Why Veterans Should Aim for a 700 GMAT

by , Feb 22, 2012

One of the biggest myths that I want to bust is that the GMAT isnt that important for veterans. Im sure there isnt a big difference between having a 740 and a 760, but I sincerely believe that 700 is a good cut off score. This is based on my experience traveling to 14 of the top 16 schools in the U.S. and meeting with members of their veterans associations or clubs. The majority of veterans in top schools tend to have more than 700, although that is not always the case.

Scoring a 700 isnt as hard as you think. There are variations of 100-hour GMAT study plans all over the internet and the basic premise is that you need to get the official GMAT guide books off of Amazon and then get access to and doing as many practice tests as you can; rinse and repeat for 100 hours. I mailed myself the books in Afghanistan but honestly, I didnt get much studying done. When I came back from my deployment, I started studying for a month and got a 680. I incorrectly believed that this figure is good enough. The problem is that veterans are becoming like a commodity. Every school wants some veterans: perhaps half a dozen Army, a couple of Navy, and sprinkle some Marines and Air Force on the top. Being a commodity, numbers and statistics matter. If you are somehow stationed to a larger city that provides a GMAT class, I would take it. In fact, I just signed up for one myself in hopes of beating my 680 and using that as an update for the schools I am waitlisted on. I personally do not like online GMAT classes, but you may find success in that.

Based on my personal experiences, I can tell you that having a high GMAT is not only necessary for entrance to a top business school, but necessary to compete for some top jobs after business school. I was at a cocktail party the other night and someone mentioned to me that he had a 720 on his GMAT and his friend had a 740 on his GMAT and during that year, McKinsey had 740 as the cut-off score to even try for an interview with that firm. And then he detailed how their lives have diverged just based off of those 20 points. There certainly could be the case where although he did get an interview, had he scored a 740, he still may not have passed the interview. Also, Im still a firm believer that he could have done other things to make his own career more successful than the other person. However, I keep discovering these anecdotes of 20 points here and 20 points there making a significant impact on ones life.

In addition, I really dont think it is that hard to score a 700. Ive become a test-taking machine since I left the Army and most tests are not necessarily about intelligence they are about just knowing how to take that particular test. If you do a few thousand practice questions for any exam, I cannot foresee someone not excelling on that exam.

To summarize:

1. Its hard to study during a deployment, so dont.
2. You need to give a solid-100 hours when you get back to home station to study for the GMAT
3. The GMAT is more important than you think, because veterans are becoming commoditized. Aim for a 700+.
4. Take an in-person GMAT class if one is available near you.

My next post will be about how to position yourself to have a successful relationship with your mentors during and after your transition from the military.In the meantime, if you are interested in reading my other posts, click here to check out my blog.