career-advice

Expert Advice: Should You Put GMAT Score on Your Resume?

Matt Glodz
Expert Advice: Should You Put GMAT Score on Your Resume?

We Explain When and Where to List GMAT on Your Resume

If you are currently pursuing your MBA, you may be wondering whether you should put your GMAT score on your resume.

We recommend listing your GMAT score if it is above 700 for three reasons:

1) It will build your credibility

2) It doesn’t take up much space on your resume

3) It’ll prevent hiring managers from wondering whether you did poorly

After reading this article, you should have more clarity on whether it makes sense for you to include your GMAT score on your resume.

1) It will build your credibility

No matter where you attended business school, the GMAT serves as an objective measure of your capabilities.

According to US News, scores of 700 and above place you in the following percentiles:

  • 760 – 800: 99%
  • 750: 98%
  • 740: 97%
  • 730: 96%
  • 720: 94%
  • 710: 91%
  • 700: 88%

To put it in perspective, average GMAT scores for top business schools including Stanford, Columbia, University of Pennsylvania (Wharton), University of Chicago (Booth), Northwestern (Kellogg), Harvard, and Yale hover around the 730 mark.

Listing a GMAT in the 700-800 range will work in your favor.

However, if your score is below 700, you may want to leave it off.

2) It doesn’t take up much space on your resume

If you have an impressive GMAT score, you can list it in the Education section of your resume.

An example entry might look as follows:

Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management | Evanston, Illinois

Master of Business Administration | Expected 2022

  • Major in Management Science
  • GMAT: 740

Recruiters who don’t place much importance on it will glance over it, but depending on who ends up reviewing your application, it may work in your favor.

At the very least, it will prevent questions from arising, as we describe below.

3) It will prevent hiring managers from wondering you did poorly

Some hiring managers may assume that if an MBA student does not list a GMAT score on their resume, it must have gone poorly.

While this may be an unfair assumption to make, there’s little you can do to control what goes through an individual hiring manager’s mind once you hit send!

Based on this reasoning, listing an average score may be better than not listing a score at all.

In Summary

You ultimately need to decide whether you feel comfortable disclosing your GMAT score and whether it makes sense to do so.

However, if you scored at 700 or above, we believe there is little risk – and potential benefit –  in doing so.


About Resume Pilots

Resume Pilots is an award-winning executive resume writing firm and a proud member of the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches. Our previous clients include CEOs and senior executives at the world's leading companies.

As a professional services firm, we take your reputation seriously. We are committed to delivering writing excellence and superior service while operating with integrity and discretion. Recruitment firms we partner with also trust us to consistently deliver quality documents for their clients.

Our writers have studied in the Ivy League and other top-tier universities and have strong writing backgrounds coupled with industry experience.

Here's how we can help you:

Resume, Cover Letter, and LinkedIn Writing Services: If you are looking for end-to-end support, hire one of our professional resume writers to rewrite your documents from the ground up.

Executive Resume Template Downloads: If you plan to prepare your own resume, consider using one of our classic, ATS-friendly resume templates for Microsoft Word.

To learn more about our services, book an introductory call with our founder here or email team@resumepilots.com.


About the AuthorMatt Glodz


Matt Glodz is the Founder and Managing Partner of Resume Pilots and a Certified Professional Resume Writer.

After studying business communication at Cornell University, Matt worked within Fortune 500 companies, where he noted that qualified candidates were frequently denied interview opportunities due to poorly written documents.

At Resume Pilots, Matt combines his business and writing background - which includes prior work for a Chicago Tribune publication - to craft resumes that give his clients the best chance of landing interviews. He works with clients ranging from CEOs to recent graduates and has been writing resumes for over 10 years.

He has been quoted on numerous business and career-related topics in outlets including Business Insider, CNBC, Fortune, Glassdoor, The Ladders, and Thrive Global.


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