Are the "700 Club Trophies" a good idea?

Question

I'm going to be a bit controversial here... although I think the "700 Club" thing is cool and all, I think it also may send out a couple of unintended messages:

1) If you're not capable of or aiming for a 700+ on the exam, then this website doesn't have a place for you. Given that only about 5-10 b-schools in the world have GMAT averages above 700, I think this is the wrong message. I think this site should focus on helping each candidate maximize his/her potential within the framework of his/her goals and abilities.

2) It psyches people out. There are several recent examples (two within last 24 hrs) of people "bombing" the GMAT. I'm not saying that the trophy thing was solely responsible, but it's just unnecessary to make people focus on the 700+ thing.

Don't get me wrong, the whole trophy thing is cool and all, and I think it was well designed and conceived, but I also think some of these other issues should be examined...

Marcus

lackeym77 · Answer

Point of clarification: When I said 2 people had "bombed" the GMAT within last 24 hours, I was pointing out that THEY felt that to be the case... in no way am I rendering negative judgement on thier scores. In fact, they both did quite well, but felt themselves that they had not done well...

Just wanted to clarify.

necromonger · Answer

hmmm...I have a different spin to it. I still support the trophy for 700+, the trophy is a means of saying 'great work' to those who achieved that number - it does not belittle or demean anyone else. It is a recognition of the difficulty that it takes to get there.

The truth is, all of us want to be there - but some of us don't. It's good to aspire and fight for something you wish to have, than to worry if that goal is high enough that only a few reach it. The trophy is simply an acknowledgment of someone reaching that point - and an encouragement for others to work hard to get there.

I want the trophy too! Will I get there, I don't know. Do I see it as a goal post to where I want to get, definitely yes.

gmatornot · Answer

I support the trophy whole-heartedly. I guess it does feel a little disappointing to score below 700 if someone is really trying to get into a top school but I would still like to keep it around.

u2lover · Answer

come on now.... have some humor about it... :lol:

If I get 660, will I be disappointed that I am not in 700 club??? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! The freaking score is all it is... it is a NUMBER... who cares if you never hit 700??? if anything, the trophy thing should motivate people and not turn them away from this amazing place... each of us decides what is the definition of "bombed the test" is... anything over 600 in no way fits my definition... rhyme... if you could give trophies to 600ers or 650ers... that would be cool too... so there would be no controversy :lol:

lackeym77 · Answer

It's a little contradictory to say that on the one hand it's "just a number" but then on the other hand to be giving out trophies to various levels and stuff. I just don't see the point. Give a tropy for achieving your goal score, or give a trophy for getting into the school of your choice, but giving a trophy for an arbitrary number just doesn't make sense. I think it intimidates, psyches out, and alienates folks. But, in all honesty, I'm not as hard core about this stuff as most contributors on this site. I've said what I wanted to say and will leave my words to be ripped apart by the dogs! Just something to think about.

Marcus

died4me · Answer

I remember seeing some ISSUE similar to this post.
LOL

I will skip the 4-5 Paragraph about this ISSUE.


It is something that motivates me.

Futuristic · Answer

Frankly, I think it should be taken for what it is, a way of having some fun here.

GMATT73 · Answer

Maybe we should subcategorize/classify the trophies:

750+ ---> Platinum

700~750 ---> Gold

650~690 ---> Silver

600~640 ---> Bronze

I agree that not all members here can or want/need to reach the 700 level stratosphere, yet somehow we humans as a species seem to be better motivated (intrinsically and extrinsically) when we know that we will receive some sort of recognition for all our hard earned work.

Olympians strive for gold medals, sumo wrestlers push for the "yokozuna" wreath, pro football players sweat tears and blood for the encrusted ring, so why not let club members strive for a trophy?? Heck, I`d even be content with a bronze. 8-)

lackeym77 · Answer

The multiple levels idea makes sense... I think the vast majority of folks strive for a 600+, so at least you're able to include most people. To be frank, my issue here is not so much being "politically correct" as it is the we may be psyching people out.

haas_mba07 · Answer

Although there is some validity in what you are saying, it should be obvious (and if not then it should be made obvious) that the trophy is not a categorisation of the results of the club members, but is just a humorous way, initiated by a single member, to congratulate people.
  Other than that no one should assign more relevance to the trophy than what it is : just a congratulatory note. 

So, let not emphasize on the "categorisation" by viewing at it as such. 

And people aspiring to be in the 700+ score range are bound to be disappointed, whether they get a trophy or not, if they score less than 700. One isn't disappointed because a trophy was not given; its definately due to the various reasons that caused the inability to get the intended score.

But I do like the idea of giving a trophy to everyone as outlined in the post above.

rhyme · Answer

I'm on my way out but its interesting this thread popped up as I was thinking about it last night. Maybe my trophy thing is a bad idea - maybe it does 'psych people out' or make the site seem elitest. I will say this - when I joined, all these 700s on this site made me feel so intimidated, so I can understand where the concerns are coming from. On the flipside to that though.... the 700s also motivated me. What intimated or irritated me more were people getting 720's and talking about retaking. 

If you guys want to make multiple levels, I'm game, though I think I lost the original file to edit, so I may have to remake the whole thing from 
scratch. 

I'll make the following: 

700+ ---> Gold
650~690 ---> Silver
600~640 ---> Bronze

If it isn't too much work I'll add a 750+ platinum, but they tend to take a fair amount of work to put together, so it'll depend on how much time I have (and anyway, the 750+ would be rare at best, so I can always do it later).

rhyme · Answer

I'd just add one thing here... I'm willing to bet they would have felt that way even if the trophy never existed.

rhyme · Answer

This took waaaay too long.... How about any of the following?

Gold, four versions: (Personally I like #4)

Version 1: 

 https://img99.imageshack.us/img99/5281/goldxx9.jpg 

Version 2: 

 https://img99.imageshack.us/img99/8549/goldv2gq2.jpg 

Version 3:

 https://img154.imageshack.us/img154/2365/goldv3dl7.jpg 

Version 4:

 https://img240.imageshack.us/img240/7446/goldv4dk8.jpg 

Silver, two versions (too lazy to make the other 2 now)
 https://img234.imageshack.us/img234/6463/silverawardiq6.jpg 
 https://img148.imageshack.us/img148/2918/silverawardv2zj9.jpg 

Bronze, two versions:
 https://img19.imageshack.us/img19/4796/bronzeawardversion2yw5.jpg 
 https://img234.imageshack.us/img234/8621/bronzeawardhz8.jpg

agsfaltex · Answer

rhyme, great work on the design (my opinion: I like the second versions better). I support the idea of multiple levels.

rhyme · Answer

Look one more time... I added a few other to the gold... the differences are small, but noticeable (at least to me).

rhyme · Answer

Two more variations:

Differences: Award portion has shadow to pop a bit more, the faded score graph is moved to the right to avoid being on top of the "a" (it bothered me), the white lettering of "gmat" is plain white and not affected by the guy the holding the trophy (before if you look it was blended). Varation #2, same thing but the text is also made to pop.

 https://img136.imageshack.us/img136/2492/goldv5zn6.jpg 

Other variation:

 https://img136.imageshack.us/img136/8178/goldv6go7.jpg

buzzgaurav · Answer

Just came acroos this post.
It only goes to show that people here are really into this GMAT thing with utmost sincerity and still care about each others feelings. Generally in such a competition it's not hard to find animosity and hatred for others achieving great scores.

Nice initiative lackeym77 putting forward your concerns.
Great idea GMATT regarding the various levels of trophy.
Hats off to Rhyme for taking this in a positive manner and coming out with some even more stunning designs for the Brand New Trophies.
All and all it's great to be part of such a forum.

Keep Gmatting.....

P.S : I liked the version 4 Gold trophy too :-D

lackeym77 · Answer

I like #4 too. Plus, didn't most people favor the one with the man anyway? (from before, when you originally designed)

eastcoaster9 · Answer

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Are the "700 Club Trophies" a good idea?

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