From 690 to 690

Question

I retook GMAT on Friday and scored 690 again (Q50 and V33). My previous GMAT score was 690 (Q48 and V36).

I messed up in timing of Verbal - 10 qusns in last 10 mins including 1 RC. I am sure that I spent lot of time taking notes on 1st 2 RCs. I guess I shouldnt have changed my strategy 20 days before the exam, even though the Mocks suggested otherwise. The original RC strategy was 0 notes in RC - never had timing issues in verbal section.

My last 5 mock exams were as follows -

MGMAT 3 720 (Q48 and V40) - This was when I switched the RC strategy
GPREP 2 670 (Q49 and V32) (struggled to finish V)
MGMAT 4 680 (Q48 and V36) 
MGMAT 5 750 (Q50 and V 45)
MGMAT 6 710 (Q51 and V 37) (struggled to finish V)

Now I plan on taking the GMAT again in 1 month.  I know that most of you will disagree with me . But I feel that 33 in V does not do justice to my preparation. I was far better prepared in SC and CR this time then I was last time.

I know the pattern is changing but I am aiming for 50% accuracy in IR. Will this work? I deal with tables and graphs in my job. I solved 20 questions and I dont think I need to put in lot of effort except for timing improvement.

The most important question I have for you guys:

After my first attempt I sent the score to 12 schools that I plan on applying. Is there a way for them to get my latest score or score of my next attempt if I dont send them the scores? Am I obliged to send them the score again?

Basically I dont want the schools where I have already submitted the scores to know about my multiple attempts.

Will 3 attempts reflect negatively on my profile assuming that the next attempt improves the score by 30 points? Will my application to schools such as UT Austin, Cornell, Kenan-Flager, etc get impacted by 3 attempts? I want to apply to schools with good finance programs such as Stern, Booth, etc but they are out my reach now.

I would appreciate your input. It's been tough last few days.

str1der · Answer

Sumeet - I WAS in the same boat as yours. Scored a 690 twice with almost the same split. Retook the GMAT third time last week and got a 730 with a slight improvement in Quant but a MASSIVE improvement in Verbal (you can read here: 690-690-730-finally-conquered-the-gmat-133278.html) Some points per your post above: 1. 690 is not a bad score at all, but it really depends on what you want to do, where you want to apply etc. Everyone wants to apply to HBS, Stanford etc. - but truly there's no one on this forum who can say with a high probability that you will get in despite a high GMAT, stellar grades and amazing work ex. On the other hand, this doesnt hold true if you ask for schools like kellogg, Booth etc. - so its upto you to decide if you want to retake 2. My retake was due to the following reasons: a. i got an interview at Kellogg with 690 but didnt make the final cut. I love that school and if I am to reapply, I need to show improvements in various aspects of my candidature. I have done that in my professional and personal life, and an improvement in my GMAT score only helps b. Getting an interview with a 690 and 2 years of WE at Kellogg, I realized my app would have been good, but probably not the other areas. So I needed to strengthen my application and improve on my GMAT 3. No school cares about how many times you have taken the GMAT, but they would expect you to stop after 3 max 4 attempts because then it becomes an ego game in my opinion. The test is standardized - you can beat it by jumping >30 points, but the probability of that happening is lower, atleast as per GMAC. So schools expect a 'sensible' person to stop after 3-4 attempts and realize that what he/she has got on the test is what they 'deserved'. Now they should focus on other aspects 4. Schools see only your highest score, BUT they get the full report with ALL scores reported. So if you are showing an improvement in scores, it will be treated positive. However, in your case as above, a decrease is not that positive. you improved quant - but thats no great shakes. You are an Indian applicant - they expect that from you. so ONLY take the GMAT if you are SUPER confident of improving Verbal significantly 5. Schools look at score split - you should get above 80 percentile in each section to be competitive. I know schools say 75 percentile, but dont think that really works that well. 6. Retake the GMAT in the next 1-2 months - you are fresh off prep material, your concepts of Math,Verbal etc. would be better ingrained in your head now than later. Plus, you know what to target - Verbal. If you delay taking the GMAT, you would be too close to app deadlines (Round 1) to focus on it properly Regarding you query above, I am not entirely sure but if you sent OFFICIAL GMAT scores to these schools before taking the exam, they would not recheck as they have an official copy to work with. If you self reported the score, then the schools will ask you for an official score report upon acceptance/sometimes before also, and you dont want to come across as someone hiding data from schools. Caveat: If a school asks you to report ONLY the highest score in the application, use the old score for the better split. If they ask for the latest OR the entire GMAT testing record, report the latter score. However, I do believe GMAC is not stupid and that if a candidate reports a score before taking the exam and then retakes the exam, I believe they would (rather should?) send an update to the schools. But this would happen only if you reported the OFFICIAL score and not self report. Dont know if this is true or not though.... I hope my points above are helpful for you. Think calmly before spending another $250 (especially with the godforsaken exchange rate) on the GMAT vs. $250 on a Solid application with a 690. All the very best.

remyjazz888 · Answer

I'm curious, what does 50% correct on IR get you?

vatsas · Answer

Hey Str1der Thanks for the pointers, I really appreciate it. I am thinking of taking the exam in second week of July - I am not going to procrastinate it and thus jeopardize R1. But it seems that there is a dearth of good tests sans Gmat prep and MGMAT tests. I am using the Kaplan tests but it is lamer than I had anticipated - same question popped up twice in same exam (#$%^&*! - yea..thats what I said during the test). So the bottom line is - no yardstick left to ascertain the improvement. Kaplan1 - IR 25%, Q 90%ile and V 58%ile Kaplan2 - IR 42%, Q 90%ile and V 78%ile (finally I let go of my bad ole habit) :idea:

Has anyone used the verbal tests offered in GClub? I guess I will have to comeup with quality GMAT tests once I am done with GMAT 3.0;) I need to take some real tests to see the improvement so that I can justify the GMAT 3.0. Literally - I have alienated my wife, friends and parents since I decided to embark on GMAT 3.0. My fellow GMATters, please chime in with your suggestions. RemyJazz - I talked to few people, ranging from people on the main street to the MGMAT instructors and it seems the adcoms wont have sufficient data points to use IR as criteria. Well I guess it will be used for photo finishes and I ain't photogenic. :wink:

ktlemba · Answer

Vatsas, are you really applying to   12 schools  ? Maybe I've just been talking to the wrong group of people but that seems excessive. If you think you have enough time to give all 12 schools good attention on the essays etc then more power to you!

But I recently read a post about someone who pretty much did a copy/paste on his essays and realized later that it was a primary reason why he was not accepted in his top choices. He did not specifically address why that school was unique to him, and guess that the rest of his application did not stand out from others. Just my 2 cents.

vatsas · Answer

ktlemba,

You are absolutely correct. Copy & paste is a perfect recipe for suicide. I will be applying to 8 schools max. The other than the career essay none of the essays fall in cut and paste bucket. Moreover "fit" questions need information pertinent to each school such as its culture, clubs, courses relevent to my goal, etc.

Even with 8 schools, I will have my hands full till 2013 March.

ktlemba · Answer

Good luck on the essays and your mba journey!!!

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