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Seeking advice on GMAT Strategy

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Seeking advice on GMAT Strategy

by reetendrachauhan » Sat Aug 22, 2015 10:55 am
So here's the deal, I have been studying for the GMAT for a month now. And this is what I did so far:

Studied the Quant Problems from OG (observed that I am making relatively few mistakes on that)
Studied Mahanttan SC, then solved OG SC, and then repeated the same pattern for RC and CR as well (Manhattan Prep and Solve and then solve from OG)

I didn't keep track for Quant but for the Verbal Section (SC, CR and RC), I remember on an average I would get around 5-8 questions wrong from a total of 120-140 questions that we see per SC/CR/RC section on OG.

So I thought of taking the first free test via the GMAT Prep software (just to get a sense of where I am and what I need to do in the next few weeks), and I was deeply saddened by how I performed. Q - 38 (26 attempted, 5 incorrect) and V - 35 (33 attempted, 6 incorrect). I remember I had taken this very same test 2 years ago without any prep and scored 660 then (I didn't study or take the GMAT after that, for reasons of my own then) but to receive 600 now after a month's prep, I could honestly cry!

Any pointers on where I am going wrong and what I could do? I thought I am ok at quant, got a 170/170 on GRE quant, but turns out that for GMAT my math just doesn't seem to be upto the mark. I wasn't planning on taking the GMAT right now, still have around 40-50 days to prep more, but didn't really expect to see a 600 right now. Appreciate any advice. Thank you so much :).
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by [email protected] » Sat Aug 22, 2015 1:35 pm
Hi reetendrachauhan,

There are a number of different 'issues' here, so I have a few questions that I hope that you can answer. You've come to find that theres a big difference between doing sets of practice problems and taking a FULL-LENGTH CAT. Beyond the academic material and tactics that you need to learn, you also have to train to handle the pacing, endurance and fatigue issues that are a common challenge for Test Takers.

1) When you took this CAT and the GRE MST, did you take the ENTIRE TEST (including ALL sections) for each?

2) Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) on their studies to hit their 'peak' scores. Since you've been studying for just 1 month, you likely just haven't put in enough time and effort yet. It sounds like you have not set an Official Test Date yet. Is that the case or do you actually have one?

3) You have to make sure to answer EVERY question in each section (even if it's just a guess). There is a penalty for not answering every question.

4) What is your goal score?
5) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
6) Do you know which Schools you plan to apply to?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
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by MartyMurray » Sat Aug 22, 2015 11:21 pm
For starters, the questions in the OG basically range from relatively easy to medium hard. So getting most of them right tends to roughly indicate that you have the skills to score somewhere in the range of the mid 600's to the low 700's.

Then, as you have experienced, when taking the actual test, one encounters the additional challenge presented by timing. In fact, it could be that just by working on the timing aspect you can get much of the way to your score goal. I am not saying that you should just practice doing problems fast, by the way. Slow practice can be key to getting the skills one needs to score high on this test. I am saying that part of your work could involve learning to work quickly, accurately and efficiently, as you need to be pretty quick to get right answers and complete the sections in the time allotted.

Looking at your scores, and given things you have said, I would not at all be devastated. As a matter of fact, if you came to me wanting to score in the mid 700's I would be fairly confident that hitting your goal would not be unreasonably challenging to accomplish. As a matter of fact, often people who are scoring in the low 500's have goals in the 700's and often they hit their goals, sometimes without too much trouble.

So the upshot here is that, yes, probably you need to learn some more math and maybe just practice and get better and quicker at answering GMAT quant questions, and you need to get better at playing the GMAT verbal game.

You may get some insight into what you have to do to get better at quant from this post.

https://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/careless-m ... gmat-math/

Being devastated accomplishes nothing. You have accomplished exactly what practice tests are for, gotten some practice and seen where you stand. Now go over that test, and see what you got right and wrong to get a sense of what you need to do to hit your goal. Then get to work making that happen bit by bit.

Here is a blog post I wrote on increasing your score by putting points on the board.

https://infinitemindprep.com/increasing- ... the-board/

Can you believe that people spend so much time and energy preparing for this test? Anyway, that's the reality. So just figure out what you need to do to hit your target, and make it happen.
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MartyMurrayCoaching.com
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by DavidG@VeritasPrep » Sun Aug 23, 2015 5:50 am
Generally speaking, test-takers put too much stock in how they perform on their first few practice tests. Every experienced GMAT instructor has received the "I've been studying for weeks and my score hasn't gone up!" email dozens of times. The fact that your score was lower this time than the previous time doesn't mean much - scores fluctuate naturally. Moreover, it seems that you didn't get to 6 quant questions and 2 verbal questions. The algorithm assesses a fairly substantial penalty for not finishing a section, and this alone could account for the discrepancy in your scores. Marty's absolutely right that there's no reason to believe that you're not capable of getting a score in the mid-700's, particularly in light of your performance on the GRE's. Start by breaking your practice exam down, making notes on strategic adjustments you can make for next time. Post any question that aren't clear here. Then gear up to do some drilling in your problem areas. If you're looking for more practice questions, we offer a free bank here: https://www.veritasprep.com/gmat-question-bank/

If you want more official questions, consider picking up this question pack: https://www.mba.com/us/store/store-catal ... ack-1.aspx

Then, take another practice test. Wash/rinse/repeat until you're seeing scores you'd be satisfied with on the official exam.
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