Hi all, I just got back from taking the GMAT and am not sure if I should retake or not. On GMAT Prep practices I scored 750 and 760 getting 49 and 50 on the quant. In the actual exam I was nervous and got a bit flustered which I caused me to take longer than I should have and cost me points (I finished with Q46, V44). I am currently a senior in college who will be working at MBB (big 3 consulting) next year and took the exam because I wanted to get it out of the way now in case I want to go to b-school. I am worried that this low quant score will make it more difficult for me to get into the top 5 schools (I'm really interested in HBS, Stanford, Kellogg, and Booth) and look bad to employers if am I interviewing for positions while at b school.

I feel confident that if I take the test again in a month (right before the new exam is implemented) I will do better on the quant than I did today and get a higher score since I know what to expect and won't be as nervous. That being said, if it wouldn't make a significant difference if I have a 750 vs. a 720, I'd rather not pay the $250. I currently have a 3.9 at an ivy if that makes a difference in terms of whether I would get admitted with a 720. What do you guys think?

If you have the time and the patience go ahead and retake ! Though 720 is still an awesome sore !

Posted from GMAT ToolKit

No.

1. You could do just as well, or worse. Your practice scores may be skewed by your own discipline, overlapping questions, or by some other reason.

2. It shows you to be insecure and lacking wisdom. You are in the top 5% and above the mean admission for every single program on Earth. Even a move to an 800 would raise more questions than would be answered. You are already shown to be academically solid. Don't come across as having questionable judgment.

Another way of looking at it: a 720 is already 50% better than a 700. Would you retake at a 700 if you were likely to score a 720? Well, that's the percentile difference.

Congratulations on your score, and beware those on this board. They tend to be a little too obsessed with this little test. I suspect this is due to citizenship in nations where a single test is the only deciding factor for many things. That is not how the GMAT and MBA admissions work.

Take the time you would spend studying and volunteer in a meaningful way. It will do more for your app and your humanity.

Well, I'm already questioning your sanity pretty heavily. So perhaps an event from my own life will help.

Years ago, I botched my SAT. I had aced my practice quantitative, but managed to skip a question on the actual and bubble the final four questions wrong as a result. I ended-up with a 710 out of 800 on my quantitative. I was outraged and wanted to take it again. However, I couldn't as there wasn't enough time.

I did my undergraduate interview at Wharton (a rarity for undergrad). There, I apologized and said that I knew I could do better, and that I had identified my error. The admissions officer laughed. He told me that I was already higher than most of the last incoming class, and someone would have to be mental to go through that again given the score I had achieved. I was accepted, and I believe my statement was chalked-up to the folly of youth. I was 17.

There is likely no net upside to your admissions taking the GMAT again. Even an 800 does not undo the damage of the questions raised by such a decision. It just flags you as someone with a defective personality and bad judgment. The top 5 could fill their programs several times over with 99% scorers. They don't for a reason.

Grow-up and learn to be satisfied with amazing, but not perfect, results. Remember, this is GMAT Club, not MBA Admissions Club. You win GMAT Club with a high GMAT. You win MBA Admissions Club by being accepted to the best MBA for you. What are you truly trying to achieve?

720 is amazing. If better than 19/20 global takers is good enough for HBS, Booth, Wharton, and Stanford, why shouldn't it be for you?

This is one of the only examples where I'd advocate a retake.

Some top schools do look for the 80/80 split but more so in quant than in verbal. So based on that fact that

1. You are confident of scoring q49/50 from practice exams
2. You have time to burn and a retake will not impact your ability to write apps

I say go for it!