josephrhuber wrote:
I understand completely. If you think that the effort to squeeze another 20 or so points out will just take too long or be too difficult, then forego it and focus on crafting an impeccable resume, getting your recs together, and researching your target programs... which may be the most important of all.
If this was your first try and you think you could reasonably improve your score by building on the base you already have and spending a few more weeks on it, I think it's worth it, especially if you're targeting a top 10ish school. You won't be able to apply to more than 4 schools during R1, so targeting your apps is very important. Schools in the 20-25 range (Emory, Vandy, Kelley, Carnegie, etc) have average GMATs in the 680's-690's with acceptance rates at like 30-40%. So no matter where you apply, once you hit 'submit' on that app in September you want to know that you put your absolute best effort into it that you could. At this point, you can't improve your GPA and can't do too much to improve your work experience. So the only variables are essays, interviews, and GMAT (and targeting the right schools).
That said, I spent 2 months studying for the GMAT and ended up spending way more time on research and applications, so even though it seems like you have a lot of work already behind you, you still have plenty ahead during the application process and you definitely want to make the most of all that work and get into the best school you can for your goals. Hopefully this was helpful and not too daunting
This is helpful as well. I studied for about 2 months for the GMAT and on the practice tests the best quant score wasn't much higher, so I feel like it would take some significant effort (another month or two) for me to raise that Quant high enough to be impressive. I'm also half afraid that I just killed my verbal and couldn't recreate that score if I took the test again.
I'm only 25, so I could apply next year and see if I get in and if not, retake gmat, break that 700 level, reapply, and still be younger than the average age at any of these schools.
I've started the research behind each of the schools and I could easily find myself fitting the "culture" at either of my top 4.
I think I've got the answer for my main question: "Is it silly to think I could get in now?" and the answer seems to be a no. It's happened before and could easily happen again if I can get some good letters of recs and great essays.