High Quant & Essay scores, Low Verbal. Shall I retake?

Question

Hi,

I wrote GMAT earlier this month and here's my score:
AWA - 6.0 / 91%
IR - 5 / 52%
Q - 51 / 97%
V - 31 / 60%
Overall - 690

Background: I am from India (Male / IT (Product Research & Development))
Work ex: 2.5 years

I am confused whether I should retake the exam?

Especially while attempting verbal, I realized that I was crumbling under pressure. Never in any of my mock tests (MGMAT / GMATPrep) have I scored less than 39 in verbal and 730 overall. Perhaps, not writing tests with AWA / IR gave me away.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

KarishmaB · Answer

Depends on your target schools. If you are looking at the top ten, I would suggest you to retake. At worst, your Quant will drop by a point to 50 - it won't affect the overall score much. But if you are able to pull up your Verbal to 40, that will make a difference. Indian male IT applicants have a high average GMAT score - they do great in Quant but not-so-great in Verbal. If you get a good score in Verbal too, it will give you an advantage - a small one but nevertheless an advantage.

And yes, GMAT is a test of your stamina too. You must take your practice tests with AWA and IR - These sections, especially IR, take a lot out of you and you start losing your head by the time you reach Verbal. You must practice to work tirelessly for 4 hrs. If you try to run a marathon without training your body for it, the results wouldn't be as expected.

titan31 · Answer

Thanks Karishma! What you said makes sense. And yes, I am targeting top 10 and that's why the confusion arose. I have booked a slot.. Fingers crossed.. :roll:

High Quant & Essay scores, Low Verbal. Shall I retake?

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards