Give up?

Question

Hi All,

So I took the GMAT first in the beginning of December and got a dismal score of 460. I retook yesterday and got an even more dismal score of 450. I am at the point of giving up and throwing in the towel. I don't think that I can look at one more GMAT question!

I have the option of retaking the GMAT in April and applying for the R3 deadline, but I just do not feel confident that I can do any better, even with a few more months of preparation. The rest of my app is strong, but the GMAT is the only thing holding me back. I personally do not see how the GMAT is of any indication of how well you do in business school, but that is just me.

Any advice or words of wisdom would be much appreciated.

Thanks,
David

EBM · Answer

B-schools seem to think there is a correlation between GMAT scores and MBA success--whether it has to do with intelligence, test taking skills, or having the dedication to study and improve, who knows, but if it wasn't in some way indicative they wouldn't pay any attention it. If you want to go to a good school it's a necessary evil, there's just no way around that.

What kind of studying and preparation did you do between your two attempts? The good news is that a 460 is easy to improve on if you study diligently and efficiently. Don't just work problems--get some of the books that teach you how to break them down and analyze them quickly. I liked the 8-part Manhattan GMAT series, which comes with online question banks and 6 full-length tests. They start off very simple...i.e. "this is a positive number, these are what prime numbers are, this is an isoceles triangle," etc., but you will learn a lot from them.

Three months is probably enough time to boost your score by 150 or so points if you do it right. If not, aim to take the test again over the summer or early fall and apply for next year's R1 and R2.

lagomez · Answer

It's hard to improve dramatically in one month unless you know you had a bad test day the first time or if you felt overly nervous.

On average, the GMAT is a good indication of how well you will do in business school. But, in my opinion, up to a certain point. As long as you are above the 600's I think one is fine. Anything lower can be offset by a higher GPA.

What are your target schools? If you are not aiming for the top schools then you should be in the 500's unless you have an outstanding GPA.

davide261982 · Answer

Thanks for the replies. Honestly, I did feel nervous taking it the first time around, but I did not feel nervous the second time. I took the first test at 12:00PM and the second test at 4:00PM. I am not sure if that has any influence at all. My target schools are Georgetown, Hopkins, and Baruch now. Originally, I was planning on applying to NYU, and Yale also, but because of the wonderful GMAT, I had to modify my list of schools.

In terms of the studying that I did between the two tests, I took 4 practice GMAC tests: 1.) 580 2.) 490 3.) 510 4.) 490. I am not sure how I did worse after the first one. Before the the first real test, I was studying with Knewton GMAT and not doing too well. My baseline score was 510, so I should have gotten at least a 560.

My application is strong aside from the GMAT. I have 4 years of international experience, including USAID project experience, Peace Corps experience, and working at an Arabic Language school in Yemen, not to mention the fact that I speak 6 languages. Just the GMAT holding me back.

I also heard the Manhattan GMAT is a good resource. Maybe I should purchase those books and focus on learning it cold and retake the test in June or July...

lagomez · Answer

My suggestion is hold off until next year because unless you can score a 700+ R3 will be very difficult. Actually, R3 will be very difficult even with a 700+.

If you really want to get into the best school you can then give it one more year if possible.

My suggestion is to develop a strong foundation. Purchase the Manhattan GMAT guides and know the material cold. These books have great information. Make sure you are learning the fundamentals.

EBM · Answer

Practice tests tend to be pretty inaccurate, plus there's the fact that they don't replicate test-day conditions--it's not reasonable to say you "should" score 50 points higher than your baseline score. I think you took too many practice tests and didn't do enough learning...sorta like a beginner doesn't get better at golf by playing full rounds, he gets better faster by going to the driving range and hitting a few thousand balls with each club.

I only did 3 full-length tests during my 9 off and on months of GMAT prep--one for diagnostic purposes at the beginning, then two during the last few weeks prior to my real test. My time in between was spent memorizing rules, equations, and problem-solving methods as I worked through the books.

Get the Manhattan books and start from scratch--you'll learn everything you need to know for the quant and verbal sections, as well as how to take the test itself, how to spot common GMAT shortcuts, etc. I referred a friend to the Manhattan books after he was disappointed with his 530, and two months later he got a 650. Anecdotal evidence, yes, but the point is that any dedicated study program will pay off.

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