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Low GMAT Score, Should I consider GRE instead?

by talalazam » Sun Feb 05, 2017 8:57 am
Hi Everyone,

I just gave GMAT a week ago with 1 month preparation and scored a disappointing 500 (Q38 V20) but AWA 6.0 which sadly doesn't mean much. I started my preparation by taking a GMATPrep test to see where I stand. I scored a 480 (Q37 V20) and realized a month might not just be enough but since my work is based on a drilling rig, I work for 3 weeks off and get 3 weeks off. I took an additional week off (which wasn't easy) for the preparation and studied for 5-6 hours daily.

I focused on Quant for the first 3 weeks and on my second GMATPrep test I improved from Q37 to Q45. However, the Verbal score was still a sad story since I had not started studying for it. I studied for the verbal in the last week and felt that I was improving as I was getting a decent amount of questions on the OG right. However, I took my 3rd CAT 2 days before the test and scored 530 with Verbal still at 20.

Since my day is pretty much occupied at Rig site, I can manage to study during my off days only. I personally think I can improve my score with the E-GMAT verbal module but in all fairness, but achieving my target score of at least 600 would require a lot of doing.

I am now inclined towards giving the GRE instead. I gave one GRE Powerprep test and scored 308 on the untimed test (Q165, V143) although the math seem way to easy, I feel that it would a bit tougher on the actual test. Also, the GRE requires lesser practice as compared to the GMAT and I somehow feel more at home with the GRE. I am still torn between either focusing on the GRE or giving the GMAT a second chance.

I am back at rig site and I need some advice on which test to go for. I want to plan my strategy accordingly so that I can start the the preparation as soon as I leave for off days (25 days for preperation).
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by [email protected] » Sun Feb 05, 2017 10:27 am
Hi talalazam,

Based on what you've described, there are a number of different issues to discuss:

1) GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +/- 30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function, most your various score results show that you essentially performed the same each time (+/- a few points). As such, your general ability level is right around a 500 or so. Raising that to a 600+ will likely take at least 2 months of consistent, guided study. Based on your situation, this is going to be an issue because...

2) Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores, so it's likely that you just have not put in enough consistent study yet to hit your goal score. From what you describe, you think that you don't have time to study when you're at your job site - so it will take longer (and will likely be more difficult) for you to improve your Test-taking skills. GMAT skills 'fade' over time, and it's tough to get into a consistent routine if you end up essentially taking 3 weeks 'off' from your studies at a time.

3) You might very well find the GRE to be easier than the GMAT. The only evidence that you have of this is an UNTIMED GRE - and that is NOT a realistic way to measure your abilities on that Exam. To properly do so, you have to take a realistic FULL GRE (with both Essays and you must take the Exam TIMED). Until you have done that, there's no way to really know how you might actually score on that Exam.

4) While many Schools will accept both the GMAT and the GRE as part of the application process, some of them will not. As such, before you switch Exams, you should make sure that the Schools/Programs that you plan to apply to will accept the GRE.

What Schools are you planning to apply to?
When are you planning to apply?

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by talalazam » Sun Feb 05, 2017 9:28 pm
[email protected] wrote:Hi talalazam,

Based on what you've described, there are a number of different issues to discuss:

1) GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +/- 30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function, most your various score results show that you essentially performed the same each time (+/- a few points). As such, your general ability level is right around a 500 or so. Raising that to a 600+ will likely take at least 2 months of consistent, guided study. Based on your situation, this is going to be an issue because...

2) Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores, so it's likely that you just have not put in enough consistent study yet to hit your goal score. From what you describe, you think that you don't have time to study when you're at your job site - so it will take longer (and will likely be more difficult) for you to improve your Test-taking skills. GMAT skills 'fade' over time, and it's tough to get into a consistent routine if you end up essentially taking 3 weeks 'off' from your studies at a time.

3) You might very well find the GRE to be easier than the GMAT. The only evidence that you have of this is an UNTIMED GRE - and that is NOT a realistic way to measure your abilities on that Exam. To properly do so, you have to take a realistic FULL GRE (with both Essays and you must take the Exam TIMED). Until you have done that, there's no way to really know how you might actually score on that Exam.

4) While many Schools will accept both the GMAT and the GRE as part of the application process, some of them will not. As such, before you switch Exams, you should make sure that the Schools/Programs that you plan to apply to will accept the GRE.

What Schools are you planning to apply to?
When are you planning to apply?

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

I completely agree that the GMATprep scores are the most accurate predictor of the actual score. When I gave my 3rd CAT, I knew my score would be similar to this. To be honest, I underestimated the test thinking I would make it through with a months preparation however couple of days before the test I had a feeling that I under studied. Since I had made up my mind to give the test at least one, I now have the basis idea of the whole process.

As for the GRE, untimed does make it a bit vague but I feel I could pace my self to complete the test in if timed also. The schools that I am targetting all accept the GRE and have stated their average GRE's scores also.
These include:

USA: Pittsburgh Katz, Mays School, PSU Smeal, Purdue, Oklahoma Price, Georgia Terry, UT Dallas, Boston College, Ohio state, SMU, Arizona State, UC Irvine, UCONN. (Some of these are reach schools which I can get into if I manage to score somewhere in 310-315 and I would be aiming to score around 315).
Canada: Alberta, UBC and Schulich

Other aspects of my profile are pretty strong. Solid Work experience of over 4 years in Oil Industry. Good GPA and Engineering graduate from a top school in my country. I can also get strong recommendations from my managers that beef up my profile in case the scores turn out to be average.

PS: I will have 25 full days for the GRE Preparation.

Your suggestion on the matter would be great help Rich !
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by [email protected] » Mon Feb 06, 2017 9:44 am
Hi talalazam,

If you're going to shift to the GRE, then we still need a realistic 'baseline' score to assess your skills - and the untimed GRE that you took is NOT enough. As such, you would need to start by taking a new, FULL-LENGTH GRE (with both essays) and do so in a realistic fashion (re: timed, away from your home, at the same time of day that you would take the Official GRE, etc.).

You're going to run into a similar 'issue' to the one that you had with the GMAT. You likely need 60-90 days of consistent study, but you claim to have just 25 days of potential study time. Unfortunately, unless you can extend your study period, there will be a limit to how high you can score.

1) What are the application deadlines that you're facing?

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by Bara » Mon Feb 06, 2017 10:01 am
You need to take a full timed GRE. That's going to give you an initial hit on what direction to go in.

The other thing to consider, but should be a minor point is if the GMAT will be important for you beyond business schools. Sometimes jobs are interested in that score, so it functions more than just getting you into an MBA program, albeit it's most important function.

Given your time schedule, I highly suggest you take full inventory or have an evaluation done of your performance. Beyond score, it's more important to recognize not only THAT you're getting questions wrong but HOW you're getting them wrong. Identifying patterns in HOW you answer will inform how you're thinking (incorrectly) and help direct your study efforts and subsequent performance.

We'd also recommend that you consider getting a study plan created for your particular needs in terms of time and content (with the inventory patterns and needs sets). We always advocate studying smarter, not harder...


Good Luck!

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by talalazam » Mon Feb 06, 2017 3:31 pm
[email protected] wrote:Hi talalazam,

If you're going to shift to the GRE, then we still need a realistic 'baseline' score to assess your skills - and the untimed GRE that you took is NOT enough. As such, you would need to start by taking a new, FULL-LENGTH GRE (with both essays) and do so in a realistic fashion (re: timed, away from your home, at the same time of day that you would take the Official GRE, etc.).

You're going to run into a similar 'issue' to the one that you had with the GMAT. You likely need 60-90 days of consistent study, but you claim to have just 25 days of potential study time. Unfortunately, unless you can extend your study period, there will be a limit to how high you can score.

1) What are the application deadlines that you're facing?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Hi Rich,
Thank you for writing back. I don't have much work lined up for tomorrow so I'll try to get some alone time for a full timed test and get back to you with the score. That will also provide a much realistic comparison on my performance on both tests.

Sad part is, I feel if given adequate time like 2 months, I could manage to get around 600 as I started to get a hold of some of the common strategies to tackle the Quant questions, but the traits of the GMAT are such that they tend to fade away if not practiced daily. What would be your best recommendation in a situation like this?
I am currently going through the Manhattan GRE guides and 5lb Questions here at the Rig site, and I time all my questions. I spend one hour daily before bed time. I am aiming at getting the max amount of Quant section covered by the time I head for off days (29th Feb) and go full throttle during my 25 days of prep with much of the focus on Verbal.

For the schools that I mentioned, the application deadlines vary from Mid of March to Mid of May. I want to en-roll for this year's Fall session somehow. I am planning to sit in for the GRE around 25-26th of March.
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by Bara » Mon Feb 06, 2017 3:48 pm
Check out Bell Curves for Quant/GMAT.

They'll keep you on your toes and their math is great.
Verbal....not so much.

An evaluation might be in order so you study smarter rather than harder. Just more $.02.
Bara Sapir, MA, CHt, CNLP
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TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McA4aqCNS-c
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by talalazam » Mon Feb 06, 2017 3:50 pm
Bara wrote:Check out Bell Curves for Quant/GMAT.

They'll keep you on your toes and their math is great.
Verbal....not so much.

An evaluation might be in order so you study smarter rather than harder. Just more $.02.
Thanks Bara,
I'll give that a look.
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by Ali Tariq » Mon Feb 06, 2017 8:44 pm
talalazam wrote:Hi Everyone,

I just gave GMAT a week ago with 1 month preparation and scored a disappointing 500 (Q38 V20) but AWA 6.0 which sadly doesn't mean much. I started my preparation by taking a GMATPrep test to see where I stand. I scored a 480 (Q37 V20) and realized a month might not just be enough but since my work is based on a drilling rig, I work for 3 weeks off and get 3 weeks off. I took an additional week off (which wasn't easy) for the preparation and studied for 5-6 hours daily.

I focused on Quant for the first 3 weeks and on my second GMATPrep test I improved from Q37 to Q45. However, the Verbal score was still a sad story since I had not started studying for it. I studied for the verbal in the last week and felt that I was improving as I was getting a decent amount of questions on the OG right. However, I took my 3rd CAT 2 days before the test and scored 530 with Verbal still at 20.

Since my day is pretty much occupied at Rig site, I can manage to study during my off days only. I personally think I can improve my score with the E-GMAT verbal module but in all fairness, but achieving my target score of at least 600 would require a lot of doing.

I am now inclined towards giving the GRE instead. I gave one GRE Powerprep test and scored 308 on the untimed test (Q165, V143) although the math seem way to easy, I feel that it would a bit tougher on the actual test. Also, the GRE requires lesser practice as compared to the GMAT and I somehow feel more at home with the GRE. I am still torn between either focusing on the GRE or giving the GMAT a second chance.

I am back at rig site and I need some advice on which test to go for. I want to plan my strategy accordingly so that I can start the the preparation as soon as I leave for off days (25 days for preperation).
No need to go for GRE.
Work on GMAT verbal section instead.
Since you have some serious time constraint issues, i suggest that you work on SC .
Do let me know if i can be of any help.
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by talalazam » Fri Feb 10, 2017 9:31 am
talalazam wrote:
Bara wrote:Check out Bell Curves for Quant/GMAT.

They'll keep you on your toes and their math is great.
Verbal....not so much.

An evaluation might be in order so you study smarter rather than harder. Just more $.02.
Thanks Bara,
I'll give that a look.
Hi,
I took a timed GRE exam (Princeton review) today in one go, away from any distractions and sitting at a desk. However, I attempted one essay instead of both.

I got 5 wrong on the Qunantataive part and 16 on the Verbal section. I believe the breakdown turns out to be Q165 V144 (Total 309). I think the Maths on the Princeton tests is easy like it is in the Powerprep software or my previous GMAT Quant preparation is helping me here.

Keeping this score in view, what would you folks suggest I should focus on. I have 3 weeks for preparation at field with 1-2 hours daily study and 3 full fledge weeks at home in March before I take the test. Should I start working on my GRE or stick with the GMAT. I personally feel a bit more comfortable with the GRE but I think the Verbal on the GRE is twice as tough to improve as it is for the GMAT.
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by talalazam » Sun Feb 12, 2017 1:34 am
talalazam wrote:
talalazam wrote:
Bara wrote:Check out Bell Curves for Quant/GMAT.

They'll keep you on your toes and their math is great.
Verbal....not so much.

An evaluation might be in order so you study smarter rather than harder. Just more $.02.
Thanks Bara,
I'll give that a look.
Hi,
I took a timed GRE exam (Princeton review) today in one go, away from any distractions and sitting at a desk. However, I attempted one essay instead of both.

I got 5 wrong on the Qunantataive part and 16 on the Verbal section. I believe the breakdown turns out to be Q165 V144 (Total 309). I think the Maths on the Princeton tests is easy like it is in the Powerprep software or my previous GMAT Quant preparation is helping me here.

Keeping this score in view, what would you folks suggest I should focus on. I have 3 weeks for preparation at field with 1-2 hours daily study and 3 full fledge weeks at home in March before I take the test. Should I start working on my GRE or stick with the GMAT. I personally feel a bit more comfortable with the GRE but I think the Verbal on the GRE is twice as tough to improve as it is for the GMAT.
Hoping to hear back from the experts.
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by MartyMurray » Tue Feb 14, 2017 9:13 am
Hi,
I took a timed GRE exam (Princeton review) today in one go, away from any distractions and sitting at a desk. However, I attempted one essay instead of both.

I got 5 wrong on the Qunantataive part and 16 on the Verbal section. I believe the breakdown turns out to be Q165 V144 (Total 309). I think the Maths on the Princeton tests is easy like it is in the Powerprep software or my previous GMAT Quant preparation is helping me here.

Keeping this score in view, what would you folks suggest I should focus on. I have 3 weeks for preparation at field with 1-2 hours daily study and 3 full fledge weeks at home in March before I take the test. Should I start working on my GRE or stick with the GMAT. I personally feel a bit more comfortable with the GRE but I think the Verbal on the GRE is twice as tough to improve as it is for the GMAT.

talalazam
Hi talalazam.

Here's my view.

While GMAT skills do fade some over time, they don't fade THAT fast. Also, I suspect that you could put in at least a little time every day on the rig. So let's be real here. You can train effectively for the GMAT, by going at it hard during your off weeks and doing some questions every day when you are on the rig.

Also, GMAT verbal skills barely fade at all. Scoring hign on GMAT verbal is to a large degree about learning to notice details and to use solid processes for arriving at answers, the types of things that once learned tend to stick with you. So you could work on GMAT verbal during your off weeks and develop skills that will remain strong, especially if you do even a few verbal questions a day while you are on the rig.

Meanwhile, do quant skills fade? The answer depends on what types of quant skills you develop. If you were to use a lot of memorization, what you memorized might fade. Deeper, clearer understanding of concepts and skills like use of logic tend to stick around longer.

So overall, I think that if you were to use a logic based approach to verbal and if you were to do some refresher practice each day on the rig, maybe practice made up of a few verbal questions and a mixed set of a few quant questions, you could learn to score at or above the 600 level.
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