I have taken the GMAT (have used various materials including ManhattanGMAT) four times:

- Aug 2011: 640 (M: 48; V: 28) & AW: 5.5
- Sep 2011: 630 (M: 49; V: 27) & AW: 6.0
- Mar 2012: 670 (M: 49; V: 32) & AW: 5.0
- May 2012: 680 (M: 49; V: 32) & AW: 6.0

I was pretty disappointed with my last exam as I felt pretty good about scoring above 700... Given the fact that I have taken the exam four time already and the fact that a new integrated reasoning now took effective, I would like to vet available options that would fit my criteria and background (please see below) although I acknolwedge that my math score being higher than a verbal score could backfire further on the chanes of admission...:

- Immigrated to the U.S. from S. Korea at the age of 16 (didn't speak a single word of English at that time); current age: 27
- Went to Ross School of Business at the Univ. of Michigan (overall GPA: 3.5; emphasis (Accounting/Finance) GPA: 3.8)
- 4 Years of working experience by this summer (have worked for a year for Debt Capital Markets at a commercial finance company in NY and for three years for Healthcare M&A at a boutique investment bank in NY)
- Young Executive Committee member of Korea Finance Society (non-for-profit org with 500+ members)
- Teach kindergarden kids at Church on Sunday
- Have done consulting for one start-up of my friend in the past

My ultimate goal (as of now) is to leverage the MBA degree to go back to Asia (Hong Kong or S. Korea) and continue to work in the following fields in the order of preference: (1) the VC/PE side (2) banking (3) consulting (4) start-up

I still need to think more about this but my target schools based on my background as of now are:

- Real stretch: Wharton and Columbia (one of my firm's founders is an overseer of Columbia)
- Stretch: Chicago, Northwestern, Berkeley, Dartmouth
- Reasonable: Cornell, UCLA

I admit that I probably need to look at schools ranked in 15 - 20 with my GMAT scores, but really don't see the point as I attended a pretty highly ranked undergraduate business program.

Would appreciate any candid insights (including additional schools you think that I need to look into as well)

Thanks in advance.

Hi! Your GMAT score is OK - of course, getting a little higher would have put you in a more comfortable spot, but your quant score is very strong and that really matters in the admission process. In fact, most schools are focused on your quant much more than your verbal. I am not sure why you think the higher quant would hurt you - in fact, it is sure to help your chances of getting into a competitive school.

As I reviewed your profile, it looks as though you have some strong professional experiences to talk about in your applications. I would encourage you to really find ways to highlight your accomplishments, not responsibilities, at work, and look for stories within your professional life to showcase your strengths. You also seem to have a strong roster of extra-curricular activities. With those, too, look for ways to present your leadership through your outside activities. I also think your journey from Korea to the US as a teen could make for a powerful story in your applications. Really think about how that life experience has shaped you as a person. What did you learn from it? What has it effected in your life?

As for the schools on your list, I think you shouldn't write off Wharton or Columbia. Yes, your GMAT is on the lower end of both schools' ranges but that doesn't mean don't apply. Just make sure that you have other schools, too, on your list that you would be happy attending.

Best of luck,

Rachel Beck

http://www.mbamission.com

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Rachel,

Thanks for the reply. Your response actually sounds a lot more promising than what I expected to hear. I have heard that many schools look at a good balance between a quant score and a verbal score so that is why I thought I was at a disadvantage at first, but hear your point as well (schools focus more on the quant score than the verbal score).

7 out of 10 people I have seeked advice from did not feel OK about my GMAT score so your post really boosted my confidence level here.

Another quick question for you. It appears that you have been advising a handful of people in this forum who fall under a certain ethnicity (i.e. Indian) to re-take the GMAT to achieve 720+ as many candidates in the pool score very well. Having said that, wouldn't that be a case for an Asian like myself (I do not know how candidates in the Asian pool average though)? Just felt like asking as I was going through a few posts by you to the other candidates in this forum.

Would appreciate any further insights on this.

Thanks in advance!