Hi Posey,
As said on this thread, congrats on your determination to continue and hopefully improve your score.
One question I would normally ask at this point is what you had been scoring on your practice tests--if you truly did not score as well on the actual exam, there would generally be a reason such as running short of time, getting stuck on a few questions, or just generally having a bad day. I generally encourage students in your position not to wait too long to re-take, and to continue to maintain their current skills, while spending some extra time on any specific areas they feel they struggle with. It’s also important to keep focusing on timing, and practicing on the computer, and to maintain the level of studying until the next exam date. Keep in mind that even the real GMAT has a +/- 30 point margin of error, or a given score could vary by 30 points on different days, so that plays a role even aside from your additional studying.
You'll want to make sure you effectively identify your specific strengths and weaknesses so you can properly prioritize your next month of prep. It does sound like you need to focus a lot on quant, as b-schools look at your GMAT performance as an indicator as to whether you can handle the quant that will be present during b-school.
Good luck and keep us all posted!
Jen Kedrowski
Kaplan Test Prep & Admissions
GMAT Teacher
MBA Admissions Consultant
National Product Team Member
