I just took the GMAT earlier today and I am completely shattered by the result.
580 - 31Q - 39V
5 months of dedicated study
A Veritas prep course about a year ago
All the veritas books
OG 11 and 12.
GMAC and Manhattan GMAT practice tests
I had been scoring in the mid to high 600's but as the summer progressed I noticed my Quant scores started to decrease. Eventually I started fluctuating wildly from 33-44Q on the GMAC practice tests percentile. My verbal has consistently stayed in the high 80's low 90th percentile range.
I had plenty of sleep and felt good on the test day. No issues whatsoever, I can't even blame it on a bad breakfast or an awkward test time. The only hiccup occurred when I began the quant section. I had an insane first question and I flailed at it for about 5 minutes. I remembered how important the first question was but I was forced to abandon the question and just guess. I tried to rally but eventually the test just pushed me into lower percentile questions. I finished quant early and that has never been a good indicator for me. Later in the test I was hit with about 3 permutation questions one of which involved a circle configuration with set seating arrangements...I was done for on the quant. The quant questions seemed like a more refined mix of the OG and Veritas material. I can't say I was completely prepared for it and I definitely don't remember studying for these exact types of problems. I wasn't stressed but I probably lost my nerve and confidence on the early quant questions and just train wrecked the rest of the math portion.
The verbal section seemed easier than what I had been prepared for. The SC and CR questions were easier for me but the RC was pretty brutal. I know I did well on RC and CR but my final V score has always depended on the type of SC correction problems that appear and there were a few obscure grammar rules that I wasn't prepared for. If only I hadn't neglected to care about grammar as a kid.
It seems I plateaued in mid-summer and even though my knowledge base and experience with this test has greatly improved I have absolutely nothing to show for it. I'm also extremely frustrated because it seems I have exhausted all possible avenues to improve my score on this test except to leave it up to chance again. I really don't have $250 to just blow on another test like this but I'll just have to find a way.
I know I can increase my sentence correction ability and land myself in or above the 90th percentile on my verbal scores. On the quant side...let's just say that I struggled with math my whole life so there was an intense amount of ground to cover. I know more math than I ever have and I was more than hanging in there with my study partner who landed a 710 with a 42Q.
I guess that about settles it. I had all the preparation and just dropped the ball. If I retest I'm going to have to re-test in Japan. I'm leaving to start a job there in about a week and I'll be there for the next year. After dealing with jet lag, and a new culture I'm not sure I'll have the focus or time to try and Beat the GMAT. I don't know if I can stop myself from having another quant train wreck...
580 - 31Q - 39V
5 months of dedicated study
A Veritas prep course about a year ago
All the veritas books
OG 11 and 12.
GMAC and Manhattan GMAT practice tests
I had been scoring in the mid to high 600's but as the summer progressed I noticed my Quant scores started to decrease. Eventually I started fluctuating wildly from 33-44Q on the GMAC practice tests percentile. My verbal has consistently stayed in the high 80's low 90th percentile range.
I had plenty of sleep and felt good on the test day. No issues whatsoever, I can't even blame it on a bad breakfast or an awkward test time. The only hiccup occurred when I began the quant section. I had an insane first question and I flailed at it for about 5 minutes. I remembered how important the first question was but I was forced to abandon the question and just guess. I tried to rally but eventually the test just pushed me into lower percentile questions. I finished quant early and that has never been a good indicator for me. Later in the test I was hit with about 3 permutation questions one of which involved a circle configuration with set seating arrangements...I was done for on the quant. The quant questions seemed like a more refined mix of the OG and Veritas material. I can't say I was completely prepared for it and I definitely don't remember studying for these exact types of problems. I wasn't stressed but I probably lost my nerve and confidence on the early quant questions and just train wrecked the rest of the math portion.
The verbal section seemed easier than what I had been prepared for. The SC and CR questions were easier for me but the RC was pretty brutal. I know I did well on RC and CR but my final V score has always depended on the type of SC correction problems that appear and there were a few obscure grammar rules that I wasn't prepared for. If only I hadn't neglected to care about grammar as a kid.
It seems I plateaued in mid-summer and even though my knowledge base and experience with this test has greatly improved I have absolutely nothing to show for it. I'm also extremely frustrated because it seems I have exhausted all possible avenues to improve my score on this test except to leave it up to chance again. I really don't have $250 to just blow on another test like this but I'll just have to find a way.
I know I can increase my sentence correction ability and land myself in or above the 90th percentile on my verbal scores. On the quant side...let's just say that I struggled with math my whole life so there was an intense amount of ground to cover. I know more math than I ever have and I was more than hanging in there with my study partner who landed a 710 with a 42Q.
I guess that about settles it. I had all the preparation and just dropped the ball. If I retest I'm going to have to re-test in Japan. I'm leaving to start a job there in about a week and I'll be there for the next year. After dealing with jet lag, and a new culture I'm not sure I'll have the focus or time to try and Beat the GMAT. I don't know if I can stop myself from having another quant train wreck...
