{"id":23982,"date":"2014-05-21T12:36:09","date_gmt":"2014-05-21T19:36:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=23982"},"modified":"2014-05-21T12:37:33","modified_gmt":"2014-05-21T19:37:33","slug":"low-gmat-score-dont-panicyet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/low-gmat-score-dont-panicyet\/","title":{"rendered":"Low GMAT Score? Don\u2019t Panic\u2026Yet."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/reports.accepted.com\/mba\/gmatscorewebinar\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-23983\" alt=\"ApplicationComponents\" src=\"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/ApplicationComponents-150x150.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>A low GMAT score or a low GPA is not necessarily an MBA deal breaker. No adcom is going to admit or dismiss a candidate based solely on one semester\u2019s<a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/gmat.aspx\"> poor GPA or a low verbal GMAT<\/a> score without also reflecting on other numbers as well as the rest of the non-quantitative parts of the applicant\u2019s profile. Average numbers vary according to school, as well as numbers within your demographic group. You should examine each of these aspects needs and weigh the strengths and weaknesses in your application before you can really start to worry. And once you\u2019re worrying, figure out how to respond to those concerns.<\/p>\n<p>That being said, there are certain numbers that <em>will<\/em> be significant hurdles. Say, for instance, you have a GPA of 2.9 and your top choice MBA program\u2019s GPA average is 3.5. In such a case, your chances of acceptance have just taken a major hit. If, on the other hand, that same applicant applies to a b-school with a GPA average of 3.2, then he or she may have a chance of acceptance, provided, the rest of the application is solid, or better yet, above average.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s another \u201cit depends\u201d situation: Overrepresented demographics\u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/blog.accepted.com\/acceptedcom_blog\/2011\/3\/9\/mba-admissions-tip-help-im-an-indian-it-male\/\">Indian engineers<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/investmentbankers.aspx\">investment bankers<\/a> from over-represented ethnicities\u2014will have a harder time getting into a top MBA program than a corporate finance executive from an under-represented background with the same stats. In such a case, a GMAT score in the lower part of the school\u2019s 80% range and a GPA of 3.3 may be just too low for one person and just high enough for another.<\/p>\n<p>The point is, you need to examine the details of your scores and reflect on them in the context of a bigger picture. Ask yourself these questions:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\u2022 Is one score low, but<strong> balanced out by other higher numbers?<\/strong> Can you provide other evidence of academic ability?<br \/>\n\u2022 Did your<strong> overall GPA improve<\/strong> as you matured through the college experience?<br \/>\n\u2022 Do you have<strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/essay.aspx\">flawlessly-written<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/applicationessays.aspx\">compelling essays<\/a><\/strong> that prove your strong writing and communication skills despite a somewhat lower-than-average GMAT verbal score?<br \/>\n\u2022 Do you offer specific examples and anecdotes in your essays that <strong>highlight your quantitative skills<\/strong>, even though your GMAT quant scores weren\u2019t as high as you\u2019d like?<br \/>\n\u2022 Do your <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/letters-of-recommendation.aspx\">recommenders<\/a> vouch for your abilities<\/strong>\u2014especially ones that the numbers don\u2019t reveal?<br \/>\n\u2022 Have you chosen <strong>schools that will view your scores as competitive<\/strong>?<br \/>\n\u2022 Have you taken <strong>additional college courses<\/strong> in an attempt to boost your quant or verbal capabilities?<br \/>\n\u2022 Have you written the <strong>optional essay<\/strong> to further boost your competitive edge?<\/p>\n<p>You need to assess and interpret how you\u2019ll be perceived with such scores and numbers, and then develop an application strategy to address those issues.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/hub.am\/1jusurz\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-23035 size-full\" alt=\"Register for our upcoming webinar to find out How Your GMAT Score Will Impact Your MBA Admissions Chances\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.accepted.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/GMAT_webinar_CTA.png\" width=\"551\" height=\"226\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-4169\" style=\"border: 0pt none;\" title=\"Accepted.com\" alt=\"Accepted.com\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.accepted.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/logo-small-for-SF.jpg\" width=\"111\" height=\"61\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"author\">Accepted.com ~ Helping You Write Your Best <\/a><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; color: #1f497d;\">Accepted.com's <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/aboutus\/AboutUs.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">experienced admissions consultants<\/a> can help you create the most impressive application possible with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/Services\/MBAProgramServices.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">comprehensive packages<\/a>,<b><i> <\/i><\/b>or provide targeted assistance from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/services\/mba\/admissionsconsulting.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">picking perfect programs<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/admissionsresume.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">designing a dazzling resume<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/essayediting.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">constructing engaging essays<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/interviewservices.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">preparing for intense interview<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/mba\/interviewservices.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">s<\/a>\u2026and more! Accepted.com has guided thousands of applicants to acceptances at top MBA programs since 1994 \u2013 we know what works and what doesn't, so <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accepted.com\/contactus.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">contact us<\/a> to get started now!<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; color: #1f497d;\"><em>This article originally appeared on the <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.accepted.com\/2014\/05\/21\/low-gmat-score-dont-panicyet\/\" target=\"_blank\">Accepted Admissions Consulting Blog<\/a>, the official blog of Accepted.com.<\/em> <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A low GMAT score or a low GPA is not necessarily an MBA deal breaker. No adcom is going to admit or dismiss a candidate based solely on one semester\u2019s&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,11,1,939,775,113,243],"tags":[1894,257,313,862],"class_list":["post-23982","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gmat","category-mba","category-uncategorized","category-accepted","category-admission-consultants","category-applications","category-blog","tag-gmat","tag-gmat-score","tag-gmat-scores","tag-low-gmat-score","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23982","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23982"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23982\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23986,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23982\/revisions\/23986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}