GMAT 690 ( Q49 V 34 ) Enough to get into top 20 b schools .

Question

This was my third gmat attempt this time... have gone from (disaster 600 ) --> 650 ---> 690 (but missed the 700 bus coz of 49 in maths this time.. earlier times i had consistently scored a 50 in maths . Anyway I have 3 yrs work right now and by the time i join the college i will have 4 yrs of SAP technical work experience. I have passed out from a top 10 engineering college in India and have above average acads (ok not very great too ) :-)

. I want to know whether i can get into top 20 B schools with the profile as stated above. I am ready to work hard for writing good essays and get good recommendations. My Mom had told me why do not apply to B schools with 650 score. I told her that I deserve better than this score. But this time I got 690. Still I believe that I deserve much better. But I am planning to strengthen my App with other factors such as doing some finance courses. But i do not know which courses to take to strengthen my App. Can people here help me in on my journey to top 20 B schools? Regards, Ankit

filmcity · Answer

First, I have known a person from India to get into Stanford with 680 GMAT and 3 years of experiences ( not outstanding in any area, no legacy applicant also, but she had a strong reco from a very relevant person). So, examples are there and you can be one of them.

But, if you are a regular applicant with 3 years work ex, and you also believe you deserve a better score then by all means rewrite GMAT. You are still young and at this point it is better to create a strong profile than rush to any program you get into. MBA is once in a life time degree and brand goes a long way. Of course there are people who say after 10-15 years brands do not matter, but most of them nevertheless don't shy away from flashing there H/S/W diploma.

Steel · Answer

690 is definitely a score that can place you competitively into a Top 20 school - but it is still up to you for the rest. Essays and the rest of your application are the things that are going to get into a Top 20 school (they are whether you have a 600, 690, or 750). 690 is going to be within the middle 50% at most Top 20 schools, the GMAT should not be a limiting factor.

Ozmba · Answer

if u r a transgender with one leg, who is born to somalian immigrants who lived in Netherlands as street vendors selling dope -you can aspire to get into any top school in USA

For another run of the mill desi with top 10 engg BS and 690 score your best best is stay away from top 10

Ozmba · Answer

deleted

sam77sam7 · Answer

OzMBA,

This is a friendly board, let's keep it that way. A simple, "I'm skeptical" would be fine as opposed to lambasting the poster who mentioned Stanford.

In response to the original post, a 690 is a good score. For an Indian Engineer however, you will need to have top-notch essays, and good ECs I think to be competitive in the Top 5 or so. But if you are shooting for Top 20, I think you are certainly within range.

~Sam

Ozmba · Answer

Agreed buddy so deleted my post ladden with BS :-)

filmcity · Answer

I understand it is difficult to come to terms with anything that hits hard the believes that we have closely nourished for long...but there are many paths to reach the admission goal than the ones we know of and believe in.. Now how do I know the person? Because we worked in the same office for 1.5 years ( so it's not like my friend told me such and such..) But I think the confusion generated when I told "the person was not outstanding". That does not mean just a regular candidate. The person was non-engineer and had top of the line education in India. ( excellent candidadte but not outstanding) I will stop here because any more detail will make it easy to identify the candidate through various social/ professional networking sites. Peace

sam77sam7 · Answer

Thanks Oz!

Ozmba · Answer

Nothing like that! The reality is "For any Indian  Male , the competition is tough irrelevant of any top 15/20 school..

what i find irritating is the profile requests and the associated advice people get

I got 7XX score, went to IIT, worked as a code coolie - can i get into Harvard and instead of telling him the reality what one often does is, I know my friend -bla bla went to HSW - u can give a shot!

But the reality is way different and any indian Male aspiring for HSW -needs to be in all aspects

Any one who thinks that, if I write Great Essays, i would have a shot is stupdity..Please assess your self and have realistic expectations....

filmcity · Answer

You are making too many assumptions here, my friend :-D

I for understand Indian, engineer male the battle is uphill, but in reponse to OP I just wanted to say there are excpetions ..but the rule is yes, one needs to be outstanding

mbavacation · Answer

I hope I am not violating any copyrights here. Have removed any information that could give out the person. This is a profile of an HBS admit from couple of years ago.

mbavacation · Answer

LOL, my laptop now feels like a heavy check-in baggage.

MBAbot · Answer

Automated notice from GMAT Club MBAbot: 

A member just gave Kudos to this thread, showing it’s still useful. I’ve bumped it to the top so more people can benefit. Feel free to add your own questions or solutions.

 This post was generated automatically.

GMAT 690 ( Q49 V 34 ) Enough to get into top 20 b schools .

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards