Karan,
Thanks for your response. It seems I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I'm sure I could improve my Q-score if I were to re-take the test. Not only would I have another month to study for it, but I also scored better in each of the practice tests I took. On the other hand, I'm afraid Adcoms may think I'm crazy for re-taking the test after getting a 730 and wasting time and money that could better be spent on other parts of the application.
Funny that you would ask how I prepared for the verbal section... I didn't. I grew up in Germany and learned English in school there. My English teachers there always placed a strong emphasis on grammar and spelling, so the verbal section has always come naturally to me. Plus I've been living in the US for almost 10 years now, and I'm sure that also helped.
I knew I would have trouble with the math section. I don't particularly like math. I'm good calculating things in my head, and I have a good "feel" for numbers, so I do fine with everyday math in my job (real estate finance) and in life in general. I just don't speak algebra, and I have trouble seeing which specific math rules I need to apply to solve a given problem. I know most of them, and I can solve just about every problem if somebody gives me a nudge in the right direction - I just have trouble finding the right path by myself sometimes.
Knowing my issues with this type of math, I focused extensively on studying for the math section. I would say I spent a good 95% or more of my study time on math. I prepared about a month, maybe 2-3 nights a week for about 2-3 hours each. I know that's probably less than most people on this board, but I work long hours and cherish the little bit of time off I have, which I'd rather devote to family, friends, and hobbies than to re-learning high school math.
The materials I used were the Princeton Review guide and OG12. I went through most of the PR guide and did probably 75% of the math problems in the OG12.
I took 3 Princeton Review online tests and 2 GMATPrep Tests. The scores were as follows:
1. PR1 - 660 (week 1, baseline w/o studying)
2. PR2 - 680 (week 2)
3. PR3 - 690 (week 3)
--- took a 2-week break and studied a bit harder ---
4. GMATPrep1 - 730 (Q45/V46 - I think)
5. GMATPrep2 - 750 (Q47/V47)
I don't remember the Q/V splits on the PR tests. I took both GMATPrep tests the weekend before the actual test, which I took on a Monday. Took #1 on Saturday, then #2 on Sunday.
After the two GMATPrep tests, I was fairly confident I would at least score a Q45, and I knew I was not going to score below a V45 regardless of how stressed out or nervous I would be. Hence, I figured a 720 would be a realistic and positive result.
When I ended up seeing my 730, I didn't know how to feel about it. 730 is a great score, but I wish it had been more balanced... I would even have taken a balanced 720 (Q45/V45) over the 730 I received! I just think I caught a bad day for math, or maybe just a bad combination of math problems compared to the practice tests.
Not sure what to do now. I think my undergraduate transcript shows that I can handle quantitative courses. Carnegie Mellon is a pretty quantitative school, and I had mostly A's in the quantitative courses I took there (Calculus, Multivariate Analysis, Regression Analysis, etc). Did I like those courses? Not particularly. Was I able to handle them? Absolutely.
Do you really think it would be worth it to re-take the GMAT just to get a Q45 or higher? Or is the risk too high that it would raise a red flag since it seems almost insane to re-take the test after you've already scored in the 96% percentile overall...?
Thanks in advance!
