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Wide variation in verbal score

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Wide variation in verbal score

by jsl » Fri Jul 11, 2008 12:52 am
For the past few weeks, I have been doing Kaplan practise CATS every week. When I do the test, I start at 18:30 in the evening doing 1 essay and then moving onto the Quant and Verbal section all under test conditions. Here is a quick breakdown of the percentile scores which I'm getting for verbal:

3 weeks ago: 72nd percentile
2 weeks ago: 46th percentile
1 weeks ago: 77th percentile
this week: 59th percentile

My (embarrassingly low) quant score is increasing steadily (latest 55th percentile) which I understand as I am studying for it. However, can anyone advise me on my my verbal score is varying so much?

By way of background, I'm a native to England, currently doing classes with Kaplan and have been studying for the GMAT for the past 2 months.
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by jsl » Fri Jul 11, 2008 6:52 am
please could someone help on this? I'd be hugely thankful for any advice...
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by VP_Tatiana » Fri Jul 11, 2008 7:05 am
Hi JSL,

Seeing a variation in CAT scores is very normal. Even if your test conditions are nearly the same each time, sometimes you might be more tired, sometimes you may be more on your game, sometimes the questions will just seem written for you.

The bigger issue, I think, is that you may have some confusion over the percentiles. A higher percentile translates to a higher GMAT score. For instance, a 760 or higher is 99th percentile. If your score has gone from 59th to 55th percentile this week, it looks like it is decreasing.

Because your scores are jumping, but overall falling, it looks like you may need a new study strategy. Rather than spend 3+ hours each week taking a CAT, you may want to use that time to improve fundamentals. If your issues are with grammar, you may want to read Strunk and White's Elements of Style. If you have trouble with reading comprehension, you may want to practice your critical reading skills on business and science articles and literature.

You are the best one to troubleshoot your weak areas. More than just look at your percentile, you need to see what types of problems you are missing. Do you miss them equally when the difficultly level hits a certain score (ie 500)? Or is one area bringing down your overall score?

Make sure that you read over the explanations for every problem that you miss. It is essential that you understand each problem you miss to avoid missing a similar question in the future.

Best wishes,

Tatiana
Tatiana Becker | GMAT Instructor | Veritas Prep
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by gmataspire2008 » Sat Jul 12, 2008 9:17 am
Hi jsl, try manhattan verbal review, its highly recommended for SC.
also try some RC strategies - reading each para and summarizing it in the paper before trying to answer - this will help u focus on reading the passage.. hope it helps u..
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