GRE or GMAT?

[gorancalic]

Hi everyone, I’ve been preparing for the GMAT for the last eight weeks and am about to take the exam this coming Sunday. Initially, I wanted to only take the GRE, because it gave me the flexibility to apply to economics as well as general management programs. Unlike MBA programs, most PhD programs accept both standardized tests. After taking the GRE I was faced with a dilemma. Although my GRE score is good, the total score still falls below the average of the schools I am applying to, and my Verbal score is disappointing. I scored 780 Quant and 530 Verbal with a 5.0AWA. I am applying to PhD programs in management strategy at INSEAD, Wharton, Rotman, and Purdue. Rotman asks for 80%+ on both the Verbal and Quant sections of the GRE, while a total GRE score of around 1400 is the average at INSEAD.

After a lengthy and exhaustive preparation for the GRE I decided to put my shoulder to the wheel and grind out another 8 weeks for the GMAT. My last MGMAT CAT test score was 700, and my last Official Prep Cat score was 710. My first five MGMAT CAT scores are 700, 570, 650, 680, 690 (in that order). I have still to take the 2nd official prep exam. I do believe I can score 700+.

My question is: how high must I score on the GMAT in order to "better" my GRE score? Should I send both scores to these schools regardless of how well or poorly I do on the GMAT?

Currently, I think I will prefer my GMAT score if I score 690+, but would like the input of this community.

Thanks for the advice!

[StaceyKoprince]

You should ask the admissions consultants what they think; this folder is for GMAT-specific test advice (as opposed to admissions advice). There's a folder here on the forums called "ask an admissions consultant" - see what they think.

I'm not sure if there's an absolute way to say "this GMAT score is better than this GRE score," by the way. The two sub-scores can vary, so that will factor in as well.

Question: do you know why your score dropped so much on your second test? If you know why, then you can take steps to minimize the chance that another score drop will occur on a future test - so just make sure that you do know why.

If you need help figuring that out, this article can help:
http://www.beatthegmat.com/a/2009/10/26 ... went-wrong

Good luck!