Why Indians need a higher than average GMAT score?

According to GMAC, the owners of the GMAT exam, a high score of 700 by an Indian or a Chinese candidate carries a percentile value in the range of 83-85. That means that even if an Indian or a Chinese candidate (two of the biggest candidate bodies for the GMAT exam) gets a score of 700, he/she is lagging behind 15% of the other candidates from his/her region.

While on the other side of the pond, a candidate from USA with a score of 660 has a percentile value in the range of 83-85. In other words, a US passport holder’s GMAT score of 660 is comparable to an Indian’s GMAT score of 700.

 

Clearly, the Indians are at a major disadvantage when compared to the Americans. To get the same National Rank (read percentile score), the Indians need a higher GMAT score than the Americans.

In addition to this, the number of applicants from India is also very large, and creates strenuous competition. This often forces the Admissions Committees at top B-Schools to use the GMAT score to differentiate between 2 similar Indian profiles. So, the candidate with a higher GMAT score would sail through, while the other would be dinged.

Most of the candidates only look at the Mean GMAT score of their target B-School, and aim to achieve that particular score. However, for Indians the Target GMAT score should be at least 20 points higher than the Mean GMAT score.

The target GMAT scores for Indian candidates to some of the prominent B-Schools is as below:

Business Schools	Mean GMAT Score	Target GMAT score for Indians
Harvard, Stanford, Wharton	728	750+
Chicago-Booth, MIT-Sloan, Kellogg, Berkley, Columbia, Tuck	716	740+
INSEAD, LBS, Duke, Darden, Ross, Oxford	700	720+
IE, Kenan-Flagler, Tepper, Emory, Kelly-Indiana, McCombs, HEC-Paris	686	700+
ESADE, NUS, Rotman, Queen’s, HKUST	667	690+

Another reason, why Indians should aim for a higher than average GMAT score, is because a higher GMAT score often means a higher probability of getting a scholarship and/or other forms of financial aid from the school.  For B-Schools, a high Mean GMAT Score is a matter of prestige and reputation in the market. That is why certain B-Schools often sweeten the deal for suitable candidates, who can help them increase the school’s Mean GMAT score.

More interesting posts about Indians’ GMAT score requirements to follow soon, keep in touch!