3 RD TIME GMAT - HOW WILL ADCOMS RECEIVE THE SAME

[chaitukk_24]

Hi

I took my Gmat twice now

Gmat 1 : 680 (48,34) (Very Very Underprepared)
Gmat 2 : 700 (50,34) (Prepared..But...)

I am very confident of increasing my score by atleast 30 points...
My least score in any of the practice tests is 720 (In one of the Manhattan ones)

I do want to know how will adcoms view a 3rd time GMAT score ???

Will it reflect negatively on my application ?? Will they average of take highest score ?? Please suggest

Yes I pretty well know that Gmat is one of the aspects..but I do feel that I had a terrible terrible off day and can increase the score without any substantial effort and time..

Please suggest me...

THanks in advance
Krishna

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Krishna,

If you are confident you can raise your score, then take it again. A higher GMAT score will never hurt you. Although the official score report sent to schools will show your three most recent scores, schools use the test with the highest total score when evaluating your application. Most schools do not view multiple GMAT tests as a negative, but some schools do start to view more than three attempts negatively.

Good luck,
Lisa

[chaitukk_24]

Hi Lisa,

Thanks a lot for ur inputs....Please suggest me regarding my future course of action....taking my target schools into consideration..Or should I look at lower ranked schools ??

Please make any additions/deletions from the list below (considering my profile)

TARGET SCHOOLS :

1.Wisconsin-Madison(ASAP program)
2.Ohio - Fisher
3.Arizona - Carey
4.Tamu - Mays
5.UIUC Mba
6.Michigan-Broad
7.Penn state

My Brief Profile (By 2009 Fall)

1.Age : 25

2.GMAT : 700 AWA 5 (I plan to take it again)

3.W.E : 4 years at Capgemini India as an application developer,functional consultant.(In other words the most overrepresented group from India)

4.GPA : No GPA system in our University
In terms of honor : First Class
In terms of percentage: 76%
In terms of Percentage for the last 2 years (4 semesters) : 81%

5.Community service through company sposored charity organisation WEKARE

Lisa.. please suggest me what can I do in the next two months to strengthen my profile ?? Because the applicant group I am in (Indian IT Male) is overrepresented and moreover they tend to have higher GMAT scores..

Other than retaking the GMAT ,Will any Financial certifications help ???

Or any other suggestions on profile enhancement??

Thanks in advance
Krishna

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Krishna,

I think you will be competitive for the schools on your list. The best way to strengthen your application is to find a way to distinguish yourself in the eyes of the admissions committee. Think about your background and experiences and write about those that might be different from others with your profile. Likewise, when you write about your professional experience, both on your resume and in your essays, try to focus on the transferable skills rather than the technical tasks and responsibilities. For example, highlight managing people, managing projects, managing budgets, and client interactions when you draft your resume and essays.

Good luck,
Lisa

[chaitukk_24]

Hi Lisa ,

Finished my GMAT for the third time and now atlast almost got the score line I wanted..So now my GMAT history looks like this

GMAT 1 : 680 (48,34) AWA 4.5

GMAT 2 : 700 (50,34) AWA 5.0

GMAT 3 : 750 (50,41) AWA 6.0

So now I feel I am competitive for the schools in the above list which u already commented on.

Now please tell me the range of schools (rank range) for which I need to apply to be considered for a Substantial fee scholarship (partial to full tuition)

Thanks
Krishna

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Krishna,

Congratulations on your 750! That is great news and I commend you for your efforts.

If scholarships are of the utmost importance to you, then you will want to focus your efforts on schools outside the top 15. Scholarship awards are harder to get than a seat in the class. The larger the award you desire, the further down the rankings you should go for the best shot at a large award. Schools in the 30-50 range are always trying to move up and thus value high GMAT scores. More importantly, they will like that you have worked for CapGemini as opposed to a firm headquartered in India.

From your list, I would say your best chances for scholarship dollars will come from Wisconsin, UIUC, TAMU, and Penn State. There is no guarantee you will get admitted or get scholarships from these schools, but I think the likelihood for your profile is better at those schools than the others on your list.

My final piece of advice--you should pick a school for the education and career opportunities first, not scholarship dollars. A MBA is an investment in you and your future, not a cost.

Good luck,
Lisa

[chaitukk_24]

Thanks a lot for taking out your time to answer my queries Lisa..

Krishna.

[chaitukk_24]

Hello Lisa,

Hope you are doing well.

My List now is different from the target schools which I highlighted in September.

Till Date :

Admitted to WU-Olin ($ 50 K scholarship)

Admitted to Iowa - Tippie (GA+Schol - This combo covering full tuition)

Admitted to SMU Cox ($ 58 K Scholarship)

Considering that I want to move into Finance and strategy post my MBA could you please tell me which of the above 3 gives me the best employment options

Should I chose Olin bcoz of better ranking

or Cox because of Dallas Location, Proximity to Houston energy companies

Or Iowa Tippie for cost and ROI in this economy.

Awaiting results from TAMU Mays, Arizona Carey and Purdue Krannert

Awaiting your valuable inputs,
KKC

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Krishna,

Congratulations on your offers of admission and scholarships! That is fabulous! When determining where to go, I do think it helps to have a list of criteria that is important to you for a program and then to prioritize the list. For example, is curriculum more important to you than location of the school? is the location more important than corporate connections? or are corporate connections more important than curriculum and location? There are definitely advantages to being in a larger city versus a rural area in the US when it comes to the job search. However, many schools outside metro areas have career resources in place to compensate for location. Olin, Cox and Tippie are all solid, strong programs so your learning will not be different. I think you should look at elective offerings and connections to the industry you desire post-MBA; the school that offers the best courses, programs and industry connections is probably your best choice.

Best of luck,
Lisa

[sumanv10]

deleted

[jawad]

Hi Krishna ,

Very impressive . You sound like quite a go-getter sort of person. hats off to you.

Can you please share your study strategy ... that would be helpful for people like me ...

regards, jawad