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Help Plz - 1st time GMAT 660 (Q 50, V 30)

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Help Plz - 1st time GMAT 660 (Q 50, V 30)

by wisedeer » Fri Dec 24, 2010 10:26 am
Please can anyone help me?

I am 39 year old non-native speaker (came to the States in 1995 -24 year old then). I would like to apply for the very top Executive MBA program in US and my 1st GMAT score (I took it yesterday) isn't good enough as you can see from the subject line. Please advise me my chance of admission to Wharton and GMAT strategy. Please note rest of my profile below.

Work: Software Engineer (10 yrs - previously worked for two top Aerospace Company for 9 years and currently working for non-profit University Affiliated Research Center)

Academic:
1st BS in Chemistry from South Korea: GPA 3.76/4.00
2nd BS from a State University in US (Comp Eng): GPA 3.59/4.00
Master's in Electrical Engineering (Top 20 Eng): GPA 3.75/4.00

I don't have any management experience and I only had 3 promotions from Aerospace Companies for past 10 years. I knew I really had to do good on GMAT, so, I prepared for verbal section of GMAT for close to 11 months ( First 7 months - about 3 hours of every weekday except weekend. Later 3 months - about 3-4 hours weekday and 6 hours on Saturday only. Last 1 month - weekday 4 hours, weekend 7 hours each on Saturday, Sunday)

For the last 2 weeks I only did CAT (MGMAT, GMATPrep). Here are my scores.

GMATPrep 1st : 640 (Q ?, V 35)
GMATPrep 1st (repeat after reset): 710 (Q 48, V 35)
MGMAT 1st: 680
MGMAT 3rd: 610
MGMAT 4th: 640
MGMAT 5th: 650
MGMAT 6th: 650
GMATPrep 2nd test: 670
GMATPrep 1st (3rd time repeat with reset): 740
GMATPrep 2nd (2nd time repeat with reset): 760
GMATPrep 1 st (4th time repeat with reset): 760
GMATPrep 2nd test (3rd time with reset): 760

I didn't worry too much about MGMAT because I heard it's harder than real GMAT but I repeated GMATPrep again and again for Quantitative practice. I think the real GMAT Quantitative test was about the same level as GMATPrep and the repeats of GMATPrep really helped for Quantitative. Throughout all of these practice CATS, I got 35 or above of Verbal scale score, so, I wasn't too worried about Verbal. However, in real GMAT, I only got 30 for verbal. The following is my real GMAT score.

660 (Q 50, V 30)

When I was taking the test, I knew that I was doing good on Quantitative and I had 1.5 minutes left when I finished the section. However, I wasn't sure about verbal, cause I was losing concentraction and also felt that questions were tougher and new compared with practice test ones. I still managed to answer through 40 questions and left 1 question unanswered. I guess I had many incorrect answers.

I don't know what to do about verbal at this point. Here are the books I did for Verbal prep.

Powerscore CR bible : completed once.
MGMAT SC : 3 times repeat (repeat only with something new to me)
OG 10/12: Completed and then repeated all incorrect ones twice.
SC 1000: Completed and then repeated all incorrect ones twice.
LSAT: latest actual exam 10 sets. Timed.
Economist: Read 1 or 2 articles almost everyday for a month.

I took the real GMAT at 8 am and had to get up at 6 am. I slept about 5 hours or less before the test day. I am guessing the lack of sleep had some effect on my real GMAT score. Also, the GMATPrep repeats for 3 days before exam showed about 10 - 20 repeated verbal questions, so, it might did some bad part too. I guess the first time GMATPrep tests (1st and 2nd practice test: 640, 670) reflected my real GMAT score. But what I don't understand is that for the GMATPrep tests, I always got above 35 of Verbal scale score (even for the first tests when I got 640, 670).

I really appreciate if you are still reading my post up to here :-). Please advise me about my chance of getting into Wharton EMBA and also help me with my future GMAT strategy. I will retake the GMAT again in 2, 3 months. What shall I do to improve my verbal score in 2, 3 months?

Thanks, and enjoy your holidays!
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by humblebee » Sat Dec 25, 2010 3:55 am
wisedeer wrote: I don't have any management experience and I only had 3 promotions from Aerospace Companies for past 10 years.
This is a huge red flag, especially if you're applying for an exec-MBA at Wharton no less. An exec-MBA is generally for business leaders who were too busy to go back and get a proper MBA. If you haven't got any management experience, even if you got an 800 GMAT score, I don't see why they would admit you.

I know this probably isn't what you want to hear, but that's my perception of the facts at hand. You may just consider a normal MBA program given your lack of management experience.

You may also want to ask one of the admission consultants what they think.
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by wisedeer » Mon Dec 27, 2010 5:25 am
Hi humblebee,

Thanks for your reply. I know it's a huge red flag. I am applying for managemant position next year. I will have to delay my application for another year preparing for GMAT for 3 more months. I am hoping that putting my first step into management and having GMAT 700+ can help me. Since my current job is non-profit (UARC) and they are going to support me through EMBA, I am guessing that I will be in a different pool of competition (If you think differently, please let me know). If I don't get a sponsorship from my work, I wouldn't even think of getting full time MBA since I am too old to pay that much opportunity cost. Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks again and have a good rest of holiday season!
humblebee wrote:
wisedeer wrote: I don't have any management experience and I only had 3 promotions from Aerospace Companies for past 10 years.
This is a huge red flag, especially if you're applying for an exec-MBA at Wharton no less. An exec-MBA is generally for business leaders who were too busy to go back and get a proper MBA. If you haven't got any management experience, even if you got an 800 GMAT score, I don't see why they would admit you.

I know this probably isn't what you want to hear, but that's my perception of the facts at hand. You may just consider a normal MBA program given your lack of management experience.

You may also want to ask one of the admission consultants what they think.
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by humblebee » Mon Dec 27, 2010 6:59 am
wisedeer wrote:Hi humblebee,

Thanks for your reply. I know it's a huge red flag. I am applying for managemant position next year. I will have to delay my application for another year preparing for GMAT for 3 more months. I am hoping that putting my first step into management and having GMAT 700+ can help me. Since my current job is non-profit (UARC) and they are going to support me through EMBA, I am guessing that I will be in a different pool of competition (If you think differently, please let me know). If I don't get a sponsorship from my work, I wouldn't even think of getting full time MBA since I am too old to pay that much opportunity cost. Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks again and have a good rest of holiday season!

Ok that changes the story somewhat. Not-for-profit and sponsorship from your company. But even then, if you look at the Wharton execMBA website, under admissions criteria

class profile averages typically reflect:
8 or more years of work experience - green flag
5 or more years in a managerial position - huge red flag (how are you going to address this??)
30 years of age or older - green flag
A college degree or the equivalent - green flag
Senior management experience or potential - can be propped up with letters of recommendation

You basically need outstanding letters of recommendation from your university/research centre about your managerial potential in the absence of any real leadership experience. They need to support or basically tell the committee why you need a MBA and how it will help you fulfill your role upon graduation. Ideally, they'll write about examples of you leading teams or initiatives at work.

GMAT actually becomes less of a factor as you delve into the realm of the executive MBAs. I would dare say your GMAT is already acceptable. They quote an average GMAT of 700 for the incoming class of 2010. You're probably within the 80% range. Obviously it's better if you have the time to get 700. If you're applying next year, I'd spend all that time actually leading or starting initiatives at work, and working with your recommender's to craft a very compelling story for your admissions i.e. super brownie points if they can say you're being groomed for a leadership position but lack the skills...

I'd probably also call up the admissions committee at Wharton to see what they have to say about your candidacy...i suspect they may say you are probably better off applying for the normal MBA.
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