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I have NO CLUE what happened- Please read

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I have NO CLUE what happened- Please read

by Cam455 » Sun Mar 11, 2012 1:37 pm
Hi all, I just took the GMAT and have absolutely no clue what happened. I would really appreciate it if you gave this post a read.

So some background on myself. I went to a top college (graduated 3 years ago), had a solid GPA and now work in a top corporate job. I completed the MGMAT class, followed the syllabus perfectly, including doing all of the advanced sections of the strategy guides. I was diligent with my studying and while I did not make it my entire life, I was consistently putting in 12-18 hours per week for over 3.5 months. About 7 weeks ago my class ended and I took the test yesterday. Here are my practice test scores in chronological order:

MGMAT CAT: 620
MGMAT CAT: 700
MGMAT CAT: 700
MGMAT CAT: 680
MGMAT CAT: 710
MGMAT CAT: 720
GMAT PREP: 710
GMAT PREP: 720

During the last three tests I also did essays to make sure I was fine on stamina.

I took the real test and scored a 630 (Q43 V33). The thing I do not understand is how I got a great night sleep, and felt great before, during, and after the test, and somehow managed to completely bomb the test. I scored a 620 before I started studying. I was legitimately expecting to see 720 pop up on the screen when I chose to view my scores.

The only explanation I can think of is that I must have made a ton of careless errors. All other stories I have read about people bombing the actual test can typically be explained by nerves, sickness, or some identifiable mistakes made throughout the exam. What terrifies me is that I have absolutely no clue what I did wrong. I felt good throughout the whole test and thought that the difficulty level was on par with what I had been getting on my practice tests, which I was scoring very well on. It's a terrible feeling and I have no clue what to do from here. I mean I am going to take the test again in 5 weeks or so- but even if I continue studying and get some more good practice test scores under my belt, how can I ensure that the same thing doesn't happen on the actual test day again?

Thank you for reading.
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by Sheriff » Mon Mar 12, 2012 8:41 am
Hey,
First of all, relax and take it easy. You'll probably do much better on the next test, since you obviously have what it takes according to your prep tests.
I can't tell you what happened, maybe you were nervous, I don't know... did you feel on your prep tests that your verbal is a bit weaker? maybe you can work on that towards the next test?
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by Cam455 » Mon Mar 12, 2012 9:23 am
Hey thanks for the reply. On my practice tests my verbal was in the 41-43 range (did not go above or below this range on any of the tests). I actually did very little studying for verbal because I was consistently scoring high. I'm not sure what caused such a drastic drop.
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by bpeyster » Mon Mar 12, 2012 9:31 am
Hate to state the obvious, even though it's good for your sake, but you just had a bad day. Happens to everyone, and when you've worked as hard as you have for something like the GMAT, it's pretty common. What were Q/V splits on your practice tests (at least a general range for each)? Were you down in both areas? Just one? If I were you, I'd really try to dissect what went wrong from an approach standpoint. You clearly have the knowledge, and when you practice, the right approach, so it's just figuring out where you deviated. Same goes for timing.

After you look at that, I would just try to use the extra month to your advantage. You now have 30 days to improve any lingering weak areas that you maybe would have looked at again before the test if you'd had time. You also have real experience now. You know how the test feels, what the testing center is like, where you went wrong last time, and you'll be able to focus on those issues and do better.

I've said this to a few people now, but use the second go at it as an advantage, not a burden. Definitely curious to hear what your practice test splits were compared to your real splits.
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by Cam455 » Mon Mar 12, 2012 10:22 am
Thank you for your response bpeyster, it's helpful. Here are my practice test splits:


MGMAT CAT: 620 (Q33, V43)
MGMAT CAT: 700 (Q43, V41)
MGMAT CAT: 700 (Q43, V42)
MGMAT CAT: 680 (Q47, V36) - guess I had gotten below a 41 on verbal
MGMAT CAT: 710 (Q44, V42)
MGMAT CAT: 720 (Q47, V41)
GMAT PREP: 710 (Q45, V41)
GMAT PREP: 720 (Q45, V43)

Real GMAT: 630 (Q43, V33)

Any more thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
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by bpeyster » Mon Mar 12, 2012 11:29 am
So looks like you dropped a little in math and a ton in Verbal. Assuming your practice test environments were similar to the real thing, it's pretty clearly just some nerves that got you (you were remarkably consistent on your practice tests). I mentioned this before, but I really wouldn't worry about it happening again. Of course it could, but you should just turn it the other way and be positive that it won't happen again because you've been through it, know what test day feels like, know what the testing center is like, and everything else that you really can't prepare for.

One thing to really focus on is your approach, especially on Data sufficiency and verbal, where it is easier to slack off. Problem solving seems to be pretty standard - you use the approaches you know or else you can't get to an answer. I think with DS and Verbal, it is easier just to look and do it by feel. unfortunately, you study and practice so you don't do this! An approach I took for DS, CR, and SC was to make a framework for each problem. I think about 1, 2, 3, and 4 for every SC. I do every DS in the following way (Rephrase, then shorter/easier option first solved all the way out and completely proven one way or the other, then the other one, then both if necessary). I tended to get lazy in all of those, so I made sure that I had a process to stick to so I didn't.

Even so, I found that I let the pressure get to me some on verbal, and got away from what I normally did, especially cause I was so tired from the first two parts. I just don't think you can simulate the overall pressure of the test, but you now have an advantage because you've been through it before.

Let me know if that doesn't make sense. It's been a long Monday, but I really would just be confident, go back and refine a couple of skills, and then try to do better than your best practice test since you had this extra time. I see no reason why you shouldn't.
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by Cam455 » Mon Mar 12, 2012 6:25 pm
Thanks again, another helpful post. I think you might be right in that I probably reverted back to my old habits in tackling problems. My MGMAT instructor always said that for the GMAT you need to re-learn everything you've been taught about taking tests. While I did my best to train myself to automatically follow the systematic approaches you referenced in your post, thinking back I wasn't consciously thinking about the process on each and every problem. I think that this is a necessary approach that I need to take if I want to get 720+. Seeing as though I did so poorly and thought I was doing well also suggests that there were several problems that I missed a integral piece of the question. I would bet money that I took the bait answers a bunch of times.

I definitely feel as if I am over the shock phase and now am determined to get back in the game and make sure this doesn't happen again. Any specific suggestions as to study techniques for the next few weeks? Thanks a lot and I hope that this thread is able to help some other people avoid what happened to me.
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