How good is a 690 - I am confused

**mandeep786** · 07-25-2005, 06:34 PM

Hi Guys,
I got a 690. Please let me know how good it is. Would I get calls from the top 10 colleges in U.S. Some friends say I will.
Planning for mba 2 years from now.
Do I need a retest????
Waiting for advice.

**olalekanoloyede** · 07-25-2005, 08:50 PM

Congrats!! 690 is not really bad at all. less than 25% of top 10 school's students scored 700+. The admission decision is based on so many other factors.

However, since you plan to do the MBA in 2 years, you may want to retest. Especially if you feel strongly that you can increase your score.

All the best

Ola

**mandeep786** · 07-25-2005, 09:34 PM

Thanks a lot for pepping me up!!
Maybe I can move my score upto 710 but I dont think I can improve it any further.
Is it worth the shot?

**rsdighe** · 07-26-2005, 02:16 AM

i am stuck with a similar predicament i scored 660,610 and i am attempting it once more on July 28th but thats the final attempt i really don't think that beyond this there is anything i could possibly do in another month or so that can drastically change my score. I have focussed on my weak areas like sentence correction, but i am personally of the opinion that even though u can have a 'can do attitude' it would be foolish to not realize when enough is enough,

and by the 690 is a good score if u know u can sell urself well at the university and differentiate urself from the crowd ..and that doesn't change if u get a 750 or 790, i would assume that if u think u can get a interview call for the universities u aim for than the score should be enough

**babypurin** · 07-26-2005, 04:24 AM

Originally Posted by mandeep786

Hi Guys,
I got a 690. Please let me know how good it is. Would I get calls from the top 10 colleges in U.S. Some friends say I will.
Planning for mba 2 years from now.
Do I need a retest????
Waiting for advice.

Eventhough a 690 is a great score, I also recommend that you try and retake the test closer to when you want to apply to business school. If you study (not as much as you did for this test) throughout the year their is a possibility for a score jump.

BTW, why did you take the GMAT so early, if you don't think you are going to apply to business school from two years from now.

**swadeep** · 07-26-2005, 04:47 AM

Mandeep, this is not to offend you but I have to be a bit blunt here.
The average score of all the top 10 universities is over 710. So u can safely assume that around 70%-80% of the students in the top 10 universities have scored over 690 !! But this also means that there are 20%-30% of the people who make it to top 10 schools with GMAT score of <= 690 !!

But having said this I must also add that GMAT is only one of the 7 criterion for admission. If you have an outstanding GPA, you can probably offset the relatively low GMAT score. But if your GPA is also on the lower side (say less than 3.4) then I guess you will have to either lower your expectations or retake the GMAT and score over 720.

I have been looking at the profiles of students in the top 10 schools and have found that the people who have relatively low GMAT scores / GPA have made it because they came up with a very strong application. As you mentioned that you have 2 more years before you apply, what you can probably do is to think seriously about working for a non-profit organization (full time) for at least one year. Something like this will ensure that you make it into the top 10 with 690 GMAT. You have a lot of time to think about the various options available. And I must appreciate that you are thinking about an MBA two years in advance. That is really good ! So be focussed, look at the options available and you should make it to top 10.

**rsdighe** · 07-26-2005, 04:59 AM

i hate to be so blunt but working for a non profit org just to make thy application look good is frankly just ridiculous., u got to be atleast true to yourself first before you go an apply for an mba.

**swadeep** · 07-27-2005, 04:00 AM

rsdighe, dont get me wrong. I was only suggesting some options for him in the coming couple of years. That too if he is serious about top 10 schools. I did not assume that he would be uninterested to do community service. Neither did I assume that he is not gonna take the GMAT again !

Except for the GPA all the other admission criterion can be worked upon (since he has 2 more years to go). I made an observation based on my research on the profiles of the students at the top schools. I have been talking to many students of late. And I just shared something that I found. If the fact that peoeple with low GMAT score but excellent community service have made it to top 10 schools bothers you then I cant help it !

I guess you assumed that all of us out here have an aversion for community service. You also assumed that if we do community service its only for beefing up the application. I dont think you can make such a generalisation, especially in this forum.