The answer is – it depends on your GMAT prep strategy, and how confident you are about the preparation. If GMAT practice test scores easily affect you, then the last day GMAT practice test can hamper your confidence. Most top GMAT Prep companies have recommended against taking a GMAT test the day before the actual test as it can exhaust you.
But if you have read Louis Dudley’s secrets on scoring 750 on the GMAT, he had taken 6 practice tests, every day, 6 days before the test.
“The day before the exam I pretty much took it easy besides the CAT. Again, I went with a Manhattan CAT and again I got a 730. I reviewed the CAT, the AWA guide, and my study guide”
Knewton team advises against taking Full GMAT test, not even practice problem. Here are excerpts from their 2-week, 1-month, and 3-month GMAT Study Plan.
“The night / day before the test are the time to review your notes. Do NOT stay up late doing practice problems. You still want to get a good night sleep and have a peaceful morning the day of the test to get your mind ready”
Veritas Prep team also advises against too much studying, the day before the exam
“The absolute best thing you can do the night before the big day (and on the morning of the test) is to stick to your normal schedule, get plenty of rest, and think happy thoughts. Stressed and tired rarely equal a great GMAT score; relaxed and confident often do”
A better strategy would be to do just one CAT test the day before the test. A critical aspect of practice tests is spending 2-3 hours reviewing the test. So review your answers. If the mistakes were due to some concepts that you have forgotten, review your notes. The last day is the worst time to learn new concepts. Get a good night’s sleep, review your notes again in the morning, and take the test, forgetting all your practice scores. The only score that matter is the one that you get on the D-Day.
About the Author
I am Atul Jose, Founding Consultant of F1GMAT, an MBA admissions consultancy that has worked with applicants since 2009.
For the past 15 years I have edited the application files of admits to the M7 programs: Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, the Wharton School, MIT Sloan, Chicago Booth, Kellogg School of Management, and Columbia Business School, together with admits to Berkeley Haas, Yale School of Management, NYU Stern, Michigan Ross, Duke Fuqua, Darden, Tuck, IMD, London Business School, INSEAD, SDA Bocconi, IESE Business School, HEC Paris, McCombs, and Tepper, plus other programs inside the global top 30.
My work covers the full MBA application deliverable: career planning and profile evaluation, application essay editing, recommendation letter editing, mock interviews and interview preparation, scholarship and fellowship essay editing, and cover letter editing for funding applications. Full bio with credentials and admit history is here.
I am the author of the Winning MBA Essay Guide, the best-selling essay guide covering M7 MBA programs. I have written and updated the guide annually since 2013, which makes the 2026 edition the thirteenth.
The reason I still write and edit essays every cycle: a good MBA essay carries a real applicant's voice. Writing essays for F1GMAT's Books and Editing essays weekly is how I stay calibrated to what current admissions committees respond to.
Contact me for school selection, career planning, essay strategy, narrative development, essay editing, interview preparation, scholarship essay editing, or guidance documents for recommendation letters.