Suggestions on Improving QA score

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piyushkush: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 7; Joined: Sat Jun 04, 2011 9:47 amFollowed by: 1 member

by piyushkush » Thu Jan 22, 2015 4:48 pm

Hi All,

I have to seek some expert advice on this. I am average in QA and even without any preparation, have scored 45 in GMATprep software in QA. This is my base score and I want to improve on this to reach to 48-49.

On analysis I realized that I am scoring very dismal on DS. What is the best way to solve DS questions? Below is the split of right/wrong which I got in my first attempt in GMAT Prep.

PS
CORRECT INCORRECT % Correct
12 7 63.15789474
QS
CORRECT INCORRECT % Correct
6 12 33.33333333

I need some suggestions please.

Regards,
piyushkush

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Data Sufficiency | Thu Jan 22, 2015 4:48 pm

GMAT/MBA Expert

[email protected]: Elite Legendary Member; Posts: 10392; Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2013 6:38 pmFollowed by: 511 members; Location: Palo Alto, CA; Thanked: 2867 times; GMAT Score:800

by [email protected] » Thu Jan 22, 2015 7:18 pm

Hi piyushkush,

DS questions are unique to the GMAT, so every Test Taker needs some time and practice to "get used to" the format of these questions. DS questions are often based on Number Properties (the little "rules" that dictate how math "works") and patterns, so beyond the basic math skills you'll need, you'll also benefit from knowing Number Properties and using approaches such as TESTing VALUES to find the patterns that aren't immediately obvious.

You ask about 'advice' on dealing with DS questions, but I'm curious what resources have you been using during your studies? What have you learned so far?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Contact Rich at [email protected]

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piyushkush: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 7; Joined: Sat Jun 04, 2011 9:47 amFollowed by: 1 member

by piyushkush » Thu Jan 22, 2015 7:38 pm

Thanks for replying. Currently, I am going through "total gmat for maths". Also I have kaplan for QA.

Regards,
piyushkush

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GMAT/MBA Expert

Brent@GMATPrepNow: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 16207; Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2008 6:26 pmFollowed by: 1268 members; Location: Vancouver, BC; Thanked: 5254 times; GMAT Score:770

by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Fri Jan 23, 2015 7:40 am

piyushkush wrote: On analysis I realized that I am scoring very dismal on DS. What is the best way to solve DS questions? Below is the split of right/wrong which I got in my first attempt in GMAT Prep.
piyushkush

Hi Piyushkush,

Your situation is very common among people preparing for the GMAT. The truth of the matter is that EVERYONE struggles with Data Sufficiency (DS) questions at first. Keep in mind that this question type is unique to the GMAT, so it's totally foreign territory.

It just takes time for the concepts and strategies to become secondary, at which point you may come to find that DS questions are actually easier than Problem Solving questions.

I could start listing dozens of DS strategies and common mistakes (like confusing the answer to sufficiency question to the answer to the target question), but it's easier to just direct you to our free set of videos that cover everything you need to know to tackle DS questions: https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gmat-data-sufficiency

Cheers,
Brent

Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com

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Matt@VeritasPrep: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 2630; Joined: Wed Sep 12, 2012 3:32 pmFollowed by: 119 members; Location: East Bay all the way; Thanked: 625 times; GMAT Score:780

by Matt@VeritasPrep » Sun Jan 25, 2015 8:29 pm

You should be fine: if you're starting with a Q45, then you should be able to get to Q48 or Q49 pretty quickly, especially if the only issue is the DS format. Once you get what the questions are asking, you should be able to do as well (or better!) on DS as you do on PS. If you want a place to get started, our Data Sufficiency book is available for free on our website - check it out!

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