I just Beat The GMAT!

Hi everybody,

I wrote the GMAT on 06/24/2009 in order to apply to the London School of Economics Msc. Accounting and Finance program. I just graduated from Queen's University with a BAH in Economics.

Due to unexpected changes in my circumstance, I decided last minute to apply to the London School of Economics. Even though most of the programs at LSE are based on rolling admissions, the majority of programs were showing 'limited availability' by 06/17/2009 so I decided to hurry.

I only studied for the GMAT for one week(7 days). I spent about 4-5 hours a day steadily on practice problems. I solved one full computer practice problem that one can download from the GMAC website and studied from only one book - the Princeton Review.

I had no idea what kind of mark I would get from the actual test so I entered the exam center with an open mind. I found the math section moderately difficult and the English section a lot more challenging.

Since I only studied for a week, I now think that I can further improve on my score of 710. The fact that my undergrad GPA is only a B- is also affecting my decision to re-write for a stronger GMAT score for future top tier B-school applications. Do Business Schools really care whether I re-write and get a 760 + or not? Or is it ok to leave it since this is my first try and I got over a 700? I couldn't find any answers in the forums. It seems like a majority of people who received 750+ the second try did not receive a 700 the first time. How would this reflect on applications?


I obviously need to improve my Verbal scores... What should I do?


Thank you,

Ed

Excellent Job!

congrats , you beat the GMAT in one week , wow

Congratulations for fabulous job done.

If you are really keen to give another shot, I would say it will require lot more hard work than you think of now.
You asked about verbal, and verbal is only practice, practice and more practice. Try reading sentence correction guide from manhattan gmat. After that solve few problem sets based on sentence correction. Downloaded free flash cards from manhattan and this forum. They are of good help.

My two pennies.

Impressive!

In order to improve on your verbal score, I'd recommend checking out the "Resources" section on this website. It has some very useful info.

I just recieved my official score. I received a 6 in the AWA section. It says perfect score but it is only 87 % . why?

[Post edited to reflect name change of thread title.]

First off EdwardKim85, congrats on breaching the 700 mark. The fact that you did it on the first try is impressive enough, but to have done so with only one week's worth of studying is extremely impressive. So I give you mega kudos for that impressive feat.

As for retaking the GMAT to get a higher score, it's pretty obvious you should be able to score higher with more studying. If you're able to score 710 on one week of studying, it's eminently possible to score higher with a month or two worth of studying. Given a GPA of B-, it might be truly useful for you to get a higher score. But you'll need to work on your essay/personal statement as well. You're going to have to explain why you're able to score a 710 on the GMAT but didn't do so well in undergraduate school. It's entirely possible you had legitimate reasons for this discrepancy so you'll need to explain that. Good luck!

Hello,

I would like to apologize to the community if my topic discouraged those of you studying for the GMAT. I was simply worried because my undergrad mark is low due to extenuating circumstances. All of my friends kept telling me that I scored very well but whenever I read forums, a lot of people seem to be getting 760 + in GMAT !

I want the forum to know that a) I am not bragging and b) I am not a genius.

I have only read about people getting 690 or high 600s in their first try and then to re-write the GMAT the second time to receive a 740+. I don't think I ran across a post where a person received a 700 + in their first try and decided to re-write yet. I wanted to know if it made sense to re-write after receiving a score of 710.


Regards,

Ed

No need to apologize Ed. I'm glad to see the thread's name changed. Given your particular situation of a B- GPA, I personally believe that a higher score would help in your particular case. A 710 is usually high enough to get you into almost any school, particularly if other components of your total application are robust, but given your B- GPA, I think a score of 750 would look more favorable than a 710. And given that you were able to get 710 with one week of studying, I think you're a great candidate to improve your score by 40-50 points if you studied for a month or two. Good luck.

EdwardKim85 wrote:Hello,

I would like to apologize to the community if my topic discouraged those of you studying for the GMAT. I was simply worried because my undergrad mark is low due to extenuating circumstances. All of my friends kept telling me that I scored very well but whenever I read forums, a lot of people seem to be getting 760 + in GMAT !

I want the forum to know that a) I am not bragging and b) I am not a genius.

I have only read about people getting 690 or high 600s in their first try and then to re-write the GMAT the second time to receive a 740+. I don't think I ran across a post where a person received a 700 + in their first try and decided to re-write yet. I wanted to know if it made sense to re-write after receiving a score of 710.


Regards,

Ed

I'm sorry for bringing up this topic again.
Did you finally get to apply for MSc accounting and finance?
I won't be able to apply before may because of some problems, I was wondering if it is worth it to try and apply for next year.

Hey Congrats on the 710, for some reason I gt the exact same verbal and quant marks but got a 700.
Anyways, your score is good enough for LSE. Also the course you are applying for is relatively easier to get into then some others offered at lse. I'm applying for the msc in finance. Lse also don't weight the GMAT as highly as b schools do in the states and as in MBA applications. The only concern I have is ur GPA, try making up for it in other aspects of your application!!

Good luck.

Hello,EdwardKim85
You said that LSE 'limited availability' by 06/17/2009

Do you know when it close application process ?

If i want to study in next year (sep 2010)
when i have to apply?