Low Quant

[MBAhopeful23]

Hey,

I plan to apply to top MBA programs for the class of 2018 (HBS, Columbia, Booth, MIT, LBS..).
I believe my application is strong - a strong background both personal and professional.
I have extensive leadership and managerial experience from the military, very strong reccomndations and a very strong GPA (poli. scie. and philosophy major). I also believe I have a unique personal story and background.

I took the GMAT twice - first go was 690 and second was 710.
My 710 breakdown was Q44 V42 IR8 AWA6

The advice I seek is in regards to my low quant score. How bad is it? Do I have a chance at all if I don't improve it? and if so.. how much of a stretch would it be?

Thank you so much for you help!

[mbaMissionJenK]

Hi there,

Was your percentile 57th? Just verifying, for quant specifically. If so that could be a weakness in the eyes of those top schools you've mentioned. Would you be up for doing some tutoring (often most helpful approach), or other prep and giving it one more shot? The most recent GMAT policy is that you can cancel your score if it doesn't go well and cancellations don't show up anymore, on your score report. Good luck!

[MBAhopeful23]

Hi..

Thank you for your reply.
Yes, that is the correct perecntile :/

[mbaMissionJenK]

Gotcha; your overall score is pretty strong generally but the quant percentile being that low could be a weakness as mentioned. The only options in terms of addressing it would be a- try once more, knowing you can cancel and it won't be reported worse-case; or b- enroll in some quant courses and get an 'A' if you are not applying right now, just to further demonstrate quant skills. Is it impossible where you are at now? No... but some of those schools are pretty quant and finance focused so the question would be how you stack up against other applicants and how much they focus on the quant scores across the board... the rest of your application would need to be very strong.