{"id":32540,"date":"2016-03-28T01:16:34","date_gmt":"2016-03-28T08:16:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=32540"},"modified":"2023-10-24T20:47:35","modified_gmt":"2023-10-25T03:47:35","slug":"low-gmat-score-dont-panicyet-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/low-gmat-score-dont-panicyet-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Low GMAT Score? Don\u2019t Panic\u2026Yet."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Find<\/a><\/p>\n

Look at your scores in the context of a bigger picture.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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<\/span>\u00a0poor GPA or a low verbal GMAT<\/span><\/a>\u00a0score without also reflecting on other numbers as well as the rest of the non-quantitative parts of the applicant\u2019s profile. <\/span><\/p>\n

Average numbers vary according to school, as well as numbers within your demographic group. You should examine each of these aspects and weigh the strengths and weaknesses in your application before you can really start to worry. And if your stats are worth worrying about, then it's time we get to work and address these concerns!<\/span><\/p>\n

How Low Can You Go? It Depends<\/strong><\/p>\n

Certain numbers <\/span>will<\/span><\/i>\u00a0be 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 this 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.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s another \u201cit depends\u201d situation: Overrepresented demographics \u2013 Indian engineers\u00a0or\u00a0investment bankers\u00a0from <\/span>overrepresented ethnicities<\/span><\/a> \u2013 will have a harder time getting into a top MBA program than a corporate finance executive from an underrepresented 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.<\/span><\/p>\n

Your Score + Yourself = A Balancing Act<\/strong><\/p>\n

You need to examine the details of your scores and reflect on them in the context of a bigger picture. Ask yourself these questions:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Is one score low, but balanced out by other higher numbers?<\/strong> Can you provide other evidence of academic ability?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Did your overall GPA improve<\/strong> as you matured through the college experience?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do you have flawlessly-written<\/a>, compelling essays<\/a><\/strong> that prove your strong writing and communication skills despite a somewhat lower-than-average GMAT verbal score?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do you offer specific examples and anecdotes in your essays that highlight your quantitative skills<\/strong>, even though your GMAT quant scores weren\u2019t as high as you\u2019d like?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do your recommenders<\/a> vouch for your abilities<\/strong>\u2014especially ones that the numbers don\u2019t reveal?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have you chosen schools that will view your scores as competitive<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have you taken additional college courses<\/strong> in an attempt to boost your quant or verbal capabilities?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have you written the optional essay<\/a><\/strong> to further boost your competitive edge?<\/p>\n

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

\n

\"Accepted<\/a><\/p>\n

Related Resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Handling a Low GMAT Verbal Score<\/a>
\n\u2022\u00a0Handling a Low GMAT Quant Score<\/a>
\n\u2022\u00a0GMAT, GRE, SAT, and All Things Test Prep<\/a><\/p>\n

This article<\/a> originally appeared on\u00a0<\/em>blog.accepted.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Applying to a top b-school? The talented folks at Accepted have helped hundreds of applicants get accepted to their dream programs. Whether you are figuring out where apply, writing your application essays, or prepping for your interviews, we are just a call (or click) away.<\/p>\n

Contact us, and get matched up with the consultant who will help\u00a0you\u00a0<\/em>get accepted<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Look at your scores in the context of a bigger picture.   A low GMAT score or a low GPA is not necessarily an MBA deal breaker. No adcom is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,11,939,775,243],"tags":[1894,1822,862],"class_list":["post-32540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gmat","category-mba","category-accepted","category-admission-consultants","category-blog","tag-gmat","tag-low-gmat","tag-low-gmat-score","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32540","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=32540"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32540\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59405,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32540\/revisions\/59405"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}