Break before studying for a retake?

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Break before studying for a retake?

by Houman » Sat Sep 21, 2013 1:02 pm
I would like to first thank everyone here for making this forum an absolute invaluable source for the business school journey.

After six months of studying part-time and working an average of 11 hours a day (including weekends), I took the GMAT this morning and scored a 630 (Q43,V34). I am planning to apply to top 20 schools and this score is certainly not sufficient. However, given that every single one of the five practice exams that I took when preparing was in the 500s, I am taking this 630 as a "small victory" on the road to 700.

My questions are:

1) Do you advise taking a couple of months off from studying? I am applying to graduate schools next year (September 2014) and would like to focus on a few projects to add to my resume. Furthermore, I am simply drained from studying in the past six months. However, do you think that I would be able to continue my progress or would the time off have negative effects?

2) Looking at scores alone, does anyone have any study suggestions? Length of study for the retake? A particular plan?

Your input and tips are greatly appreciated!
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by David@VeritasPrep » Sat Sep 21, 2013 3:25 pm
When you asked about a study break I thought that you meant a short one - like a couple of weeks. That is a good idea. However, two months might be a little too long to be away. You might start to forget a few formulas!

Why not try taking a couple of weeks away and then get back into it at a reasonable level. It sounds like your test went quite well given your practice test scores.

You should take another practice test in a couple of weeks when you are ready to get back to studying. This will provide you with information on where you are at in the various sections. Because of course the actual test does not give you any information on which questions you missed!

You can try the free Veritas practice test. This new test has a proven track record of adapting and producing a score similar to what the actual test would give you. Here is the link:https://www.veritasprep.com/gmat/free-gm ... tice-test/
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