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Hessegebbabel
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Importance of GMAT after Interview 18 May 2011, 21:09
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Hi,

with Tuck just announcing that they will most likely not take anyone of the waitlist this year I am back to square one and trying to reflect on what I can improve in my application for next year. That's where you come in...

To give you some context, I have a 650 GMAT (balanced) and am a white 30 year old male , but other than that a pretty strong and interesting profile. I applied to 5 schools this year (Haas, HBS, Kellogg, Tuck and Wharton) and was invited to have an interview with all of them (waitlisted at Haas, Kellogg and Tuck, ding for the others). My interviews were mostly "ok".

Basically I am wondering how much the GMAT counts after having been invited to the interview? Did I check the GMAT box by being invited to the interview or would the GMAT still be a major obstacle even though the interview went well?

Thank you for your insights!
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bakfed
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Importance of GMAT after Interview 18 May 2011, 22:55
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Here's my thought.

On paper, you most likely had enough key evidences to show that you can succeed not just in b-school, but in life with a great career. However, interviews will judge your interpersonal communication ability, your charisma in a way, and your ability to describe "things" succinctly based on your application and resume. Your interviews were, probably as you mentioned, just "ok". Given this fact, this "ok"-ness probably did little harm your application, but on the flip side, probably didn't help much to your application either. With hundreds or thousands of other applicants who made it to interview (and remember, by the time you make it to interview, you all look good enough on paper), those with the "wow" interviews will then get in. I do know that schools will most likely go back to your application as a whole and judge you once again with the result of the interview. Coupling an "ok" interview with a 650 GMAT score (which is below average for all the schools you applied for) could potentially have tipped your application to the rejected pile. With all else being equal, perhaps your "ok" interview could've been seen better if you were to couple it with a 750 GMAT score, basically leveraging the GMAT score as an 'excuse' for an "ok"-interview. I think that if you have a chance to improve your GMAT score to 700+, you will most definitely cross that GMAT barrier. I don't think you acquired the interviews solely on your GMAT score, but rather on your accomplishments in life and an array of other miscellaneous materials presented in your application. Now, if you were to keep this 650, make sure you really "wow" your interviewer the next time around. That's done through practice only (not thinking within yourself). There are consultants out there who can help you with interviews, but if you're more financially-strapped, friends and family will do the trick. Practice in front of a mirror to see what others see (facial expressions say much more than what you intend them to say, most of the time).
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Hessegebbabel
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Importance of GMAT after Interview 22 May 2011, 23:43
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Thank you for your quick and insightful answer!
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Importance of GMAT after Interview Updated on: 24 May 2011, 05:59
Originally posted by FutureWorks on 23 May 2011, 01:03.
Last edited by FutureWorks on 24 May 2011, 05:59, edited 1 time in total.
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Hessegebbabel
Hi,

with Tuck just announcing that they will most likely not take anyone of the waitlist this year I am back to square one and trying to reflect on what I can improve in my application for next year. That's where you come in...

To give you some context, I have a 650 GMAT (balanced) and am a white 30 year old male , but other than that a pretty strong and interesting profile. I applied to 5 schools this year (Haas, HBS, Kellogg, Tuck and Wharton) and was invited to have an interview with all of them (waitlisted at Haas, Kellogg and Tuck, ding for the others). My interviews were mostly "ok".

Basically I am wondering how much the GMAT counts after having been invited to the interview? Did I check the GMAT box by being invited to the interview or would the GMAT still be a major obstacle even though the interview went well?

Thank you for your insights!
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Hello,
In general, the way the admission process works is that even after the interview your entire profile is evaluated again and then only a final decision as to if you are you selected, waitlisted or rejected is announced. So yes, the GMAT could be an issue. You mentioned your interview was “ok” – did you mean you felt you could have done better? If so, we would recommend that you analyze your interview again to see if you could have improve on certain aspects or areas.

Thanks
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Hessegebbabel
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Importance of GMAT after Interview 23 May 2011, 02:07
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Thanks for your insights!

By "ok", I meant that I didn't say anything outrageously wrong, but nothing too impressive either... I certainly could have prepared more and conducted a mock interview or two.

In general, would you say that anyone that is invited for an interview (especially in case of HBS or Haas) has a fair chance of being admitted even if a part of their application is maybe not as convincing?