To really give you a proper answer to your question, I'd need to know more about your profile. In those six years of work experience, do you have some really strong leadership experience to write about? How's your undergraduate GPA, and how selective/challenging was your undergraduate school? How does your profile look in terms of extracurricular activities and community involvement? Are your goals and your timeline for achieving them clearly laid out? Do you have other ways to establish strong verbal skills in your applications, to offset the lower score on the verbal portion of the GMAT? ALL these things can make a huge difference, especially if you're trying to get your applications in before you hit 30.

One thing I WILL tell you is that if you're under a lot of pressure at work, and getting nervous about deadlines as well, now might NOT be the best time to retake the GMAT--sounds like you have a lot going on right now, and might not be able to spend enough time on GMAT prep AND on essays.

I'd rather see you submit the best possible applications at 30 than just "OK" applications at 29! Or, you could apply this year with the score you've got and see what happens, then re-apply next year if nothing pans out for you--there's certainly no shame in that, and even if you get dinged, you'll often be able to get some really valuable feedback from the schools, which will help you with your next attempt!

Best of luck with the decision, and with the process.
Sonia
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Sonia Michaels
smichaels@accepted.com
Accepted.com ~ helping you write your best!
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