BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem

Should I retake GMAT?!

Free advice from the world's top MBA consultants
This topic has expert replies
Post new topic Post Reply
Previous Topic Next Topic
Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Jan 21, 2010 11:03 am

Should I retake GMAT?!

by cmccuan82 » Tue Apr 27, 2010 12:26 pm
Hi all,

I just took the GMAT yesterday and scored a 690. I would like to know your thoughts on whether it is a good idea to retake the GMAT and shoot for a higher score. The schools I'm looking to apply to are Berkeley, Columbia, NYU and UT. I have almost 2 years of experience as an auditor for PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Investment Management industry and a little over 2 years of experience as an Energy Derivatives Analyst for Citigroup. I graduated from the Professional Program in Accounting with a Masters from UT-Austin. Overall GPA was 3.90. I have a CPA license and have passed all three parts of the CFA. I was hoping to break into the 700s to compensate for my lack of extracurricular activities.

So in order to get into my target schools, do you think it would make much of a difference to retake the GMAT?

Thanks for any help.
Top
Source: — Ask an MBA Admissions Consultant |

GMAT/MBA Expert

User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 3835
Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 10:00 pm
Location: Milpitas, CA
Thanked: 1854 times
Followed by:523 members
GMAT Score:770

by Anurag@Gurome » Tue Apr 27, 2010 2:55 pm
You can retake the GMAT, but not to compensate for your lack of extracurricular activities. GMAT scores are usually a proxy for your academic capability - whether you can stand the rigor of a top MBA education or not. In a small way, it is also taken as a reflection of your language, mathematical, and analytical skills. How are your undergraduate grades? If you were all A's, retaking GMAT will not help.

I suggest that you do a comprehensive analysis of your profile, including GMAT score, undergraduate and other academic qualifications (you have an interesting background), extracurricular interests, strength of your potential references, and your career story - past, present, and future. Many below 690 get into the schools you listed; conversely, many with 760+ get rejected by the very same schools. I know one school in that list that rejected over 3/4ths of applicants with 760 or higher GMAT score.

Once you know where you are especially weak (let's say, extracurriculars), identify things you have done that rise up to the significant and plan out your activities before you apply. Please remember, sometimes we tend to undervalue some of the things we do. But when we look deeper, we find those same things valuable for the society or for personal growth. Highlight those.

Hope that helps.
Last edited by Anurag@Gurome on Tue May 04, 2010 7:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Anurag Mairal, Ph.D., MBA
GMAT Expert, Admissions and Career Guidance
Gurome, Inc.
1-800-566-4043 (USA)

Join Our Facebook Groups
GMAT with Gurome
https://www.facebook.com/groups/272466352793633/
Admissions with Gurome
https://www.facebook.com/groups/461459690536574/
Career Advising with Gurome
https://www.facebook.com/groups/360435787349781/
Top
User avatar
Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2010 1:16 pm
Location: Bay Area, California
Thanked: 4 times
Followed by:5 members

by Betsy Massar » Tue May 04, 2010 6:40 pm
Hi cmccuan82,

One thing to think about is your quantitative score. Berkeley Haas specifically looks for a quant score of higher than the 80th percentile. That is the benchmark they use in the part-time program to determine whether you are required to take the math prerequisite. It's a good rule of thumb for all of the schools, even if you have a CPA. (That's a whole other prerequisite!)

I have heard of students who got over 700 by getting in the 95th percentile on verbal and in the 50s in the quantitative section. Students who score roughly equally, or with a few percentage points higher on the quant side, will be viewed as safe academic bets by the admissions committees.

And that's really all the GMAT is about, academic performance. Having a higher GMAT will not compensate for a dearth of curricular activities. However, if your story is strong, and you are an engaged leader in the workplace, you should be a strong candidate.

Betsy Massar
Master Admissions
www.masteradmissions.com
Betsy Massar
CEO & Founder
Master Admissions
Top
Post new topic Post Reply
• Page 1 of 1