Scored only 650 But Have Something New to Share

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Today, i scored 650 (Q-48, V-31) on actual GMAT.

I chose Quant-Verbal-IR-Essay section order. The first Quant question bombarded at me was super tough and i had no choice but to guess on that. What i had heard is that GMAT start with medium difficulty question. But see, don't believe what you hear. Throughout, i found quant at GMAT tougher than that at GMAT Prep software. Was it because i chose Quant first? Please note i am strong in Quant as you can see from my scores in GMAT Prep.

In the verbal, SC was altogether new. Nothing what i have seen in Manhattan Guide or Official guides came in either GMAT exam or GMAT Prep exams. Although i have all the rules of Manhattan guide on my fingertips, i found out that there wasn't any rule i have learned so far which i could apply. And this was true for most of SC questions.

In quant as well as in RC, SC & CR, questions on actual GMAT was tougher than Official Guides. Questions on actual GMAT are not even similar to what you study from any OG or any other GMAT Prep company material. I think that GMAT test makers go through all the material in the market to make the GMAT questions unique.

A word of caution for people studying from OG: OG consists mostly 500 level questions. 700 level questions are very limited.

Also, i don't understand why they give laminated sheets and markers in the test. I found a lot of problem with markers. I changed 6-8 markers but still markers were not working. You have to close them when not in use. They dry up when kept open. But it takes time and effort to open and close them 90 times on 90 questions of GMAT (Q=37, V=41, IR=12). Simple pen and papers will make the life of GMAT takers much easier. Other test takers, please share your experience.

Many may not know that in the GMAT nothing is allowed during test including wallet, hankey, mobile, pen, paper etc. However, you are given locker to store these.

In GMAT exam, i had to guess on 5 verbal questions because of shortage of time. I faced similar issues with verbal timing during all the mock tests. GMAT Experts and other test takers please tell is this a common problem and how to get rid of timing issue in Verbal?

In the Mock tests, my score were
GMAT Prep 1 = 640 (Q-49, V-28)
GMAT Prep 2 = 690 (Q-49, V-34)
Veritas = 630
Manhattan Prep = 600

I had studied thoroughly from the following material:
SC - Manhattan, SC Grail, OG13, OG-Verbal
RC - Manhattan, OG13, OG-Verbal
CR - Manhattan, Powercore CR Bible, OG13, OG-Verbal
Quant - Manhattan, OG13

Even after so much of study, i could manage only 650. I don't think additional study can improve my score. Also, i feel verbal timing will take much longer to improve, maybe 1 year through intensive reading. GMAT experts, please tell if i am correct.

Here, you find everybody scoring 700+. So don't commit the mistake of believing you can also score 700+ easily. 700+ takes a lot of work.

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by [email protected] » Tue Jul 18, 2017 6:25 pm
Hi kashif raza,

First off, a 650/Q48 is a strong score (it's right around the 80th percentile overall), so it could be enough to get you into your first-choice School. Depending on the Schools that you plan to apply to, you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile. There's a Forum full of them here:

https://www.beatthegmat.com/ask-an-mba-a ... t-f40.html

Based on what you've described, your studies have been 'book heavy.' Unfortunately, many Test Takers who study in that way end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level. Even the best books are limited in what they can teach you; they also can't force you to approach questions in a certain way and their explanations are often one-sided. This is meant to say that if you were to choose to continue studying, then you would likely benefit a great deal from investing in some new, non-book materials (with an emphasis on learning/practicing Tactics) - and as an aside, it would NOT take you a year to improve. With the proper materials - and the willingness to learn to 'see' the GMAT in a new way - I bet that you could retest in 1-2 months and have a reasonable chance of scoring 700+.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Contact Rich at [email protected]
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by kashif raza » Thu Jul 20, 2017 7:33 am
What i am doubtful about is not increasing accuracy. Yes, accuracy can be improved in 1-2 months. But what about speed? I had to guess on 5 questions due to shortage of time in verbal in real GMAT. In GMAT Prep mock tests too, i had to guess on 7-9 questions due to shortage of time. I think i have to increase my reading speed and that too with comprehension. And this will take about an year of intensive reading of GMAT like material. If i am wrong, tell me how any course can improve speed. Give some examples. In SC, yes you can use splits. But in RC & CR, you have not only to read passage and question but also have to read all the 5 answer choices to eliminate 4 wrong choices and this takes time.
[email protected] wrote:Hi kashif raza,

First off, a 650/Q48 is a strong score (it's right around the 80th percentile overall), so it could be enough to get you into your first-choice School. Depending on the Schools that you plan to apply to, you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile. There's a Forum full of them here:

https://www.beatthegmat.com/ask-an-mba-a ... t-f40.html

Based on what you've described, your studies have been 'book heavy.' Unfortunately, many Test Takers who study in that way end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level. Even the best books are limited in what they can teach you; they also can't force you to approach questions in a certain way and their explanations are often one-sided. This is meant to say that if you were to choose to continue studying, then you would likely benefit a great deal from investing in some new, non-book materials (with an emphasis on learning/practicing Tactics) - and as an aside, it would NOT take you a year to improve. With the proper materials - and the willingness to learn to 'see' the GMAT in a new way - I bet that you could retest in 1-2 months and have a reasonable chance of scoring 700+.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

GMAT/MBA Expert

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Posts: 10392
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by [email protected] » Thu Jul 20, 2017 12:18 pm
Hi kashif raza,

To start, it's important to note that pacing 'issues' do NOT exist on their own - they're the result of OTHER issues. While it's possible that you might be a bit of a 'slow reader', it's more likely that "your way" of dealing with the GMAT takes too long (as you've noted in your post - you've had pacing issues on ALL of your practice Verbal sections).

Most GMAT questions can be approached in more than one way, so you have to analyze how you're approaching questions (even the ones that you get correct). The issue here is not about 'overall accuracy' - it's about 'efficiency' (and this applies to how you handle the Quant section too). If you can learn a way to correctly answer a question in 2 minutes, then you should NOT be using an approach that takes 3 minutes.

The 700+ score is about the 90th percentile - thus, most Test Takers will never score that high regardless of the number of times that they take the GMAT. That having been said, the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. I'm not convinced that you have 'peaked' yet, but if you're convinced that you can't improve, then you have to apply with this 650... and all of the complaining won't make a difference (and as an aside, it would be off-putting to Admissions Officers, so make sure that you don't do any of that in your applications).

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Contact Rich at [email protected]
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