GMAT Strategy

Hi All,

Just got back from the examination center and got a score of 610
Quant - 49
Verbal - 24

This was my second attempt. In first attempt i had scored 620 (Dec 2009).

Feeling very de-motivated and sad , as I had never scored below 730 in six GMAT Prep tests this time during my preparations.

I am planning to take my test again next month but dunno where to start from, as I am completely short of material now.

During my preparations, have covered the following material :
OG 10 (2 times),
OG 12 (2 times),
MGMAT SC,
PowerScore CR Bible,
RC 99
Gmat prep Sc and Cr document
Papagust 300+ math question.

Experts plz help.
how should i start preparing for verbal .

Sorry to hear that you did not get the score you were looking for!

The first thing I noticed when I read your post was that you took GMATPrep 6 times. This to me signals that at least part of your scores do not reflect your true ability and are in fact inflated. GMATPrep tests can be taken twice each, for a total of 4 tests, without significant repetition in questions. However, I'm pretty sure that at least your last few tests have been quite a bit skewed by you already knowing the answers to some questions. I advise you to check out other practice tests for a more accurate diagnostic of your current level.

The other thing is that you may need more than a month to cross 700 given your track record. Don't rush your prep just for the sake of making R1 deadlines! R2 is just as good and you still stand relatively similar admissions chances. I think you need to take things slowly now and focus on quality vs. quantity.

Your approach is not the best one, I can tell from your scores. You seem to be at the same level after two attempts, which makes me believe that you've hit a wall. Usually the best way to cross that wall would be to adopt a new approach to study. I know most non native speakers tend to focus on practice over concepts, but the GMAT doesn't work that way. I truly advise you to disect your prep and ask yourself these questions:
1. Do you have all the theory down before you practice?
2. When you review theory, do you make flashcards or take notes? Most people just do a light read, but that won't cut it.
3. Have you been making an effort to read high quality materials in English every day? Your language skills might be preventing you from achieving success.
4. For practice: do you keep an error log and review the questions you got wrong? When you find a difficult question, do you really try your best to answer it or do you skim though it and check the answer? Do you read the explanation for the wrong answers too?

You have some great books on your list, but I'm not sure about the other resources. The RC 99 doc has been proven to be a collection of materials stolen from Kaplan, and I don't really know what you mean when you say "GMAT Prep SC and CR document." You can check out the Veritas Prep books too for some more high quality practice!

Hi DanaJ,

Thanks for the fast and detailed response.

Regarding GMAT prep tests : yes in the last two tests ,i have encountered the few already known questions and my scores were 760 and 740. I have given them for the sake of practice on last weekend. But on previous tests , my scores were 730 , 730 , 740 , 730(On these tests hardly any questions , which were known to me). So , i was expecting the score in that range.

Regarding answers to ur questions :

1-2. I have prepared my verbal notes(For SC) from manhattan sc book and from the explanations of Ron available on manhattan and BTG forums.
3. I am not reading high quality material frequently. I mean , i read some editorials in newspapers. Can u plz suggest me some?
4. I always review the answer whenever i gets wrong and takes as a challenge to answer the difficult question to the best of my ability.And if i get wrong answer , i always review the question and search for the expert's explanations on net.

GMAT prep SC and CR docs are the document containing many GMAT prep questions available till now. I have solved these question in last two days after the tests on last weekend. Can u plz suggest me tests , which are close to real GMAT.

Hmm... Then maybe your results have more to do with test day anxiety than anything else? I'm no expert on this, but here are some resources to get you started: https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/category ... t-test-day

There are quite a few resources out there, such as CNN.com, The Economist, WSJ, Financial Times... News websites in general are pretty good, although try some others like sciencedaily etc.

I guess you can check out the MGMAT tests if you haven't already? I've also heard good things about the Veritas Prep tests and Kaplan tests (although Kaplan were a little bit off for me, in the sense that the quant they had in there was a bit different from what I've come to expect from official sources).

Did you do the essays before going to Quant and Verbal sections on each of your practice tests, including GMATPrep?

It is obvious that Verbal is your weakness, and you need to quickly analyze which part of Verbal you need to spend your time more. If possible, arrange the SC, CR and RC in an order that represent the strongest to the weakest area, then start with the weakest one. I have a feeling that you have mastered all the concepts and strategy on different types of Verbal questions. Thus, it is just a matter of practice. I have always emphasized that test takers only use OG and GMATPrep to practice their skills since both contain questions that most resemble the ones you will see on your real test. On the other hand, you don't want to overuse both materials as you won't gain anything from doing so.

I'm not sure how you approach each Verbal question, but I learned from a GMAT tutor that for each Verbal question you encounter, not only you must be able to identify the correct answer, but also it is equally important that you know why the other answer choices are incorrect.
Very often I looked at a question and after scanning the answer choices, was able to quickly pick D, for instance, as the correct answer. But then, after scrutinizing answer choices A,B,C and E, I can eliminate A,C and E for sure, but not B. After looking closer at both B and D, it was not unusual that I switched my answer to B, and indeed, B is the correct answer.

My point is, for every OG and GMATPrep question you tackle, knowing why incorrect answers are incorrect is almost as important as picking the right answer. If you haven't done so, I suggest that you do your practice on OG and GMATPrep but with different approach.

I hope this helps...

@DanaJ - Thanks for the advice. I will surely look into it. I have given only MGMAT free test and on the test , i scored 700. According to you , should i retake the test within month after some more practice or wait? I am not in hurry to apply for R1. I just want to make sure that this time i get my desired score.

@Ronaldramlan - Thanks for the advice. Yes, i gave AWA on every test and did not miss on a single one.I am not able to figured out yet , what i missed on test day.

rohit87 wrote:@Ronaldramlan - Thanks for the advice. Yes, i gave AWA on every test and did not miss on a single one.I am not able to figured out yet , what i missed on test day.

Okay, you are doing your practice correctly then. Keep doing the essays in full time whenever you take practice tests.
In addition to what I said in my earlier post, I find the following advice from someone I can't remember useful. During the break between Quant and Verbal, try to have some sweet snacks usually provided in the test centre. Those snacks are rendered for test takers for a purpose, to recover your stamina after tedious quant section.