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Retaking the GMAT - Advice on way forward!

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Retaking the GMAT - Advice on way forward!

by kraytoes63 » Fri Oct 07, 2016 1:35 pm
Hello,

I'm very new to the forum but would much appreciate any kind of advice regarding the retaking of the GMAT.


A quick recap about my GMAT journey so far:
~~~Signed up for GMAT exam to be taken on the 27th of Sept~~~
- Jul 24th: GMATPrep CAT (1) - 530 (Q34, V28)
Went into this pretty blindly, just read up on the intro about GMAT and what type of questions one can expect to receive. I took the CAT as a diagnostic test to pinpoint my weaknesses and start my studying
- Aug 7th: GMATPrep CAT (2) - 640 (Q42, V37)
Was pleasantly surprised by this 110 point improvement, especially since my verbal went up by 9 points. In hindsight, it was probably a mistake to take the 2nd GMATPrep CAT. I should have saved this for the final practice test before the exam to gauge my performance prior to the exam.
- Sep 9th: MGMAT CAT (1) - 500 (Q34, V25)
Was utterly shocked by this! I know it was a month since the last CAT test but I didn't expect my score to plummet this much. I was studying during this time and I believe I focused a lot more on CR than SC and, surprise surprise, my SC score during this CAT suffered immensely (I think I got something like 3 right out of 15). Timing was also an issue for me on Quant as I realised I spent almost 6 minutes on one question and ended up rushing the last few ran out of time for the last question.
- Sep 19th - MGMAT CAT (2) - 550 (Q39, V28)
An improvement! But no where near what I needed to be applying for to the schools that I desired to get into (not super top tier schools but still schools that averaged 650 GMAT). At this point I went into panic mode, less than a week before the exam and I was scoring sub 600. I noticed that my last practice had poor SC performance so I focused on that and it paid off - my SC score improved immensely. BUT, as Newton so eloquently put it: for every action there is an equal an opposite reaction. My CR score got destroyed (got something like 3 right out of 14, sound familiar?). I really wanted to believe that MGMAT practice tests were harder than the real thing and the scores weren't calculated in the same way...but then I took the real test....
- Sept 27th - REAL GMAT - 570 (Q39, V30)
I wasn't too surprised with this to be honest. Disappointed would be a better word to describe it. Not really sure what happened. I wasn't stressed and managed my time well i.e finished on time with maybe 30 seconds to spare on each section. I ended up cancelling my score. The real GMAT ended up being a very expensive practice test.

Now its been 11 days since the test and I haven't studied at all. This was a mix of depression due to my poor score and because I just started my new job a few days ago in the Middle East. So the last week or so has been quite hectic with real life stuff taking over.

Now I plan on getting back into the rhythm as I don't want to take too long of a break.

My questions for you guys:
1) How long do you think I should prep to retake the GMAT? I'm shooting for a solid 2 months of studying; broken down into 3 hrs/day during the weekdays and 6 hrs/day during the weekend.
2) I would ideally like to take the GMAT around mid early to mid December so I can make the application deadlines for my desired MBA schools. Unfortunately, I will have to consider 2nd round applications for 3 out of 5 schools due to my poor GMAT score but this is something I will have to accept and just move on.
3) A friend of mine who took the GMAT 3 times and did pretty fantastic on it (720, 720, 750) told me that the OG questions are too easy and you should focus more on the 700+ level questions from GMATClub and other sources. Is it true? I find this really hard to believe since the OG questions are ACTUAL questions used in the GMAT. But he did get 700+ all three times so...
4) My plan is to take one practice CAT exam every week - So roughly about 8 practice tests before the real thing. Is this too much? too little? I believe one of my downfalls was due to the lack of practice exams (only took 4 before the real thing).
5) Should I save the GMATPrep practice exam for the last week before the test? Since I have already taken both the free tests I assume I will get some repeat questions and this may inflate my score. Thus, would it make more sense to do them earlier?
6) I will of course be shooting for a 700+ score, but after seeing how catastrophically bad I did the first time, I would be content with 680+. Does a 110+ score improvement in 2 months sound realistic/doable?

Technically English is not my Native language, however I went to an English school since first grade and did my Bachelor's and Master's in US and UK, respectively. I basically think in English. Hence, I consider English to be my native language.

Any advice would be much appreciated!
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by [email protected] » Fri Oct 07, 2016 6:00 pm
Hi kraytoes63,

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as planned. That second CAT score is something of an 'outlier' relative to your other practice scores (and your Official GMAT score). Raising an overall score 110 points in 2 weeks is a relatively rare situation, so there's some question as to how you took that CAT (and if you did so in a realistic fashion). To start, I have a few questions about those CATs:

1) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
2) Did you take them at home?
3) Did you take them at the same time of day as your Official GMAT?
4) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
5) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?

With the proper practice materials, a consistent study routine and a focus on learning and practicing the proper Tactics, you could potentially raise your score 110+ points in two months.

1) What practice materials have you used?

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by kraytoes63 » Sat Oct 08, 2016 1:11 am
[email protected] wrote:Hi kraytoes63,

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as planned. That second CAT score is something of an 'outlier' relative to your other practice scores (and your Official GMAT score). Raising an overall score 110 points in 2 weeks is a relatively rare situation, so there's some question as to how you took that CAT (and if you did so in a realistic fashion). To start, I have a few questions about those CATs:

1) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
2) Did you take them at home?
3) Did you take them at the same time of day as your Official GMAT?
4) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
5) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?

With the proper practice materials, a consistent study routine and a focus on learning and practicing the proper Tactics, you could potentially raise your score 110+ points in two months.

1) What practice materials have you used?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Thanks for the quick reply Rich! Here are the responses (in bold) to your questions:

1) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
Yes, each practice CAT I took was full length with IR and Essays.
2) Did you take them at home?
Yes, all practice CATs were conducted at home
3) Did you take them at the same time of day as your Official GMAT?
This one is a bit tricky. When I first signed up for the test I had signed up for a 9AM exam time, so for the first month I took the CATs around that time 9-10am. However, I had to reschedule my exam and changed the timing to 5pm. For the 2nd month of studying I did NOT take the CATs during actual exam time, I took them around 10am-ish.
4) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
I believe I stuck to the rules of the CATs and didn't take any extra breaks. I did go outside for a smoke during the breaks, which I suppose cannot be done during the real GMAT test so this may be a cause for my lower score? I never exceeded the allotted break times.
5) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?
All the practice CATs I took were different. I took both GMATprep tests once. The questions for the IR section for the GMAT prep were identical for both tests however the Quant & Verbal questions were completely different. For MGMAT, both CATs that I took were completely different, even the IR questions were different.

1) What practice materials have you used?
So far I have used: ALL MGMAT books, Official Guide 13th Ed., OG Quant Review 2nd Ed., OG Verbal Review 2nd Ed. I believe one of my downfalls for the real GMAT was the fact that I just didn't do enough practice questions. I spent a lot of the first month of studying reviewing the MGMAT books and doing the practice problems.

I think you may be right about the 640 outlier that I got. Although the Quant & Verbal questions were different for this 640 CAT tests, the IR questions were identical to the previous CAT. so maybe I wasn't as fatigued and hence why I did better in this CAT than the previous.

I'm planning to restart my studying soon, just need to sort out some real life issues (housing, internet, etc.) since I just moved countries to start my new job.

A few questions for you:
1) Once I restart my studying, do you think it is a good idea to start off my studies with a full length CAT to gauge where I am and my weaknesses?
2) Do you think 3 hours per day during the weekdays and 6 hours per day during the weekend is a fair amount of studying? I understand that every person is different.
3) A friend of mine (the guy who scored 700+ 3 times) told me the MGMAT CATs are not that great since the questions are slightly different. He said that I am better off purchasing the GMATPrep Exam Pack 1 & 2 (get 4 full length CATS) to gauge my true ability. Thoughts?
4) I think 8 full length CATs prior to my next exam may be overkill. I will probably reduce this to 4-5 CATs. Thoughts?
5) How does one determine whether they have mastered a concept or type of question?

Thanks!
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by [email protected] » Sat Oct 08, 2016 9:22 am
Hi kraytoes63,

There are a number of different issues to discuss here, so I'm going to work through them in order:

To start, Test Day is a rather specific 'event' - the details are specific and they matter, so you have to train as best as you can for all of them. The more realistic you can make your CATs, the more likely the score results are to be accurate. The more you deviate, the more "inflated" your scores can become - and that's what happened here. By taking the CATs at home, taking them at a different time of day (from when you took the Official GMAT), taking smoke breaks, etc., you weren't properly training for the FULL GMAT 'experience.'

In addition, many Test Takers who use a 'book heavy' study approach end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level - and it certainly appears that this has happened to you. As such, you'll likely end up needing to invest in some new, non-book resources.

In answer to your questions:
1) If you restart your studies soon (re: this weekend), then you won't have to start off with a CAT (you have your Official GMAT score to use as a gauge).
2) The amount of time that you plan to study seems fine; you just have to take the occasional "day off" every now and then - you don't want to 'burn out.'
3) The most realistic CATs available are the 6 from GMAC (the 2 free CATs, and each of the 2 that come with Exam Pack 1 and Exam Pack 2), but there are other 3rd-party CATs that will give you a reasonably accurate result (IF you use them correctly).
4) As a general rule, you should plan to take a new, FULL-LENGTH CAT (with the Essay and IR sections) every 1-2 weeks).
5) "Mastery" of a subject is an idea that's tough to define since the GMAT is really good at testing you on concepts that you know, but in ways that you're probably not used to thinking about (so how can you be sure that you're actually 'mastered' a subject?). As such, your focus shouldn't be on mastering the 'content' - it should be on honing your critical thinking skills (meaning that your analytical skills, pattern-matching ability, etc. is strong enough that you can efficiently work through whatever questions you face on Test Day).

Given your timeline and goals, you really need to make some decisions soon about how you plan to continue your studies. Most GMAT Companies offer some type of free materials (practice problems, Trial Accounts, videos, etc.) that you can use to 'test out' a product before you buy it. We have a variety of those resources at our website (www.empowergmat.com). I suggest that you take advantage of all of them then choose the one that best matches your personality, timeline and budget.

If you have any additional question, then just let me know.

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Rich
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by kraytoes63 » Sat Oct 08, 2016 11:14 am
Hi Rich,

Thanks for the responses, they has been very insightful.

Just a few lingering questions before I set off on my 2nd round of studying:
1) You mentioned that taking the CAT at home can inflate your score or deviate from the real exam. This is true but how else would one go about doing the practice tests if not in your home where you can isolate yourself and not be disturbed? I would think taking the practice CATs at home would be the closest to the real thing.
2) What do you mean when you say "IF you use them correctly" - referring to the 3rd party CATs? Are you referring to how I should analyze the scores after I have taken the practice test?

I do very much appreciate your advice on these matters and I will be sure to check out www.empowergmat.com.
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by [email protected] » Sat Oct 08, 2016 6:49 pm
Hi kraytoes63,

There are a variety of details to Test Day that have nothing to do with the content that is tested. If you think ahead and plan accordingly, you can train for all of them. For example, on Test Day you will have to get dressed, leave your home, travel a certain distance and take your Exam in a 'foreign' environment. Depending on the size of the Computer Lab, you could be in a room with up to 20 other Test Takers - they'll all be making a certain amount of noise and they will all be entering/exiting the same Computer Lab door. Taking a practice CAT at home does not simulate ANY of those conditions.

Beyond those details (and a number of others), it's important to remember that a CAT is really just a 'measuring device' - when used correctly, it will give you a realistic score and help define your strengths and weaknesses, but it will NOT help you to fix any of those weaknesses. If you skip sections, pause the Test, retake a CAT that you've already taken, etc. then you are NOT using the CAT correctly. Thus, while a CAT can be a really useful tool, the accuracy of the result depends heavily on how far you go to make the CAT-taking 'experience' match up with what you'll face on the Official Exam.

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by GMATinsight » Sat Oct 15, 2016 1:34 am
kraytoes63 wrote:Hello,

I'm very new to the forum but would much appreciate any kind of advice regarding the retaking of the GMAT.


A quick recap about my GMAT journey so far:
~~~Signed up for GMAT exam to be taken on the 27th of Sept~~~
- Jul 24th: GMATPrep CAT (1) - 530 (Q34, V28)
Went into this pretty blindly, just read up on the intro about GMAT and what type of questions one can expect to receive. I took the CAT as a diagnostic test to pinpoint my weaknesses and start my studying
- Aug 7th: GMATPrep CAT (2) - 640 (Q42, V37)
Was pleasantly surprised by this 110 point improvement, especially since my verbal went up by 9 points. In hindsight, it was probably a mistake to take the 2nd GMATPrep CAT. I should have saved this for the final practice test before the exam to gauge my performance prior to the exam.
- Sep 9th: MGMAT CAT (1) - 500 (Q34, V25)
Was utterly shocked by this! I know it was a month since the last CAT test but I didn't expect my score to plummet this much. I was studying during this time and I believe I focused a lot more on CR than SC and, surprise surprise, my SC score during this CAT suffered immensely (I think I got something like 3 right out of 15). Timing was also an issue for me on Quant as I realised I spent almost 6 minutes on one question and ended up rushing the last few ran out of time for the last question.
- Sep 19th - MGMAT CAT (2) - 550 (Q39, V28)
An improvement! But no where near what I needed to be applying for to the schools that I desired to get into (not super top tier schools but still schools that averaged 650 GMAT). At this point I went into panic mode, less than a week before the exam and I was scoring sub 600. I noticed that my last practice had poor SC performance so I focused on that and it paid off - my SC score improved immensely. BUT, as Newton so eloquently put it: for every action there is an equal an opposite reaction. My CR score got destroyed (got something like 3 right out of 14, sound familiar?). I really wanted to believe that MGMAT practice tests were harder than the real thing and the scores weren't calculated in the same way...but then I took the real test....
- Sept 27th - REAL GMAT - 570 (Q39, V30)
I wasn't too surprised with this to be honest. Disappointed would be a better word to describe it. Not really sure what happened. I wasn't stressed and managed my time well i.e finished on time with maybe 30 seconds to spare on each section. I ended up cancelling my score. The real GMAT ended up being a very expensive practice test.

Now its been 11 days since the test and I haven't studied at all. This was a mix of depression due to my poor score and because I just started my new job a few days ago in the Middle East. So the last week or so has been quite hectic with real life stuff taking over.

Now I plan on getting back into the rhythm as I don't want to take too long of a break.

My questions for you guys:
1) How long do you think I should prep to retake the GMAT? I'm shooting for a solid 2 months of studying; broken down into 3 hrs/day during the weekdays and 6 hrs/day during the weekend.
2) I would ideally like to take the GMAT around mid early to mid December so I can make the application deadlines for my desired MBA schools. Unfortunately, I will have to consider 2nd round applications for 3 out of 5 schools due to my poor GMAT score but this is something I will have to accept and just move on.
3) A friend of mine who took the GMAT 3 times and did pretty fantastic on it (720, 720, 750) told me that the OG questions are too easy and you should focus more on the 700+ level questions from GMATClub and other sources. Is it true? I find this really hard to believe since the OG questions are ACTUAL questions used in the GMAT. But he did get 700+ all three times so...
4) My plan is to take one practice CAT exam every week - So roughly about 8 practice tests before the real thing. Is this too much? too little? I believe one of my downfalls was due to the lack of practice exams (only took 4 before the real thing).
5) Should I save the GMATPrep practice exam for the last week before the test? Since I have already taken both the free tests I assume I will get some repeat questions and this may inflate my score. Thus, would it make more sense to do them earlier?
6) I will of course be shooting for a 700+ score, but after seeing how catastrophically bad I did the first time, I would be content with 680+. Does a 110+ score improvement in 2 months sound realistic/doable?

Technically English is not my Native language, however I went to an English school since first grade and did my Bachelor's and Master's in US and UK, respectively. I basically think in English. Hence, I consider English to be my native language.

Any advice would be much appreciated!

1) How long do you think I should prep to retake the GMAT? I'm shooting for a solid 2 months of studying; broken down into 3 hrs/day during the weekdays and 6 hrs/day during the weekend.
Your plan seems perfect in terms of timeline and the amount of time required for practising appropriate study material

2) I would ideally like to take the GMAT around mid early to mid December so I can make the application deadlines for my desired MBA schools. Unfortunately, I will have to consider 2nd round applications for 3 out of 5 schools due to my poor GMAT score but this is something I will have to accept and just move on.
This is the only option you have so don't worry about it and give your best shot to GMAT this year. 2nd round is comparatively less preferred in comparison to first but you never know if it's 2nd round which has to change your life.

3) A friend of mine who took the GMAT 3 times and did pretty fantastic on it (720, 720, 750) told me that the OG questions are too easy and you should focus more on the 700+ level questions from GMATClub and other sources. Is it true? I find this really hard to believe since the OG questions are ACTUAL questions used in the GMAT. But he did get 700+ all three times so...
OG questions of quant are too easy in comparison to difficult question that test takers encounter on test day however your scores in quant are not very encouraging for me to tell you that you should practice harder questions. I firmly believe that you must get a firm command on the basics of the subjects tested and then go for the higher level questions at the same time while you study topicwise.
For Verbal, OG is a classic source of the practice so his opinions may be a little unthoughtof due his superior command on concepts tested in GMAT.
Where OG questions have been atual Questions, you must know that those are retired questions from Tests and the level of test is improving therefore the quant questions in OG are comparatively easier.
Yes, GMATCLUB is a really good source for referring the questions tagwise however similar options are available on beat the GMAT as well


4) My plan is to take one practice CAT exam every week - So roughly about 8 practice tests before the real thing. Is this too much? too little? I believe one of my downfalls was due to the lack of practice exams (only took 4 before the real thing).
No it's not too much. It's a fine plan however I recommend taking tests once your basics are in place. so work hard in first month on brushing up basics of quant and verbal and in last 25 days take tests

5) Should I save the GMATPrep practice exam for the last week before the test? Since I have already taken both the free tests I assume I will get some repeat questions and this may inflate my score. Thus, would it make more sense to do them earlier?
GMAT PREP should be taken in last week only. Manhattan tests are better practice before that


6) I will of course be shooting for a 700+ score, but after seeing how catastrophically bad I did the first time, I would be content with 680+. Does a 110+ score improvement in 2 months sound realistic/doable?
You need to work on Quant to make this dream come true of score 700+. To hit 700 you require a minimum of 48 in Quant and 38 in Verbal so where keeping high targets is great idea, working accordingly for it is equally important.

All the best... I hope this helps!!!

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