I just Beat The GMAT!

Hi everyone.

I took the official GMAT test today and scored 650. While I know that this score is below the average score of the US schools I am trying to shoot for, it is still a pretty decent result. I did all the preparations myself without a tutor. I purchased Manhatten MCAT tests to practice in the real-test environment. In fact, I found math part on MCAT way much harder than on the real test. To be honest, the math on the official GMAT seemed super-easy. I didn't really rush and was almost 8 mins ahead of time through most of the test. At some point, I got worried that GMAT didn't give me hard problems since I believe I failed to answer the very second math problem correctly. But by the end of the test, I started to see more sophisticated problems (but they still were relatively easy). Anyway, my quantitative score was 47.

During the verbal part, everything went pretty much well. By the end of the section however, I was presented with a long RC passage, then I realized I won't be able to finish the section on time unless I skip some problems. Knowing that leaving problems unanswered at the end of the section is really bad, I had to skip through the entire RC set! I believe that this compromised my verbal score. Anyway, I ended up scoring 32 on verbal.

My IR score was 4.

At this point I am not sure what to do with these 650 points. Being a Ukrainian citizen I still have to take TOEFL exam and prepare the rest of the application, which will definitely take some time and effort. If I keep pushing the GMAT I might miss the 2015 application deadlines. However, I would like to start my MBA program next fall.

I wanted to ask for advice from specialists who have experience with the application process and cases of the admitted applicants.

- 30 year old male Ukrainian with international experience
- currently living in the Philippines (no business here though)
- ran a small business that provided industrial design services for US clients
- worked with Chinese manufacturers (made multiple trips to China to 2d and 3d tier cities) to organize production of custom parts for clients
- speak 4 languages (Russian, Ukrainian, Chinese and English)
- hold mechanical engineering degree from top Ukrainian university (master's)

I understand that higher GMAT score would improve my chances to be admitted to the top US schools, but the time is limited. Therefore, I am thinking of investing time into TOEFL and building a strong application. If I still have time, I might consider retaking the GMAT sometime in winter.

I would appreciate any inputs regarding my situation.

First, what schools are you interested in applying to? If you have your heart set on HBS or Stanford, it's a much different situation than if you're looking at schools that aren't quite as competitive.

Secondly, how does that 650 compare to the scores you'd been receiving on practice tests? If you'd been averaging, say, 710 on your last few practice tests, you could take the test again in a few weeks and expect a much better result without necessarily incorporating many changes into your strategy. But if the 650 was in line with your practice test scores, you're likely looking at a more labor-intensive process to boost the score.

DavidG@VeritasPrep wrote:First, what schools are you interested in applying to? If you have your heart set on HBS or Stanford, it's a much different situation than if you're looking at schools that aren't quite as competitive.

Secondly, how does that 650 compare to the scores you'd been receiving on practice tests? If you'd been averaging, say, 710 on your last few practice tests, you could take the test again in a few weeks and expect a much better result without necessarily incorporating many changes into your strategy. But if the 650 was in line with your practice test scores, you're likely looking at a more labor-intensive process to boost the score.

Hi Dave,

Thanks for the response. I will try to cut down the number of schools I am applying to so that there are 5-6 choices. Because of the family situation, I am considering only the schools on the east coast. Of course, Harvard will lead my list. Then I'll add another top-tier school (Columbia for example). Then in the mid range I was thinking about Darden. Also, I am considering Georgetown or Maryland. With the current score of 650 I think I have pretty decent chances to get into the last two schools. But I hoped to get some idea about my chances to get into the top-tier if I am not able to raise the score. I understand that normally people can be only guessing, but I hoped to hear if there is anyone who had an experience working with applicants pool so that they could relate my case. It sounds like I won't be a regular MBA applicant which should help me a little.

650 is my top score so far. But it is pretty much consistent to the scores I got during my preps. My highest MCAT score was 620, but the math was super hard in the Manhattans tests. Verbal results were pretty much consistent (32-34). Also, I scored 640 on GMATPrep before.

[email protected] wrote:Hi alexibiz,

To start, a 650/Q47 is a solid score (it's right around the 80th percentile overall), and it might be enough to get you into your first-choice Business School. Since you're ultimately asking Admissions questions, you might want to discuss your situation with the Experts in that Forum:

https://www.beatthegmat.com/ask-an-mba-a ... t-f40.html

You'll also have to provide more information - including which Schools you plan to apply to.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Hi Rich,

Thanks for the advice. I'll do that.

Hi Dave,

Thanks for the response. I will try to cut down the number of schools I am applying to so that there are 5-6 choices. Because of the family situation, I am considering only the schools on the east coast. Of course, Harvard will lead my list. Then I'll add another top-tier school (Columbia for example). Then in the mid range I was thinking about Darden. Also, I am considering Georgetown or Maryland. With the current score of 650 I think I have pretty decent chances to get into the last two schools. But I hoped to get some idea about my chances to get into the top-tier if I am not able to raise the score. I understand that normally people can be only guessing, but I hoped to hear if there is anyone who had an experience working with applicants pool so that they could relate my case. It sounds like I won't be a regular MBA applicant which should help me a little.

650 is my top score so far. But it is pretty much consistent to the scores I got during my preps. My highest MCAT score was 620, but the math was super hard in the Manhattans tests. Verbal results were pretty much consistent (32-34). Also, I scored 640 on GMATPrep before.

Ultimately, these kinds of decisions are more art than science. Obviously, all else being equal, your odds of getting admitted to HBS or Columbia will be higher with a 700 than with a 650. But because your timeframe is tight, and that 650 is higher than most of your practice test scores, it might not be feasible for you to find the time to do the prep work required to push that GMAT score up without sacrificing quality on the other aspects of your applications. A 650 with polished original essays will make for a stronger application than a 700 with lower quality essays. Applicants are admitted to top-10 schools with scores around 650 all the time, but some aspect of their application had to stand out as exceptional. For example, I had one student who scored a 640 on his GMAT and was admitted to HBS, but he was a former athlete with outstanding writing skills, so his essays were unusually good. So that's the question you need to ask yourself (or an admissions consultant.)