Hi all, starting at a BB in HK next year and basically have the next 7-8 months off.
Short- to mid-term goal is to exit to a PE in my home country (Asian) or HK after a couple of years.
Currently have no plans for an MBA whatsoever (just waaaay too high an opportunity cost for me personally, especially since I would have to finance it myself), but wondering if I should casually take the GMAT anyway considering I have a lot of spare time.
Right now, the only way I really see myself going for an MBA is if I really, really can't find any PE/buyside exit opps (and can no longer stand IBD).
Also, perhaps for relocation purposes to the US? But have no real desire to at the moment - plus, I know how hard it is for internationals to do so in the first place (even with an MBA).
So basically, would you still take the GMAT anyway just to keep options open if you were in my situation?
(If it helps any, I score pretty decently already considering quant isn’t too difficult for me and I’m a native English speaker, so may not need TOO much prep... Though I also heard that Asian males' gmat scores are the most heavily discounted for b-school admissions)
I would definitely do it. It will be a lot harder to prepare for it once work starts.
Almost no downside, and you can spread out the prep over a few months, so it won't be too much of a grind during your 7-8 month break.
Nah. Studying for the GMAT seems like a massive waste of time. I agree with your sentiment against doing an MBA, so why bother studying for the test? You won't learn anything from the material. Your next 7 months have an opportunity cost too. Isn't there something else more fun and interesting you can do with your time?
allweneedisloveandbeer, the GMAT doesn't take 7-8 months to prep for. If you are moderately intelligent, you should be able to score in the mid to upper 700s with three months studying at most, so keep that in mind.
I personally would get a used copy of the official guide (2018 is the latest, but I'd even settle for a 2017 or 2016 one), spend a few hours reading through it and then take a practice CAT from the software you can download for free from MBA.com. See where you stand and go from there.
Mid to upper 700's with 3 months of preparing is a bit of a force..
Take the GMAT. Considering the relatively low cost and your current situation, taking the GMAT only keeps options open. It adds another number to your resume, and you're better prepared to study hard immediately following undergrad.
Definitely take it if you have time off. Score is good for 5 years. When you're working, you'll look back and be so thankful you took it.
Take the gmat, trust me it's no fun doing it when you work. If you apply yourself, 8-10 weeks is more than enough time especially if you are unemployed you can easily get it done within that window
I think you'll get more bang for your buck on your MBA application if you do something compelling for 6 months (volunteer abroad?).
You can get the GMAT out of the way too if you'd like, but I think you'll regret wasting the time more
do remember that your gmat score is valid for 5 years
Absolutely. Echoing what everyone has said in the threads, it will be nearly untenable for you to work and study at the same time once work starts. It's definitely not as strenuous or intensive as say studying the CFA curriculum (that was an absolute tome in all cases ha), but I'd still wager you would need a good 2-3 months of consistent studying to get a representative score in the low 700's.
There are some older resources you could find on ebay, or you could reference some of your friends or other folks regarding your interest and whether they have some older materials. an edition that is within 2-3 years with contain the majority of information that you will need, and from there it's really about getting the requisite repetitions until you feel comfortable with the subject material.
Your score will be valid for a 5 year period which is very helpful. Most end up going to B school within 4-5 years, so that should have you covered. it's just one thing to get out of the way :)
Curious how well do the Kaplan practice test comp to the real thing? I’m hitting the score I need on practice test and about to take the real thing.
Also what is up with the math scoring. The practice test always gives 12 medium questions first which are a breeze. Then I get all hard questions. I keep scoring at 79th percentile and it doesn’t seem to matter whether I get half the hard questions right or 75%.
The closest comp to the real thing is the official gmat practice tests. Everything else is pretty meaningless.
The math scoring is Kaplan's attempt to simulate the Computer Adaptive Test component of the real thing. Ie, when you get questions right, the difficulty of questions you're required to solve go up, which determines your percentile. The % of questions you get right on the test is secondary to the difficulty of questions that you get right.
Looking at pricing sounds like its better to just take the gmat and re-evaluate since I'm scoring on practice kaplan over 700 which is what I need.
Kaplan math doesn't vary question strength if you get the first 12 right. Then its 25 hard questions and the same score no matter how many I get right.
I would do it now.
Keep in mind that the GMAT gets exponentially more difficult the further removed you are from your high school geometry class and most recent calculus class.
As a new graduate you will probably be able to score well with roughly half or a third (literally) of the study time it would take you to get the same score when you're 5 years out of undergrad
Going to add another "yes" to the pile. I waited until this January to start studying (4 years after graduating), and every day I wished I had just done it during senior year or right after school. You'll only give yourself some optionality for a total cost of around $500 and about 2 months of prep. Small price to pay to set yourself up for success I'd say.
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