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I remember when I was young and would ask my dad a question, more often than not he would respond, \u201cWould you like the short answer or the long answer?\u201d It didn\u2019t matter which option I chose, because at some point he would inevitably launch into the long answer. And while I hated it at the time, looking back, there were always some great nuggets of wisdom in the nuances of his long answer.<\/p>\n
So in the spirit of my dad\u2019s sage example, I present to you the short answer - and the long answer! - to the question, \u201cWhen should I take the GMAT?\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The Short Answer<\/strong><\/p>\n You should take the GMAT<\/a> any time that you have 2-3 months, or approximately 80-100 hours, to adequately prepare for it.<\/p>\n Remember that your GMAT score is good for five years, so you can take the GMAT whenever you\u2019re ready \u2013 even if you don\u2019t plan on applying to business school for another year or two. Why not get it out of the way early?<\/p>\n Now, why do I say that you\u2019ll want to devote 80-100 hours studying for the GMAT? Because statistically, that\u2019s how many hours students study to score above average on the GMAT. You can read my full article about how long you should expect to study for the GMAT<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Long Answer<\/strong><\/p>\n Telling you to take the GMAT whenever you want, which is essentially what I\u2019ve done in my short answer, may seem like a bit of a cop-out to you. At the very least, it\u2019s still pretty vague. So let me dive deeper and give you three additional guiding principles for when you should consider taking the GMAT.<\/p>\n 1.\u00a0 In what application round are you applying?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s a good idea to have a sense of when you\u2019ll be applying to business school<\/a>. Pretty basic, right? Once you know when the application deadline is for the round you\u2019ll be applying in, you can work backwards from there.<\/p>\n For example, Round 1 deadlines for many MBA programs are at the end of September for matriculation the following Fall. If you\u2019ll be applying Round 1, then, you should start studying for the GMAT in May or June and plan to take it toward the end of August. For Round 2 deadlines, you\u2019ll usually want to take the GMAT in late November or early December, and for Round 3 deadlines, mid- to late- February is a good time to take the GMAT for most schools.<\/p>\n 2. Leave time to retake the GMAT if necessary<\/strong><\/p>\n As confident as I am that you\u2019ll get the GMAT score you\u2019re looking for on the very first try (especially if you\u2019ve taken one of our GMAT prep courses<\/a>!), the reality is that many students end up needing to take the GMAT a second (or even third) time. The GMAC makes you wait a minimum of 31 days before retaking the GMAT, so take that into consideration and plan accordingly. For example, if the Round 3 application deadline for your target school is April 1st, then plan to take the GMAT before<\/em> March 1st to give yourself that 31-day buffer.<\/p>\n While technically a school will need your official GMAT results before granting you admission (official scores can take up to 20 days to arrive), often admissions offices will work with you and grant you provisional acceptance based on the unofficial score you receive immediately after finishing the GMAT, pending that final score report. When in doubt, call the admissions offices of your target schools and ask them what the absolute latest is that they\u2019ll accept a GMAT score from you. They want to work with you, so don\u2019t be afraid to ask.<\/p>\n 3. Don\u2019t drag it out<\/strong><\/p>\n One of my favorite teaching points when I\u2019m training my team on the importance of taking action goes as follows: \u201cFive birds are sitting on a wire. Three decide to fly off. How many are left?\u201d<\/p>\n Answer: All five.<\/p>\n Why? Because deciding to do something isn\u2019t the same as actually doing it! The same goes for the GMAT.<\/p>\n I can\u2019t tell you how many times I have students sign up for one of my courses and despite having completed all of the course material and taken all of the practice tests, they drag out the process of actually signing up for the real thing. The truth is, you\u2019ll probably never feel 100% ready for the GMAT. You\u2019ll always feel like there\u2019s one more thing to learn or one more practice problem to solve. But really, it\u2019s fear that\u2019s holding you back. And the best antidote to fear is action. So my advice is to pick a date based on the guidelines I described above and lock it in stone by actually submitting your registration. That way you\u2019ll have a fixed target on your calendar that you can start working toward!<\/p>\n Getting ready to apply to your dream MBA program? Our expert admissions consultants can work with you to craft an effective admissions strategy that will help you get ACCEPTED! Check out our MBA Admissions Consulting services<\/a> for more information.<\/strong><\/p>\n Brett Ethridge is the founder of\u00a0Dominate the GMAT,<\/a>\u00a0a leading provider of\u00a0GMAT courses online<\/a>\u00a0and topic-specific GMAT video lessons. He has taught the GMAT for 10+ years and loves working with students to help them achieve their highest potential. Brett is an entrepreneur, a triathlete, and an avid Duke basketball fan.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Related Resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022 The GMAT: Low Scores, Retaking & Strategies for Success<\/a>, a free webinar This article<\/a> originally appeared on 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 to apply, writing your application essays, or prepping for your interviews, we are just a call (or click) away.<\/em><\/p>\n![\"Watch](\"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Dominate-the-GMAT-webinar.jpg\")
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\n\u2022 Preparing for the GMAT: Video Tips to Live By<\/a>, a short video
\n\u2022 The GMAT and Your MBA Admissions Profile<\/a><\/p>\n