Rmann wrote:
Hi,
I got 660(q50 v30) in my first attempt today and need your advice to find out whether reappearing for exam is really worth it. Here is my background info:
--3.9 GPA; conversion done based on conversion chart provided during exam. Otherwise, it is 8.6 on the scale of 10. I am from India and studied in India.
--Working with a major bank in Amsterdam as an IT consultant from past 1.5 years. Previously worked with a company in India for about 1.5 years; so in total 3 years of experience.
I want to check my chances for University of Chicago, Booth or University of Michigan, Ross.
I would really appreciate if you guys can help me decide whether shall I reappear for test or not.
Thanks in advance
Hey Rmann - well, you've already gotten some strong opinions on your situation from at least one other consultant out there... and on the surface, this looks like a no-brainer, you should take the GMAT again.
But EssaySnark is often a contrarian, and we have to give you a real answer: It might be possible for you to get into one of these schools with the 660 score.
Why do we say that, when it's so low?
'Cuz it is low, hopefully you're well aware of that, right?
Average GMAT at Booth = 715, at Ross = 703. Average GMAT from most Indian candidates who are accepted is around 720. You're waaaaaaaay below those numbers.
But check it out: Your quant is great. The entire weakness is on the verbal side. And the verbal side is somewhat more flexible when it comes to how the schools look at this.
The academics are also good (don't trust that 4.0 GPA conversion thing, just report exactly what your school has recorded).
Here's the thing though: If you take the test again with even a slight improvement in the verbal, your total is going to skyrocket. You could very easily hit the 700 mark if you got a little bit better at the verbal. The ROI on that would be significant.
But... given the very bare-bones information you've shared with us, there might be an opportunity for you at a good school even with the 660. And a Round 1 app can have a real advantage. What you might consider is, try ONE of these schools in Round 1. Once that app is submitted, hit the books again and commit to retaking the GMAT by early December. If you took it sooner you could even submit the new score in to the schools (that would need to happen super fast to make a difference at Chicago though, they release interview invitations like lightning after the Rd 1 deadline passes). Some schools will incorporate a new GMAT score in their decisions if it's received soon enough. And even if it's not, then you'd have it in hand for Round 2 - PLUS you'd have that Round 1 advantage in play at the first school that you try.
We would need to know a lot more about your profile in order to say for sure if this is a gamble worth taking, but it's unfair to write it off as impossible without further investigation. If the Q/V were flipped and the low 660 was due to weakness on the other side, we would not be saying this - so anyone else reading this post who might get the crazy idea that a 660 is good enough for these schools, just hold your horses there pardner. We're reacting to exactly what we're seeing on this particular thread, and we're also not saying that it IS good enough - we're saying that it MIGHT BE - given everything else playing out perfectly. And we also would want to know a helluva lot more before making any further recommendations on strategy (you might consider our Comprehensive
Profile Review which is just what it says it is - we can drill down into EVERYTHING -
read about it here and specifically check out the reviews that others have left;
GMAT Club members get a $10 discount if you click through from this page).
Wow we write a lot.
EssaySnark