GMAT Strategy

I graduated with a BBA from the Ross School of Business in April and was determined to conquer the GMAT before starting my career in management consulting. I am planning on applying for sponsorship through my firm in 2 years to attend a top 10 MBA program. I was convinced that I was equipped with the skillset and motivation to join the 700+ club with 2 months of study time. Little did I know that my GMAT journey was just beginning...now I need help refocusing my strategy to reach my target score!

I started my preparation with a MGMAT course and diligently kept up with the syllabus and practice exams. My first practice exam was a 640 (Q42, V35), but in subsequent exams I had trouble raising my score more than 10-20 points. While I found I could raise my Verbal score just through practice and focus, my Quant score was ALL over the place. I was a hot mess when it came to timing. I bought the GMAT Quant Focus exams to get additional timing practice and completed all of the problems in OG12. After FINALLY figuring out how to *gasp* make educated guesses and move on - my overall score jumped to the 690-700 range. I decided to stick with my 7/17 exam date and hope (read: pray for a miracle) that I would get my highest Q and V scores and walk away with a 700+.

Definitely a mistake - I went into the Quant portion of the exam with a lack of confidence and ended up tripping up on easy questions. I ended up with an abysmal 39 on Quant (my lowest score EVER). Thankfully, I was able to re-focus and get a 44 on Verbal to bring my final score to a 680. I knew immediately I had to re-take the exam with a Quant score in the 50th percentile...

Now, I am working full-time in consulting - I am very time constrainedbut allocating ~10 hrs/week to the GMAT cause. I spent the last month refreshing on content and even solicited the help of a MGMAT tutor - only to find her completely unadaptable to my learning style. I took my first practice exam post-G Day on Sunday and got a 680 (AGAIN). I want to spend the next month focusing on bringing my Quant score up to a ~48 and consistently scoring at ~44 in Verbal.

Below are my last 5 exam scores:

GMAT Prep 1 (June): 700 (Q48, V37)
MCAT #5 (July): 690 (Q43, V40)
GMAT Prep 2 (July): 690 (Q45, V40)
ACTUAL GMAT EXAM (7/17): 680 (Q39, V44)
GMAT Prep 1 (12/5): 680 (Q44, V39)

I would appreciate ANY advice on how to make the jump in my Quant score. I have started an Excel document with questions I have struggled with either conceptually or on timing and will re-do (3-4 times or until mastery). I am just beginning to refresh on Verbal by doing timed sets to bring it back up to the 40+ range.

Thanks for your help - I have turned to this forum many times throughout my GMAT rollercoaster

If I were in your shoes, I would ask myself "What do I repeatedly do wrong"? I read a really useful proverb "If you keep doing what you have done before, you will end up getting what you got before".

myagoda wrote:
Now, I am working full-time in consulting - I am very time constrainedbut allocating ~10 hrs/week to the GMAT cause. I spent the last month refreshing on content and even solicited the help of a MGMAT tutor - only to find her completely unadaptable to my learning style. I retook the exam on Sunday and got a 680 (AGAIN). I want to spend the next month focusing on bringing my Quant score up to a ~48 and consistently scoring at ~44 in Verbal.

Below are my last 5 exam scores:

GMAT Prep 1 (June): 700 (Q48, V37)
MCAT #5 (July): 690 (Q43, V40)
GMAT Prep 2 (July): 690 (Q45, V40)
ACTUAL GMAT EXAM (7/17): 680 (Q39, V44)
GMAT Prep 1 (12/5): 680 (Q44, V39)

Please clarify the ambiguity as to whether the score you got on Sunday was on real GMAT or on GMATPrep.It may sound silly [tests are NOT administered on Sunday],but the fact is ,in many Mid-east countries such as UAE,Oman etc Sunday is a working day and tests are actually administered on Sunday.

Looking at the tone of your passage,I feel that the score you got was on the real deal.

rishab1988 wrote:

myagoda wrote:
Now, I am working full-time in consulting - I am very time constrainedbut allocating ~10 hrs/week to the GMAT cause. I spent the last month refreshing on content and even solicited the help of a MGMAT tutor - only to find her completely unadaptable to my learning style. I retook the exam on Sunday and got a 680 (AGAIN). I want to spend the next month focusing on bringing my Quant score up to a ~48 and consistently scoring at ~44 in Verbal.

Below are my last 5 exam scores:

GMAT Prep 1 (June): 700 (Q48, V37)
MCAT #5 (July): 690 (Q43, V40)
GMAT Prep 2 (July): 690 (Q45, V40)
ACTUAL GMAT EXAM (7/17): 680 (Q39, V44)
GMAT Prep 1 (12/5): 680 (Q44, V39)

Please clarify the ambiguity as to whether the score you got on Sunday was on real GMAT or on GMATPrep.It may sound silly [tests are NOT administered on Sunday],but the fact is ,in many Mid-east countries such as UAE,Oman etc Sunday is a working day and tests are actually administered on Sunday.

Looking at the tone of your passage,I feel that the score you got was on the real deal.

Sorry for the confusion - I am not in a Middle Eastern country and enjoy not working on Sundays . I have only taken the actual exam once. The practice exam (GMAT Prep 1) I took this past Sunday was the kick-off for round II. I am planning on taking the actual exam again at the end of January - assuming I can bring my score up to my target range.

myagoda wrote:

rishab1988 wrote:

myagoda wrote:
Now, I am working full-time in consulting - I am very time constrainedbut allocating ~10 hrs/week to the GMAT cause. I spent the last month refreshing on content and even solicited the help of a MGMAT tutor - only to find her completely unadaptable to my learning style. I retook the exam on Sunday and got a 680 (AGAIN). I want to spend the next month focusing on bringing my Quant score up to a ~48 and consistently scoring at ~44 in Verbal.

Below are my last 5 exam scores:

GMAT Prep 1 (June): 700 (Q48, V37)
MCAT #5 (July): 690 (Q43, V40)
GMAT Prep 2 (July): 690 (Q45, V40)
ACTUAL GMAT EXAM (7/17): 680 (Q39, V44)
GMAT Prep 1 (12/5): 680 (Q44, V39)

Please clarify the ambiguity as to whether the score you got on Sunday was on real GMAT or on GMATPrep.It may sound silly [tests are NOT administered on Sunday],but the fact is ,in many Mid-east countries such as UAE,Oman etc Sunday is a working day and tests are actually administered on Sunday.

Looking at the tone of your passage,I feel that the score you got was on the real deal.

Sorry for the confusion - I am not in a Middle Eastern country and enjoy not working on Sundays . I have only taken the actual exam once. The practice exam (GMAT Prep 1) I took this past Sunday was the kick-off for round II. I am planning on taking the actual exam again at the end of January - assuming I can bring my score up to my target range.

Tomorrow I'm gonna take the REAL test! lol

I have been scoring decently in most CATS [730-750] in MGMATs with Q51 for 3 times consecutively and verbal ranging from 39 to 42.

I hope I can crack the GMAT tomorrow!

As long as I don't bomb the test,I can assure you that I'll write a debrief tomorrow.It's been a marathon so it might of help,especially to you.

Catch ya later!