Limited time: summer school quantitative course or gmat prep

[EPFL]

Hello,

I have a writing and liberal arts background (B.A journalism, Spanish; M.S. Ed. Dual Lang. Education), strong GPA (3.7+ for all) and currently work as the Managing Director for a highly regarded nonprofit. I understand that my "risk profile" necessitates I substantiate a stronger capacity for math/quant, but I'd like to apply for Round 1 (for many personal/professional reasons) and think I should prioritize what I should do first.

Would you recommend I take a GMAT prep course now, thus giving me more time to study and increase my likelihood to perform better or would you recommend I take a summer school financial accounting course now and start studying for the GMAT in August?

Frankly, given time constraints due to work, I likely will only be able to do one or the other.

[Graham]

Dear EPFL,

Thanks for your post!

You raise an excellent question, and it's great to see that you are seeking to address a potential weakness in your profile. At the same time, in order to guide you, I'll need the answer to a few questions:

1) Did you pursue any quantitative coursework as an undergraduate? Since you were at a liberal arts college, my guess is that you must have had to take a distribution of courses across many disciplines. Did you take calculus, stats or economics? If so, how did you perform?

2) How do you anticipate performing on the GMAT exam? Have you taken any practice tests as of yet? Are you typically a strong standardized test taker? If you think you can secure a GMAT result that is in keeping with your superb GPA (e.g. a 720+), you may not have to worry that much about supplemental coursework.

Those questions aside, my general opinion here is that you should tackle the GMAT first (many applicants need to take it twice before hitting their mark - and that can take time). By prepping for the test this summer and taking it in late July or August, you will leave yourself some leeway if you should need to take it again in early September.

As to the supplemental quant coursework, should you pursue it, you may want to look into something that meets once a week (depending on your location, I can likely make recommendations). You can also look into online options like the UCLA Extension School - which might better suit your schedule. Note: We've found that applicants who prep for the GMAT while simultaneously pursuing quant coursework (like a stats or calculus class) often do better on the GMAT - since the coursework exercises their math skills and reinforces GMAT study. Of course, if you really can't juggle it all, you might sign up for a class that starts in September and just report your mid-term results to the schools when you apply in October - promising a final grade as soon as it is available, etc.

Feel free to send your resume to Clear Admit if you'd like to chat further about your background ([email protected]). We offer a free 30 minute phone session to anyone applying to b-school and we have many years of expertise guiding non-traditional, liberal arts applicants who target the top b-schools.

Best of luck,

Graham

[EPFL]

Excellent advice, and great follow-up questions!

1) I did take economics and statistics as an undergrad (earned a B+ in both) and math principles as an Ed grad student (earned an A).

2) I typically perform well, and in practice tests have scored as high as 720.

It sounds like I should definitely take a prep course now and considering your note, look for an online course over the summer. I'll look into UCLA extensions. Any other recommendations?

Should I not be able to, I HIGHLY appreciate both your insight regarding taking a class in the fall. This was very helpful!