TheThe COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult for many would-be applicants to schedule and complete GMAT/GRE tests at a testing site or even from home. In response, many universities have offered conditional waivers for those who were unable to take a test or temporarily waived test score requirements for all applicants.
How does one compile and present a strong application without the inclusion of a GMAT/GRE score? It is essential that you make a concerted effort to highlight other strengths with which to prove your suitability for the field of study, and worthiness to succeed and add value to the program.
To begin with, take a look at what advice universities give to those who are applying for conditional waivers. The example below is taken from the Michigan (Ross) MBA admissions page:
Based on this, applicants not submitting a test score should expect closer scrutiny of their past academic records, performance on expired test scores or the GMAC Executive Assessment, the quality of professional work experiences, as well as any professional certifications the applicant holds. Here are a few ways that you can present your strengths to bolster your application.
Highlight Exceptional Strengths and Accomplishments on Your Resume
Displaying eye-catching professional skills, growth, achievements, and awards is needed to validate your candidacy for master’s-level study. If you’ve been on a fast track to management via a management associate program, received a promotion or multiple promotions, or obtained significant responsibility beyond your title, make sure that is easy to see. Highlight significant accomplishments in quantifiable terms whenever possible – if you closed a million dollar deal, increased efficiency or operational process by 200%, or led a team of 20 volunteers – express that in numbers that look impressive. Leadership experiences, establishing a new team or process, and first-time accomplishments should be emphasized. It will also be especially important to highlight any honors, awards, and publications.
Position Yourself as Unique or Specialized
Graduate programs receive stacks of applications from exceedingly talented and qualified candidates, so it is essential that applicants stand out from the crowd, with or without a test score. Playing up an established specialization in your field, sought after skillset, rare work experience, or otherwise uniquely valuable ability could distinguish your application. In some fields, certifications, patents, and other documented accomplishments will best make clear your distinction. For example, if you are applying to an analytics program, to emphasize you have advanced statistical knowledge, when discussing past projects, mention things like using the Three Way Mixed Model ANOVA Test and LSD Pairwise Test to conduct analysis of variance. Or if you want to highlight your ability to use Python, explain how you have used different Python packages to complete various tasks, such as Pandas to retrieve, process and clean massive data or web crawlers like Beautifulsoup to scrape data from the Internet. If your career goals are regional or language-dependent, international work experience and proven language abilities would support your cause. These are just a few examples.
Utilize the Optional Essay
Think carefully how information in the optional essay can support your application strategy and position you as a strong candidate. One approach to this could be to focus on what you can bring to the program. Graduate programs – especially MBAs – are dedicated to cultivating diverse, student-driven communities who coThink carefully how information in the optional essay can support your application strategy and position you as a strong candidate. One approach to this could be to focus on what you can bring to the program. Graduate programs – especially MBAs – are dedicated to cultivating diverse, student-driven communities who contribute inside and especially outside the classroom clubs, alumni networking, career mentoring and social impact activities. Expressing interest and extensive knowledge of an annual event that is aligned with your career ambition shows motivation and illustrate that you have done your research. Mentoring shows benevolence and leadership. Proposing to start a new club shows vision and initiative. Any of these aspirations would be best expressed by first showing your previous experience doing related activities or work.
Another potential avenue for the optional essay is to share significant extracurricular activities that express your core values or exceptional achievements. For example, if you have volunteered with a humanitarian organization for many years or actively advocate for the environment, you could use these commitments to convince the school of your principles and dedication. Alternately, if you play an instrument in an orchestra or are an accomplished visual artist, you might talk about how these activities make you a more well-rounded individual that can enrich the student community.
Ask Your Recommenders to Focus on Certain Strengths and Accomplishments
After you have settled on key themes for your resume and essays, think seriously how your recommenders can buttress the image you want to create by reinforcing the qualities and achievements that make you uniquely qualified. The endorsement of your skills and career growth that a trusted manager or other senior colleague can provide could persuade the admissions committee of the substantial value of those aspects of your experience and your candidacy.
[Conclusion]
Applying for graduate school without submitting a GMAT or GRE score is not ideal, but with a well-crafted application that truly portrays an exceptional candidacy, you still may have a path to an admission. Admissions officers are trained to search for “diamonds in the rough” and generating a results-filled resume and essays that vibrantly express your undeniably impressive track record of execution is the way to attract their attention.