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I recently went to an event with the deans of pretty much all the top schools and this topic came up. I'll say the importance of the Q score varies quite a bit school by school. Which school are you referring to?

also interested... how about for M7 schools?

mbahopeful,

My understanding is that an 81% quant score right now is a 49 / 51. To clarify, the adcom told you to consider retaking the test on the basis that your 81%, 49/51 quant score was too low? If that's the case, ignore the adcom. If you have an 80/80 split and are applying to a school ranked in the high teens, you should be more than fine.

A 49 Q is a high score. You will kill yourself getting to a 50. The people who get the 50s and 51s are the same folks who are getting 20s in Verbal. Just be happy with your 49 - a 50 won't make a difference.

mbahopeful:

Thanks for the response CompBanker. Yes, my raw quant score is within the 49-51 range. To clarify, the adcom did not tell me to retake the test but he stated that the quant score was low and a potential weakness (he did said the overall GMAT score was fine). He basically hinted that I would need to prove somehow that I am capable of completing quantitative work. Also, does your opinion change if I was applying to a top ten school?

After reading this post, I have a hard time believing that an Adcom at a top school would offer this advice. They must be at the likes of Yale or Columbia and stat whoring their way to the top of the rankings. Once you break into the 47-48 range on the GMAT, it becomes a logic game - not a quant game, and therefore has no bearing on your capability to enter the summation function into a spreadsheet. Relax on the 49. You got a good Q score.

Maybe he misread or misheard your score? A 49 is absolutely fine and you should not sweat it at all.