GMAT Strategy

Just got done taking my first practice test with zero practice.

Score was 340

Math (14 correct, 22 scaled score)
Verbal (18 correct, 15 scaled score).

My GMAT is on 15th Feb, so I definately need lot of help.
I ordered KAPLAN book, OG and starting my Princeton review class from next week.

Does anyone think its possible to get 600 with 2 month of serious preparation?
Is it possible to bump score from 340(no practice) to around 620-640 with 2months and a class?


I am getting a bit nervous now!

Thanks
James

Practice test was from KAPLAN

Two quick things:

1) You took a practice test with no prep. A low score isn't a surprise. If you know nothing about the GMAT and haven't done any of the math and English stuff for a while, your score isn't going to be pretty!

2) You took a Kaplan test. They tend to underestimate your score considerably; some say 100 points or more.

I personally am not a fan of Kaplan because the tests aren't accurate, but I don't know if their methods will conflict with what you do in the PR course. The PR course comes with the Official Guide and it'll be part of your homework assignments (I did the online course), and you'll get a lot out of that. You'll also do the PR tests (those are accurate) and should be doing the official GMATPrep tests too. I would not work with the Kaplan book before you see how your course is going. It might be worth it at some point, but not yet.

Return the OG you ordered...it is free with the course as I mentioned above.

Your first PR class meeting is going to be a diagnostic test. If you've already gotten your course materials from them, you can start reviewing so you're not starting cold.

HTH...

First don't panic. A low score is just an indicator that you need more prep. Kaplan tests are not good indicators of your real score. That said 600+ is very doable with or without a prep class. It depends on the kind of person you are. For some test prep companies offer you a structured way of studying to keep you on track but come at a hefty price. Others prefer the self study route. Check out the test prep companies as they sometimes offer free events so you can try before you buy.

Thanks a lot guys of making me feel good. I am applying to UT MS Accounting, have a great GPA but their GMAT avq is 650 so I gotta make up lot of ground.

And funny thing about my GMAT was that I finished Q section with 25 min to go and V with 39 min left, and the KAPLAN test I took isn't giving me the answers so I got no clue about the mistakes I made.

By the way some of the paragraph for RC were really tough? Is it the case on real GMAT too?

Thanks folks.

From what a lot of people say, Kaplan is not good for verbal and especially RC, and is definitely harder.

Unusual to finish with so much time left. Slow yourself down and take enough time with each question so you can properly evaluate the answer choices.

Defintely, having that much time left suggests to me that you were "missing" the issue with most problems. As a basis for comparison, I usually have about two minutes left on quant and 10 minutes left on verbal! As you begin to study, you'll start to see things that weren't apparent before. This will make problems SEEM harder, but you'll get more of them correct! I always tell my students: finishing with anything more than five minutes remaining is not a good thing unless you're scoring 99th percentile. Take your time.

As for improving 300s to 600s .... in my GMAT teaching experience, such an improvement is quite rare. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it will take a lot of work. Focus on your fundamentals for now; people scoring below around 500 need work on basic math and English, not the most complex GMAT problems (e.g., permutations and combinations, really hard geometry, probability, etc.).

Good luck! I have a master's in accounting as well, so let me know if you have questions about the accounting world.