dMAT Exam Day: ID Rules, What to Bring & What's Banned
Last updated 2026-09-07
The dMAT is proctored under strict, published rules — g.a.s.t.'s own terms and conditions spell out exactly what's checked, what's banned, and what gets you excluded. None of this is exam strategy; it's the logistics of the day itself, worth knowing before you're standing at the test center.
Identity checks
You need a valid ID card or passport on the day — and it has to be the same document you used when you registered online. Test administrators can re-check your ID during the exam itself, not just at check-in. If there's any doubt about your identity, you're given one week after the exam to prove it, and your certificate is only issued once that's resolved.
What's banned
Nothing beyond your ID goes on your desk. Specifically prohibited for the entire exam:
- Mobile phones, tablets, MP3 players
- Wristwatches, including smartwatches and fitness trackers
- Calculators or any other electronic device
- Any notes at all — g.a.s.t.'s terms explicitly call out that even blank scratch paper counts as a prohibited aid on the digital dMAT
If your phone rings during the exam, or you're caught trying to call or message anyone — during the test or even during the break — you're excluded outright. Everything you carry in gets left in a designated storage area or, if none exists, placed in a corner of the exam room.
Getting there on time
Center location, meeting time and exam-day logistics show up in your participant portal about five days before the exam. If you arrive after the exam materials have already been handed out, you are not admitted — there's no late start.
During the exam
Once you're seated, you can't leave the room until that module ends, except to use the lavatory during the scheduled break (with supervision if it's on another floor). Food, drinks and toiletries have to come out of your bag before the exam starts — you can't step out to the cafeteria, and there's no eating once you're seated. Whether smoking breaks are allowed at all is up to the individual test center.
What counts as a violation
g.a.s.t. uses a two-strike model for minor disruption: a first offense (talking, using a banned item, general disturbance) gets a warning; a repeat gets you excluded from the exam with no refund and no certificate. Some things skip the warning and go straight to exclusion — consulting notes or reference material during the break, or any evidence of using outside help during the test itself. If irregular conduct is discovered even after the fact, g.a.s.t.'s Examination Board can revoke an already-issued certificate and will inform the relevant German universities that it's been invalidated.
After the exam
If you think you were treated unfairly by the test center, you have five working days to file a written complaint with g.a.s.t.'s Examination Board. Separately, you can also dispute your actual score — see the dMAT FAQ for that process, which has its own four-week window and its own fee.
None of this is meant to be intimidating — it's the same standardized-testing playbook used for exams like TOEFL or GRE. Knowing it in advance just means nothing on test day is a surprise. For what's actually tested once you're in your seat, see the exam pattern breakdown; for the registration window and fees, see registration.