I just Beat The GMAT!

I just took the GMAT this afternoon and am so ashamed and disappointed with my score. I got a 470 (Q19/V35). This score is lower than my two practice tests of 540 (Q27/V38) and 550 (Q28/V38). I was shooting for the 630-650 range.

I admit my studying plan was a bit disjointed at first. I took an 8-week GMAT course through an adult ed center here in Boston with a former Kaplan instructor in May-July 2010. I wasn't 100% committed to studying during that timeframe and never scheduled a test date. The course was helpful in terms of relearning basic math and some strategy, but overall I didn't learn too much. During the rest of July and August, I had other commitments and put the GMAT prep aside.

At the end of the summer, I realized I needed to take the GMAT soon so if I decided to apply for next fall, there would be still time. This time I scheduled a test date and created a specific study plan modeled after Beat the GMAT's One Month Plan. I had just over 5 weeks total to prep, so time was tight. Overall I probably spent about 60% of the time focused on quant as this was definitely my weaker area. I probably studied about 80 hours in total with 2 full length practice exams.

I did all of the problems in the OG 12, also used Kaplan Math Review and Manhattan GMAT SC Guide (as this was my weakest area of the verbal) and also did about 1/2 of the problems in the OG supplemental Verbal and Quant reviews. I also made flashcards and used Beat the GMAT flashcards and reviewed daily. I did 30-40 problems a day and kept an error log. I reviewed all of my errors each night and again in the last week of studying. I also made sure to time myself every time I did problems. I knew that time was an issue for me, especially with quant, but over time I slightly improved.

Overall I felt that I had developed a study plan and stuck to it. At the end of the 5 weeks, I felt confident in my ability to perform on the actual test. And figured I could do better than my two practice exams.

When I arrived at the test site, I still felt confident and that continued through the AWA. The essays came very easily and I was happy with them. Then as soon as I saw the first quant problem, I started to feel panicked because I didn't know how to go about solving it. I kept coming to an answer that wasn't listed and I ended up just guessing and spending way too much time on that first question. That sort of set the tone for the remainder of the section. I felt like I was guessing way too much because my mind was blanking and then I ran out of time. I had to quickly guess on the last 7 or 8 questions. I was able to get through verbal more confidentially, but I also ran out of time and had to guess on 4-5 questions (on both of my practice tests I actually finished verbal with extra time!)

I'm not sure what happened, perhaps it was a matter of nerves getting the best of me or not having the quant material actually sink in? I'm just so frustrated because I felt prepared and know this score doesn't reflect my ability. I would be ashamed to apply to any school with this score even though the other parts of my application are very strong. I will re-take it again, but want to make sure I don't have a repeat of my poor performance.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!! Thank you!

Chin up! See you hard working on a daily basis, 600+ is doable for everybody (meaning it's not an extraordinary ability rather one's diligence pays off ...) https://www.beatthegmat.com/i-need-help- ... 68334.html

if you are confident give it another shot..
ensure that u take prep exam in a simulated condition..

Thanks for your advice. I think I may hire a GMAT tutor to specifically address quant. I know I can learn better in that setting.

Hi Marisa,

don't worry about the score - but i know it is a downer. I recently got 510 - i am asheamed too. V22/Q38

My english is sooooooo week. I took 2 weeks break and now I am back to studying. do the same. Knewton online prep is very good. I am taking their online classes.

PM me and we can talk.

Thanks

Hi Marisa,

Given your score, I would assume that when you did the Quant portion of the OG, you made a number of mistakes. It is important that when you approach each of the problems, you really get the logic/skill down. What may be useful is for you to track your progress (in Excel for example) and regularly review the problems you've missed.

The reason is this: there honestly aren't that many innovative, new problem types that put forth on the actual GMAT test. So if you've done the OG problems (and most importantly, learned from every single mistake) your score should improve dramatically.

Don't worry Marisa...keep your faith in yourself and your abilities...I'm going thru a real tough time right now..I took the GMAT today and got a 600.....after taking it in July this year and getting a 620...I dont know what happened...I felt more confident and I had studied harder this time...but in the end I did worse.....I was aiming for a 660-690 score...

Sid

Thanks for all of the suggestions!

I did keep an error log in Excel and made a number of mistakes in quant. While I did review them I don't think I spent enough time really understanding why I made those mistakes and ensuring I never repeated them again. I also think I need to take more full-length practice exams to really get the strategy of taking the test down; 4 practice exams was clearly not enough for me.

Marissa i had the same experience! i took 4 prep tests with Manhattan GMAT, highest score was 590, did a 9 week class with them, but didnt do the homework until about 6 weeks before the test. and my score was almost exactly like yours!
one thing i had not done enough of was the OG problems. now going back through them, even after a few weeks, there is SO much strategy that is learned from there. not only that, but because i have technically been studying since april, the concepts come more naturally to me. a benefit to MGMAT is i am reviewing the class recordings and i dont remember half of the stuff they had gone over!
practice makes perfect, i am convinced! i am doing the 60 day beat the gmat test prep. that's helping me to focus. also, i purchased all 8 of MGMAT's book and they are really really good for cementing concepts, especially number properties, where most of my challenges come from.
my advisor with MGMAT is having me do OG only for a whole month. then i will take the powerprep GMAT (which i hadnt taken) and see where i am. then for november i will focus only on areas of weakness.
i have also come to the realization that when i miss a day of studying, i am the only one that will suffer and i do not want to be this embarrased ever again.
good luck girl, i know we can do it!!