![\"Manhattan](\"\/\/cdn2.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2018\/04\/common-gmat-concerns-retaking-gmat-low-awa-scores-mbamission.png\")
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Mission Admission is a series of MBA admission tips from our exclusive admissions consulting partner, <\/i><\/b>mbaMission<\/i><\/b><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n When candidates who have already taken the GMAT exam once ask us whether they should take the test again, we always reply with this key question: \u201cDo you think you can do better?\u201d If the individual does indeed believe that he\/she can improve, the next question we inevitably get is \u201cWhat do business schools think of multiple scores?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Fortunately, most MBA admissions committees do not frown on candidates retaking the GMAT. Many applicants feel that they have to be \u201cperfect\u201d the first time and that any subsequent test they take\u2014particularly if they receive a lower score on it\u2014might be damaging to their candidacy. This is not the case. Dartmouth Tuck, for one, anticipates that applicants will take the exam more than once and openly states its willingness to \u201cconsider your highest quantitative and highest verbal scores,\u201d if they occur on separate tests. Meanwhile, other programs have been known to call candidates and tell them that if they can increase their GMAT scores, they will be offered admission.<\/span><\/p>\n Accepting a candidate\u2019s highest GMAT scores is actually in an MBA program\u2019s best interest, because doing so will raise the school\u2019s GMAT average, which is then reported to ranking bodies such as <\/span>Bloomberg Businessweek <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>U.S. News & World Report<\/span><\/i> and could positively affect the school\u2019s position in these surveys. So, do not be afraid to take the test two or even three times. It can only help.<\/span><\/p>\n Now, if you took the GMAT and feel like you finally \u201cnailed\u201d the exam but later learn that your score on the Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA), the essay portion, is low, should you panic?<\/span><\/p>\n In short, the answer is no. Although we have always encouraged business school candidates to do the best they can on the AWA, the truth is that we have never been told by an admissions officer\u2014nor, as far as we know, has a candidate ever been told in a feedback session\u2014that the AWA score is a factor in a school\u2019s decisions. Generally, the AWA is not used to evaluate candidates but to detect fraud.<\/span><\/p>\n If, hypothetically, you had tremendous difficulty expressing yourself via the AWA essays but wrote like a Pulitzer Prize winner in your application essays, the school would get suspicious and begin to compare the two. Not to worry\u2014the schools are not punitive and are not acting as fraud squads. Your AWA essays are expected to be unpolished, so no one will seek out your file if you did your best in both areas. However, if an enormous discrepancy arises between the two, the AWA serves a purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n So, if you did well on the GMAT and have a low AWA score, that is unfortunate, but it will not be <\/span>the<\/span><\/i> difference in a school\u2019s decision about your candidacy. Rest easy\u2014as long as you truly did write both! ?<\/span><\/p>\n Mission Admission is a series of MBA admission tips from our exclusive admissions consulting partner, mbaMission. When candidates who have already taken the GMAT exam once ask us whether they should take the test again, we always reply with this key question: \u201cDo you think you can do better?\u201d If the individual does indeed believe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[928,52900,4,52899,52894,9],"tags":[82,53316,53315,52957,872],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-15565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-mindset","category-business-school","category-mba-b-school","category-mbamission-partners","category-partners","category-taking-the-gmat","tag-awa","tag-gmat-concerns","tag-low-awa-scores","tag-mission-admission","tag-retaking-the-gmat"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/132"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15565"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15565\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15609,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15565\/revisions\/15609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15565"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=15565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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mbaMission<\/i><\/b><\/a>\u00a0is the leader in MBA admissions consulting with a full-time and comprehensively trained staff of consultants<\/i><\/b>, all with profound communications and MBA experience. mbaMission has helped thousands of candidates fulfill their dream of attending prominent MBA programs around the world. Take your first step toward a more successful MBA application experience with a free 30-minute consultation with one of mbaMission\u2019s senior consultants.\u00a0<\/i>Click here to sign up today.<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"