GMAT Strategy

520 in second test.Quant-45 Verbal -8 IR -3

My previous score of test 1- Quant-40 verbal=5 IR-3
Score-430


I gave my second test today after gap of two weeks. Now I notice each and every activity of mine while writing the test.Like time taken for various question .I consume more then 15 mins in every RC passage because of it less time was available for other questions.

Can anyone suggest any way/ways to improve the RC score and doing the passage efficiently. I waste most of the time to understand the passage.

Thanks in advance.

P.S- I am planning to give my exam on august end.Aiming 700+ score

Hey RohitSharma,

15 mins for every RC passage is DEFINITELY going to hurt your Verbal score. Before we talk GMAT Verbal plan of action, you've got to accept one cold hard fact: you MUST answer EVERY SINGLE VERBAL question. To do this, you MUST stay "on benchmark." This means you must know exactly where you should be at any given minute during the Verbal section and guess on as many questions as you need to so that you consistently stay "on track." Here's some benchmarks I suggest:

Time Left On Clock---->Question Number
71 min------>3
61 min------>8
51 min------>13
41 min------>19
31 min------>24
21 min------>30
11 min------>35
5 min------->39
1 min------->41

Write these down and keep them in front of you for EVERY Verbal full-length section you do. If you're falling behind, practice "guess/attempt/guess/attempt" until you "catch up" to the benchmark. For example, if you noticed the clock said 41 minutes and you're only on question 15, you're about 4 questions behind. You'll guess on the next question without even reading it, spend 2 minutes on the second question, guess on the third question without even reading it, then spend 2 minutes on the fourth question. Continue this pattern until you're back on track with the benchmarks. Why do we do this? Because we know the GMAT penalizes "strings" of incorrect questions, and it's VITAL to try and get some correct answers mixed in there. BUT this also requires you to be disciplined and "walk away" from a Verbal question after 2 minutes....

For your RC skills to grow, you will need to practice a LOT, especially if English isn't your first language. I'd suggest at least 30 minutes of RC practice EVERY DAY.

How do you practice?

To start, here's the mandatory books you'll need to get:

GMAT Official Guide - 13th edition

GMAT Official Guide - Verbal review

You'll want to know the RC questions in this book backwards, forwards, and upside down.

Other books with lots of passages to practice:

Veritas Prep - Reading Comprehension Guide

Manhattan GMAT - RC Strategy Guide

Artistotle Prep - RC Grail

What do you DO with these passages? Learn how to make a "Passage Map"! Every tutor worth their salt with have a particular way of breaking down an RC passage. Here's the template I use:

T:
S:
1:
2:
3:
POV:
P:

These symbols stand for Topic, Scope, Function of 1st Paragraph, Function of 2nd Paragraph, Function of 3rd Paragraph, Author's Point of View, and Purpose.

Part of the problem is that right now you are reading the passage to understand all of the details, but Detail Questions are only one type of question on the GMAT. And here's a secret: you only need to understand the details that are asked about, and since we can't anticipate WHAT details we'll be asked about later, it's best just to "glide" over them in a cursory way and focus instead on the passage's STRUCTURE. You can always go back later and re-read the details. But it's too hard to go back and find the "Function" of a paragraph once you're moved past it.

I could go on for DAYS (and I have ) about the importance of a passage map, but you'll probably find it more helpful to see some example passage maps:

https://gmatrockstar.com/2014/01/17/gmat ... y-purpose/
https://gmatrockstar.com/2013/10/31/gmat ... f-the-day/

Notice how the Passage Map I make is NOT a summary. They're basically predictions to anticipated questions. We find the Purpose for "Main Idea" questions, just like we find the Functions for "Logical Structure" questions.

I'd also suggest reading some non-GMAT material as well. As you read these articles, do the following:

-Circle the topic

-Underline any transition words

-Write down the purpose of each paragraph

-Write down the author's point of view in your own words

-Write down the Main Idea in your own words

ALWAYS read with a pen in your hand, and always ask the million dollar question, "Why is the author saying this?"

- NY Times book review (I really like this article's description of how to use these articles for practice: https://smartestprep.wordpress.com/2010/ ... rehension/)

- Scientific American: https://www.scientificamerican.com/

- The Economist: https://www.economist.com/

- The Spectator: https://www.spectator.co.uk/

- Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/

Keep in mind that the GMAT RC is not "hard" because of it's incredibly advanced language. Most of it is readily comprehensible, although it may occasionally use unfamiliar scientific or business terminology. The challenge of RC lies in breaking down the rhetoric of the passage, and grasping not only what the author's argument is, but HOW he/she makes it.

Hope this helps, and good luck! RC is a challenge, but you're up to it! You just need to change how you read.

Thank you Vivian and Rich.

I followed you advice . I am able to complete the test .

Now I am also able to reduce the RC time from 15 min to 8 min but now the problem is my RC score is 21 ques correct . I am just preparing these days for verbal because of it my Quant score goes down to 21 correct(earlier it was 27 correct ques).

Can you please advice me how to prepare from now on .I have scheduled my exam for 28 August.

Hi Rohit,

So now you've got the pacing handled, you need to dive DEEP on RC strategy. Breaking down the passages as I suggested above is only one part of it. You also need to be dealing with the questions effectively and efficiently. I'd suggest you follow this method:

STEP 1 - Read and classify the question by type (Detail, Function, Main Idea, etc.)

STEP 2 - Rephrase it in simpler terms. Put the question in your own words so that it makes sense to you.

STEP 3 - Write down your own Answer. You have to think for yourself in RC. Go back to your passage map (or the passage itself if it's a detail question) and FIND THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION. Then WRITE IT DOWN. Cannot emphasize the importance of this enough.

STEP 4 - Read ALL 5 answer choices, eliminate the "3 worst." Quickly read all 5 choices. Do NOT belabor each one. If you get a strong "hit" off a choice, you may add a "+" or "-" next to the letter on your scratch pad. After you've read ALL 5, you can eliminate the 3 that are the furthest from your prediction, and any choices with a "-" symbol.

STEP 5 - Carefully compare the FINAL TWO. Tough RC questions always comes down to the subtle differences between the correct answer and the "second best," so FIND THOSE DIFFERENCES. What is the scope of each choice? Any extreme or qualifying language?

You may find more helpful RC articles here: https://gmatrockstar.com/tag/reading-comprehension/

I'd be happy to work with you to model this strategy in more detail. It makes a really big difference. Try something for me: do a passage and a series of questions completely untimed. Can you get 80-90% accuracy? If not, then your strategy is NOT working for you. Theoretically, if we had all the time in the world, we should be getting EVERY question correct -- RC is like an open book test!!

RohitSharma wrote:Thank you Vivian and Rich.

I followed you advice . I am able to complete the test .

Now I am also able to reduce the RC time from 15 min to 8 min but now the problem is my RC score is 21 ques correct . I am just preparing these days for verbal because of it my Quant score goes down to 21 correct(earlier it was 27 correct ques).

Can you please advice me how to prepare from now on .I have scheduled my exam for 28 August.

Rohit,

Try to see where you are making the most mistakes in RC.

Is it across the board? If so, then the problem is in your fundamental approach. Vivian has suggested some great ways for you to correct your fundamental approach.

Is it in a particular question type? For instance, big picture questions (main point, primary purpose, central theme etc.)
If the issue is here, then critical reading (not trying to understand every word in the passage but skimming it to get the overall picture and scanning for specific details) and mapping (making a graphical or textual note of the salient points in the passage as you skim through it) will help you.

Similarly, you can take specific steps for other question types.
Is it in a particular type of passage? For instance, social sciences, business, life sciences etc. In that case, you need to practice more such passages so that you become comfortable with them. Here's a blog in which we have made some suggestions to build your strength in RC:
https://gmat.crackverbal.com/building-st ... rehension/

Some of our students who scored 700+ on the GMAT have shared tips and strategies for RC rpeparation on this link. You may want to check it out:
https://gmat.crackverbal.com/gmat-readin ... sion-tips/

In the meantime, don't lose focus on other sections. Every 2 days, ensure that you touch some aspect of all the different sections in quant and verbal. This way, you will not lose focus.

Let me know if you have further questions.