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Almost cancelled my score: 730 48Q41V

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BartholomewCubbins Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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Almost cancelled my score: 730 48Q41V Post Wed Jan 04, 2012 2:43 pm
My test day felt horrendous. I woke up at 2:30 AM, petrified about the 8AM test and life in general, and could not get back to sleep. I had spent about 110 hours in the previous 8 days studying, was totally sleep deprived, and knew that I needed to get a good night's rest, so I went to sleep at 10 PM the night before. So 4.5 hours of sleep. At the most.

My last two GMAC CATs, 12/30 and 1/01, were 680 and 680, 44Q38V and 47Q36V respectively. I studied all I could to get my Q up and my V up in the last two days, but wasn't feeling optimistic about the verbal especially.

I started the test barely able to read the damn thing. There was a complete disconnect between "reading" and "comprehending". All the time management I'd practiced = gone. The second Q problem took me SIX minutes because I forgot how to do LONG DIVISION. I reached question 20 with 30 minutes left. With 12 minutes left I had 10Q questions to go. What a damn nightmare.

Verbal started out equally slowly. There were several times where I thought I should just raise my hand, bag the test, and try to explain it to schools as "a medical issue", but I just kept going. I at least managed to finish both sections on time.

For the entire verbal section, it was like my life was flashing before my eyes. I'd have to put off Round 2s, I'd have to explain to everyone how the hell I did so badly after a week of studying. I got all philosophical -- maybe I should just figure out something else to do with my life? Photography, maybe? There was some 30 minute entirely experimental section at the end that I spent the last 5 minutes staring at the keyboard with a huge pout on my face, damn near in tears.

When I made it to the "do-you-want-to-see-your-score" screen, I would have totally canceled it if no one else would find out, but I knew that schools would. I let the clock tick down for over a minute. At least, I told myself, I could take it again, and play it off like I persevered or something. So I clicked "Yes" and waited, completely miserable, for it to spit out my score.

Unreal.

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pemdas GMAT Titan Default Avatar
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Post Wed Jan 04, 2012 4:57 pm
There is a simple explanation to paradox which may arise from your story - complete (almost paranoid) focus on your life and not GMAT. GMAT is a tool to allow for having achievements in your possible post-MBA tenure. You might have thought not about your life but GMAT and made numerous mistakes in your practice CATs which show much lower scores in comparison to your actual exam score. During the exam you said:
BartholomewCubbins wrote:
it was like my life was flashing before my eyes.
and you truly did it. Congratulations.

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BartholomewCubbins Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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Post Tue Jan 10, 2012 6:05 am
48Q 41V 5.5 AWA

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN!?!?!?! MY BRAIN WAS HALF-OFF DURING THE TEST!

AbhiJ GMAT Destroyer! Default Avatar
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Post Wed Jan 11, 2012 3:13 am
With 680 you were definitely in the range. And you gave whatever you had for the exam. Under these circumstances people outscore their expectations.

DanaJ Site Admin
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Post Sun Jan 15, 2012 3:06 pm
Great story! Goes to show that you can still score highly on the GMAT even if you think you've flunked it Smile

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rzullo Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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Post Tue Jan 24, 2012 12:32 pm
I got the same Quant and Verbal score, but got a 710 - can anyone explain why this happens? I feel like my score was incorrectly caculated.

keithrichards Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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Post Tue Jan 24, 2012 1:29 pm
rzullo wrote:
I got the same Quant and Verbal score, but got a 710 - can anyone explain why this happens? I feel like my score was incorrectly caculated.
First off, congratulations to the OP!

To rzullo - that is odd. I got a 710, with a Q. score one point below you, and the same verbal score as you . . . you'd think that you'd be higher. The reality is, though, there's really nothing you can do. And a score of 710 is an accomplishment. It checks off the box for "high-GMAT achiever" for the adcom, and I don't think there's a bit of difference in people's eyes between a 710 and a 730. I wouldn't worry about it.

danbenhamou Just gettin' started!
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Post Tue Jan 24, 2012 2:16 pm
Haha, I also got q.48 v.42 and I ended up with 720... I wonder whats the secret behind GMAT

dentobizz Just gettin' started!
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Post Tue Jan 24, 2012 5:46 pm
There can be discrepancies between the split (scaled) scores and overall scores. You may want to refer to the table [/url][/list]
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BartholomewCubbins Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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Post Wed Feb 01, 2012 3:04 pm
I think it must have been because I correctly answered a question about analytic and algebraic topology of locally Euclidean metrizations of infinitely differentiable Riemannian manifolds.

Bozhe moi.

Seriously though, I have no idea. I'm of the firm belief that the GMAT is pretty stupid.

tommycanuck Just gettin' started! Default Avatar
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Post Wed Feb 01, 2012 4:02 pm
rzullo wrote:
I got the same Quant and Verbal score, but got a 710 - can anyone explain why this happens? I feel like my score was incorrectly caculated.
A factor would definitely be the timing of your test...I remember reading the last 3 years(?) is used to compare your scores and provide percentages. Don't know it officially but it sounds like a sliding window of sorts.

However, if I had to guess, the bigger factor would be that the total combined score (out of 800) takes into account independent components (Q and V) of your raw score with greater precision than even the individual breakdowns. In other words, I suspect not all specific Q and V scores are created exactly equal, and for example, if one happens to score on the "higher" ends of both of their raw Q and V scores it may result in a somewhat higher aggregate score than someone with a seemingly identical Q and V breakdown on the "lower" end.

IJR Rising GMAT Star Default Avatar
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Post Fri Feb 03, 2012 8:48 am
Wow, good thing you didn't cancel the score. Congratulations.

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