fuquahopeful wrote:Hey Guys,
I have taken GMAT few times, and have always scored around 44-45Q on the quant section. I am trying to increase my raw score by 2 points, but not sure what materials should I be using. I know all the basics, so the guides are pretty useless for me. Anyone has a good advice? I will be very happy with a 47 in Q.
Regards.
You are in the same boat as me, and we are hoping to get in to the same MBA program
... I have been spending quite a bit of time analyzing the reason why i am consistantly scoring 43-45 and not going past the 45 barrier. The post mortem analysis is as follows (i am a forensic pathologist by proffesion
)
* I have learned all of the concepts tested on the GMAT (quant), I know all the formulas, the basics etc but do not know the CORRECT strategy for solving the questions. 99.9% of the GMAT quant problems can be solved through multiple methods and usually out of the bunch only one or two are the optimum methods of attacking the problem. Others might be too lengthy, may involve to many calculations ( any one of which could trip us)etc..Generally we are taught in school and college to follow the most fluent, and elegant way of solving problems that we are presented with...The GMAT is a Multiple choice exam, and as such the CAT does not care about how we arrive to the answer (as long as we get the correct answer).. I am consistently seeing an improvement on my score by looking at the OG solutions to some of the more difficult problems (even the ones i got correct).. There are also great instructions from Ron (thursdays with ron) on how to tackle typical DS problems ( Plugging in, Extreme values, Co-ordinate geometry (Visual approach vs Alg. approach)etc..Those have helped me nicely, and on every question, i spend the first 10-15 seconds charting out the best strategy/approach to solving the question..With practice i can predict with reasonable accuracy whether the problem would be better solved by plugging in, by algebra, by manipulations, or any other relevant method. This has improved my accuracy under timed conditions considerably.
* Even though a score of 44 may suggest that we are familiar with most if not all the topics, in my case i found a general weakness in certain key areas - Statistics and Co-ordinate geometry...While my accuracy in these topics was not significantly worst then in other topics, i was spending twice the time in solving questions from these topics when compared to the other topics. This was not only slowing me down, but was adversely affecting my performance in the areas where i was stronger (Less time for strengths, means more room for silly mistakes)...
* While i emphasized on CONTENT, the content of the GMAT quant is not ROCKET SCIENCE, infact all but 5% of it is basic high school math ... The difficulty comes from the test makers spicing up the questions inorder to test your various analytic and conceptual skills (Key for a management career)... We must not fall into the TRAPS ...and with practice i am getting better at ID'ing these traps and spotting out the COMMON TRICKS the Official questions have.... The article regarding HANDRAILS , written by David @ Veritas Prep, was what made all the difference for me - and i would recomend it for everyone (regardless of what they are scoring) ...
Key takeways :
- Introspecting on one's current level of knowledge, and looking at the way one approaches solving each problem might work better at getting you the 2-4 point improvement you are seeking as compared to Re-doing the coursework and or attempting a few hundred questions ..
"When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you'll be successful." - Eric Thomas
