re: How Smart is OT?

I claim to be 6'-5", but know I was only 6'-4 and 3/4" about 30 years ago. I'm sure I've shrunk in height over the years. I'll have to live with that OT shame ...


Test scores can be very arbitrary. They aren't always indicative of success.

Back when you just "took the test" with no special time considerations for dyslexia or ADD or whatever, I took the GMAT with a friend (c. 1988). He was a terrific student and had good grades in undergraduate school. Really smart, but also spent a lot of time in his books.
I can read fast with good comprehension and am quick at arithmatic. I memory serves me correctly, I answered 206 out of 210 questions on the GMAT, and that was because I truly had no clue what the correct answer to those four questions were.

However, after taking the test, I was sure I needed to find a job. A mediocre GMAT score, in addition to my mediocre grades, would certainly preclude any hope of being admitted to any MBA program.

After the test, we went to his house because he had a swimming pool. Add in a home cooked meal (by his PhD mother) and a bunch of cold beers, it sounded like a brilliant idea.

During the course of the evening with both of us commiserating about the test, his mother mentioned that my friend was dyslexic. I was was shocked. I knew he couldn't spell for shite and had lousy handwriting, but I was completely unaware that there was a legitimate reason.

I ended up scoring over 300 points higher than him on the GMAT (when scores were ~300 - 800, and 720 was like a 98 or 99th percentile score), but I had new found respect for a good friend that I had know for years, but never acknowledged his disability.

TL,DR - Don't judge a person only by his or her test score.