Gh SwarnZ wrote:My scheduled date for GMAT exam is in mid December 2015. Now I have less than 30 days in hand before the exam. Prior to my registration, I did study Manhattan verbal & quant both and solved most of the problems (not entirely) from Official guide (13th edition) for about 4/5 months. But clearly it was not enough. I took my first mock two weeks ago and it was a disaster with less than 500 score. I am absolutely disappointed and least motivated to study further to improve my score and appear for the next mock. I am thinking of rescheduling the exam for February 2016. I need your advice!
Thanks in advance!
Most test-takers struggle on their first exam, no matter how much prep they've done before it. Think of it this way: there are two domains in which you want to become proficient before taking the GMAT: one is the test's content, and the other is test-taking strategy. It sounds like you've been focusing almost exclusively on content so far. If you're able to solve every question in the Official Guide, for example, but it takes you an average of 3-4 minutes per question to do it, well, then you know that your approach isn't suitable for the GMAT. So breakdown the test you just took. Categorize your mistakes: (did you really not understand the math being tested? were there opportunities to use a simple strategy that you missed? did you spend too much time on some questions and then have to rush through others that you knew how to do? etc.) Make notes, and boil those notes down to 4-5 strategic adjustments to make before the next test. Do a little drilling. Then take another test.
As for whether to push back the test, I feel like there's no reason to agonize over this decision. If you don't feel ready, sure, push it back. But because you can cancel your score, there's no real cost beyond the fee/time if you sit for the exam and don't get the score you want.
