In June 2012, the Analytical Writing Issue essay question will be replaced with the new Integrated Reasoning section.

These questions are meant to simulate business school tests. The idea is that if you can do well on the GMAT's Integrated Reasoning questions, then you will probably do well in business school. It remains to be seen how much importance admissions officers will give this section in the 2012 admissions cycle, however. For now, students should put preparing for this section as their lowest priority.

The Integrated Reasoning section consists of 12 questions that you take in 30 minutes. These 12 questions consist of four question types: Table Analysis, Graphics Analysis, Two-Part Analysis, and Multi-Source Reasoning.

Below are flash demos of the four question types.

• Table Analysis uses dynamic charts. You can click the tops of the tables to sort them.
  
  
• Graphic Interpretation uses information from a graph to answer questions.
  
  
• Two-Part Analysis is similar to standard GMAT math questions, but they involve a two-step analysis. This doesn't require much preparation beyond the general GMAT math questions.
  
  
• Multi-Source Reasoning requires the user to pull information from several sources and then arrive at a solution. When attempting the Multi-Source Reasoning questions below, look through Article 1, 2, and 3 and combine the information to solve the question.