Last Updated on May 12, 2023
When does a GMAT score expire? Just as importantly, do business schools prefer recent GMAT scores, or do they consider all valid GMAT scores equally, regardless of whether the scores are “old” or “new”?
In this article, I’ll answer the most commonly asked questions about GMAT score validity. Find out how long you can access and send a GMAT score, how the top MBA programs calculate GMAT expiration, how canceling a score affects GMAT score validity, and more.
- How Long Are GMAT Scores Valid?
- What Do Schools Consider a Valid GMAT Score?
- Do Schools Prefer Newer GMAT Scores?
- What Happens When a GMAT Score Expires?
- Can I Send an Expired GMAT Score to Schools?
- If I Cancel a GMAT Score, Is it Still Valid?
How Long Are GMAT Scores Valid?
GMAC, the maker of the GMAT, considers a GMAT score valid for five years after the date of your exam. So, if you took your GMAT on September 1, 2020, then your score would be valid until September 1, 2025.
When a GMAT score is valid, it will be listed in the GMAT score report that you send to schools and in your score history in your mba.com account.
KEY FACT:
Your GMAT score is listed in the score report you send to schools and in your score history in your mba.com account for up to 5 years after your test date.
The thing about GMAT score validity is that business schools may calculate it in a different way than the test-maker does. So, it’s important to check the individual policies of the schools to which you plan to apply before you send your GMAT scores, so you can be sure that you’re sending a score your desired programs will accept. Let’s discuss that next.
TTP PRO TIP:
Since schools may calculate GMAT score validity differently, be sure to check the individual policies of the schools to which you plan to apply, so you know that you’re sending a score those schools will accept.
What Do Schools Consider a Valid GMAT Score?
While GMAC calculates when a GMAT score expires based on your test day, business schools tend to calculate GMAT expiration based on their application deadlines. So, what schools consider a valid GMAT score will change depending on which school you’re applying to and what round you’re applying in. For example, let’s look at how HBS and Stanford calculated GMAT expiration for admission to the Class of 2023:
Harvard Business School
- To apply in Round 1: GMAT test date on or between September 8, 2015 and September 7, 2020
- To apply in Round 2: GMAT test date on or between January 5, 2016 and January 4, 2021
- To apply in 2+2 Round: GMAT test date on or between April 30, 2016 and April 28, 2021
Stanford Business School
- To apply in Round 1: GMAT test date on or after September 15, 2015
- To apply in Round 2: GMAT test date on or after January 6, 2016
- To apply in Round 3: GMAT test date on or after April 6, 2016
KEY FACT:
What schools consider a valid GMAT score may change depending on which school you’re applying to and what round you’re applying in.
If you’re planning to apply to MBA programs within a couple of years after you take your GMAT, you shouldn’t have to worry about these varying deadlines because your test date will fall well within them. Importantly, 5 years is the standard timeframe of GMAT score validity accepted by everyone, so business schools won’t require that GMAT scores be no more than 4 years old or no more than 3 years old, etc. — at least, I’ve never heard of such a requirement. GMAT expiration dates may shift according to application deadlines, but the GMAT score validity window will still be 5 years.
KEY FACT:
GMAT expiration dates may shift according to application deadlines, but the GMAT score validity window will still be 5 years.
Now, all this begs the question, although business schools accept GMAT scores that are up to 5 years old, do they prefer newer scores?
Do Schools Prefer Newer GMAT Scores?
If you’re worried that business schools will view your GMAT score negatively because it’s a few years old, I have some good news for you: generally, MBA admissions offices do not view GMAT scores that are a few years old any differently from scores that are a few months old. You won’t get “bonus points” or special consideration because you sat for your GMAT right before your applications were due, nor will you be penalized for submitting a GMAT score that wasn’t taken in the same year you applied, for instance. As long as your GMAT score is considered valid by the school to which you’re applying, your score will be evaluated on a level playing field with the scores of every other applicant.
Of course, if you took your GMAT a few years ago and are worried that your score may not reflect your current skill set, you may decide to retake the GMAT even though your score is still valid, so that you can apply with a score that reflects your full potential. Retaking the GMAT to get an updated score is a personal decision for every student; just know that you won’t be penalized if you decide to stick with your older score.
KEY FACT:
As long as your GMAT score is considered valid by the school to which you’re applying, it will be evaluated on a level playing field with the scores of every other applicant.
So, we know how long a GMAT score is valid, but what happens when a GMAT score expires?
What Happens When a GMAT Score Expires?
Once you reach the 5-year mark for a particular test date, the GMAT score associated with that test will no longer be listed on your Official Score Report or in your score history. In short, that GMAT score expires and is no longer considered valid by GMAC or by business schools. However, you can contact GMAC customer service to request an old score report (for a fee) in order to see scores that are up to 10 years old. Scores that are older than 10 years are not accessible, even by special request.
KEY FACT:
GMAT scores expire (are no longer valid) after 5 years and are deleted from the Official Score Report sent to schools and from your online score history.
Can I Send an Expired GMAT Score to Schools?
Just as you can contact GMAC to request an old score report for yourself, you can request that GMAC send an old score report to schools (again, for a fee). Keep in mind, though, that the vast majority of business schools — if not all — will not allow you to fulfill the exam requirement of your application by submitting a GMAT score that is more than 5 years old. In fact, GMAC even states that, when a test-taker requests that old scores be sent, those scores are “sent to schools with the caveat that they should be interpreted with caution.”
If, for some reason, you want to submit a GMAT score that is more than 5 years old to a school, you certainly should check with the admissions office first to see whether submitting an expired score would be worthwhile. In my experience, scores that old do not provide any value to an MBA candidate’s application, and chances are that schools will not accept old GMAT scores and will tell you not to bother submitting them.
KEY FACT:
Although it’s possible to send scores that are up to 10 years old, most if not all business schools will not accept them.
So, we know what happens when your GMAT score expires; now let’s take a look at how canceling a GMAT score affects its validity.
If I Cancel a GMAT Score, Is it Still Valid?
Technically, a GMAT score is valid as long as your test date falls within the 5-year window. Of course, if you cancel a GMAT score, that score will not be included in the Official Score Report sent to schools or in any Additional Score Reports you send. You will, however, be able to view your canceled score in your score history online, and you will have the option to reinstate that score at any time within its 5-year validity window. So, if you cancel your GMAT score right after your test and retake the GMAT 2 more times that year, for example, the score report you then send to schools will include only the scores from your 2 retakes (provided you keep both those scores). However, if you decide 1 year later to reinstate your first GMAT score, your score report will then include all 3 GMAT scores. Only after 5 years have passed since your first GMAT will you no longer be able to view that score in your score history, reinstate that score, and send that score to schools.
Now that you know when a GMAT score expires, you may be interested in learning what a good GMAT score is and whether you need your Enhanced Score Report. Just beginning your test prep? This article on how to start your GMAT prep can help.
