Tuck (Dartmouth) 2013 - Calling All Waitlisted Applicants

Could you share gmat score?

Yeah, CobraKai is right. I was actually never waitlisted at Tuck. I was, however, waitlisted at Duke and then surprisingly admitted out of the blue after I thought I had already withdrawn.

Sorry I don't have any tips on how to get off the waitlist for Tuck!

Hey, you've done your part by matriculating at Sloan.

Guys, I heard back from AO on my feedback. Actually, they told me there is nothing I could improve at this stage and just take the patience to wait. I think the earliest time we'll head back from them again will be beginning of May, when they find out the yield of the last two round.

Yeah - the communication I received basically said don't expect movement on the WL until June. May 24 is when April round decisions are released, and my guess is that yield from that round is pretty high and their admit decisions are enough to determine their capacity to make offers from the WL before April round deposits are due.

add me to the 'nothing specific that I recommend you work on at this time'. Kind of frustrating since I was hoping there was a glaring weakness in my app that I could account for and jump off the WL.

Also, I had another mini heart attack when I saw 'Tuck' in the subject line of the email. FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuu

Just received my feedback as well - room for improvement regarding GMAT Score (710). While its close to their average, I can understand their recommendation here given the rest of my profile may just be average on their standards.

My question is, lets say I am having a bad morning on the day I reschedule my exam and happen to get a 690 or 700 (though I'm confident I can improve with a few weeks of practice exams) will that automatically lead to a DING? Will Tuck AdCom only see my scores if I specifically make them aware of my retake and if I actually send the scores over?

It's interesting that they responded that way to a score of 710, when other WL'ers, including myself, scored well below that. I don't believe that a lower score would necessarily lead to a ding, but I think that a higher score, even 10 points, would really show your commitment. Going through the whole testing process again is a lot of work and I think the AdCom appreciates that effort.

Was it your composite score, or were your splits unbalanced? Not trying to dig, but I too think it's odd to say a 710 could use improvement, unless you were one of those guys that got a quant score in the 65th %ile and a verbal in the 97th %ile

Take the exam. If you score above 710, send it to them, if not, don't send it. The only way they would find out about a lower score is if you re-apply next year.
Just one thought though: I know the application process in holistic, and you must present your strenghts in all aspects possible, but it just sounds weird to me that someone with a 710 receives such a feedback, and people with lower scores don't. As I said, they look at all aspects of your profile, but if the comment is related to your GMAT, than people with similar or lower scores should receive the same feedback. And a 710 is now not a good enough score? Are you serious? A 10 point difference to a 720 would make you a better student just because you are above their average? I'm sorry, I can't agree with something like that....
To me, this feedback is being based on the personal opinion of the one who reads your file in 20 minutes just to write your feedback. I cannot believe it is derived from the group decision the committee made about your file. To tell you the truth, I wouldn't need an official feedback to know that a 710 could be better. But it is 7 points below their average, so it's totally acceptable. They should tell you what really kept you out for the moment, the 710 just can't be it.
Sorry for the long post, but it's so unfair to be waitlisted, expect a decent feedback, and receive a couple of sentences that don't help at all!

CobraKai - i actually had a pretty balanced score. I believe it was 80th %ile for Quant and 90th %ile for Verbal, 92%ile overall (or something close to that, I don't recall). I do feel that I maybe left 20-30 points on the table on the exam. I did only take it once so I know I can score higher but now its actually having to do it.


Cinder4277 - good points. Tuck is definitely my top choice so I want to make every effort to get in off the waitlist and if that means studying to take the exam again, then so be it. I'm definitely not looking fwd to the new section though!

I believe if you take the test and don't send them your scores, they won't know. The only negative to not sending the scores outright is you'll have to spend the money (is it 35 or 50?) if you get a better score and want to send to adcom. However, even if you don't send the score now, it will be on your record for whenever you send official scores to wherever you matriculate (whether this year or next, so they will see it eventually). I actually did worse the second time (though my split improved) and it didn't seem to matter too much. I was consistently scoring 750 going into the second test and ended up getting a 690 so bad days definitely do happen. If I were you, I might just go the careful route and not automatically send the scores just because I wouldn't feel as much pressure that way!

I understand what you're saying bizwiz but the way i look at this is that maybe this really is specific to me. Maybe bc I was average on so many other fronts, this higher score would put me over the top in terms of getting in off of the WL. Maybe I'm being optimistic here but for others who have a lower score, improving on it won't put them over the top. Again, I am by no means trying to say others have a lesser chance than I do to get in off WL but I'm just trying to be optimistic here that this specific feedback is what will make a difference for ME in their eyes. I know it doesn't guarantee admission but I do feel that I hold my WL fate in my own hands now if only i can improve my score.

Thanks Dakells, that's the route I'm leaning towards.

I got my feedback and was also advised to retake the GMAT. I got a 700.

IMO, if you think you were average on so many other fronts, a higher GMAT will hardly do the trick. That's exactly what I was saying. I don't think they let people in with an average profile and a high gmat score, you must bring a lot of things to the table, that's why this process is so competitive. Your 710 should not hold you back, it should push you forward. Bottom line is that if they said you'd benefit from a higher score, than go ahead and take the test again. And good luck with it! It just does not make sense to me, that's all.
Sorry guys, as you might have noticed, I get a little frustrated when things don't make sense.

I received feedback to retake the GMAT so it looks like it will be back to the books. I am not sure how much I can really improve in just a month but I am going to try because I love Tuck. This is not going to be fun. Does anyone have any tips for a retake?

When did you get the email? Could you share your score, or at least if it's below or above 700?

For those of you retaking the GMAT, what date are you targeting? Sometime in May or June?