skip the awa (because i am NOT applying for a B-school) ?

gunneck87

hey!
i'm a 20-year-old german and have just finished high-school. i am applying to a university in switzerland for my undergraduate studies. i solely need to get 650 points on the gmat, and the university doesn't even take the awa score into account.
thus, i considered skipping the whole awa section in order to fully concentrate on the quant and verbal.
however the "manhattan review - gmat in a nutshell (2007)" says (under the topic "recent changes in test administration") that i have to do the awa or my scores won't be processed.

since i could not find any information on that on mba.com i was wondering, if anyone in this forum can help me.

gunneck

parore26 · Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 5:49 am Post subject:

I wouldn't recommend skipping it. Practicing and writing the AWA isn't difficult at all. All one needs to do is practice for a day or two to get a score of 4.0 or better. Alternatively, you could also just write a brief essay and move ahead if you're concerned about your stamina, energy, etc.

One more thing you should consider is that in the event you apply to a B-School within the next five years the score for this test will get sent to the Business schools and will look poor to the admissions committee.

gunneck87 · Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 8:26 am Post subject:

parore26 · Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2008 1:29 am Post subject:

When I said a brief essay, I meant writing a five line essay and moving on. I have not heard of scores not being processed if you don't answer your essays. On the GMATPrep software you get a score even if you leave your essays blank.