B-School Wannabe

Ha ha... Okay, so I took the GMAT last Friday, and I got... 690... again. So I guess that test really is an accurate predictor of one's ability.

I am not really disappointed, especially since a 690 is a "good enough" score to get me into a top school. But I did expect to do a bit better after so many practice exams.

No matter... I am done with the GMAT!

Two more days until I take the GMAT again. My studying is DONE. If I don't know it by now, I won't know it on Friday. And if I don't boost my score this time, I think I'm done with the GMAT, anyway. 690 is good enough, right?...

This is actually a little harder than I expected. I say that because I caught myself just going down the US News rankings list and thinking "Okay, those top five schools look good." But everything I've read on Business Week, Clear Admit, Your MBA Game Plan, etc., warns against doing that. I need to have real, personal reasons for why I want to attend each of my target schools. Sure, I want to get into a top school, but what do I tell the HBS interviewer (should I be so lucky) when he asks me why I want to go to HBS?

One problem is that I know the top business schools are different from one another, but it seems like the things that really appeal to me about one also appeal to me about the others. So, my reasons for wanting to attend Wharton are almost the same as my reasons for wanting to attend Stanford, HBS, Kellogg, Chicago, Michigan, MIT, Columbia, etc. Great faculty, top-notch student body, access to great jobs, and on and on.

I need to keep digging. I need some more introspection. Yeah, that's it.

GMAT prep continues. It's really slowed to a trickle. I plan on doing one more burst of studying next weekend, and then locking it in for the 21st.