Executive Assessment advice from the EMPOWERea team
66 articles on EA strategy, study plans, pacing and the executive MBA application.
Executive Assessment vs GMAT: which test fits a working professional
The EA takes 90 minutes and 40 questions. The GMAT takes 2 hours 15 minutes and 64. Here is how the two tests differ, and how to pick the one that fits your programs and your calendar.
Got the Score You Needed? STOP.
You hit your Executive Assessment target and now you're eyeing a retake. Here's why those few extra points could cost you the parts of your application that matter.
Probability and Counting: WRITE It Out
Half remembered formulas wreck probability and counting questions on the EA. Listing a few cases on paper shows the pattern and catches your mistakes.
Average Is NOT the Whole Story
Knowing how to calculate an average won't save you on Executive Assessment statistics questions. Here's what mean, median and range actually tell you.
Exponents and Roots: Break It Down to PRIMES
Ugly exponent and root questions on the Executive Assessment fall apart once you break every number into primes. Here's how to train it.
The Plateau Is Part of the PLAN
Your Executive Assessment practice scores stopped moving? That's not your ceiling. It's a signal to change how you train, and here's how.
Inequalities and Absolute Values: Test the EDGES
Inequality and absolute value questions punish people who test one easy number and stop. Check the edges and the trap shows itself.
Main Idea Questions: Answer BEFORE You Look
On Executive Assessment Main Idea questions, the wrong answers are built to tempt you. Say the main idea in one sentence first and they lose their pull.
Strengthen Questions: Find the MISSING Piece
Strengthen questions get easy once you find the hole in the argument BEFORE you read the choices. Here's how to spot it on the Executive Assessment.
Your Score Is ONE Piece of Your Application
Chasing a few extra Executive Assessment points while your essays sit blank? Here's how to tell when your score is good enough and where your hours should go.
Parallelism: Make It MATCH
Lists and comparisons in Sentence Correction have to match. Learn to spot the list, check every piece, and cut wrong answers fast on the EA.
Stop Timing EVERY Question From Day One
Racing the clock from day one just trains you to make mistakes faster. Here's why your EA prep should build accuracy first and speed second.
Modifiers: The Error You KEEP Missing
That sentence sounds fine, and it's still wrong. One simple question exposes misplaced modifiers on EA Sentence Correction every time.
Your STRONGEST Section Needs Training Too
All three Executive Assessment sections count the same. Ignore your best one while you fix your worst, and you quietly hand back your easiest points.
Geometry: DRAW It. Every Time.
Geometry that feels impossible in your head often turns obvious once it is on paper. Here is why drawing every time is the faster way.
Studying on Your Phone Is MOSTLY Fake Studying
Tapping through Executive Assessment questions on your phone feels productive, but it trains the habits that cost points. Here's what to do instead.
Quit Waiting for the "RIGHT Time" to Start
No quiet season is coming for working professionals. Here is why your Executive Assessment prep should start with one 30-minute session this week.
Rates and Work: Make a TABLE
Rate and work questions on the Executive Assessment trip up people who juggle numbers in their heads. One small table makes them routine.
Verbal Is THREE Tests Hiding in One Section
EA Verbal looks like one section, but it is really three different tests sharing one clock. Train it as one skill and your weakest type will drag you down.
One Bad Practice Test Means NOTHING
Your practice test score just dropped and you want to tear up your whole study plan. Don't. Here's what to check first, and what that low score is really telling you.
The Final Week: Stop LEARNING, Start Sharpening
A week out from the Executive Assessment, new topics only breed doubt. Here is how to sharpen what you already own and walk in rested.
Your Job Experience Can HURT You in Critical Reasoning
Years of real business know-how can quietly cost you points in Critical Reasoning. Here is why, and how to fix it before Test Day.
Number Properties: The Rules You FORGOT You Knew
Odds, evens, primes and divisibility hide inside 'hard' EA Quant questions. Relearn a dozen rules you once knew and watch those questions get quick.
Table Analysis: SORT Before You Think
Most people dig through Table Analysis rows by eye and burn minutes. Sort the right column first and many of these questions shrink to a glance.