710, but bad split.....need help with retake strategy

Question

Hey all,

I took the GMAT about a year ago, and ended up scoring a 710 (43 Q/ 44 V)....this was disappointing to me, as I had been averaging 740's on my practice tests, with no quant score lower than a 48. As I took the test right before I began my senior year of college, I was unable to find time for a retake. I used VeritasPrep to prepare, but honestly felt it left a lot to be desired on the quantitative side. I also didn't sleep well the night before my test, so this could be part of the reason for my poor quant performance, along with never mastering the pacing for that section (I always felt rushed for my last 3-5 questions)

Now, I've got 4 months off (June-July-August-September) before I start working, and I'm trying to map out a study plan. I was planning on taking the CPA, but have scrapped those plans (I'm not going into accounting, but consulting) to focus on the GMAT full-time. I still have access to Veritas Prep, which I plan to use for verbal preparation, and own the official GMAT guide. I am planning on purchasing MGMAT quant books and GMAT official exam packs as well.

Ideally, I would like to schedule the GMAT for the end of July, so I have two more cracks at it if needed. I'm looking to score around 750....does anyone have a good recommended study schedule or strategies for me? I've read through the forums, and pieced together some of the things i should be doing (namely, keeping an error log- which I didn't do the first go around), but I would appreciate any input.

mikemcgarry · Answer

Dear jh91 , My friend, congratulations on achieving an elite GMAT score! My advice: I strongly recommend not retaking the GMAT. For my rationale, please read this blog: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/should-i-retake-the-gmat/ Let me know if you have any further questions. Mike :-)

jh91 · Answer

Hi Mike,

I appreciate the input....but won't a low quant score (43- 58th percentile) hurt my chances at schools like Stanford, MIT, and Harvard (MIT's middle 80th % scored between 48-51)? I did quite well on the other sections (44 verbal- 98th percentile, 6.0 AWA, 8 IR) but I hate not putting my best foot forward and know I could easily hit at least a 48 on the quantitative side if I retook it.

grasshawper · Answer

retake it man, you're giving them a reason to deny you admission if you don't. Manhattan is by far the hardest math you'll find, which will make the gmat seem easy. Good luck, ace it!

mikemcgarry · Answer

Dear jh91 , Hmmm. Good point. Here's what I recommend. First of all, talk to the adcoms. Get in touch with the schools to which you aspire and ask the admission folks about this --- ask them: do you look at Q/V splits at all, or just aggregate GMAT score? what are the splits you look for? etc. At each school, they may or may not give you a straight answer. If they don't give you a straight answer, see if there is a way to talk to current students about their experience. Many schools have student "ambassadors" or something of that sort. Their primary role is to talk about student life at the school, but you can always ask them admission questions. The tricky thing about admissions is: every school is SO different in what they look for, what they ignore, what does and doesn't matter, how they decide, etc.. It could be that a low Quant score is the kiss of death at one school, and it may be that it doesn't matter in the least at another school, a school that looks only at the aggregate score doesn't even consider the splits. It may be that, as you find this out, maybe you decide to rule out just one school so that you can avoid a retake. You don't know until you investigate. I would say your undergrad mathematics would be persuasive. If you did any serious math/physics/stats/etc. in your undergrad, that also would communicate that, yes, you really know math. That would serve to allay any doubts about a low Q score. Do not forget at any point that GMAT is just one part of a whole picture. A student with a high GMAT who is unimpressive in other respects stands little chance. I do not mean to suggest you are unimpressive in any way: obviously, I know zilch about the whole of your application. I would just say: 710 already sparkles. Make sure everything else --- the vision you put forth, your charisma, your essay, your recs, your interview --- make sure all of that sparkles as well. If a retake would seriously cut into the "sparkle" elsewhere, that's problematic. Does all this make sense? Mike :-)

csgny · Answer

I don't have particular advice as to whether to retake the exam, but your MIT middle 80% percentile is for their quantitative finance master's program. I don't know the quant range for the MBA program, but where MIT's 80% range on the entire GMAT is 670-760, no way can the quant range be that high.

jh91 · Answer

Mike,

Makes perfect sense. As I am still in the infancy of my application process (I won't even begin applying for 2 years), I have the luxury of time to retake the GMAT. I will also consider how else I can add to my application this summer, possibly by reconsidering my CPA plans.

Thank you for the advice.

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710, but bad split.....need help with retake strategy

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