Feedback on MBA application with 580 score

Question

Hi,

This is more like seeking career crossroad advice. I humbly ask all viewers to read the entire description below before sharing their recommendations and not solely base it upon the GMAT score.

I am thinking of applying to my choice of B-schools(ISB, NUS, and NTU) with my GMAT score of 580. I am pushing out this message to seek advice in my case concerning my overall profile and trying to weigh the odds of getting accepted with my overall profile background + GMAT score.

Education  - MS in Mechanical Engineering University of Texas, USA
 Age  - 37 Male
 Previous Work  - 9 years of US work experience in Oil and Gas industry. Also, worked as an Expat in Nigeria. 
 Engineering License  - Registered Professional Engineer (P.E.) in the state of Texas.

Currently working as a consultant for US MNC clients through my engineering startup.  It's going decently.

Personal history  - I exited the US in 2020 August due to the COVID crisis in India to handle the situation back at home as both of my parents were severely impacted, with my father still dealing with and recovering from secondary issues. The doctors at Medanta recommended that it can take more than a year for him to fully recover so I had to make the call of staying back and let go of my job in the USA. Though I managed to negotiate with my employer to work as a consultant for them from India, which was a silver lining.

I spent a good amount of time nursing my Dad back to his health and preparing for my GMAT which was not very sincere for the first few months but slowly caught upon. Gave my first attempt in November and scored 580. I thought I can bump it up on the next attempt and gave another exam in Jan but scored lesser than my first attempt. Now I am stuck at crossroads whether to continue with more futile attempts any further or not and try my luck or to seek admission with my first score of 580.

Also, since I am aging faster than college deadlines plus this prolonged mental fatigue from GMAT preparation I don't see myself being able to bump up my score before round 3 deadlines of the colleges I have mentioned above. I know GMAT golden figure scores are desirable but I think I can defend my case with my niche profile. In the worst case, I'll be waisting a year for next year's admissions so I am willing to take my chances with my current score to see if I can get an admissions call.

So let me know what you guys think about my roadmap ahead.

MBAGuide · Answer

Hi  ashwani9669  , could you share the breakup of your GMAT score into Verbal and Quant. As you fall towards the high experience, high age spectrum of the applicant pool, the schools would want to make sure that you, who have been away from the school system longer have the ability to cope up with the extremely demanding academic curriculum. If you are only slightly off from the GMAT Quant score average for Indian applicants, you could still stand a chance with a very very strong application and a convincing narrative. However, if you are lacking on both Quant and Verbal, then your odds of getting an interview invite are very low.

Best wishes

ashwani9669 · Answer

My score breakup is as follows - 
Q(44) V(25) IR(3) AWA(4.5)

MBAGuide · Answer

ashwani9669  kindly check your inbox. Thanks

RetaketheGMAT · Answer

ashwani9669

One quick thing about your GMAT score. I think you need a more clear answer to the WHY question.

WHY did your GMAT score fall short?

While things like your ESRs (from the actual GMAT) and your practice test results will tell you WHAT topics and question types you had problems in, they do nothing to answer the critical question of WHY they went wrong.

We tackle that problem for people in your situation using someone called TESTING SIMULATION. It's live performance coaching by a GMAT expert IN a PRACTICE TEST. The first diagnostic session is FREE and will answer all the questions about WHY your score fell short. Our experience with more than 1200 GMAT retake client is clear: Test Taking Skills are a big reason why most test takers fall short after plenty of study.

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bb · Answer

Sorry, have not read all the replies. but with your considerable experience you are probably looking at a Top 40 in the US though you are applying to NTU and NUS. How is your age for their profile? Do they take more experienced applicants?

Feedback on MBA application with 580 score

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