Chances in Round 3

[4meonly]

Dear consultants,
I prepared to R2 but passed through GMAT with 620. Thats why I want to retake it and apply at R3 with better GMAT score. However, as far as I know, chances for the international student at R3 are very small.
What can you advise? Apply at R2 with low score or to apply at R3 with good score?

I am 28 years, physician by education, GPA 3.9. I have 5 years of experience in pharmaceutical business with 3 years of management experience, 1 year - full P&L responsibility. I am responsible for developing and applying brand marketing strategy in Russian and CIS in the leading Russian Research-and-Development pharma company.

Even if chances for R3 are really small, I am OK to apply next year with better GMAT score, but in this case I am afraid of my age. I will be 30ty in 2010. Is 30ty years a big age for applicant to top B-school?

Thank you for advice!

[Jay Allen]

Wow, this is a tough problem.

So, my default advice is always to apply to R2 no matter what and I believe that is true here as well. The odds of getting in to a top tier school in R3 are so low for everyone that you really want to avoid it at all costs.

I would look for those school that have late R2 deadlines or rolling admissions and then sign up for the GMAT as soon as you can. If you think you can do better with a few weeks practice, you can retake the GMAT as soon as 31 days after you last attempt. If you bump up that score to at least 650, you'll have a reasonable opportunity to get into a great program--and far better chances than if you got a 680 but waited until R3


Good luck!

[Linda Abraham]

Dear consultants,
I prepared to R2 but passed through GMAT with 620. Thats why I want to retake it and apply at R3 with better GMAT score. However, as far as I know, chances for the international student at R3 are very small.
What can you advise? Apply at R2 with low score or to apply at R3 with good score?

I am 28 years, physician by education, GPA 3.9. I have 5 years of experience in pharmaceutical business with 3 years of management experience, 1 year - full P&L responsibility. I am responsible for developing and applying brand marketing strategy in Russian and CIS in the leading Russian Research-and-Development pharma company.

Even if chances for R3 are really small, I am OK to apply next year with better GMAT score, but in this case I am afraid of my age. I will be 30ty in 2010. Is 30ty years a big age for applicant to top B-school?

Thank you for advice!

What schools are you aiming at? If the school's average age at matriculation is 28 or 29, then 30 is not a big deal. If it's 25, then 30 is probably starting to make the schools question how well you will fit in and whether you're a fit. I agree with you that applying R3 as an int'l is probably not a great idea. Whether you should apply R2 with a 620 would depend on your target programs.

Other resources:
* Low GMAT
* MBA Admissions Advice for Older Applicants
* GMAT Tips

Best,
Linda