GMAT Strategy

Hi guys,

I don't often post on here but I'm getting a little stressed out with my recent GMAT experience. I started studying about a couple of months ago for the test. First, took a CAT and scored a 410 (mostly due to the low score in Quant). Went back and learned the basics, practiced 75% of the Quant questions in the OG, read through most of the Manhattan Prep guides for Quant, etc. I didn't focus on Verbal at all during this process as I wanted to see if I could improve Quant.

Took my second CAT last night and scored a 460 (28Q/27V). Again, I haven't even looked at a Verbal problem as I have been studying math the past couple of months. Problem solving isn't bad but my DS skills are lacking, hardly getting any problems right.

My question is, should I keep focusing on improving my math or start to look at the Verbal section? I'm confident I can do very well in Verbal and improve my score in that aspect, but would a high Verbal score overshadow a low Quant score?

Looking to start b-school next fall. Most application deadlines are March 1. Aiming for a 610-650. Originally, I had planned to take the GMAT mid-December but I'm thinking I will have to push that date back considering my low CAT scores.

How long do most people study for the GMAT? I'm already 2 months into my study plan and still have a low Quant score. Any advice for improving this score quickly or should I aim high for Verbal instead?

Also, is it too late to improve a 460 CAT score by my application deadlines (March 1)?

Thanks all!

Hi Sofia,
The jump from 460 to 610-650 is quite a significant one but not impossible. I think you should definitely start working on both the verbal and the quant in order to maximize your performance in both sections. Moreover, if you work on only one section for a longer time, you might forget a lot in the quant.
Also, a good performance in the verbal section can definitely pull your score up significantly.

In answer to the question in your subject line, there have been GMAT Journeys that take YEARS to end in the desired score! So there is not way to say what is TOO long of a time period.

However, there is such a thing as waiting TOO long to sit for the GMAT for the first time. Some people study for months and months waiting for everything to feel just perfect and then when they sit for the GMAT they say "this is it" and have so much pressure that it feels like the Olympics (one chance every 4 years). After two months you are clearly not in danger of this "Olympics mindset." Therefore you should not worry about what is TOO long.

You need to simply confirm that you are making improvement. Now you have gone from a 410 to a 460 so that seems to be an improvement, but what you really need to make sure of is that you are learning from the questions that you miss. If you miss a question because you do not know the formula are you learning the formula? If you miss a question because you make an error in calculation or you apply a rule incorrectly (such as combining exponents) are you taking steps to make sure this does not happen again?

This is how you need to define success. Obviously you are missing many problems right now as you work, but are you learning from them? or are you making the same mistakes repeatedly?

I also give a nod to you beginning the verbal. You seem very confident that the verbal will improve significantly, and it is already well ahead of the Quant section (a 27 verbal is around the 50th percentile while a 28 score on the Quant section is a much lower percentile). It will be good to see that score get above 500 for your next practice test and some improvement in verbal can really help.

Also, remember that there is no "math" section on the GMAT. It may seem like it now when you are buried in formulas and equations and rules, but it is actually Quantitative Reasoning and once you have the rules down the Quant section has a lot in common with Critical Reasoning, so studying the verbal can conceivably help your logic throughout the GMAT.

Since you mention that you are having difficulties on Data Sufficiency I can make a few recommendations for you. You need to understand the process on Data Sufficiency!

Here are a few articles that may help (I had no idea that I had written so much about Data Sufficiency. If you read all of the these I guarantee that you will have a deeper understanding of Data Sufficiency!):

When to actually do the math on data sufficiency
https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2012/12/ ... ufficiency

Why New York is not sufficiency on Data Sufficiency
https://www.veritasprep.com/blog/2012/02 ... ufficient/

Fall in Love with the Correct Data Sufficiency answer, like "The Bachelor" would
https://www.veritasprep.com/blog/2012/08 ... lor-style/

Data Sufficiency Jujitsu Part 1
https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2013/01/ ... d-subjects

How to avoid Silly Mistakes on Data Sufficiency
https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2012/10/ ... -handrails

Why the two statements must agree
https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2012/01/ ... ufficiency

The Puzzle equation in Data Sufficiency
https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2012/07/ ... ufficiency

Thank you everyone for your replies! I think I am ready to start looking at Verbal and do the best that I can in that section since it is clearly my strong suit

To that end, I have one last question. What is your recommend plan for studying BOTH Quant and Verbal at the same time? While I want to focus on Verbal going forward, I also don't want to forget about Quant. Is splitting the time each day between Quant and Verbal sufficient (1hr on Quant/1hr on Verbal)? Should I practice Verbal on the weekdays and Quant on the weekends?

Currently, I study for 2-2.5 hours on the weekdays and 4-5 hours on the weekends. And recommendations you have on how to split up this time between both Quant and Verbal would be greatly appreciated

There is nothing like "too long" to study for the gmat.

I have been on it for 2.5 years and still working to achieve my desired score.

To get things into perspective : I know there are many people who write in these forums about how they got 700+ in 1 month /2 months/2 weeks..etc..I would suggest you to rather NOT read these posts because they will just make you feel horrible.The problem with these formus (or for that matter any information online) is that what you read here are storeis of only maybe 10=15 % of people who give the GMAT,so one does not read many many more interesting real stories of how people got through this exam.

Also,to think about it,many people have indeed prepared for only 3-4 weeks and scored well, but they never tell you how hard they might have worked for some other exam in their life..maybe SAT or the Indian version of the MBA enterance exam CAT.Many people, i assure you , who say they cracked GMAT within weeks have most probably put in 2-3 years studying for the CAT.So how can you compare? At the end of the day, people have put in the years of learning for GMAT in some way or the other.

Just think of this exam as a general skills development exercise,as though all the math and the verbal will help you be a more agile thinker (which it will) and one day you will be prepared for the exam.

By the way, this is all too easy to type out,thats the thing I hate about these forums.No one tells you that it is really hard to keep your chin up and lug it out for years.