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Now would be a good time for…

October 22, 2020 by EssaySnark Leave a Comment

…retaking the GMAT or GRE?

Now, we totally don’t wish this test on anybody. We know that it’s not much fun.

However.

If you applied in Round 1 and have not yet gotten at least two interview invitations…

OR even if you did!!

It might be an opportune time to look at the totality of your application strategy.

Obviously if you already have a 164+164 GRE or a 750+ GMAT then no, this advice does not apply to you.

A score being “good enough” is a subjective call that depends on all the factors that go into your profile. (If you want to know how those factors play out for you specifically, our Comprehensive Profile Review is designed exactly for that.)

There are lots of moving parts with GMAT and GRE and this year, more parts than ever are moving!

Some schools, as you know, aren’t even requiring a standardized test as part of your app.

In addition, the admissions teams know that test centers aren’t open for testing in all places, and that at-home tests may not be as reliable as the test-center-administered versions are.

Because of all of these realities, test scores are being evaluated differently this year, and should not be the be-all/end-all datapoint in admissions decisions as they seemingly have been in past seasons.

But if you’re someone who, for example, submitted to a school that has a late-test-accepted policy such as Harvard implemented this season — what we called a “test extension” where you got your Round 1 app in and told them you would send in a test score later…

OR if you informed the admissions team on your app that you were retesting and you still haven’t quite managed to get the retest accomplished…

Well guess what?

NOW IS YOUR TIME!

This is the ideal window of opportunity for anyone who has:

a) submitted in Round 1 knowing the test score wasn’t quite as high as they wanted, and vowed to knuckle down and re-do the test in order to improve chances for Round 2

OR

b) not submitted anywhere yet and have been planning for Round 2 all along

We’re at the end of October people.

The end of October!

Can you believe it??

The season is moving quickly.

If you’re going to put in the effort for studying for a test score improvement, THIS IS WHEN YOU NEED TO DO IT.

If you’re going to be applying in Round 2, then you’ll need to be kicking into essay-writing gear in the near future — especially if you haven’t submitted any apps yet at all. If Round 2 will be your first experience writing essays, then you need to plan for it to take longer than you expect.

In other words: Now is your time to recognize that there isn’t actually as much time as you thought!

The other big caution is for anyone who’s got apps in for Round 1, and even if you’re already interviewing, we’re expecting the waitlist to be used liberally at all of the top schools this season. That’s going to hit lots of BSers really hard in December. You cannot count on anything until it’s done. No matter how strong your essays turned out or how quickly that interview invite showed up in your inbox, or how much you connected with your interviewer over zoom, you just don’t know if it’s going to turn into an admit in your pocket until it’s arrived.

No chicken-counting when all there is are eggs.*

Anyway. This is officially putting those of you on notice who are likely not wanting to be notified: If you know you have a GMAT or GRE test in your future, then that future is likely closer than you expect. Getting crackin’ on some test prep, starting now, would be advised!

If you’re in the U.S., then the ramp-up to Round 2 may be easier for some of you this year than it typically is for Brave Supplicants, because your family may have already decided that there will be no big Thanksgiving or holiday gatherings — which could mean that you will be staying home and not interrupting your study/writing schedule with travel multiple times before the January deadlines are here.

Staying home does not automatically equate to putting in productive time studying, but at least you might have more uninterrupted stretches of time to leverage for the tasks at hand.

And also we obviously hope that your Round 1 apps turn into straight-through admits, and no further applications will be needed!

This is just the requisite warning, to put you on alert that the calendar pages are indeed turning, and at some point coming fairly soon, even this seemingly endless year of 2020 will be at an end.

If you have been planning in the back of your mind to take another shot at the GMAT or GRE, then move that plan to the forefront. The time is here to get in the groove and make that bad boy happen.

 

*English is weird; that sentence seems like it might actually be grammatically correct but it’s possible that it totally is not! In case it waasn’t clear, it’s our attempt to play cute with that idiom about counting chickens before they’re hatched.

Filed Under: planning your strategy, retest strategy

« Previous: What MIT did not succeed at doing with their Class of 2022 admissions strategy.
Next: ($) How important is volunteering in an MBA application? (coronavirus edition) »

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From a BSer January 2020:
"love the guide books!"


CLASS OF 2023 MBA APPLICATION STRATEGY GUIDES

     
    The 2020 Berkeley-Haas MBA Application Guide - updated for the Class of 2023 application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Berkeley Haas - refreshed and updated, with brainstorming exercises and structured maps to help you focus your stories!
   
    The 2020-2021 NYU Stern MBA Application Guide that covers the main essay, the EQ Endorsement and Pick Six!
SnarkStrategies Guide for NYU - discusses your requirements for the Class of 2023 essays!
   
    The 2020-2021 Columbia MBA Application Guide
SnarkStrategies Guide for Columbia Business School for 2020-2021 applications
   
    The 2020 Harvard MBA Application Guide - completely overhauled and updated for the coronavirus era!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Harvard Business School!
   
    The 2020-2021 Duke Essay Guide - covers the 25 Random Things essay and all the rest too!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Duke Fuqua - up to date for the current season!
   
    The 2020-2021 MIT Essay Guide covers the org chart, the contacts for two references, and additional tips for the cover letter and 'introduce yourself' video -- and everything else you need to know!
SnarkStrategies Guide for MIT Sloan MBA - totally revised for the Class of 2023!
   
    The 2020-2021 Tuck Essay Guide has been refreshed with latest insights and advice for your essays about "investing generously" and "why Tuck"!
SnarkStrategies Guide for the Dartmouth Tuck MBA - completely overhauled for 2020, to help you demonstrate how you are nice, aware, etc stuff!
   
    The Yale SOM MBA Application Guide for Class of 2023 candidates!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Yale SOM - updated for 2020-2021
   
    The 2020-2021 Chicago Booth MBA Application Guide - ready to go to support your Class of 2023 essay strategy!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Chicago Booth for this year's MBA app!
   
    The 2020 Wharton MBA Application Guide - even more advice on how to get to a win with those essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for The Wharton School - with new tips for 2020!
   
    The 2020 Kellogg Essay Guide - with a full methodology to identify your 'lasting impact' and your 'values' -- plus tips on 2020 world events and applicability to your essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Kellogg MBA - updated and revised for the new realities of 2020!    
      The 2020 Stanford MBA Application Guide - for "what matters most" in your MBA application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Stanford GSB for the Class of 2023
   
    The 2020-2021 UCLA Anderson MBA Application Guide - updated for Class of 2023 on "impact"!
SnarkStrategies Guide for 
UCLA
   
   

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What were we snarking about at this time in past years?

  • 2020: "What should I do with my summer?"
  • 2019: ($) Got a glitch with your grades? TAKE ACTION NOW!
  • 2018: Should you care who the dean is?
  • 2018: Does it matter who the dean is? 2018 edition
  • 2017: Prediction: Which schools will change their essay questions for Class of 2020?
  • 2016: Another little quiz
  • 2016: ($) When your safety school is actually a stretch school.
  • 2015: ($) Deciding on a school: Does location matter?
  • 2013: Success Story! "It's complicated..."
  • 2012: "School X, or School Y with $$$?" (Part who knows)
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