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Desperate to improve Quant, Please help, Dream shattered :(

Problem Solving — algebra and arithmetic (GMAT Focus Edition)
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Desperate to improve Quant, Please help, Dream shattered :(

by CMP.1 » Mon Dec 19, 2011 1:00 pm
Hi everyone,

Like a few others on here, I too need help in the Quant department. I have been studying for the GMAT for at least 6 months now, and invested a huge amount of time and money into this endeavour. My Maths has always been my weak point so I commissoned the help of a private tutor in order to improve in this area.

We have worked through numerous practice tests including;

MGMAT Practice tests 1-6, then reset Q bank and repeated (12 total)
GMAT Prep tests 1 & 2
800 score tests 1-5
Veritas Prep Free Practice test

In addition, We have covered the GMAT OG 12th edition and OG Quant review, and gone through a couple of the MGMAT books.

Here is my problem, and i would be deeply grateful for any suggestions as to how to improve or where to go from here:-


I have now taken the official test TWICE and obtained the same score, an appalling 480.

- October 2011 - Q20 V28

and now recently, on Friday 16th December 2011 - Q30 V25


My practice test scores have always been in the 580-600 range, and generally my English has been very good. I took a MGMAT english test the day before my test, scoring in the 97th Percentile.
I am so dejected after such a vast amount of time and effort, and my confidence is shattered. I am aiming to take an MSc in Finance this year and it looks as though my dream is slipping through my fingers.

I was confident with my maths the second time round, however when I took the test, it was as though I had never seen any of the questions in my life! Secondly, although my English is very good, my verbal scores were also appalling, and hardly indicative of my true ability.

Where am i going wrong? Is it poor mental stamina?

Just an example, I saw a Question in a practice test:

" A Computer, a printer and a monitor cost £2500. The printer and the monitor are 2/3 of the cost, and the monitor costs £100 more than printer. How much is the printer?"

For questions like the above, or like those which include problems like this, Ie Question 119 of the BTG Hard 100 questions, is there a standard concept to learn here or procedure?



I would be so grateful for any suggestions/help put my way. I am looking to take one more go at the GMAT. last chance saloon.


Chris
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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Tue Dec 20, 2011 7:13 am
CMP.1 wrote: Where am i going wrong? Is it poor mental stamina?
Hi Chris,

Given that your practice test scores are so much higher than your official scores, I can't help but think that you're having difficulties with the formal testing environment. You certainly wouldn't be the first.

I suggest that you look into some techniques for dealing with test anxiety (visualization, breathing, etc.) Find the technique(s) that works best for you. It sounds like you have a good grasp of the content. Now you need to work on preparing for the stress of test day.

Cheers,
Brent
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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Tue Dec 20, 2011 7:19 am
As far as quant prep goes, I suggest that you take a few steps back and work on the fundamentals before tackling advanced questions (such as those in the BTG Hard 100 questions).

Cheers,
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by GmatMathPro » Tue Dec 20, 2011 8:13 am
Hi Chris,

Sorry to hear about your difficulties. Here are some thoughts I have:
I was confident with my maths the second time round, however when I took the test, it was as though I had never seen any of the questions in my life!
Obviously it is true that you had never seen any of these problems in your life. But this is not a trivial point; it's something that you must consciously take into account when you are studying. When you do and review practice problems, it is imperative that you focus on the general concepts, takeaways, and tactics, rather than the specific solution to that specific problem. I guarantee you that if I could look at the problems that you took on the real GMAT, I could show you connections between most or all of them and the practice problems that you've done. The problem is that the GMAT people are geniuses at hiding those connections. As a result, if you have only a superficial understanding of the previous problems that you've done, it's very unlikely that you'll be able to make those connections. A simple example: What's 89345 + 883844? You've probably never seen that problem before in your life. But I bet you can still do it because you have a deep fundamental understanding of what it means to add two numbers. However, if I make up a new mathematical operator (let's call it '#') and I tell you that 3#9=14, you would be very ill-equipped to answer any # problems other than "What is 3#9?" because you have no real understanding of what it really means to # two numbers. In general, if your understanding of the concepts behind a problem is very superficial, then future problems will have to be very close to that problem for you to be able to make a connection. On the other hand, if your understanding is very deep, you'll be able to make connections to problems that may not seem related at all. So when you study, your focus should be on getting that deep understanding. Strive to make the GMAT quant concepts as deeply embedded in your mind as is addition.

So how do you do that? When you study, focus on quality rather than quantity. You'll be better off truly mastering 10 problems than plowing your way through 100 problems at breakneck speed. Treat a practice problem like you would an apple: don't just take one bite and throw it away; get all the nourishment you can out of it. Stacey Koprince wrote a great article on how to analyze your practice problems that you should read: https://www.manhattangmat.com/articles/a ... roblem.cfm.

Also, taking tons of practice tests is not the best way to improve. Practice tests are important, but they have to be used correctly. Each one should be thoroughly analyzed. Practice tests can be dangerous because when you take them you feel like you're REALLY WORKING HARD TO IMPROVE, so you fool yourself into thinking that you're accruing great benefits from the mere taking of the test. And if this is all you do, you will have some minor gains, mostly from increased test familiarity, but the real gains come from analyzing your results. Once again, I'll link to a Stacey Koprince article: https://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/index ... ice-tests/.
A Computer, a printer and a monitor cost £2500. The printer and the monitor are 2/3 of the cost, and the monitor costs £100 more than printer. How much is the printer?"

For questions like the above, or like those which include problems like this, Ie Question 119 of the BTG Hard 100 questions, is there a standard concept to learn here or procedure?
This is just a standard algebraic word problem. C+P+M=2500. P+M=(2/3)(2500) M=P+100. Substitute the second equation into the third: P+(P+100)=(2/3)(2500)--->2P+100=(2/3)(2500) and solve for P. Notice that we didn't even need the first equation. This is really just testing to see if you can translate word problems to equations and then solve the resulting equations while filtering out unnecessary data.
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by CMP.1 » Wed Dec 28, 2011 6:52 am
Thank you both for your advice, I am profoundly grateful for any advice regarding the GMAT. My Mother and Father are both of the opinion that the GMAT is beyond my capabilities, however I am confident in myself and my ability to do well and it is my dream to be accepted into a Masters level Finance course at a solid university.

with regards to my Quant, I do feel confident at home doing my tests, although occasionally I do feel that there are indeed concepts that I am missing. I generally try to ascertain what knowledge/procedure is required with each topic so that I may follow these in order to answer any question, however I have noticed that candidates also need to have a certain aptitude in "seeing" things in such problems.....is this actually the case?

Additionally, would either of you recommend the Manhattan GMAT Advanced Quant book? would the topics in this publication be of any significant advantage to me?

Many thanks once again for your advice, and I hope you have a great New Year


Chris

Ps I am looking to take the GMAT one last time soon, this January, and not tell anyone that I am taking it to avoid any peer pressure.
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by GmatMathPro » Wed Dec 28, 2011 9:47 am
CMP.1 wrote: Additionally, would either of you recommend the Manhattan GMAT Advanced Quant book? would the topics in this publication be of any significant advantage to me?
I think the Manhattan Advanced Quant book is an excellent resource, but I wouldn't recommend it for someone in your situation. It's like anything else: learn to walk before you run. You say your latest quant score was a 30, which is the 26th percentile. That means there's still a lot of medium level questions you're missing. If you don't fix that first, you won't even see any advanced questions.
with regards to my Quant, I do feel confident at home doing my tests, although occasionally I do feel that there are indeed concepts that I am missing. I generally try to ascertain what knowledge/procedure is required with each topic so that I may follow these in order to answer any question, however I have noticed that candidates also need to have a certain aptitude in "seeing" things in such problems.....is this actually the case?
Yes, the hard part is seeing what tactic or procedure is going to be effective. Most people who know how to use the formulas and follow the procedures well can solve most difficult math problems with a solid hint about what approach will be effective. The secret to becoming an expert problem solver is learning to generate those hints for yourself.
Ps I am looking to take the GMAT one last time soon, this January, and not tell anyone that I am taking it to avoid any peer pressure.
Glad to hear you're not giving up, but remember to try something different this time. 5-6 months of prep is more than enough time to max out your score, so either you have already maxed out your score or you're not studying the right way. Read all the expert advice you can find on the best way to study, and identify specific ways that you're going to do things differently this time around. Best of luck to you.
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by CMP.1 » Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:25 pm
Thank you once again for your advice, it really is much appreciated!

I dont want to give up because i feel all my efforts to date will have gone to waste, and I have learnt so much!

I think it may be a combination of both test day anxiety and my preparation, as the vast majority of prep has come from doing practice test after practice test.....and perhaps not learning the techniques as thoroughly as I should, but just remembering them along the way in solving problems.

My last quant score was poor I agree, however i scored in some of the MGMAT test, which supposedly, are AS hard if not harder than the GMAT itself, quant scores of around 39-43? so I am putting some of my downfall down to test day anxiety and others to a lack of preparation.

I shall try my utmost to succeed and will let BTG community know how I have done, and thank you once again for your help and consideration.


Chris


Ps thanks for the solution to my question, once id looked at it, it was actually very simple to solve!!
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