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Test in less than a week, expected score?

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Test in less than a week, expected score?

by chrvlachos » Fri May 29, 2015 8:42 am
Hello everyone, I've been following these forums for a while now and this is my first post. I am taking the GMAT in less than a week from now.
I have been studying for 2 months and I have taken 6 MGMAT CATs with an almost identical score of 590 Q38,V33. I also took the GMATPREP tests and here are at the scores:
GMATprep #1= 640 Q42,V37 IR 8
Gmat prep #2= 610 Q42, V31 IR 7

My goal is to score at least 650 on the official test and my "dream score" would be 700, although i believe the latter is unlikely.
My question is, whether you think it is doable?

I am planning to apply to Erasmus University Rotterdam for the CEMS/MiM program
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by [email protected] » Fri May 29, 2015 9:11 am
Hi chrvlachos,

Since your scores all seem to hover around the low 600s, it stands to reason that you would likely score in that general 'range.' However, the 'accuracy' of a CAT score is also based on how realistic YOU choose to make the CAT-taking 'process'. If you skip sections, pause the Test, take it at home, take it at a different time of day as your Official GMAT, do anything else that is unrealistic, etc., then your score is likely to be less accurate.

Most Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) on the study process to hit their respective 'peak' scores, so you could very well score higher if you put more time into studying. Since your GMAT is less than a week away, you should certainly take the Test as planned - then report back with your scores. Your 'dream' score is still achievable - it's just not likely to happen this week.

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by Ian Stewart » Fri May 29, 2015 10:32 am
You should trust your GMATPrep scores more than any other test scores if you want to estimate your level. So as a best guess, your level right now is in the 620-630 range. Assuming you perform to your abilities on test day, and don't improve between now and then, that would be your expected score. But there is some luck involved in results, because you will likely need to guess at some questions, and those guesses might go well or might not. It's not all that uncommon for luck to swing a score by 30 points, and if your level right now is truly 630, then you'll score 650+ on the GMAT about 1/4 of the time.

So it's certainly possible that you'll reach your target on your test next week. But you can increase the probability of hitting your goal by making some genuine improvement over the next seven days - you're close enough that even small improvement could dramatically improve your chances. So you should try to diagnose your strengths and weaknesses, and focus on improving any weak areas that tend to be important on the test.
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by Rich@EconomistGMAT » Fri May 29, 2015 11:47 am
Hi chrvlachos,

While we do see our students' scores vary +/- 30 points between any given attempts, we also agree that 3 months is an ideal amount of time to dedicate to studying for the GMAT. I'm also curious to know if you have any deadlines coming up quickly. If you don't get the score you're looking for, remember that business schools expect most applicants to take the GMAT more than once, so don't be discouraged if you're off the mark a bit.

Best,
Rich
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by chrvlachos » Sat May 30, 2015 5:44 am
Thank you everyone for your advice! I will get back to you in a few days and let you know what my score was.
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by MartyMurray » Sat May 30, 2015 6:10 am
Determination and intensity can be key.

I have seen myself and others affect GMAT scoring levels by varying the degrees of determination and intensity we bring to the test.

People talk about bogging down during the verbal section, for instance. I believe that this just won't happen if one is super determined to rock the test. C'mon, that verbal section is only 75 minutes long and even the longest RC passages are made up of just a few paragraphs. Just keep having at it.

I have also found that being determined to get right answers can make all the difference, on quant and maybe especially on verbal. I mean it can be so easy to look over a verbal question and kind of conclude, "Well I don't fully get it, but I did my best," when with just a little more determination and intensity one could have found the right answer.

So I guess part of the answer to your question depends on how determined you are to rock this thing and on how intensely you seek to get right answer after right answer.
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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Sat May 30, 2015 7:58 am
chrvlachos wrote:Hello everyone, I've been following these forums for a while now and this is my first post. I am taking the GMAT in less than a week from now.
I have been studying for 2 months and I have taken 6 MGMAT CATs with an almost identical score of 590 Q38,V33. I also took the GMATPREP tests and here are at the scores:
GMATprep #1= 640 Q42,V37 IR 8
Gmat prep #2= 610 Q42, V31 IR 7

My goal is to score at least 650 on the official test and my "dream score" would be 700, although i believe the latter is unlikely.
My question is, whether you think it is doable?

I am planning to apply to Erasmus University Rotterdam for the CEMS/MiM program
The answer to your question partially depends on what sort of test-taker you are. Some people rise to the challenge of the testing environment and others crumble. How are you under pressure?

As part of your preparation, I think it's a good idea to work on the mental/confidence aspect of the test. I'm fond of positive visualization, but everyone needs to find the strategy that works best for them.

To this end, you may be interested in reading the following articles:
- https://www.gmatprepnow.com/articles/min ... -destroyer
- https://www.gmatprepnow.com/articles/jun ... g-big-gmat

Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
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by DavidG@VeritasPrep » Sat May 30, 2015 8:02 am
I'll make my daily plea for the benefits of mindfulness meditation: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archi ... on/275564/

I'd do one a day until the test: https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=jon ... 9A10BE1560
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by chrvlachos » Tue Jun 02, 2015 9:51 am
So like I said , I would update you after my official test.
The exam was scheduled for today at 9:30 local time, I arrived there 30 minutes early and following the procedure to the letter. Unfortunately there was an issue with the system and the administrator was unable to access the system and initiate the exam. He made contact with Pearson and the exam was pushed back for more than 75 minutes. After such a delay which was not caused by the manager or us, I decided to not proceed with the exam today and ask for a reschedule. If I had taken this test, 1) the delay would have probably taken its toll on my score and 2) At 2 pm I had an appointment i couldn't miss (I had allowed 4 hours and 30 minutes in my schedule for the exam)

Therefore as I am waiting for the official answer by Pearson about this issue, I am planning to take the GMAT in late July in order to improve further on my weak side, which is the quantitative section. My target is to improve from about 42 to 46+ on this section. What would you recommend? ( I find that the questions in the OG that are classified as "hard" in the online tool to be inadequate for someone who is targeting higher than 650)

Thanks in advance
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by MartyMurray » Tue Jun 02, 2015 11:10 am
chrvlachos wrote:I am planning to take the GMAT in late July in order to improve further on my weak side, which is the quantitative section. My target is to improve from about 42 to 46+ on this section. What would you recommend? ( I find that the questions in the OG that are classified as "hard" in the online tool to be inadequate for someone who is targeting higher than 650)
Go over those past mock tests with or without using a formal error log and figure out what are you weaker areas in quant, and I don't mean three of them; I mean at least eight or ten. You can tell that you are weaker in an area by looking at which questions you got wrong, which took forever and which you don't even like seeing appear on the screen. You may also just know somehow that you are not comfortable dealing with certain types of quant questions. Then focus on each of those weaker areas until you can rock questions of each type.

When I say focus on each I mean learn all about them and do at least maybe two or three dozen questions of each type, doing similar questions one after the other, so that you really get a sense of how to get those right. This is different from working via the Official Guide which does not have great concentrations of similar problems.

Who does have concentrations of similar quant problems? The BellCurves GMAT question bank does, I believe Grockit does, though I am not as familiar with their question bank, and to a degree the GMAT Club tests question bank does.

I and others have gotten a lot of use out of the BellCurves question bank, which can be broken down into dozens of categories of questions. While I admit the explanations are not always that great, you do the hardest questions in each category in that bank and you will be well on you way. (BellCurves is not a great source of verbal questions, by the way.) To access the bank you just need to set up a GMAT practice account.

Another decent source of tricky quant questions, though they are not broken down into categories, is the Veritas Question Bank. I am sure there are others. I come upon new sets all the time.

Meanwhile, remember to work on verbal too. You don't want to show up at the test and totally rock quant and get SMOKED on verbal. That can happen if you slack off, or at least you might be a little unsatisfied with your verbal section score.
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