a good score, but we need enough time on the second panel to allow us to answer the more difficult (and time-consuming) questions.
TTP PRO TIP:
You need to balance the time you spend on each panel of each EA section.
The “Average Time Per Question” Strategy Isn’t Optimal
Many tests, such as the GRE, the SAT, and even the GMAT, lend themselves to an “average time per question” timing strategy. However, because of the facts presented in the previous section, we see that a simple time-per-question Executive Assessment pacing per question strategy is unwise.
For example, consider the Verbal section, with 30 minutes to answer 14 questions. We see that, on average, we have 2 minutes and 8 seconds to answer each question. However, using this average time per question timing strategy is not good. For one thing, with only 7 questions on each panel, tracking our per-question progress is probably a waste of time. By the time we realize we are behind on our average time, it’s too late to catch up.
KEY FACT:
The “average time-per-question” strategy is not recommended for the Executive Assessment.
Know Your Strengths and Weaknesses
Question Types
If you’ve taken some practice tests, you already know which question types are your favorites and which ones deflate your ego. For example, in the Quant section, nearly all students prefer the straightforward Problem-Solving (PS) question to the brain-twisting Data Sufficiency (DS) question. For Quant, you have two question types, but for IR you have four (MSR, TA, TPA, and GI), and for Verbal you have three (CR, RC, and SC). You might want to write down your favorite/preferred question types from each of the three EA sections. This will make your strategy formulation easier.
Topics
You also know that certain topics raise your hackles. For example, a Quant question about the number of ways to arrange 7 people at a table without placing Jane next to Tom might get you so frustrated that you want to just skip it altogether. Or you get a Reading Comprehension passage about plate tectonics, and you wish that it was instead about the French Resistance in World War II, about which you are passionate. These examples show us that it’s not just the type of question but it’s the content of the topic that might be the guilty party. While you’re studying, make a “hit list” of the topics that are your least favorites.
Your Spidey Sense Starts Tingling
You start a friendly-looking question, but something quickly goes wrong. Your first impression was that this would be a straightforward question, but very soon, you feel that it’s going south. Your spidey sense tells you to jettison the question and move on. While you can’t ignore the question forever, you don’t want to spend (waste) time on it if other questions are more in line with your skills. Take a guess, mark the question for later review, and move on.
TTP PRO TIP:
Know the types of questions that are easy for you and the topics that you can quickly and easily work with. Develop a sense of when to jettison a question so you can move on to more promising ones.
The Ultimate Executive Assessment Pacing Strategy
Pacing on the Integrated Reasoning (IR) Section
First, recall your list of the four IR question types–GI, TA, TPA, and MSR. List them by how quickly and/or easily you can solve each. Most students choose the following, from easiest to hardest:
- Graphics Interpretation (GI)
- Table Analysis (TA)
- Two-Part Analysis (TPA)
- Multi-Source Reasoning (MSR)
The basic pacing strategy relies on your self-assessed ordered list, and if it differs from what I have posited, use yours.
TTP PRO TIP:
Make an ordered list of IR question types, from easiest to hardest.
First IR Panel: The A-B-C Strategy
The basic strategy is to cherry-pick the 6 questions in the first panel of the IR section such that you select your fastest and easiest questions first. You want to correctly answer as many questions as possible within the time constraints. First, you will spend 30 seconds or so scanning the questions. You’ll quickly decide the order in which you’ll attack the 6 questions. We don’t know exactly how many of each question type will be on the first panel, but we know they will be a mix of easy, medium, and hard levels.
During the 30-second scan, you’ll want to look at both the question type and the “friendliness” of each question. In general, you’ll want to answer the questions in order of ease and speed of solution. Most times, you’ll find this order—GI, TA, TPA, and MSR—works in a pinch. So, let’s assume that on the first panel you have 2 GI, 2 TPA, 1 TA, and 1 MSR question. You’ll want to answer the two GI questions, then the one TA question, then the two TPA questions, and finally the MSR question. By using your pacing strategy, you will progress efficiently through the first IR panel.
Remember, the first panel is the most important one of the entire EA. It determines the difficulty level of the remaining panels on the entire assessment.
TTP PRO TIP:
Answer the IR questions in the order of your preferred list.
Strategic Considerations of Time and Number of Correct Questions
A secondary aspect of your pacing strategy is the time itself. Recall that you have 30 minutes to complete the IR section. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you should split the 30 minutes equally between the two panels. Remember, if you do well on the first panel, your second IR panel will present harder (and more score-enhancing) questions. Therefore, you will want to allow a bit of extra time for that more difficult second panel. If you give yourself 13 minutes for the first panel, you’ll have 17 minutes for the second.
TTP PRO TIP:
It’s not necessary to spend exactly 15 minutes on each panel. Split the time between the first and second panels to suit your abilities.
Another major consideration of your IR pacing strategy: it isn’t necessary to get all 12 IR questions correct. In fact, very few test takers earn a perfect IR score. To illustrate, let’s assume you’re confident that you got the first 4 or 5 questions correct on the first panel. Your remaining questions look like head-bangers, or you’re close to the 13-minute mark. In either case, consider jettisoning those tough questions. Use intelligent guessing to answer them. You’ll then be able to move to the second panel with a clear head and a few extra minutes to work on its 6 questions.
TTP PRO TIP:
Don’t waste time answering low-probability questions. It’s okay to miss a few IR questions.
Pacing Strategy for The Second IR Panel
You’ll use the same approach for the second IR panel as you did for the first. Here, you might encounter 2 GI, 2 MSR, 1 TA, and 1 TPA question. Again, do your 30-second scan to decide the order in which you’ll answer the 6 questions. All things being equal, you’ll attack the 2 GI questions first and the TA and TPA questions next, saving the 2 time-consuming MSR questions for last. Remember that you’ll likely have extra time on this panel, so you can spend a bit more time on each question if you need to. Here, you’ll want to use every minute to answer as many of the questions correctly.
As you can see, this IR pacing strategy focuses on maximizing your score by answering the easiest and less time-consuming questions first. And, if necessary, you leave the more difficult, longer questions, which can erode your score and steal time and energy, until last. This will result in putting your attention and effort into the questions you have the highest probability of answering correctly.
TTP PRO TIP:
Use a similar strategy for the second IR panel as you did on the first panel.
Pacing on the Verbal Reasoning Section
The Verbal Reasoning section always follows the IR section. It presents you with 14 questions, and you have 30 minutes to complete the section. We earlier discussed the three Verbal question types: SC, RC, and CR. Generally, most students list them from easiest to hardest as follows:
- Sentence Correction (SC)
- Reading Comprehension (RC)
- Critical Reasoning (CR)
Again, if your list is different from this one, use your list to develop your pacing strategy.
TTP PRO TIP:
Make your ordered list of easiest-to-hardest Verbal question types.
The First Verbal Reasoning Panel
On the first Verbal panel, you will encounter 1 CR question, 2 SC questions, and the sole RC passage, which has 4 questions. You’ll want to answer the SC questions first, as they take less time to answer and are easy for most students. Next, work on the RC passage, which contains 200-300 words and asks 4 questions. Finally, answer the lone CR question, and then move to the second panel.
Here are some considerations for your pacing strategy for the first Verbal panel.
- Recall that a good score on the first panel will reward you with (harder) questions on the second panel that are worth more points.
- In the first panel, try to finish both SC questions in 3 minutes total.
- Spend no more than 10 minutes on the RC passage with its 4 questions. If you’re feeling really confident with the material, take an extra minute, if needed, to make sure all 4 questions are answered correctly.
- If you are confident about your first 6 answers on the first panel, scan the CR passage quickly. If it looks easy to you, spend up to 2 minutes to answer it. If it looks squirrelly, then make a guess and move on to phase two.
- Spend no more than 15 minutes on the first panel. This will give you at least 15 minutes to work on the 7 questions on the second panel.
KEY FACT:
The one Reading Comprehension passage (with 4 questions) will be presented on the first Verbal panel.
The Second Verbal Reasoning Panel
Your pacing on both panels of the Verbal section is highly dependent on your performance on the RC passage. First, note that there is no RC passage on the second Verbal panel. Thus, you will be presented with 3 CR and 4 SC questions on the second panel. With that in mind, let’s look at the following pacing considerations for the second panel:
- Answer the 4 SC questions first, as they are generally easier and take less time than CR questions. If you can eliminate all but 2 answer choices on any question, make your best guess, mark the question for later review, and move on.
- Use your remaining time to answer the 3 CR questions. However, if you are having trouble with any of them, make your best guess and use the extra time to revisit any SC questions that you marked earlier.
Your pacing strategy for Verbal Reasoning is similar to that of the IR section. That is, you will concentrate on the easiest/fastest questions first. The big difference is that you will have only one RC passage, which leads to an imbalance in the distribution of question types on Verbal Reasoning.
KEY FACT:
You will encounter 4 SC and 3 CR questions on the second Verbal panel.
Let’s now look at our pacing approach for the Quantitative Reasoning section.
Pacing on the Quantitative Reasoning Section
The Quant section presents 14 questions to complete in 30 minutes. There are only two question types: Problem-Solving (PS) and Data Sufficiency (DS). You can expect to see 4 PS and 3 DS questions on each panel.
Nearly every test-taker finds PS questions to be much easier and less time-consuming than DS questions. Thus, our strategy is to first work on the PS questions, in the order they are presented. There is one caveat: if you encounter a brain-mushing PS question, guess an answer, mark the question for review, and move to the next PS question.
Use a similar approach for the DS questions. Be sure that you have thoroughly worked through the logic of each statement. Don’t answer a DS question prematurely! Again, if you encounter an especially brutal one, take a guess, mark the question for review, and move to the next one.
TTP PRO TIP:
Answer PS Quant questions first and then tackle the DS questions with the remaining time.
Pacing Strategy for Both Quant Panels
Because the two Quant panels have an identical structure, you can use the same strategy for each panel. Because Quant questions are short and easy to assess, it’s generally not necessary to do an initial 30-second scan of all the questions. Just dive in and get cranking, remembering to work on the PS questions first.
KEY FACT:
You can use the same pacing strategy for both sections of the Quant section.
In Conclusion
The bottom-line pacing strategy for the Executive Assessment is to answer as many questions correctly as you can. You will choose which questions to tackle first by considering both their easiness and speed of solving them. This allows you to maximize the number of questions you’ll both encounter and answer correctly in the limited amount of time allotted for each panel.
For example, you can probably answer two Sentence Correction questions in the time it takes you to answer a Critical Reasoning question. Thus, you will choose to first work on the SC questions, giving yourself a time advantage and a confidence boost. Delaying the harder/longer-to-answer questions will allow you to choose to jettison a question, if necessary, without feeling that you’ve blown the entire exam.
Practice using the strategies outlined in this article while you are taking a practice exam. You’ll find that you have a dependable way of minimizing your stress and maximizing your score!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How much time is allotted per question on the Executive Assessment?
If you follow an “average time per question” strategy (not recommended), you have an average of 90/40 = 2 minutes and 15 seconds per question.
What is the recommended pacing for each section of the Executive Assessment?
A detailed pacing strategy for each section of the Executive Assessment has been described in this article.
What’s Next?
If you want to learn more about the Verbal Reasoning section, read our article about EA Verbal question types.
Read our enlightening article: A Complete Guide to the Executive Assessment to get a great overview of the exam.
If you have general questions about the Executive Assessment, you can find the answers at the test-maker website.
