Should i continue with preparation?

[satishkhatri5]

Hi,
I started preparation in end of Jan 09. Yesterday I took kaplan test and got 540. Before that GMAT prep 610, GMAT prep 580, Kaplan 540.

I plan to write GMAT on 14th April 09.
I am studying for 2-3 hrs daily and 5-6 hrs on Saturdays and a practice test on Sundays.

I am not sure how worth is it to share following with you, but let me share.

I am from India, have done masters in computer application(regular course) with 67% of marks. I have 5 years of IT(Mainframes) experience including 6 months work experience in US. Since schooling I am active in co-curricular activities. Have won national awards in sports at school level. I am Vice-President Memberships in toastmasters club at my office.

Since I started prep I have attempted 6 tests and highest I scored is 610(on my first test without preparation)

I read it everywhere that a score of 700 is must to get into top 20 B schools and at least a score of 680 is required to crack top 50 B schools. I am not able to increase my score despite putting sincere efforts. One problem I see is I do well when solving problems without timing but when it comes to timed practice test I forget all the rules I have learned and mess up answers. I make silly mistakes such as giving incomplete answers, not converting to proper units. I tried a lot to remove such errors but have not succeeded yet.
I feel like quitting. Is it worth to carry on with GMAT preparation? With a score around 600 will I be able to get admission into a decent college?

Thanks for your patience in reading long email.

Regards,
Satish Khatri

[hk]

Hi,
I started preparation in end of Jan 09. Yesterday I took kaplan test and got 540. Before that GMAT prep 610, GMAT prep 580, Kaplan 540.

I plan to write GMAT on 14th April 09.
I am studying for 2-3 hrs daily and 5-6 hrs on Saturdays and a practice test on Sundays.

I am not sure how worth is it to share following with you, but let me share.

I am from India, have done masters in computer application(regular course) with 67% of marks. I have 5 years of IT(Mainframes) experience including 6 months work experience in US. Since schooling I am active in co-curricular activities. Have won national awards in sports at school level. I am Vice-President Memberships in toastmasters club at my office.

Since I started prep I have attempted 6 tests and highest I scored is 610(on my first test without preparation)

I read it everywhere that a score of 700 is must to get into top 20 B schools and at least a score of 680 is required to crack top 50 B schools. I am not able to increase my score despite putting sincere efforts. One problem I see is I do well when solving problems without timing but when it comes to timed practice test I forget all the rules I have learned and mess up answers. I make silly mistakes such as giving incomplete answers, not converting to proper units. I tried a lot to remove such errors but have not succeeded yet.
I feel like quitting. Is it worth to carry on with GMAT preparation? With a score around 600 will I be able to get admission into a decent college?

Thanks for your patience in reading long email.

Regards,
Satish Khatri

Myth: you need a 700 to get admitted into the top B-schools.
Fact: although 700 would prove that you are good at handling the academic work load at a B-school it does not form any minimum cutoff for B-school admission.
There are people with 660-680 and still able to get admitted to Stanford.

If your academics are just average or less then GMAT becomes a good tool to reason that the academic scores are not a good representation of your skills. But if you have a score of 650 and have an excellent academic standing at school and also have a lot of experience to tell the adcom then too your chances of getting in are high.

Suggestion: Never give up!!!! GMAT is just one of the parameters for admissions. Work hard and try to do your best and then work harder to prepare a good admission package.. Also if your GMAT score is around the average of the schools' gmat score, (+10) then you are fine.

Hope this helps...

[VP_Jim]

Definitely keep studying; speed and accuracy just comes with more practice. The more you learn, the quicker your recall will be when presented with a new question. Also, GMAT timing is part of "the game" - it's important that you have a good idea of when to move on from a problem that you aren't getting.

As for the score you need, I've had students with mid-600s get into Harvard, Stanford, Michigan, Berkeley etc., so a 700 is definitely not a requirement. That is the average score at top schools, meaning that some people DO score below 700! Certainly, the higher the score the better, but at some point it becomes more about your other qualifications than your GMAT score.

Good luck!

[satishkhatri5]

Thanks HK and Jim. It certainly helps to know that there is scope. Thanks for encouragement.

Regards,
Satish