“What is a good GMAT score?” or a perfect GMAT score is usually the first question that comes to mind for every MBA aspirant. A GMAT score chart helps to answer these questions.
Given that all business schools are distinct, the solution to this issue is complicated. Their selection criteria vary, as does the way they use GMAT scores and other metrics. A good GMAT score does not ensure admission to your preferred B-school, but a poor score will keep you out of the running.
In essence, a good GMAT score is a ticket that allows you to compete for admission to prestigious business schools.
We’ve broken down all you need to know about the GMAT score chart in this article. After you’ve finished reading, you’ll know what GMAT test is, and your target GMAT score range, and you’ll be able to create an effective study strategy.
What is a GMAT Test?
The GMAT is a computer–adaptive test that is required for admission to India’s and other countries’ top business schools. GMAC, the test creator, created and administers the GMAT to offer business schools standardized measurements of all applicants’ readiness for graduate-level academic work.
Your GMAT score, as well as your work experience, academic record, and supporting papers, are used by business school admission committees to judge your suitability for the rigors of an MBA program.
Let’s have a look at the structure of the GMAT exam before moving on to the GMAT score chart.
The following sections are included:
- Analytical Writing Assessment: This test assesses your ability to think critically and articulate your thoughts in writing.
- Integrated Reasoning: This test assesses your ability to examine and evaluate data presented in a variety of formats.
- Quantitative Reasoning: This test assesses your ability to examine facts and form conclusions in a variety of circumstances utilizing reasoning skills.
- Verbal Reasoning: This section assesses your ability to read and comprehend written material, analyze arguments, and edit written content to adhere to written English standards.
Why take GMAT
The reasons for taking GMAT exams are as follows:
- Demonstrates your devotion to business school, motivation, and ability to achieve.
- Measures your critical thinking and reasoning abilities, which are the two most important skills for graduate business programs around the world.
- Through individualized program recommendations, it connects you with the best-fit program.
- Increases your earning potential and expands your horizons.
- The GMAT exam is used by business schools to make admissions decisions.
What is a good GMAT score?
A good GMAT score is higher than the average GMAT score provided by your chosen business schools, which you can usually see on their websites. The average Total GMAT score for the top ten business schools is over 700.
A Quant section score of 45 or higher and a Verbal section score of 35 or higher are often considered good scores by those top business schools.
Also, the question “What is a good GMAT score?” might be rephrased as “What is a good GMAT score for you?” Simply defined, a good GMAT score is the one that gets you into your desired business schools, while keeping in mind any personal ambitions and other components of your application. Let’s take a look at a few of the most popular GMAT score benchmarks.
Average GMAT Score
According to the most recent data from GMAC, the average GMAT score is 564.84. Note that the average GMAT score is in the 42nd to 43rd percentile of the distribution (so below the median GMAT score of about 590).
With an average score (or a GMAT score below 600), the number of business schools where you’ll be competing for admission is likely to be limited.
Many students take the GMAT multiple times, and it’s not uncommon for students in this score range to show a significant increase on their second attempt with better study and practice methods.
650-670 GMAT Score
A GMAT score of 650 will put you in the 73rd percentile, while a score of 670 will put you in the 80th percentile. This GMAT score range (650 to 670) is widely regarded as a suitable starting point for achieving a high GMAT score.
While a score at this level won’t help you get into a top 25 MBA program, it won’t necessarily exclude you, especially if you have outstanding work experience, a high GPA, and strong recommendations and essays.
700 GMAT Score
If you ask any GMAT prep course instructor, “What is the most frequent goal score among students?” they’ll tell you that everyone wants a GMAT score of 700 or higher. Of course, not all of these students can or should achieve the 88th percentile (700 GMAT score), nor do they all need to.
Applicants who are serious about entering a top 20 business school and want to improve their chances of acceptance should aim for a GMAT score of 700 or above. Applicants aiming for merit scholarships at top 20 colleges should aim for a 700 or higher score.
720-740 GMAT Score
A 720 GMAT score will put you in the 94th percentile, putting you in the running for some of the world’s best MBA programs.
Harvard Business School, Wharton (UPenn), University of Chicago, and Stanford Business School, for example, all had a typical GMAT score of 730 in their most recently admitted classes (technically, Stanford only released their average GMAT score, which is 733).
With a GMAT score of 740 (97th percentile), you will score higher than the average GMAT score for all MBA schools.
GMAT Score Chart
Let’s start with the GMAT score chart, GMAT scoring chart shows how your scaled scores in the Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning sections relate to your overall score. Remember that this GMAT scoring chart evolves. In recent years, achieving a GMAT score of 780, 790, or 800 has become more difficult, with near-perfect GMAT scores now requiring higher scaled section scores. See the GMAT scoring chart below:
Highest GMAT score possible
GMAT exam takers can expect to earn a GMAT total score that runs from 200 to 800, with 800 being the highest possible score. MBA applicants should base their objective GMAT score on the average score accepted by their institutions of interest, according to admissions experts.
GMAT score range
A GMAT scores range from 200 to 800 and are presented in ten-point increments. Note that the measurement’s standard error is 30-40 points! This means that your “true” GMAT score, is the one that reflects your knowledge and abilities, and could be 30 to 40 points higher or lower than your reported score. Keep in mind that you may want to take the GMAT more than once, up to three times, to maximize your chances of getting your “real” score.
The item-level adaptive parts of the Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning sections have scaled GMAT scores range values ranging from 6 to 51.
When converting your raw GMAT section results to scaled Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning scores, three elements come into play GMAT total score :
- The number of questions you are asked and how many you are able to answer
- Whether or whether your responses are correct
- The level of difficulty of the questions you were asked
How GMAT is Scored
Within the last years, the Official GMAT Score Report displays five scores: Total, Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA), Integrated Reasoning, Verbal and Quantitative, and the most current AWA essay submissions, as well as the following background information: Gender, date of birth, phone number, undergraduate institution, grade point average, major, graduation date, expected graduate studies, and the highest level of education attained.
GMAT test-takers are allowed to view their unofficial scores before deciding whether to accept or reject them.
On the official score report, a self-canceled score will appear as a “C,” along with all GMAT attempts from the previous five years. Test takers who self-cancel on the day of the test might have their scores reinstated within 60 days after the test date.
The score report will show all of the test taker’s highest GMAT score results for the last five years in cases of repeat testing.
After finishing the exam, test takers can print an unofficial GMAT score report, however, this does not include the Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) score and should not be used in place of an Official Score Report.
GMAT percentiles
The GMAT percentile ranking compares your performance to that of other exam takers. This annual ranking is based on data collected from test-takers over the preceding three years. A percentile ranking of 90 percent implies that you outperformed 90% of test-takers, while 10% of test-takers fared equally well or better than you.
As a result, a high score corresponds to a higher percentile ranking, and vice versa which can be seen in the GMAT score report.
GMAT Quant Percentiles
You might be wondering where your overall percentile for the GMAT or GMAT score percentiles comes from. It’s based on your Quant and Verbal sectional scores. And, sure, percentiles are included in both of these parts!
On a scale of 0 to 60, the GMAT Quant section is graded.
GMAT Verbal Percentiles
The GMAT Quant scores and percentiles differ from the GMAT Verbal scores and percentiles, but the scoring range is the same.
Below is the GMAT Verbal score and percentile table:
| VERBAL PERCENTILE | VERBAL SCALED SCORE |
|---|---|
| 99% | 45-51 |
| 98% | 44 |
| 96% | 42 |
| 94% | 41 |
| 90% | 40 |
| 88% | 39 |
| 84% | 38 |
| 82% | 37 |
| 80% | 36 |
| 75% | 35 |
| 70% | 34 |
| 68% | 33 |
| 65% | 32 |
| 60% | 31 |
| 58% | 30 |
| 55% | 29 |
| 50% | 28 |
| 45% | 27 |
| 42% | 26 |
| 38% | 25 |
| 35% | 24 |
| 31% | 23 |
| 29% | 22 |
| 25% | 21 |
| 22% | 20 |
| 18% | 19 |
| 17% | 18 |
| 14% | 17 |
| 11% | 16 |
| 9% | 15 |
| 8% | 14 |
| 6% | 13 |
| 4% | 12 |
| 3% | 11 |
| 2% | 10 |
| 2% | 9 |
| 1% | 7-8 |
| 0% | 6 |
GMAT AWA Percentiles
While your AWA (and IR) scores aren’t factored into your overall 200-800 score, business schools will still look at how you did. On a scale of 0 to 6, in half-point increments, GMAT essays are graded. That’s right—a half-point difference in the writing portion can have a significant impact on your GMAT AWA percentile.
GMAT IR Percentiles
It probably won’t surprise you to discover that the GMAT Integrated Reasoning (IR) section has its scoring scale, which ranges from 1 to 8. Unlike the AWA, IR scores in entire points rather than half-point increments. As you can expect, this has a significant impact on IR percentiles.
How does GMAT calculate percentiles?
The GMAC (not a typo—that’s GMAT test-maker) uses the most recent cohort of test-takers to create these tables.
You might be asking why they don’t compare your results to those of other people who took the same test. Remember that the GMAT is an adaptive test, which means that the questions you see will be harder or easier depending on how well you answered the previous ones. In theory, only a few GMATs are identical.
But, in that case, why not compare your score to that of every other person who has ever taken the test to see how you compare over time? For starters, the test changes every few years, sometimes a little and sometimes a lot, so that wouldn’t be completely fair.
Second, and maybe more crucially, it would be insignificant. Although GMAT scores are good for five years, most people will utilize them to apply to business schools within a year or two of completing the exam.
The GMAC enables admissions committees to evaluate exactly where each score stacks up in a group that is extremely comparable to the one presently applying by providing percentiles from this most recent batch of test-takers.
GMAT Score Calculator
The GMAT score calculator calculates the total GMAT score for verbal and quantitative skills. The raw scores are converted to scaled scores to obtain the GMAT score (which is the ultimate score). The method for calculating the GMAT score is kept a secret.
Conclusion
Applicants to business schools who want to improve their chances of admission should be aware that their score on the Graduate Management Admission Test is a significant determinant. Candidates should always strive for the highest GMAT score in the GMAT total score.
FAQs GMAT SCORE CHART
How Long are GMAT Scores Valid?
A GMAT score is valid for five years from the date of the exam. A GMAT score, on the other hand, can be kept in your account for up to ten years.
When are GMAT score percentiles useful ?
Percentiles are an excellent way to gauge your relative ability—both in terms of Verbal and Quantitative abilities, as well as in comparison to other test-takers.
Your GMAT score is decided not only by the number of questions you properly answer but also by the difficulty of these problems. While you’re training, thinking about GMAT problems in terms of higher and lower percentile/difficulty levels will help you understand the test’s intricacies.
How much should I score to get in the 99th percentile on the GMAT?
A GMAT score between 760 and 800 will get you into the 99th percentile. A perfect 800 is achieved by 0.02 per cent of GMAT test-takers or roughly 30 people per year.
How Long Does it Take to Get GMAT Scores?
Your GMAT unofficial score, which includes your unofficial total score, unofficial integrated reasoning score, unofficial quantitative, and unofficial verbal scores, will be given to you after you finish the exam. You’ll also see the unofficial percentile ranking for each section. Within 20 days of your GMAT exam, Pearson VUE will send you an email with a link to retrieve your official GMAT scores. There is very little chance that your unofficial and official GMAT results will differ. Learn more about GMAT SCORE CHART
What is a Good GMAT Score?
A good GMAT score or perfect GMAT score will help you gain admission to the B-school of your choice. According to MBA experts, a GMAT score of 650–690 is acceptable, but if you want to go to the Ivy League, you should aim for a higher number. The evaluation of your GMAT score is also influenced by your GPA. A strong GMAT score is also influenced by the competition of the program you want to attend. Learn more about GMAT SCORE CHART
Reference
- examstrategist.com– GMAT Percentiles: What is a Good GMAT Score?
- magoosh.com-GMAT Score Calculator (with GMAT Score Chart)
- www.test-guide.com-WHAT IS A GOOD GMAT SCORE?
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