710 Q47 V41 IR8 AWA5; good enough for Harvard / Stanford ?

[Youssef R]

Hi There

Is a GMAT score of 710 Q47 V41 IR8 AWA5 good enough for Harvard or Stanford?

Background on my profile:

25yr old male,
Dual citizen US/UK
Raised in the UK
Studied at a UK top 20 university
Masters in Mechanical Engineering (2:1 - gpa equivalent ~3.6 although this seems to be somewhat subjective)
4 years work experience in O&G as an engineer at a supermajor (think BP/Shell/Exxon graduate programme)
Worked on international assignments for ~2 years
Good leadership experience with time spent on drilling rigs,
Volunteered 2 years ago for a cause i feel deeply about
Recommendations are strong

Should I retake the GMAT Y/N? If I really focused I might be able to get up to a 740 (seen this on one GMATprep test) but that would need a lot of work and a fair smidge of luck....

[MargaretStrother]

Well, it COULD be enough for HBS/Stanford. It sounds like you bring some really good stuff to bring to your candidacy -- leadership, international exposure, career vision.
My feeling is that if you think you can improve your GMAT, even slightly, with a retake, it's worth doing. In my experience, Stanford would be a whole lot more likely to look at you with a 730 or higher -- so why let one test have such power over your future? Your verbal is fine, so focus on getting your quant over 48, and try to squeeze another point out of that AWA as well.
With a slightly better GMAT and some strong essays, you should definitely be a contender!

Good luck,
Margaret Strother

[Youssef R]

Got into both Harvard and Stanford with those scores