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How to improve verbal score?

Critical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension
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How to improve verbal score?

by sparkles3144 » Mon Jul 14, 2014 8:04 pm
I took GMAT before.
I took three months break from school and work and studied.
My GMAT score is 600. I cancelled it.
My test scores:
Manhattan GMAT Prep: 660
GMAT Prep 1: 640
GMAT Prep 2: 690
GMAT Prep 3: 640
GMAT Prep 4: 700
I didn't take these test twice. Every time, the questions were new.

I don't know how to improve it. Any suggestions would help.

Thank you so much!
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by [email protected] » Tue Jul 15, 2014 12:51 am
Hi sparkles3144,

What were your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores on each of your practice CATs (and on your Official GMAT)?

Also, when you took your practice CATs, did you take the ENTIRE CAT (or did you skip the Essay and/or IR sections)?

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by VivianKerr » Wed Jul 16, 2014 11:31 pm
To improve, I recommend honing in on those SC topics you still haven't mastered. Grammar is the easiest way to eliminate incorrect choices in Sentence Correction, since a sentence with a grammar error will never be correct! These are the major grammatical errors tested on the GMAT:

"¢ Sentence Fragments and Run-Ons
"¢ Subject-Verb Agreement
"¢ Verb Tenses
"¢ Pronouns
"¢ Modification
"¢ Parallelism
"¢ Comparisons
"¢ Idioms
"¢ Diction

How well have you been doing in recognizing these? When you go back through your most recent CATs, can you classify your incorrect problems by the concept/s tested?
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by ceilidh.erickson » Mon Jul 21, 2014 6:42 am
Fluctuation in your practice test scores indicates that you didn't have solid / consistently applied technique - sometimes you got lucky, sometimes you didn't. It's not surprise, then, that on the real test your score fell.

To do well on the GMAT, you need:
- thorough knowledge of every topic tested. That means studying from strategy guides, then practicing dozens of problems on that particular topic to note similarities and patterns.
- solid technique. The best way to avoid careless mistakes is to review deeply while you're studying, and track all mistakes that you make. For more, see: https://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/index ... -studying/

It sounds to me like you were focusing on taking tests, but it's unclear whether you then analyzed those tests to see what topics/skills needed work, and then attacked those areas. That's what you'll need to do to consistently do well.
Ceilidh Erickson
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