anemgi wrote:
Hello all,
After a very disappointing second attempt at the GMAT today, I'm hoping for an outside opinion (or several!) on my current situation. I took the GMAT for the first time about a month ago and scored a 710 (Q42, V45, IR8). This was very consistent with my practice tests, which had been 710, 710, 710, and 720, with sub-scores ranging from Q42-44 and V44-47. That being said, I wanted to boost my quant score to at least a 45, if possible, so I planned to retake in a month. I took two more practice tests before my next attempt, which again yielded a 720 and a 710 -- hey, nothing if not consistent! I went into my test today thinking/hoping that at the very least I'd score another 710, but with a little luck maybe a 720 or 730.
I was feeling great during the test today. Verbal seemed a little trickier than usual, but I felt confident about quant, and I had gotten most of my test-center anxiety out of my system the last time around. By the time I hit submit on my final answer, I was sure I'd see a 720 pop up on my screen ... so imagine my disappointment when the number that appeared, instead, was a 670 (Q42, V40, IR5). Not only had quant stayed exactly the same, but my verbal score -- which has never dropped below 44 -- was a 40. I canceled the score. I'm not sure what went wrong -- perhaps a combination of tough questions and cockiness on my part.
I suppose I'll have to take the test again, though I really, really don't want to. I feel like I have plateaued in quant (I've never exceeded a 44 in a practice test) but I know that a 42 is laughable for a top program. That being said, my question is two-fold:
--Assuming I'm unable to boost my score, and I don't take any additional math classes, do I stand any chance at top programs? If it helps, I'm a white, 26 y/o female; 3.71 GPA from a selective liberal arts college with an English major; four years in a communications role with one promotion -- in short, very limited quant background (ugh). Confident I will have good recommendations, essays, and extra-curriculars, though.
--Are there any top schools that are known to be forgiving of a lower quant score (or GMAT in general)? The schools I'm most interested in are Kellogg, Tuck, Ross, Fuqua, and UCLA, but I'm aware that these are all likely to be stretches.
Thank you in advance for any insight you can provide!
Hello,
Congrats on the great score! I am not an expert on admissions. But I will try to answer. Average score in 1 section may not matter much. 710 is a great score. Many people get in to these colleges with scores less than 700. GMAT is only 20%, other 80% is still in your control.
If you are planning to take GMAT again then give your 80% of preparation time to Quant. Download Bunuel's Quant guide. It is free. Take
gmat club tests. They are not free though. But they are very good. There are more than 1000 problems in that bundle. If you solve them all you will get >=49 in quant. No doubt.
All the best! Happy studying!
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26 May 2018, 13:00
