HIgh GPA, high verbal/low quant gmat

[Gosht]

Wanted to get your thoughts on re-taking the gmat as after fairly minimal study, I got a 720-45 (98%) on verbal and 44 (69%) on quant. I am concerned as I am aiming for the top bschools (harvard, stanford, kellog) and I know 80% tends to be the cut-off for quant. I was testing closer to high 70s for quant during prep.
In terms of background, I went to Columbia, undergrad gpa 3.9 with major in economics-philosophy. good grades in a few calculus, statistics and intro econ classes (e.g., microeconomics).
Have 4 yrs work experience, 3 at a top tier strategy consulting firm and 1 in strategic planning in consumer products/luxury goods. have done very well in my jobs and have been given leadership positions not usually given to those of a similar tenure.
STILL...i am very concerned about my gmat quant score.
Do you think i should re-take the gmat to raise my quant scores, which means taking time away from applications or will my background make up for the score?

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Gosht,

This is a tough decision as I think either option is right. Your total score is strong and your transcripts will demonstrate your quantitative ability. Likewise, you have good work experience with progression. The 80/80 guideline is a guideline, so applicants are not automatically rejected for not being >80% in quant. I don't think you should sacrifice the rest of your application for a GMAT retake because the essays are equally important. I guess it comes down to your risk tolerance in applying with your current score and seeing what happens.

Best of luck,
Lisa

[nemanira]

Hi Lisa,

I just took the gmat. I scored a 710 (botched the math - 74% and did well on verbal - 95%). I went to a top 10 undergrad, majored in economics (3.75 gpa), worked in investment banking for 2 years, and private equity for 2 years. I basically got flustered on the math, and that was the reason for my poor performance. However, like Gosht, I don't want to take the gmat again. What do you think? Given my strong quant background and I will have solid recs supporting that, do you think i should retake? thanks a lot!

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear nemanira,

Your score is a great score and, in my opinion, you did not botch the math if you scored high enough to be in the 74th percentile. With your work experience and GPA, I do not think a retake is necessary.

Good luck,
Lisa

[nemanira]

Thanks Lisa, appreciate your thoughts.

[pratpanda]

Hi,

I have a similar question as the above candidates. I took the GMAT (first time) and scored a 710 overall, however I scored 99th percentile for Verbal, (6 on AWA) while I scored only 59% percentile on the Quant section. I've been hearing mixed things on whether I should invest the time to retake or not.

A little more background on me: I double majored at UCLA in Business-Economics and Psychology. Overall, my GPA was around 3.5 from UCLA. I tended to get A's in all my Economics, Finance, and Management classes, while I tended to get B's in my Statistics, Calculus, and Econometrics classes. For the past 3.5 years, I've been working at a Big 4 accounting firm as a Transfer Pricing Consultant, which is a very analytical role (both quantitatively and qualitatively).

I'm shooting for top 10 schools, specifically; Chicago, NYU, Northwestern, UCLA, and Berkeley.

I would definitely rather not re-take the test if I can somehow piggy back off of my other quant aspects. However, I am definitely worried that maybe schools will see my B's in certain pure Math classes as well as my low quant score as reflecting that I cannot handle the math.

I think I can improve the quant score if I invested some time in to studying. However, I would prefer to invest that time in to writing good essays and focusing on other interests that I've developed that may help me in the application process(i.e. volunteering).

Could someone please advise on what would be the best course of action for me (specifically in relation to getting in to the schools mentioned above)? It might be helpful to note that I want to transition in to Marketing, thus why I want an MBA. I am planning to apply 2nd round for most schools.

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear pratpanda,

You have quite the conundrum and I'm not sure which option is the right answer. I definitely think you need to have a strong overall package and should not sacrifice the quality of your essays for a retake. There is evidence from your transcript and work experience that you can handle the quantitative aspect of the program. I guess you have to decide if you really have time to do a retake or if you need to just apply with your current score and see what happens.

Good luck,
Lisa

[anapplicant]

I was searching through past posts on a similar topic to the question that I have and I came across this thread, so I hope replying to it works for you.

I'm in a similar position as the other two that have posted on this thread, with the additional caveat being that I have already taken my tests and am more concerned about which of my two scores to submit. I took the GMAT twice, scoring 690 and 710. However, the raw score percentile differential increased significantly in my 710 test. For my 690, I received 47 Quant (77th percentile) / 38 Verbal (83rd percentile). For the 710, I scored 43 Quant (65th percentile) / 44 Verbal (97th percentile). I'm applying to Harvard, Stanford and Wharton. For Harvard and Stanford, as I'm sure you know, I am only only allowed to submit the score from one test sitting, and they do not review official score reports until after a candidate is accepted.

When I spoke with a Wharton admissions officer, she noted that the individual scores are typically more important than the combined total score. However, there seems to be some allure of having a score in the 700s vs. a 690, so I'm a bit conflicted on which I should submit.

In terms of my background, I actually also graduated from Columbia (double major Econ/East Asian Studies), cum laude with a 3.8 average. My technical background is fairly strong - A's/A-'s in all technical classes, and I worked in i-banking for two years/private equity two years.

Would love your advice on how I should go about approaching this situation - which score to report to Harvard and Stanford, and whether I should add anything in "additional information" - it's a bit sticky!

Thanks in advance.