<p>I will be a senior in high school in the fall. I want to eventually go to a very good business school, like HBS or Wharton.</p>
<p>What classes / anything else in my daily life will help me prepare for the GMAT?
And in what year of college should I start prepping specifically for the test?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>I also wouldnt mind some advice in this area</p>
<p>Im not sure whether to write the GMAT immediately after I finish my undergrad (PetrE) or should I wait a few years while I work and then write it when Im actually ready to apply to Bschool?</p>
<p>I’ve been told that taking the GMAT during college is the best time, as you are already well-prepared and in the right mindset, and the score is valid for several years after graduation.</p>
<p>hahahahahahaha I just graduated from highschool and am going to be a freshman in college, and trust me, the GMAT is not something you should be concerning yourself with at this point. It is NOT very difficult to do well on the GMAT, if you have basic test-taking skills. If you did well on the SAT (1550+/1600), which Im assuming since that is not your focus at the moment, then you will have no problem doing very well on the GMAT. </p>
<p>You should choose classes in college based on your intellectual curiosities, not for GMAT preparation.</p>
<p>GMAT scores are good for 5 years as i’m told. So I would say study and take it by the end of your sophmore summer if you’re planning to do 3 years of work and then go to b-school. </p>
<p>But my advice is to study for the GRE now and take it before you start college. Since you’re already bogged down with SATs and all that good stuff, college will just ruin your scores as things get more advanced. Take advantage of your recent studies in the fundamentals because i’m sure you’ll score very well after just a little bit of effort. </p>
<p>I’m studying the gmat as we speak and am having gaps to fill, some were exceptionally easy things. Like unit digits’… 4th grade stuff.</p>
<p>GRE now…
GMAT during sophmore-junior summer</p>
<p>good strategy. GRE scores are good for how many years?</p>
<p>I’m planning on taking the GMAT after my Junior year in college, because I don’t want it to expire before I apply to a MBA. I’d also say to complete it before you get out of college.</p>
<p>As JPNguyen said your GMAT scores are good for five years. Definitely try to get work experience as well, since some schools require you to have at least two years of job experience in order to apply. I can’t really remember but I think that some of them want you to have post-college work experience. Honestly if you do then it also makes it easier for you to get letters of recommendation (and most schools suggest that you do not get recs from your teachers since it does not really show what you’re like in the workforce). Plus most of the internships that I’ve been seeing around lately are roughly between 3-6 months (with potential re-hiring if you do a good job) so if you’re gunning for one of those as your work experience, I’d say try to get it early on in your college career (sophomore or preferably the summer before your junior year since some internships are geared towards upperclassmen).</p>
<p>In terms of work experience, it really depends on the school. There are some schools that don’t require you to have any job experience. For example, Stanford’s page for its GBS mentions that it encourages college seniors and recent college graduates to apply as well. However, I have heard that it is somewhat difficult to get into an MBA program fresh out of college (it’s a “different animal” than non-business grad school so to speak). Being a recent college graduate myself (I graduated in May) who is about to take the GMAT and applying for four MBA programs, I’ve definitely looked into it a lot. </p>
<p>All of the schools that I’m looking to apply to have average ages of 26-29, with average work experience ranging from 2-6 years. So being only 22 (if I get into an MBA program, I will be 23 when I start next year) I have to have something that makes me stand out, and present myself in such a way that the university acknowledges that I am mature enough to handle the program (I have heard that some schools worry about younger students lacking “emotional intelligence,” which you guys will hear all about during undergrad). Oh and by the way, the recommended length of time for studying is 3 to 6 months for the GMAT.</p>
<p>But in terms of classes I have read that quantitative class work in college is always a good thing to have. So take statistics and complete calculus in college at least, and you should be ok (depending on what college you go to these courses might be a part of your required business curriculum - they were for me anyway). But yes the GMAT reminds me a lot of the SAT, and if you take math or english classes, or if you have great knowledge of both the subjects you should be fine. </p>
<p>English classes would also be good for the AWA section of the test since you’re writing a couple of essays as well. So here’s something else to work on especially if you want to save yourself time (since there’s no spell/grammar check on the GMAT despite the fact that it’s computerized) - typing skills. If you’re like me then you want to go through your essays a few times before finishing. </p>
<p>Do keep in mind though that the GMAT is not like the SAT due to the fact that it’s computerized, and you’re not allowed to use a calculator. Another, more beneficial fact about the GMAT: if I remember correctly (and if I’m wrong someone please correct me on this) you can take it once a month (meaning that you have 12 chances to take it). However, schools of course are able to see how many times you’ve taken it and what scores you got on each test. I have also heard that some schools average GMAT scores so watch out for that.</p>
<p>Also remember that the GMAT is only one factor in terms of MBA admission. You still need great essays, recs from previous employers or supervisors, and a decent cumulative college GPA. Two of the schools that I’m applying to have averages of 3.0-3.3 in terms of its entering classes’ GPA (and honestly those are my backup schools). Schools judge your GPA not only based on what you ended up with, but also which school you went to (they do a weighting system based on how difficult your program is determined to be). So if you’re a senior in high school, I’d definitely be concentrating more on what college you want to go to next year, (I wish you all the best of luck in terms of writing stellar apps and getting great SAT scores) and after you get in concentrating about doing well over there.</p>
<p>If you really want more information on the GMAT I would suggest going to this website:
<a href=“http://www.mba.com%5B/url%5D”>http://www.mba.com</a></p>
<p>And here’s the specific link for the GMAT test structure: [Test</a> Structure and Overview](<a href=“The Page You Are Trying to View No Longer Exists”>http://www.mba.com/mba/TheGMAT/TestStructureAndOverview/Default.htm)</p>
<p>Sorry for the length, and if some sentences did not make sense. I have insomnia and I haven’t gone to sleep yet so my writing might be somewhat off today. If so please excuse me. I hope I helped you guys a little bit. ^_^</p>
<p>~<em>~</em>Blueheart87<em>~</em>~</p>