Everything you wanted to know about retaking GMAT. Not Happy with your GMAT Score? Not sure if it is good enough? Retaking GMAT can be tough and often leads to a lower score - make sure it is worth the time and effort. Nobody is ever happy with their GMAT score, but many agree that between 680 and 700 is good enough to get into any MBA program without second thoughts. What many of the applicants do is focus too much on quantifiable factors such as GMAT. Simply because you have 750 and another person has 700, does not mean your chances are much better. GMAT score is only a part of your application package and many 750+ applicants learned it the hard way. For Top 10 schools, GMAT is often only a check-mark. Thus, always determine the best ROI for your time and value that higher GMAT score will add to your application before deciding on retake. Often retake is not the right strategy. As an illustration, See Tarmac's post here for 8 dings with 770 . Also see the "retake frustration stories" below for applicants whose scores went down after a retake. At the same time, per GMAC Research (see attach below), retaking often brings value. On average, a person can gain 30 points by retaking. This could be explained by being more comfortable with the environment, knowing what to expect, and having a better stamina and time management. Also third and fourth, fifth, sixth attempts have paid off for a number of folks. https://gmatclub.com/forum/download/file.php?id=16787 Score Gains.pdf Situations when you probably SHOULD retake: The difference of your GMAT and GMAT Prep (undiluted) score is 50 points or greater. Your target school's average score is 50 points higher ( check scores here... ) You have used second rate prep materials ( See a list of recommended books here ) You have a significant score imbalance. For example Q50, V25, resulting in 640 One of the admissions consultants from Profile Review forum recommended you retake You are shooting for a scholarship (several schools award scholarships partially based on GMAT scores) You have an extra 1-2 months and the best use of that time to improve your admissions chances is not writing essays/applications but studying for GMAT 3 hours/day Score Imbalance: You have a have a relatively high GMAT score, but your Verbal score is significantly lower than your Quant score--common with engineers and Indian IT types. (See student who got waitlisted at 690 but got in 3 weeks later with a 760.) Indian IT male - this is a very competitive segment and if you are not able to differentiate yourself in any way, get as high GMAT as you can. Situations when you probably SHOULD NOT retake: You are within 50 points of the school's average GMAT score (in this case time is best spent on applications unless you have a bit of time and 30 points is a worthy increase). See School's Average and Range GMAT Scores You have exhausted all of the prep materials and resources You are short on time (rather spend it on applications than GMAT. Most top 10-20 schools do not put a significant weight on GMAT score - we have plenty of 770 applicants with rejections Already have a 700+ score Recommendations and Resources for GMAT Retake: Get a schedule on a calendar and write out what you are planning to do and when. Set goals and achieve them! See this post for a sample of a calendar . One of the keys to a successful retake is to regain your test confidence - don't try to tackle the hardest hurdle first, focus on small victories to help motivate you to climb higher hills. Rome was not built in one day. Small victories will win the war. Thus, even though you have 45 Quant and 28 Verbal, it may be a better idea to get your Quant to 48 or 49 (and get your confidence back) before tackling the harder verbal questions. However, remember that ultimately, you only have so much time and you should identify areas that will give you the highest ROI. Find the best study pattern for you. If you are a single tasker - focus on quant/verbal first for the first few weeks. Then, put your attention on the other area and do a deep dive. Consider joining a study group here on GMAT Club. Some thrive in collective environment. Do not move on until you feel comfortable with the section and you feel you understand the entire section in your book Try following 1-2 month Study plan for retakers (how to go from 650 to 700+) Sign up for a GMAT Prep course that has a money-back guarantee such as Magoosh, Math Revolution, The Economist GMAT Tutor or examPAL which offer 50+ point improvement or money back. (you are not losing anything except your time) Make sure you have thoroughly covered your existing books Books - Make sure you are using best and most effective books for your prep ( gmat books , math books , verbal books ) Dedicate a larger portion of your day/life to methodically covering GMAT math and GMAT verbal Get a better lifestyle - sleep more, party less, exercise - give it a shot for a month Start reading more (books, magazines, etc - it helps a lot with RC and SC - see my post on GMAT Fiction) Start using Error Log - one of the easiest ways to get your score up is to use an error log and then focus on your weaknesses Try "teaching" others on the forum pages and learn more than you would ever have Explore success threads below and see what helped others FAQ How often can I retake the GMAT ? (every 31 days) 750 on the GMAT but low Quant - should I retake? How many times should one take the GMAT - any negative consequences of retaking? What do Business Schools think of multiple GMAT scores ? GMAT retake success stories From 700 to 770 by Avernusaur From 570 to 760 by Hemantsood 3rd Attempt: increased verbal from 26 to 37 by marclopato From 640 to 770 by Billyjeans From 620 to 710 by quantjock From 730 to 780 by Pelihu From 580 to 730 by Yungsta 4th attempt - 690 From 640 to 720 with only confidence by logmeup From 570 to 600 to 670 to 720 - a long way to 700's From 420 to 700 by Positive Soul From 680 to 740 500 to 640 in 1 Month From 580 to 730 with PR materials 490 to 670 with a few tweaks 710 to 770 and lessons learned (another one of those :wink: ) Get second thoughts out of your head for $250 or going from 710 to 740 From 660 to 740 690 --> 720 in 6 weeks 640 to 700 in 2 months Long journey from 570 to 730 560 to 710 in 2 months 730 to 760 GMAT retake "disaster" stories Bitten Twice From 580 to 540 by JohnLewis From 720 to 690 by Pathfinder - currently attending Wharton From 560 to 510 by Mediamindy From 610 to 570 after 3 months of studying 680 to 620 by Noboru 740 to 710 by MCM 6 months to go from 690 to 690 Reference: Should I retake GMAT by Hjort Got 590 and done with GMAT (Applying to Top 10) retaking-gmat.jpg

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mjk8tm

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19 Aug 2016, 21:00

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Hello, took the GMAT today and got 690 (86th percentile); Q 44 (54th percentile); V 40 (91st percentile); IR 8 (92nd percentile); AWA awaiting score. I'm concerned about my low Quant score. I had a 3.2 at the University of Virginia but a 2.7 in quantitative-like courses. I graduated with a degree in economics and am now an Infantry Officer in the US Army. I'm hoping that my leadership experience both at UVA and in the Army will greatly improve my chances of getting into a top 15 school. Will business schools think I cannot handle the math with such low quant scores? Should I retake the test if I am looking to apply to schools this fall?

Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

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15 Dec 2016, 11:36

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Perec

650

IR5 Q49 V28 AWA-pending

I'm 32 Russian manager in IT industry.
Aiming to Foster Business School (49th in FT raiting, average GMAT 691, 80% GMAT range 636-730)

Should I retake and postpone application to 3rd round?

Privet Perec,
Usually R3 is a pretty bad round in terms of applying and esp not favorable towards international applicants. However, Foster does it differently since their R1 and R2 are kind of stuck together, so their R3 is technically an R2 for most schools.

However a bit confused about the question. Do you mean the R3 that's due Jan 15th since R2 was in November?
Or you mean Foster R4, which is in March 15? (This not an option for international students)
https://foster.uw.edu/academics/degree-p ... dmissions/

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15 Dec 2016, 12:43

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bb, thank you for the reply!

You are right, 15th Jan, which I consider as R2, is the last possible option for international students. So no R3! I'm just upset, dissapointed and pissed of todays test - can't formuate my thoughts clearly.

Let me refrase my question. I'm going to apply to several b-schools, of which Foster is the ultimate priority. Considering my relatively low GMAT score and other apects (age, nationality) is it worth trying to apply? Or should I work out alternative plan, such as quickly retake GMAT (super-tight schedule and no time for solid essay preparation), next year application etc...

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15 Dec 2016, 15:52

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My semi-professional opinion/suggestion would be:

1. R3 is not really a realistic option to depend on, so if you can't apply to R2, then may as well apply next year
2. Foster mailbox is full of Microsoft and Amazon tech applicants - your profile is likely to be considered not unique and definitely well represented. Can you add more value in your application? Think how you could do that via professional growth, experience, etc - you probably had more than the other applicants.
3. I know you are dead-set on Foster but there are plenty of other schools with similar stats that may be just as good and even better that may appreciate your candidacy more.
4. Based on what I am hearing/reading sounds like you can get the most value out of putting your time into Apps rather than GMAT
5. Your age is becoming a problem and will be a problem next year. I think you want to put 110% of effort to get in this year

Based on the above, if I were in your shoes, I would apply for R2 into a number of schools and Foster included (R3 for them) this year and would not consider next year as an alternative or an option. This year or nothing. Since you are so set on Foster, as a last-ditch effort, I would also schedule a GMAT appointment on Jan 2nd or smth like that but do very little prep - mostly focus on applications and only do enough to keep you in shape, and then do one more attempt in Jan just in case you can move the needle another 20-40 points (GMAT has a standard error of 40, meaning the same person can score quite a bit of a difference between 2 attempts). But I would not count on it, it is more of a bet to improve your chances - you need to focus on essays, applications, etc.

Good Luck!

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16 Jun 2017, 23:17

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Hi all,

I had registered for the Mock CAT about 3 years ago and purchased the 6-test pack back then. Scored a 710 on the actual GMAT.

I plan to reappear for the GMAT in a couple of months. Are there any additional mock CATs that are available from Manhattan that I can purchase for my prep?
Separately, what are the other mock CATs that have now moved on to the new test taking mode?

Cheers
Arpit

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18 Jun 2017, 09:55

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Manhattan hasn't released any new practice tests, but their question bank is pretty huge, so it would probably be at least somewhat useful to retake them, especially since it's been three years and you've probably forgotten most of the questions. Just keep in mind that it's incredibly hard for even the best test-prep companies to copy the style of the test -- particularly on verbal -- so make the official GMATPrep tests a higher priority if you haven't already burned through those.

Veritas and Manhattan have definitely updated their software to allow you to select the order of your GMAT sections, but I'm not sure about any of the others. The GMATPrep software will supposedly be updated in late July.

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Hi,

I just took the GMAT this weekend and score a 720 overall with a 42Q, 47V, and 8IR.

I am wondering if my low quant score is too much of a red flag for top 10 schools and should retake, or if my other experience makes up for this and I should focus on other areas (extracurricular).

I have my bachelors degree in Finance with a 3.81 GPA, have passed all three levels of the CFA exams, and work in equity research.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks!
Jared

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27 Jun 2017, 20:29

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jarallen09

Whoa, congrats on the great composite and the epic verbal score, Jared! Please send some of that verbal mojo over to our brothers and sisters in the verbal forums.

It's hard for me to imagine that schools would be fundamentally worried about your quantitative abilities with a background like yours. Finance degree, 3.81 GPA, CFA x3? That all looks great. Maybe they'll flinch at the 42 anyway, though. And keep in mind that average scores are north of 730 for some of the top programs now -- so as a male applicant in finance, a 740+ would look awfully nice.

More importantly: I'd bet anything that you're totally capable of raising that quant score. Like, by a lot. I'd also bet anything that you made a whole bunch of careless errors on questions that you're capable of handling. Did you happen to get an ESR? If so, you'll probably see all sorts of evidence of errors on not-super-tough questions.

So the biggest reason for you to retake is probably the fact that you most likely have the talent to gain 5-7 extra points on the quant section. So unless you've struggled a whole lot more with GMAT math than with your undergrad degree and your CFA... why not take another shot or two? A 47Q/47V -- or even a 47Q/44V, or something like that -- would put you on much stronger footing if you're applying to elite programs, and I'm pretty convinced that you can pull that off.

Let us know what you decide to do!

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Hey guys.

I need help figuring out what to do next. I've been studying for nearly 4 and a half months already and took the GMAT twice. My first run was a 650 (Q42 V38) on May, so I got the extended report and noticed my main problems were SC and RC. So I focused for an entire month on SC and on reviewing Quant. Two days ago I took the GMAT once again and a lowered 10 points to a 640 (Q43 V35). I bought the extended report once again and noticed a huge improvement on SC but a TERRIBLE performance on RC (and to be honest I didn't practice it much). I feel like I've been out of focus in my study. I feel I can reach the 700 but I think I'm missing something.

Right now I'm focusing on verbal, specially RC to get that boost. Also, my performance on "Arithmetic" could be a bit higher, how can I study for this? What should I do for verbal? I plan to retake the test on 3 weeks. Any advice on this? I'm a little desperate to tell you the truth, I'm tired of this test and all it entails.

Attached is a table with detail from my GMATs. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

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07 Jul 2017, 10:56

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Hm, interesting verbal results, felipeangelm. In general, there could be two reasons why your RC score was low: 1) you're bad at reading, or 2) you missed some RC questions that you're perfectly capable of getting correct. And clearly, you're not bad at reading. Your CR results are really good. You just managed to do something goofy on RC this time around -- maybe a lack of focus, or some fatigue leaking in, or just reading too darned quickly? That stuff seems fixable to me if you really concentrate on developing a consistent approach to RC.

I'm not sure whether this will help, but this (pretty generic) article on RC might point you in the right direction in terms of how to think about consistency on RC. But I don't think that you need to drive yourself crazy doing TONS of RC practice -- just enough to be confident that you'll perform up to your usual standards. Other than the RC on that last exam, you've been in the 75th-90th percentile on RC and CR, so there's no reason you can't consistently score in that range on RC.

For quant, I wouldn't overthink the arithmetic subscore. Basically, the GMAT shoehorns EVERY type of quant question into those two categories (arithmetic and algebra/geometry), and that isn't terribly helpful for test-takers who are trying to figure out what, exactly, they need to study. I suspect that you have some legitimate weaknesses that could use some attention, but "arithmetic" is too general to be helpful. Keep a close eye on what you miss on your practice questions and tests, and see if that helps you figure out which topics could use some extra attention. And there are some great people in the quant section of GMAT Club who can help you with all of that.

Good luck with your retake, and please let us know how it goes!

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felipeangelm

GMATNinja has nicely summarized the quant strategies. As far as Verbal is concerned, I believe that you haven't completely analyzed your ESR. I bet that your average time in RCs is very low and in SC/CR is higher than required. If I am correct, first thing you should do is fix the time you take to solve CR & SC. That would generate more time for RCs and hence you will be more comfortable and accurate in them.

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Hello,

Hoping to get some feedback on potentially re-taking the exam. Background: male, strategy consulting at a top firm, undergrad at top 20 business school with ~3.8 GPA.

1st exam = 640 (Q36 V41)
2nd exam = 690 (Q48 V37)

The drop in verbal resulted in me not quite hitting the 700 mark. I'm confident that I can bump the verbal back up into low 40's and maintain upper 40's in quant. Unsure if it's worth the time, effort, and money at this point.

Interested to hear some of your expert opinions. Thanks!

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Two thoughts:

There are a TON of strategy consultants applying to top MBA programs, so if you're looking at elite, full-time U.S. programs, a 690 probably isn't going to cut it, unless you have some special trump card to play in the admissions process (diversity candidate, former Olympian, parent who has donated millions to the university, etc.).
If you can get a 48Q once and a 41V another time, there's no reason why you couldn't achieve both again if you put some time into developing better consistency.

If you're looking at less-selective programs -- or again, if you have some magnificent trump card to play in the admissions process -- then you might be OK with that 690. But I don't see any good reason why you couldn't pull that score up by at least 30 points.

I hope this helps!

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Hi
I am giving my GMAT next week, i was getting 600 score but just now when i took a mock i got 470 , please suggest something my verbal score is not getting better , i have to give exam next week only and i want 700 plus.
i finished my test before time also., either i am too late or too fast and low accuracy.

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22 Jul 2017, 06:20

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Hi priya666 ,

Let me be honest. Getting 700 in one week when you are at 470 is NEXT to impossible unless your luck is very strong.

Please see if you can delay your exam.

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10 Aug 2017, 12:03

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nole1112

First GMAT taken 2 weeks ago: 750 Q47/V47 w/ 5IR and 5AWA

Had a solid GPA in undergrad at state school (3.96 in Finance/Management) I'm aiming for top schools but am concerned my work experience will not be enough: 2 years financial services company (marketing/sales for mortgages & 2 summers of finance internships at fortune 100 company).

I honestly believe that with two weeks I could get Q up to 50 or so, likely boosting my score.

Worthwhile to retake?

Thanks guys!

Holy crap, congratulations on that 750! And on that great GPA!

It's hard for me to imagine that you NEED to do any better, but if you think you can get a 50, then go out and do it! An eye-popping quant score can only help your case, and in the scheme of the six-figure MBA investment, a couple of weeks + $250 isn't all that huge of a cost. I'd go for it.

The biggest risk -- and it's not much of a risk, really -- is that your verbal score is so magnificently high that one or two more errors might cost you a couple of points, even if you don't do anything differently. But even then, I think schools would (mildly) prefer to see a 50Q/44V than a 47Q/47V. At the very least, it can't hurt to take one or two more shots at the test if you think you can do better.

Let us know what happens! Feel free to tag me if you end up writing a debrief -- I'm always curious to see how these things end up. Good luck with the retake!

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Originally posted by allyb95 on 30 Aug 2017, 20:24.
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Hi,

Hi considering retaking the GMAT again. I am now working in finance. Took the gmat just in case.

July 2017: 710 - Q44, V42 (AWA: 6, IR: 6)
August 30 2017: 710 - Q49, V39 (IR: 7)

Practice Exams:
GMAC 1 (End of June 2017): Q49, V38 (710)
GMAC 2 (End of June 2017): Q48, V46 (750)

I ran out of time on Verbal (3 questions) this time around, which I think led me to a lower than expected score. I also ran out of time on the Quant and did not answer 1 question.
Would love input! Thank you!

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Hi,

Hi considering retaking the GMAT again. I just graduated from a top Ivy with a finance degree but low-ish GPA (3.3). I am now working in finance. Took the gmat just in case.

July 2017: 710 - Q44, V42 (AWA: 6, IR: 6)
August 30 2017: 710 - Q49, V39 (IR: 7)

Practice Exams:
GMAC 1 (End of June 2017): Q49, V38 (710)
GMAC 2 (End of June 2017): Q48, V46 (750)

I ran out of time on Verbal (3 questions) this time around, which I think led me to a lower than expected score. I also ran out of time on the Quant and did not answer 1 question.
Would love input! Thank you!

The GMAT is within ~30 points of your true ability, so I think it's scoring you correctly -- only take it again if you have time to study in a more in-depth manner this time around.

And just out of curiousity, which "top Ivys" have finance degrees? I know HYP don't, and isn't Wharton technically "Economics?"

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15 Oct 2017, 11:19

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blahblahblah73564

Thanks a lot for your help. I just want to know if a 20/30 point increase will make a difference. I plan to apply in R2 and since time is an issue, should i start to put focus on my applications or will retaking really help me with my chances of getting an admit.

IIT male with a 2.7 GPA? Unfortunately, you're going to need every point you can possibly get on the GMAT. And I'd give this advice to almost anybody: if you're pretty sure that you can increase your score by 20-30 extra points, it's probably worth doing it. With that 2.7, it's definitely worth it.

I hope this helps!

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07 Nov 2017, 00:11

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Hi,

I just took my GMAT exam and my Score is 690 (V-31,Q-50,IR-8).

I am an Engineer graduate from one of the very reputed college in India with GPA 4. I am working as Linux and VMware administrator with 7 years of experience.

I am targeting Chicago based universities, primarily Booth and Kellog.

Please suggest if I should try for round 2 with this GMAT score or Should I retake the exam?

Looking forward for your suggestions.
Thank you!!

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