The verbal and quantitative sections of the General Test are adaptive tests; that is they are tailored to your performance level and provides precise information about your abilities using fewer test questions than traditional paper-based tests.

At the start of the test, you are presented with test questions of average difficulty. As you answer each question, the computer scores that question and uses that information, as well as your responses to any preceding questions and information about the test design, to determine which question is presented next. As long as you respond correctly, questions of increased difficulty typically will be presented. When you respond incorrectly, the computer typically will present questions of lesser difficulty. Your next question will be one that best reflects both your previous performance and the requirements of the test design. This means that different test takers will be given different questions.

Because the computer scores each question before selecting the next one, you must answer each question when it is presented. For this reason, once you answer a question and move on to another, you cannot go back and change your answer. The computer has already incorporated both your answer and the requirements of the test design into its selection of your next question. In a computer-adaptive test, only one question at a time is presented. Because the computer scores each question before selecting the next one, you may not skip, return to, or change your responses to previous questions. On the analytical writing section, the 2 writing tasks are delivered on the computer, and you must word process your essay responses.