FEMBA: USC or UCLA.. Importance of GMAT/GPA vs Wk Experience

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I am planning to apply to both Fully Employed programs at USC and UCLA and recently took my first GMAT. I scored a 610 and have an undergraduate B.S. in Chemistry GPA of 2.95. However what I do have is a PhD in organic chemistry and a Post-Doc from UPENN. After school I have been in industry now for 6 + years in pharmaceuticals/biotech. When I look at the FEMBA program scores vs full time I noticed that the GMAT score ranges are quite a bit different. I am curious if more emphasis is placed on ones work experience and success after undergrad instead of GPA and GMAT score. Basically do I need to retake the exam and hope to gain 30-40 points having only a few weeks to do so as the application is due in Jan? I have never been a strong test taker and excel more in work than I do on standardized tests and I am not all that confident that I can raise my score much in a few short weeks. All things considered I did score better in verbal than I did in math which is quite rare so I probably made a few dumb errors that cost me quite a few points.

Any advice (as blunt and honest as possible) would be greatly appreciated.

thanks

geckoutca
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by Stacey Oyler » Mon Dec 20, 2010 8:24 pm
Hi,

Thanks for your post. To be blunt (as requested), you really should retake your GMAT. When adcoms review academics they look at undergrad (grad and any other courses) performance and your GMAT score. Given both are below average you don't have the advantage of one off setting the other. Since you can't do a thing about your GPA, you really should consider retaking the GMAT. Low GPA and GMAT could indicate to the adcom that you might stuggle with the curriculum and thus have a negative impact on your candidacy.

Best,

Stacey
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Stacey Oyler
Clear Admit, LLC
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215.568.2590

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