I just Beat The GMAT!

Hi guys,
So I began my GMAT journey back in December, 2014. After several weeks of self prep- I enrolled in a 3 student Princeton Review course in February,2015. This course lasted for about two months. My score gains were pretty minimal. I believe I made a 30 point gain between my first and last diagnostic from a 320 to a 350 YIKES . Since my score improvements weren't that significant, I figured it would serve me well if I hired the same tutor from the small group course to work with me on a private basis. This did not help either. So I ditched this tutor and searched around for an independent tutor. I was able to find one.
I began working with this private tutor in August 2015. I took a GMAC practice exam and scored a 370 when I began working with him. He took me back to the basics. I spent about a month reviewing basic math concepts on Khan academy. I made a 150 point score improvement between my initial practice exam and my final practice exam. By the way, we used Manhattan GMAT practice exams. my results were:
1st: 460- Quant 32, Verbal 23
2nd: 510- Quant 30, Verbal 30
3rd: 440- Quant 26, verbal 26
4th:520- Quant 32, verbal 30
5th: 500- Quant 33, verbal 26
6th: 520- Quant 36, verbal 25.
Despite these results, when I sat for my first official gmat exam in Dec,2015 I scored a 350. When I saw the score flashed on the screen, my heart began to race. I was ashamed. I spent months preparing only to go in and get a devastating score of 350. I picked up the pieces, remained with my tutor and zoomed in on my weaknesses. I retook the GMAT feb, 2016 and got a 400. I almost brust into tears when I saw my score.
I'm aiming to get into a quality MBA program. I'm looking at schools like UMaryland-Smith and Boston-Questrom. I know that I'll need a score of above 600 to get into any of these schools. Does anyone have any advice for me? I would really appreciate your honest feedbacks. I'm looking to change my study techniques. I know I can achieve a 600+. I'm not giving up.

I hope an expert can respond to this post and provide the guidance you seek.

I just started my GMAT preparation as well and If it makes you feel better I got a 390 on my first CAT exam , so I too have a ton of improvement to do. It seems like you made quite a bit of progress from your first diagnostic exam to your last one. Your official GMAC score doesn't tell that same story, though. Do you freeze up during the exam? What's your study schedule like? What kind of mistakes are you making?

It seems like you're making the GMAT your #1 priority in life. Get away from your studies once or twice a week and enjoy what life has to offer. Go hang out with some buddies, watch show your favorite show on netflix, exercise, etc. I've committed myself to a schedule but I always give myself one day off to unwind. The days I do study, I make sure I'm putting breaks in between so I don't lose focus.

I am in no way affiliated with Magoosh, but I use that as main test preparation tool and it is amazing. They have awesome videos explaining math concepts, shortcuts and strategies. It's a great way to set a solid foundation on your basic math and verbal skills. You may want to check it out.

Don't think you're alone in this, keep working at it!

srb1230 wrote:By the way, we used Manhattan GMAT practice exams. my results were:
1st: 460- Quant 32, Verbal 23
2nd: 510- Quant 30, Verbal 30
3rd: 440- Quant 26, verbal 26
4th:520- Quant 32, verbal 30
5th: 500- Quant 33, verbal 26
6th: 520- Quant 36, verbal 25.

Despite these results, when I sat for my first official gmat exam in Dec,2015 I scored a 350.

Let's get one thing straight first. People tend to score a little higher on the actual test than they do on Manhattan Prep tests. So your expected score based on your practice tests was at least 520 if not higher. So you made great progress, GREAT PROGRESS, and just somehow blew the actual test because of your mental state or something.

So in a sense, to get into the 600's you have 100 points to go, which is not all that far.

Further, your writing in this thread is pretty tight. So you already have a solid basis for scoring MUCH higher on the verbal section, say between 35 and 40. I mean you can score whatever you want to on this test, but I am talking about what you could achieve within a reasonable time frame.

If you were to score on quant the same as you were scoring on the practice tests or say a point or two higher and score 37 on verbal, guess what, you would be at around 610 to 630.

There is nothing to be ashamed of. This is just a game you are learning to play. So what? You didn't hit your goal yet? That's something to be freaked out by? NOT.

If you want to achieve that goal, then just keep at the game. Maybe learn some new ways of handling verbal, and drive your quant score up some more by working on some weaker areas. Also, figure out what's going on that causes you to score much lower on the real test than one would expect given your practice test scores. At some point you will get to the 600's, as surely as day follows night.