- What is the “My Recommendations” page on my mba.com account?
- Why has GMAC created this service?
- How does this help me?
- What do you mean by “Competitiveness”? How can I interpret and use this information?
- How does GMAC determine the “Programs You May Be Interested In”?
- How and when are the programs on my list updated?
- I don’t see the “My Recommendations” page. Where can I find it?
- Do I have to pay to access the “My Recommendations” page?
- One of the programs I sent a score report to doesn’t appear on the table under “How Did You Perform?” Why is that?
- I already sent an additional score report to a program that was listed under “Programs You May Be Interested In.” Why was I recommended that program?
- Do schools pay you to promote their programs?
- Who can I contact for further assistance?
What is the “My Recommendations” page on my mba.com account?
The “My Recommendations” page is a service that provides you with personalized business program recommendations. We developed this service to help you find, evaluate, and connect with schools and programs that could be a good fit for you and you may not have previously considered. Your customized recommendations page is based in part on your GMAT exam performance and provides you with a list of programs for consideration.Why has GMAC created this service?
We believe there is a school for everyone, and we want to help connect you with the best-fit program for you.
School and program selection is a two-way process between you and the schools. For you, it’s not about applying to the best ranked school, it’s about considering future career function and industry, class size, program location, and cultural fit. For schools, it’s not solely about admitting prospective applicants with the highest GMAT scores, they’re also looking for work experience, drive, passion, communication skills, and cultural fit.
You are looking to find and evaluate schools and programs that align with your individual experience and aspirations. We believe there is an opportunity, using data and analytics, to help you identify the programs that will support your goals.
How does this help me?
There are three primary benefits to you:
1. Find new programs. You can find and explore schools and programs that you may not have considered as part of your research. We compare your GMAT performance, score sending patterns, and study preferences with peers that are “similar to you” and provide a list of up to 10 highly personalized programs that could be a good fit.
2. Send score reports. At the click of a button, you can send your GMAT scores to any of your recommended programs and save them to your School Search profile.
3. Compare your performance. You can analyze how you performed on each of your GMAT exams by comparing your GMAT score to all test-taker scores sent in the last three years to the programs that you selected.
This service is exclusively available to GMAT test takers and just one of the reasons why the GMAT is the preferred exam for business schools and helps you stand out during the admissions process.
What do you mean by “Competitiveness”? How can I interpret and use this information?
Your GMAT score “competitiveness” provides additional insight into your GMAT score and personalized recommendations. Competitiveness for each recommendation is listed as Excellent, Above Average, Average, or Low. A competitive rating of “Excellent” indicates that your GMAT score is strong for that school/program.
We calculate the competitiveness of your GMAT score using the following factors for both your Verbal and Quantitative section scores:
• Your global percentile rank for the Quantitative and Verbal section scores
• Your percentile rank for the Quantitative and Verbal section scores among candidates from your broad geographic location
• The total volume of scores sent to each recommended program
• The amount of GMAT scores received by each program from within your geographic location
This additional information can help you understand your GMAT score compared to other test takers who have sent their scores to the same programs. It can help expand your options by identifying programs you may not have considered as part of your research, or can also help you make more informed decisions when evaluating schools you’ve already sent your GMAT score to.
Remember, your GMAT score is just one part of a well-balanced application. A competitiveness rating of “Excellent” does not guarantee admission into any particular program, nor does a rating of “Low” mean that you will not be admitted.
How does GMAC determine the “Programs You May Be Interested In”?
Our algorithm finds test takers “similar to you” based on:
• Your profile
• Program preferences, including type of program, geography, intended major, industry, etc.
• Your GMAT scores
• Global GMAT score-sending trends
Once the algorithm identifies test takers with similar preferences and interests to you, it recommends up to 10 business programs that could be a good fit for you. These programs are identified as a good fit based on your preferences, and the preferences of those like you, and where your GMAT score may help you stand out. The algorithm does not use any potentially sensitive information (e.g., age, gender, race/ethnicity, etc.). It is based purely on data and mathematics and is not designed to specifically target or exclude a certain set of programs as the recommended outcomes.
Disclaimer: Please note that GMAC is not engaged in providing admissions counseling or advice and does not guarantee the accuracy and/or relevance of the information and recommendations provided.
How and when are the programs on my list updated?
You will receive a list of recommended programs each time you take the GMAT exam and send at least one score report to a program as part of that exam.
If you previously took the GMAT exam and were recommended programs, the previous list will be replaced with a new recommendations list shortly after your most recent GMAT exam score becomes reportable. You will be able to look at past recommendations’ lists from a drop-down box located at the top of your “My Recommendations” page.
If you update your mba.com account profile between GMAT exam appointments, your personalized recommendations will not be updated to reflect those changes. Any changes to your mba.com account profile will be taken into account for your next list of recommended programs.
If you did not send scores to any program as part of your GMAT exam, then we are currently unable to provide you with personalized recommendations.
I don’t see the “My Recommendations” page. Where can I find it?
Log into your mba.com account and navigate to your profile page. Located underneath your “Past GMAT Exams” section is a series of buttons. If a recommendations page has been created for you, there will be a button that says, “Unlock My Recommendations.” Click on that button and you will be routed to your personalized page.If no button appears, there may be several reasons:
1. During your most recent GMAT exam, you did not select any programs before your exam to send free score reports to. Remember, you can send up to five free score reports with each exam you take.
2. Your most recent GMAT exam has not become reportable and your score reports have not been sent. Please allow up to one week for your page to be created and the button to appear.
3. Your most recent GMAT exam was completed before this service was added. If you decide to take the GMAT again, and send at least one initial score report, recommendations will be created for you.
Do I have to pay to access the “My Recommendations” page?
No. This service is included as part of your GMAT exam experience and is provided at no additional cost beyond the exam fee. Any subsequent score reports that you send as a result of your personalized list are subject to the standard fee and follow the standard score report ordering and payment processes.One of the programs I sent a score report to doesn’t appear on the table under “How Did You Perform?” Why is that?
If you sent an initial score report to a program and you don’t see a score competitiveness for it, or don’t see it in your table at all, that means that the program has not received more than 250 GMAT scores over the course of the last three years and we are unable to display a score competitiveness for you at this time.I already sent an additional score report to a program that was listed under “Programs You May Be Interested In.” Why was I recommended that program?
In rare cases, you may see a program listed that you already selected to receive a score report. This may happen for two reasons:
1. The additional score report you sent to that program is associated with a prior GMAT exam appointment.
2. You sent an additional score report to that program after completing your exam, but before you received your recommendations. This can be attributed to the timing for when scores become reportable in our system and when score reports are sent.