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I guess you could say I beat the GMAT, but...

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I guess you could say I beat the GMAT, but...

by Calabash » Wed Jul 14, 2010 2:36 am
I just took the GMAT and scored a 700 (90% Percentile), with a scaled score of 41 on Math (58th Percentile) and 44 on Verbal (97th Percentile). I don't mean to sound ungrateful, I know a lot of people would be thrilled to score a 700, but considering the types of schools I plan on applying to and the disproportionately better performance on the Verbal section, I'm a bit concerned.

Mostly though I've been kicking myself for committing the cardinal sin of the GMAT and not answering 2 of the Math questions after losing track of time.

I know everyone makes a big deal about not leaving questions on the table, so my question is this: is that because you might as well put in a guess since the system is going to score you based on the set number of questions regardless, or do you actually LOSE points for not answering questions? In other words, had managed to get in a guess for those last 2 questions, would I have only POSSIBLY gotten a better score, or would I have DEFINITELY gotten a better score than I did? And I realize this is asking a lot, but if it's the latter, does anyone know approximately how many points you potentially lose for not answering a question?

Thanks,

M
Last edited by Calabash on Wed Jul 14, 2010 10:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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by secondinnings » Wed Jul 14, 2010 3:00 am
In other words, had managed to get in a guess for those last 2 questions, would I have only POSSIBLY gotten a better score, or would I have DEFINITELY gotten a better score than I did? And I realize this is asking a lot, but if it's the latter, does anyone know approximately how many points you potentially lose for not answering a question?

Questions left blank suffer the worst penalty of all: a per-question penalty of 3 percentile points (per this post

https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2009/08/ ... nce-is-key

Hey M,

Any advice for us on the verbal section? Did you feel the quant section was much more difficult than that of the practice tests that you took? You have scope for improvement in the quant section just in case you feel you want to retake the exam.
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by Calabash » Wed Jul 14, 2010 5:31 am
secondinnings,

Thanks for that answer (even though it's really bad news for me...).

As far as the Verbal section is concerned, I developed a few strategies for the Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension portions that I found really helpful. The Sentence Correction portion I didn't study for at all; I've always had a good grasp of English and I could usually pick out the right answer just by what sounded best to me.

For Critical Reasoning, I found it helpful to actually lay out the logic of the argument in a very concise summary of just a few words. Then find the answer that works with both the direction of the question, and mostly importantly, that is most relevant to the logic of the argument. For example, if the passage is about how the oil spill in the Gulf Coast will have a massive negative impact on the economy of the region by deterring tourists who would typically travel there to enjoy its beaches and seafood, the logic of the passage might be something like: (1) A major aspect of the Gulf's economy is tourists traveling there in the summer to enjoy seafood and beaches, (2) The impact of the oil spill will be significantly less fishing and many beaches will be shut down, therefore (3) Many tourists will be deterred from travelling to the Gulf Coast this summer, which will have a huge negative impact on the economy. If the question asks for a statement that weakens that argument, the choice that many people also travel to the Gulf Coast for their annual Jazz Festival, which is expecting to a record number of people this year, has nothing to do with the logic above and therefore is not the right choice, even though directionally it's right because it suggests less of an economic decline. However, the choice that a new report found that tourism is only a minimal portion of the Gulf's economy directly refutes argument (1), or the choice that most beaches will remain open and that most seafood is actually imported from other regions gives less sway to argument (2). Maybe not the best example, but you get the idea. Usually it's pretty obvious what answers are correct directionally (which weaken/strengthen the argument), what's more difficult is determining which is the most relevant to the logic of the argument. Laying out the logic makes things easier, and if you're anything like me, it will start to become a very intuitive and simple process as you practice and get better at it.

For the Reading Comprehension portion, similar to my approach to CR, I found it helpful to briefly summarize (and I mean BRIEFLY) in your notes as your reading the passage. The easiest way to do this is just to summarize each individual paragraph in one brief, concise, easy to refer to sentence. If it's a three paragraph passage, you should have a three sentence summary. Sometimes my sentences weren't even complete sentences but a couple of words. I found this process very helpful in engraining the information in my head and laying out the structure of the passage. Again, look for the answers that are RELEVANT to the passage. Just because an answer supports the same conclusion as the passage doesn't make it correct.
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by nikhilkatira » Wed Jul 14, 2010 6:45 am
Calabash wrote:secondinnings,

Thanks for that answer (even though it's really bad news for me...).

As far as the Verbal section is concerned, I developed a few strategies for the Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension portions that I found really helpful. The Sentence Correction portion I didn't study for at all; I've always had a good grasp of English and I could usually pick out the right answer just by what sounded best to me.

For Critical Reasoning, I found it helpful to actually lay out the logic of the argument in a very concise summary of just a few words. Then find the answer that works with both the direction of the question, and mostly importantly, that is most relevant to the logic of the argument. For example, if the passage is about how the oil spill in the Gulf Coast will have a massive negative impact on the economy of the region by deterring tourists who would typically travel there to enjoy its beaches and seafood, the logic of the passage might be something like: (1) A major aspect of the Gulf's economy is tourists traveling there in the summer to enjoy seafood and beaches, (2) The impact of the oil spill will be significantly less fishing and many beaches will be shut down, therefore (3) Many tourists will be deterred from travelling to the Gulf Coast this summer, which will have a huge negative impact on the economy. If the question asks for a statement that weakens that argument, the choice that many people also travel to the Gulf Coast for their annual Jazz Festival, which is expecting to a record number of people this year, has nothing to do with the logic above and therefore is not the right choice, even though directionally it's right because it suggests less of an economic decline. However, the choice that a new report found that tourism is only a minimal portion of the Gulf's economy directly refutes argument (1), or the choice that most beaches will remain open and that most seafood is actually imported from other regions gives less sway to argument (2). Maybe not the best example, but you get the idea. Usually it's pretty obvious what answers are correct directionally (which weaken/strengthen the argument), what's more difficult is determining which is the most relevant to the logic of the argument. Laying out the logic makes things easier, and if you're anything like me, it will start to become a very intuitive and simple process as you practice and get better at it.

For the Reading Comprehension portion, similar to my approach to CR, I found it helpful to briefly summarize (and I mean BRIEFLY) in your notes as your reading the passage. The easiest way to do this is just to summarize each individual paragraph in one brief, concise, easy to refer to sentence. If it's a three paragraph passage, you should have a three sentence summary. Sometimes my sentences weren't even complete sentences but a couple of words. I found this process very helpful in engraining the information in my head and laying out the structure of the passage. Again, look for the answers that are RELEVANT to the passage. Just because an answer supports the same conclusion as the passage doesn't make it correct.
Calabash I really liked your CR strategy.
Best,
Nikhil H. Katira
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by skins81 » Wed Jul 14, 2010 12:08 pm
What about the DS and PS? How did you approach these sections?
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by indiantiger » Wed Jul 14, 2010 7:33 pm
@skins81, you a redskins fan?
"Single Malt is better than Blended"
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by skins81 » Thu Jul 15, 2010 6:44 am
yes I am :)
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