A 7 min read

Promoting ‘new thinking for the new economy’, Berkeley Haas, the business school of University of California, Berkeley, is one of the best B-schools in the world for those interested in technology, innovation and entrepreneurship.

With an acceptance rate of 12.9%, UC Berkeley has a highly selective MBA programs with a class size of just around 300 students. Consistently ranking among the top B-schools, Berkeley’s Haas attracts diverse talent from around the world. Also holding a locational advantage of being in the vibrant Bay Area, Haas presents a unique blend of natural beauty and scenic views with the advantage of being so close to industry big-shots, well-known start-ups as well as venture-capital firms.

If Haas Berkeley is where you want to see yourself in a couple of months or years, your first step is to aim for a good GMAT score. GMAT scores hold a high weightage in the application process and is usually the first filtering criteria used by top B-schools.

This article aims to figure out a good GMAT score for UC Berkeley-Haas by performing an exhaustive analysis of latest GMAT score trends from recent applicants to this distinguished business school.

Here’s what you will read next:

• 5-year GMAT score trend of UC Berkeley
  • Methodology
  • Observations
  • Inference
• What is a good GMAT score for UC Berkeley
• What is a good GMAT score for Indians applying to UC Berkeley

5-year GMAT score trend of UC Berkeley

To begin our analysis, we will first get an overview of the average GMAT scores of the incoming classes at UC Berkeley from the year 2014 to 2018.

In a span of 5 years, the average GMAT score of the full-time MBA batch at UC Berkeley has gone up from 717 to 726. Growing demand and an evident rise in competition have let to this steep increase in scores for the latest batches.

To determine a good GMAT score for securing admission in the top B-schools in the world, we refer to a simple 5-step process.

By adding 20 points to the average GMAT score of the latest batch, we can approximate a safe score for receiving an interview call. As per the above trends, 740+ appears to be a good score for Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley.

If you are applying for other top B-schools as well, you might want to take a look at the 5-year GMAT score trend report of 50 top US and European business schools

This article, however, calls for a deeper level of analysis for arriving at a more conclusive answer to the question. “What is a good GMAT score for UC Berkeley?”

The next sections will try to answer this question by analysing data points received from the latest pool of applicants of Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley.

 

Methodology

The gmatclub Haas decision tracker page will be our reference source for the scope of this article. This is where several candidates who applied for the class of 2021 have updated their status.

Here’s a quick summary:

 

Observations

• Maximum interview invites as well as admissions can be witnessed for a GMAT Score range of 710 to 750
• For all scores above 710, the conversion rate (admission to interview rate) is 50% or more, with the score of 760 being an exception
• For a score of 760, only 1 out 6 interviewees was finally admitted- this could be either because the other applicants selected other B-schools or because some of them did not perform well on other parameters of the application process
• The highest invite rate (77.8%) and admission rate (44.4%) is for a GMAT score of 750, with 7 out of 9 applicants being called to interview and 4 being selected for admissions
• The highest number of applicants have GMAT scores 710 (26) and 720 (27) and hence we witness a relatively lower admission rate of around 30% for these scores.
• The highest conversion rate (80%) is for a score of 730 with 4 out of 5 applicants securing admission at UC Berkeley
• The admit rate drops significantly below a score of 710 with only 2 applicants with a score of 700 and 2 with a score of 690 getting an admission offer
• No applicant below a score of 690 was admitted to UC Berkeley

 

Inference

From our observations, we can say that a score in the range of 710 to 750 is a good GMAT score for UC Berkeley.

This range witnessed a noteworthy invite rate as well as a conversion rate above 50%.  For those scoring in this range and aiming for Haas School of Business- while the destination is a step closer, there are several other parameters which the admissions committee will consider before rolling out the admission offer.

To help you sail smoothly through the process, we have discussed  10 ways to boost your MBA profile in one of our previous articles.

To make our analysis thorough, it makes sense to look at the scores of the wait-listed candidates and figure out if GMAT scores play a roll in helping one get off the wait-list.

A high GMAT score can be a definite game-changer for getting an edge over other wait-listed candidates.

However, individual profile as well as interview performance, also play a crucial role when it comes to the selection of a candidate from a pool of all wait-listed candidates.  4 candidates were admitted from the wait-list with scores 760, 740, 720 and 710 each. No candidate having a score below 710 was admitted from the wait-list.

Here are some interesting ways to get off the MBA waitlist

What is a good GMAT score for UC Berkeley-Haas

Our analysis reinstates our approximate guess of 740 being a good score for UC Berkeley – Haas School of Business.

A range of 730 to 750 presents a safe window for candidates and candidates in this range should start preparing for the next rounds and other parameters of the application process.

For scores in the range of 700 to 720, while the interview rate is high, the admission rate slumps significantly. Interview performance can hence be even more crucial for applicants scoring in this range.

If you are planning to take the GMAT, we can help you with a personalized study plan and give you access to quality online content to prepare. Write to us at acethegmat@e-gmat.com. We are the most reviewed GMAT prep company on gmatclub with more than 1840 reviews (as on July 26, 2019). Why don’t you take a free trial and judge for yourself?

What is a good GMAT score for Indians applying to UC Berkeley-Haas

For Indians applying to UC Berkeley, the competition is tough and being a part of an over-represented candidate pool certainly doesn’t help. As the competition stiffens with every passing year, Indian applicants are expected to present a distinctive personality and stand apart from the rest of their peers coming from a similar background.

Let’s take a look at Indians who applied to UC Berkeley for the incoming classes of 2021 and 2020:

Indian Applicants UC-Berkeley Haas – Class of 2021

• 11 Indians applied
• 4 received an interview invite (GMAT scores of 770,750, 720,720)
• 1 received admit (GMAT score of 720)

Indian Applicants- Class of 2020

• 19 Indians applied
• 7 received an interview invite (GMAT scores of 760,760,760, 760, 740 720, GMAT score of 1 not known)
• 2 received admit (GMAT score of 760, 760)

Only 1 Indian applicant finally made it to UC Berkeley for the class of 2021 and the selection criteria seemed to be more influenced by other application parameters rather than the score. However, for the class of 2020, 2 Indian applicants were admitted- both having a GMAT score of 760.  Also, if we look at the scores of applicants invited for interviews in both the years, we can see that a high GMAT score plays quite an important role in the entire admission process.

With the conversion rate being so low for Indian applicants, we recommend a score of 760 as a good GMAT score for Indians applying to UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.

If you are planning to take the GMAT, we can help you with a personalized study plan and give you access to quality online content to prepare. Write to us at acethegmat@e-gmat.com. We are the most reviewed GMAT prep company on gmatclub with more than 1840 reviews (as on July 26, 2019). Why don’t you take a free trial and judge for yourself?