Do you need to retake the GMAT/GRE exam for better B-school admissions? Find out how b-school admissions committees view your scores.
Your GMAT/GRE score, undergraduate GPA, and the value of work experience you possess are the primary quantitative indicators used by business school admissions committees.
The GMAT/GRE exam is the primary indicator of an applicant’s ability that is considered by admissions committees. Since it is standardized, and offers an objective measure of ability between students from different colleges and majors. If you are lower than your target school’s average on any of these measures, it should be compensated through other elements, like essays and recommendations. In other words, if you expect to get in to Wharton with only 2 years of full-time work experience, you should have a very high GMAT score and GPA, amongst other things.
Retaking the GMAT/GRE exam is only useful if your highest score is below your target school’s median score. Retaking the GMAT to get a 730 when you already have a 710 may not be as meaningful and shows you to be focused on the wrong things. Of course, getting a 720 after previously scoring a 670 may greatly help your candidacy. While most schools say you may take the GMAT as many times as you want, you should never take the test without proper preparation, as the entire process can be quite taxing.
Prepare by taking practice tests – particularly simulations – and if you find that you are not scoring 700+ with regularity, you should consider taking a course to prepare. Although admissions committees at top schools say that a low GMAT score won’t keep you out, those who get in with scores in the low 600’s are almost certainly exceptional cases. If you are the regular candidate without any internationally impressive accomplishments, a low GMAT score almost guarantees you a dreaded ding letter. On the other hand, for the candidate who is average in all other respects, a 740 isn’t much different from a 720 from the school’s point of view. Most schools will admit two otherwise similar candidates with disparate but high GMAT scores based on characteristics other than the GMAT. As for the people who get in with scores from 650 to 700, admissions can be frustratingly random – even more so than for everyone else.
While the overall GMAT score is what will be counted most heavily, the quantitative score is more important for applicants with non-technical backgrounds while the verbal score is examined more closely for applicants from foreign countries and those with science or engineering degrees. Schools are merely looking for the assurance that a candidate will be able to both crunch numbers and communicate well.
Assuming that the overall GMAT score is alright, only a seriously low score on the section that will be examined most closely for a given candidate would be a liability. For example, if you are a native english speaker and have good grades from a reputed college in English Literature, they probably won’t be too concerned about a low score on the verbal section, and just consider it an exception. However, a low score on the quantitative section – regardless of how strong your combined GMAT score is – could be a cause of concern.