GMAT 690, Indian Male with an extremely diverse experience

Question

Hello, Everyone!

I am an Indian male (26) with 4.5 years experience with India's biggest engineering firm.

My experience is in the field of Marketing and Strategy among others. I handle an international territory as my sales region from India and also look into domestic sales with defence organisations in India.

My GMAT score is as follows:
GMAT 1- 660
GMAT 2 - 660
GMAT 3 - 690

I do not have any preference to any school, except the fact that I wish to excel in the field of Strategy.

Can someone advise me on which schools to apply?

Furthermore, I am not very keen on retaking the GMAT but let's say I do, will a FOURTH score (690+) give a bad impression to the AdCom (such as, 'this guy can't get it done even after 3 tries?')

Will applying to schools such as Katz MBA for round 3 worth it?

I can share additional details if needed on email.

AndyDufresne · Answer

690 is a good score and with a great essay, you might be able to sail through remaining steps of the process.
I'll advise ISB, Olin- Washington Univ., Emory to name a few where you can apply and hopefully should get through.

All the best!

MBADecoder · Answer

Hi Nikhil,

Your GMAT score will work at a lot of b-schools if you are looking at colleges that are not in the top 30 rankings.

Are you planning to apply for 2017 intake or for 2018 intake? If its 2018 intake, you will have the time to work upon the GMAT (if you have the confidence that you can take it 
beyond 690 with some more effort) and also enhance your profile on other fronts - more leadership at work and some extra-curricular activities.
 
Applying in R3 is a risk, but some Indians to get in. So in my opinion, you should not apply to more than 1-2 schools in R3 and save the larger list for Round one later this year.

desiapplicant · Answer

Hello,

Thank you for your insight.

Don't you think taking the GMAT for the 4th time put me in bad picture?

Which schools do you think have a strong Business Analytics and Strategy course, from the point of view that I am looking for employment in United States (second preference - Europe)?

desiapplicant · Answer

Thank you for your insight. However, Olin can be readily striked out for a GMAT of 690. How do I know? I tried and got dinged. Nevertheless, I thank you for your reply. It was helpful

Admissionado · Answer

Hey there, So first of all if you take the GMAT again, you can always cancel the score, so you don't need to worry about that. On the other hand, it really only does make sense to do that if you are relatively secure that you can score higher. Here's an article on Indian candidates and retaking the GMAT that you might find useful: https://admissionado.com/mba/to-retake-o ... n=mba_blog Other than that regarding your comment on Olin: Your GMAT is higher than the GMAT average at Olin, and a such the problem is not the GMAT. The problem is likely in other areas of your profile, or perhaps in essays and letters of recommendation that weren't effective. Finally: Round 3: Forget about it. Round three doesn't exist for Indian candidates. It's way too challenging, and the quotas are already filled by then. Instead start planning NOW for an R1 application next year. I hope this helps! And feel free to drop us a line for a free consultation . Best, JF

VeritasPrepDozie · Answer

For a school like Katz I would take a shot at R3 with your scores. However, you really need to make sure all elements of your application/profile are also on point. Many students focus too much on the GMAT and not enough on the rest of the application so make sure you're creating a quality and differentiated app here!

desiapplicant · Answer

But isn't the GMAT 'THE MOST IMPORTANT DECIDING FACTOR'?

How do I know it?

My best friend in the same company, in the same role, with the same profile applied with a GMAT 740 and got selected, while I, with 690 wasn't even called for an interview.

Which schools do you think I should apply for Strategy (Major) and Data Analytics (Minor)?

MBADecoder · Answer

Hi Desi applicant,

I can look at your Olin application and provide you a quick review, free of cost.

Maybe your friend wrote a better application than you or in some sense had a better profile. And ofcourse, all things being equal (which is never the case between two individuals), a 50 point difference in GMAT scores is substantial and hard to ignore.

Anyways, feel free to take up my offer.

VeritasPrepDozie · Answer

Don't minimize the actual essays and application form, your story matters. Of course someone with a higher GMAT will have an advantage but don't so readily dismiss the other factors. Many candidates make similar comparisons and you really won't have an idea about the quality of the rest of their app. if you are close with your colleague you might want to ask to see his application.

GMAT 690, Indian Male with an extremely diverse experience

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