GMAT Strategy

Hi everyone,

I need advice for improving my GMAT score. I’m been studying on my own and I am not sure whether I should try to seek help from a course, private tutoring, etc.

Here’s a little background:

GMAT Prep:

1st test: 650 ( q. 44, v. 32)
2nd test: 640 ( q. 43, v. 32 – despite 1.5 month of studying)

I did a lot of practice problems out of Kaplan Premier and the CD that came with the prep book. I also used the OG 11 and did some supplement problems from the OG Quant and Verbal books.

Real GMAT on Nov. 26, 2007:

560 ( q. 42, v. 26) AWA: 6

I felt incredible rushed during the test. My timing was off because I was spending too much time trying to get the first 10 problems right in each section. I was also very nervous. The pressure to do well was really getting to me.

Studying plan for the 2nd attempt:

For the second time around, I did everything timed (which I didn’t do the first time around). I made flash cards of key concepts and made a spreadsheet that tracked all the problems I tackled and what I did right, what I did wrong, and what I could have done differently.

I really focused on the quality of studying instead of quantity of studying. I focused more on really understanding the problems than doing tons and tons of problems. I bought the MGMAT Sentence Correction book and found it very useful. I almost exhausted the OG #11 and the supplement guides.

MGMAT # 1: 600 ( q. 42, v. 32)
MGMAT #2: 670 ( q. 45, v. 36)

Real GMAT #2 on Feb. 9, 2008:

570 ( q. 42, v. 27) AWA: 5.5

I was less nervous and the timing was better. However, I was still short on time for both sections at the very end. My guess is that I had 10 mins to do 8 problems in quant and probably the same timing situation for verbal. The first time I took the GMAT, I felt okay tackling the verbal section. For the second test, I felt like the verbal was harder. I had trouble spotting the errors in the SC. The sentences were long and very complex. I had been doing very well on SC problems prior to the test with the help of MGMAT, but did feel confident about a lot of the questions during the test.

I felt I did better on the RC than the first time because I took notes the second time around and did not take notes the first time. The CR section felt difficult both times.

At the end of the test, I was once again very tired during verbal and started to lose concentration. This was true for both attempts at the GMAT.

While prepping for the GMAT, sometimes I didn’t have time to take a full practice test in one seating and so I had to take sections separately. I wonder if that affected my practice scores because I was much more focused since I didn’t take all sections at once.

I am pretty disappointed with the fact that my practice tests do not reflect my real GMAT score and now I am desperately looking for advice on how to improve my score. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

mh,

From what i read i feel that you misidentified your problems. Your biggest weakness (to my view) is Speed. So you should focus on Time before anything else.

I faced similar issues as you in my GMAT attempt, so i can relate to you in many ways. Firstly, while i was studying my SC used to be very strong too. And then when i started giving mock exams my SC skills started getting worse. Secondly, even i had timing issues and felt rushed all the time.

Here is how i fixed my problems. I started doing practice problems in sets. Sets of 20 questions of each VERBAL and MATH. I would give myself 25 min to do the VERBAL and 30 min to do the MATH. I know this is hard but i don't think there is any other way to fix this than simulating extreme conditions.

Start keeping a log of errors....try and used MGMAT's stopwatch for maintaining records if you dont wanna maintain logs yourself.

You still have lots of resources left like the MGMAT CAT exams, retired official tests, OG 10. So use these resources wisely and stick to learning from good resources with good explanations.

Start doing tough RC's from LSAT books. They help you maintain high concentration level for long periods.

Feel free to ask me any questions. Dont be hasty in scheduling the next GMAT exam....take your time and hit it hard the 3rd time.

Raulito

In addition to Raul's fantastic post I'd also advise that you abandon concentrating on getting the first ten or so questions right. All questions are equally important. Over-focusing on the first x questions might be one reason why you get tired towards the end of the test.

Also, try to sit for 2-3 hours of practice. In my opinion this is the best way to improve stamina and keep focus for 3 hours on the actual test.

Hi,

In addittion to what Rahul and Parore I would suggest you to take some classes.

What I understand is you are not able to get the 600+ question category right. As long as you dont find a way out to crack the difficult set of problems you will see no change in your scores.

You should give MGMAT online free CAT. If you have any MGMAT books you can get 6 more free tests. The best part of this tests are there is a detailed report which can be generated. This will show exactly what I was speaking earlier, the difficulty level of questions you are able to answer, the time taken to answer each question and many more. This will help you identify your weak areas which you can then improve. There are lot of posts by those who scored well in GMAT which you can use as your baseline and work on it.

Try to monitor your progress vs those whose who have met your target score. For example if your target score is 650, check how students scoring 650 scored in other GMAT CATS. When you tend to get similiar score only then book your test. Please donot just rely on GMATPrep as after reading OG you are bound to get more answers in GPREP right.

Lastly download latest GMATPrep software as it keeps updating.

Best of luck and you will surely beat the gmat

Thanks everyone for the advice.

Raulito, I like your timing suggestions. When I was studying for the 2nd GMAT attempt, I tried to give myself 1 min to do SC, 1.5 min to do CR and 2 min x # of problems for each RC passage + questions. I also gave myself 1.5 for DS and 2 for PS. I will continue to do that.

Thanks for offering future assistance. I really appreciate it.

parore26, yes I gave up on focusing on the first ten problems. It was a horrible strategy!

blue_lotus, any particular class you recommend? I've taken 2 MGMAT practice exams (600 and 670 - scores located in my initial post). I am getting the 600-700 problems correct and even some 700-800 problems right. I agree with you that the break down / error log is very useful. I just can't figure out why I can't score 600+ when my practice exams are consistently 600+.

Do you think a class can help me identify what I'm doing wrong since I am scoring 600 above and closer to 650 later in my prep?

Thanks again for all the advice!

Also, despite lots of studying my practice scores are pretty much the same. I have a lot of new material that I can go to as Raulito mentioned, but I'm concerned I am not studying effectively.

I'm reluctant to spend money on a class or a private tutor because studying and motivation are not my problems. But the fact that I am not doing well on the test or improving my score despite a lot of studying may warrent as valid reasons to find help outside. Any thoughts?

MH,

The key is to study quality material rather than go for quantity.

This is what i would like you to do and this will take some time. Look at all the mock tests you have given so far and all the practice questions that you have record of.

The point is to identify specific areas where you are not scoring well. Just looking at your scores...you have lots of room for improvement in Math and Verbal. So identify where exactly you doing wrong and correct that.

Also start doing some harder problems. this helps test your fundamentals. A good source for harder problems are the forums likes this one. When people post questions...means that they couldn't find answers easily. So start attempting to solve them in under 2 min.

HTH

Raulito