530 in GMAT..anyone help? :(

[khhussainm]

I am planning of applying to:
Wisconsin Madison,
Pittsburgh,
UMASS Amherst,
George Washington.

GMAT: 530

BSc (Hons) in Economics (Major) & Finance (Minor)
2010-2014
CGPA: 2.88

Work Experience:
Working in Family Business
as Manager Import
April/2014-Current

Gave my GMAT, but was so devastated by the result that I canceled the score. Even though it can be reinstated within 60 days, but I would like to know a take of someone with experience on this issue.

[manyaabroadtpr]

Hi khhussainm,

To give you an honest opinion it would be better if you retake your GMAT. As I see your GPA is also a little on the lower so to offset that a higher GMAT would be a must. Are you an international student? I ask because further advice will be a bit more based on that.

www.manyagroup.com

[khhussainm]

Hi khhussainm,

To give you an honest opinion it would be better if you retake your GMAT. As I see your GPA is also a little on the lower so to offset that a higher GMAT would be a must. Are you an international student? I ask because further advice will be a bit more based on that.

www.manyagroup.com

Thank you for your reply.
Yes I am international student. I would take gladly take the GMAT again but that cant be done before 8Feb15 as I just gave my first one on 7Jan15, so by then majority of ROUND 2 deadlines would end. Also, my hesitance to re-take is that how much can I expect this score to go up. I mean 530 to what ? I am devastated by the score How much higher can one expect to go from this low? Do you know people who might have? If they did, then how?

These are my two major concerns.

Regards

p.s

These were my GMAT scores

GMAT PREP Test 1: 540
GMAT PREP Test 2: 570
MANHATTAN PREP: 540
VERITAS PREP: 650
Actual GMAT: 530

[Jon@Admissionado]

Hey dude,
Well first of all, don't get toooooo discouraged.. lots of people take the test multiple times. I'm SURE you can do better than this. and honestly this score is so low that you gotta retake! But, anyhow, you have nowhere to go but up. The important thing is that you prepare real real well before you retake that test. You don't want to take it tooo many times, and you have a lot of time till next year's applications... so just make sure you are coming away with the best score you can get

Best,
JF

[CriticalSquareMBA]

Hey there!

Thanks for your note asking for me to chime in - I'm happy to help! The short answer to your question is that you should really try to take the GMAT one more time. I realize you're a bit discouraged based on your recent performance, but the truth is that the thought of you boosting your score to 600 isn't that far fetched. Looking at the ranges, you would currently sit on the low end of the GMAT and on the low end of the GPA, so boosting your GMAT is fairly important.

Now, to your point, you won't be able to do it before some of the remaining R2 deadlines, but in looking at your work experience, you may want to push until next year anyway. Spending a bit of time to gear up for another go at the GMAT and building on your work experience could make you a much more viable candidate for these schools next year!

Hope this helps! Best of luck!

Bhavik

[manyaabroadtpr]

Hello All,

Attend Our Webinar Today: Options are still open to Study Abroad, Fall 2015!

Date: Wednesday, January 14th 2015

Time: 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm

Regsiter for Free: https://www.manyagroup.com/admissionwebinar/

www.manyagroup.com

[[email protected]]

Hi khhussainm,

While it's understandable that you'd be unhappy about this score, it's "in range" of most of your practice CAT scores (the 650 is an 'outlier' that you weren't able to repeat, thus we have to question the accuracy of that score), so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise. While this probably effects your immediate plans, you should NOT allow it to impact your *big picture* plans. The goal is still to get the MBA - if you have to alter your plans to get there, then so be it. You can either apply for Round 3 or push your applications back until Round 1 of the next cycle.

If you can tell me a bit about how you studied, then I'll be happy to advise:

1) How long did you study for the GMAT?
2) What resources did you use?
3) What were your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores on your Official GMAT and each of your practice CATs?
4) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT every time (including the Essay and IR sections)?

Thankfully, Business Schools won't care that you cancelled this score. Also, since the GMAT is a predictable, standardized Test, you CAN train to score at a higher level. You just haven't done so yet.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

[manyaabroadtpr]

Thank you for your reply.
Yes I am international student. I would take gladly take the GMAT again but that cant be done before 8Feb15 as I just gave my first one on 7Jan15, so by then majority of ROUND 2 deadlines would end. Also, my hesitance to re-take is that how much can I expect this score to go up. I mean 530 to what ? I am devastated by the score How much higher can one expect to go from this low? Do you know people who might have? If they did, then how?

These are my two major concerns.

Regards

p.s

These were my GMAT scores

GMAT PREP Test 1: 540
GMAT PREP Test 2: 570
MANHATTAN PREP: 540
VERITAS PREP: 650
Actual GMAT: 530

Hi khhussainm,

If you notice, the scores have never dipped below 530 which could mean that you pace all your tests in almost the same way. Vary the pace and see. Invest more time on questions you are sure to do good and guess aggressively on the ones you don't even if they come in the first 15 questions. Of course, you would also have to gain proficiency in 2 types of questions such as CR and SC or CR and RC and see that you gain accuracy in those questions. Sentence correction must get strong so work on grammar rules and on the ability to spot the grammar error without delay. Do not get disheartened , once your techniques improve, you could jump to a 650. Do not keep taking tests , instead work on gaining accuracy in the practice questions of OG and other sources.

Let us know if you have any further queries.
www.manyagroup.com

[Michael@VeritasPrep]

Would you consider taking the GMAT again? I would definitely recommend you consider it. Especially if you were scoring so much better on practice tests. I would also check out potentially using a test prep service to make sure you can squeeze out every potential point on the test. Doing better on the GMAT will open up a whole new world of schools to you.