Is 47 quant enough?

Question

Guys, desperately need your advice on whether I should retake the test.
I just ended up with 710 (47;38). Q47 is 78%.
I am planning to apply to relatively quantitative programs such as Master in Finance/Financial economics. As far as I know they pay special attention to percentile of quant scores and in one of my preferred schools the expected percentile is 90%. By the way, I asked adcom whether my score is sufficient and they replied that if I can get closer to 90% that might increase my chances for the interview, however this is not their requirement.
Should I left it as it is and concentrate on other parts of my application or should I retake the test. The application process is already started so I dont have much time for preparation.
I believe that I can shoot for Q49 (87%) which is close to 90%, but my verbal score will remain in the same range of +/- 1. So, I foresee that my total score will not change dramatically and will not jump to 760/770 which would be expected after retaking from 710. Probably I will end up with total scores of 730 max. Does it worth time and efforts?
Just to evaluate my chances with current scores here is my profile:
Female, 24 years
from Kazakhstan
Major: Economics from leading local university (GPA 3.96)
Experience: 3 years in corporate finance and valuation in Big4.

bsd_lover · Answer

For a Masters in Finance at Princeton you need about 50. Not sure about the other programs - Princeton is probably the most selective of the lot. Verbal score of 38 should be fine for most programs.

GMAT TIGER · Answer

I think BSD is correct. Q50 is very helpful for "MS in Finance at Princeton", which is probably the best in the category.

evanstripp · Answer

I spoke with recruiters from Vandy, Washington St. Louis, BC, Tulane, etc last week at a local event. In general, they look for quant scores over the 80 percentile. However, your GMAT score might be strong enough.

MFINDreamer · Answer

Your probably set for Vandy/villanova.

But for a school like Princeton, you will not have a shot with that low of a verbal. Just look at their most recent class, they're a group of math/engineering PHD's

grv · Answer

Hi MFINDreamer,

Can u help me in deciding the schools to which I should apply to for Masters in Finance. I am looking at US and UK schools. Here are my details:
Indian CItizen
GMAT: 720 (Q49, V39)
Work Exp: 3.5 years (1.5 years od International(US) exp)
 Most of the exp is in IT working as a Business Analyst and the current exp i.e. around 6 months is with a Big US based Bank in India and they are into capital financing.

Will really appreciate ur help.

Thanks
Grv

MFINDreamer · Answer

Glad to help.

GMAT and work experience checks out at pretty much every program, although quant could be a bit higher. Work Experience looks good as well. I can't really give you specific programs unless I knew your academic background: quality of undergrad, gpa, concentration, etc. Also, what are your references like and what is your timeline to apply. I ask because if you are reaching for a top school you need to apply soon.

US
I would stay away from MIT, still too new and not worth the cost.
I would also stay away from anything the the Southeastern US besides Vanderbilt.
Boston College could be a very good fit for you, as could Rochester, but I would need to know more about your profile.
Purdue, Villanova, and WashU are also good choices, again, depending on academic background.

Elsewhere
Obviously Oxbridge, and LSE. Warwick also has a good program as does UCL. I could not recommend you specific programs without knowing your career aspirations first.
I would also apply to SDA Boccini (sp?) and IE. Both are better regionally, but place in London as well.

Hope that helps, I know it is a lot, could narrow it down with more personal info.

PM me if you do not wish to post this info.

Is 47 quant enough?

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