KAPLAN SURVEY SHOWS THAT DESPITE RECENT ADOPTION OF THE GRE AS AN ADMISSIONS TEST OPTION BY HARVARD, WHARTON AND STERN, MOST REMAINING GMAT-ONLY BUSINESS SCHOOLS SAY THEY HAVE NO PLANS TO FOLLOW SUIT
For 76% of the Top B-Schools, GMAT Remains the Only Path to Admissions
New York, NY (August 31, 2009) – Even as some of the nation’s most selective business schools have begun accepting the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) in lieu of the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) as an admissions requirement, few schools indicate they are likely to follow suit. A Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions survey of admissions officers at 260 of the top MBA programs in the country shows that while nearly a quarter (24%) currently accept the GRE, of the remaining GMAT-only schools, only 4.3% say they are considering opening their admissions policies to the GRE.
The “wait-and-see” approach comes despite the fact that in recent months, top-tier business schools Harvard, Wharton, Darden and Stern announced they would give applicants the option of submitting either the GRE or the GMAT. They join the ranks of other top-tier business schools, including Stanford and Sloan, which began allowing applicants to submit the GRE in 2006.
“Schools that have expanded their admissions options to accept the GRE say they are doing so to attract non-traditional students,” said Jason Moss, vice president, graduate programs, Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions. “However, while several of the most competitive MBA programs have gone this route, the majority of competitive GMAT-only business schools we surveyed have said that at least for the time being, they have no plans to change their admissions policies.”
He noted, “For now, our advice for aspiring business school students is to prepare for the GMAT, but check with the individual MBA programs they are considering to find out their specific admissions policies.”
Other key highlights of Kaplan’s annual survey of business school admissions officers:
- More than two-thirds of business schools surveyed reported an increase in applications this year compared to last year.
- 44 percent of admissions officers listed a low GMAT score as the biggest “application killer.”
- 28 percent of business schools surveyed reported an increase in the number of applicants they are accepting directly from college.
- Half of the business schools surveyed reported seeing an increase in the number of applicants who report they are currently unemployed.
Kaplan surveyed admissions officers from 260 of the nation’s top business schools, as compiled from U.S. News & World Report’s America’s Best Graduate Schools 2010 edition. Respondents included 17 of the nation’s most selective MBA programs, with “most selective” as defined by acceptance rate of 20% or less and/or average GMAT score of 670 or higher. The survey was conducted in July and August 2009.
