With regard to the GMAT, raw intellectual horsepower helps, but it is not everything. In this blog series, Manhattan Prep’s Stacey Koprince teaches you how to perform at your best on test day by using some common sense.
What is the “80/80”? All schools look at your overall three-digit GMAT score (the one given on the 200–800 scale). In addition, a few of the very top business schools, such as Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton, look for the 80/80: an 80th percentile score or higher on the individual Quant and Verbal subsections. Essentially, if someone hits a 700 but does so by scoring 99th percentile in one subsection and only 60-something in the other, the schools might be concerned about the lower-scoring area. From their point of view, an “80/80” minimum ensures that you have got a solid base in both areas.
What if I score in the 75th percentile?
The 80/80 guidelines are just that—guidelines. The schools do not use these parameters as a hard cutoff. In other words, a score in the 70s is generally fine, as long as the overall score is also within a school’s desired target range. If, on the other hand, the overall score is a bit low, the GPA is a bit low, and one or both of the GMAT subscores are low… Well, you still might get in, but doing so just became a lot harder.
Inside a Harvard Business School classroom; Image via wikipedia.org
Harvard Business School (HBS) is well known for using the case method, through which virtually all the school’s classes are taught. Rather than resting on their laurels with regard to teaching the case method, however, HBS faculty members work hard to stay at the top of their game. In the school’s tradition of faculty-to-faculty mentoring, HBS established the C. Roland Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning (named for the late HBS professor) in 2004 to promote and support teaching excellence and innovation. The center conducts research on pedagogical innovation and teaching effectiveness related to gender and diversity issues and helps faculty members refine their teaching styles and techniques. The center also offers professors classroom observations and the opportunity to do pre-class planning, receive within-term troubleshooting/post-term feedback, and conduct case and course development.
*Please note: You are viewing an essay analysis from the 2016-2017 admissions cycle. Click here to view our collection of essay analyses for the current admissions season.
Despite the trend in recent years of MBA programs streamlining the essay portion of their application down to just one question, the Haas School of Business at the University of California (UC), Berkeley, continues to present a more traditional suite of prompts. It has made some minor adjustments this year, however, by offering a new option for its second essay (trading its request for a “proud accomplishment” story for one about being challenged by and responding to a different perspective) and subtly rephrasing its career-related and optional essay questions. What remains constant is that Haas gives its applicants the leeway to present a well-rounded picture of themselves and of their formative experiences to date. You must therefore ensure that as a whole, your essays touch on a range of stories and qualities that complement each other so as to provide an accurate representation of who you are today, the student you expect to be in business school, and the professional you will be for the rest of your career. Read our full analysis of Haas’s essay questions for this season to get a fuller understanding of what the school wants to learn from its applicants.
Essay 1: If you could choose one song that expresses who you are, what is it and why? (250 words maximum) Your song can be in any language, from any culture, and does not need to contain lyrics. The strongest responses will focus on answering why this song expresses who you are.
Virtually all MBA application essays are written in the past tense, which makes sense, given that candidates are typically discussing past experiences. Although using the past tense is quite easy, another option is to use the present tense to heighten the immediacy of the experience being presented and to draw the reader into the story. Consider the following examples:
Past tense: “I arrived at my supervisor’s office at 11 a.m.; we tabled the deal no less than 15 minutes later. Then, the two of us sat by the phone, casually chatting about baseball, and waited. When our CEO finally called two hours later, we discovered that we had indeed submitted the winning bid….”
Present tense: “I arrive at my supervisor’s office at 11 a.m. Fifteen minutes later, we table our deal. For the next two hours, as we casually chat about baseball, we wait by the phone. When it finally rings, our CEO is on the line, informing us that our offer has been accepted….”
With regard to the GMAT, raw intellectual horsepower helps, but it is not everything. In this blog series,Manhattan Prep’s Stacey Koprince teaches you how to perform at your best on test day by using some common sense.
It is that time of year again—business schools are announcing their application deadlines, and I am hearing from candidates who do not yet have the GMAT score they want. What to do?
First, do a little research. What kinds of scores are posted for the schools to which you plan to apply? Check their Web sites; most will publish scores for admitted students. If you cannot find scores for a certain program, you can try checking various MBA ranking reports (though many require you to buy the information). How far are you from the goal?
Next, consult the experts. First, talk to an admissions consultant (hint, hint, mbaMission) to gain help in deciding how far you really need to go with the GMAT. The general rule is that you would like to be at or above the average to be competitive for a certain school, but you may need to push higher (or you might get away with a lower score), depending on other aspects of your application profile. Be sure to discuss multiple scenarios: if I apply first round, can I get away with a slightly lower GMAT score? If I wait to apply second round, is the possibility of a higher GMAT score likely to make much of a difference? (Disclaimer: Of course, nobody can tell you whether you will definitely get into any particular school, just as nobody can tell you that taking the test again will definitely net you a higher score. As always, you take your chances!)
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