zeza wrote:I am so disappointed. GMAT defeated me to the ground after months of studying.
I do not know from where to start and what materials to use to get a better score. So far I've been using OG12, Princeton Review and Veritas Question bank and I was doing good (or at least I thought so).
Can someone help me?
I have been thro' a similar thing in my life. Here is my advice. Take a short break, spend time with family, treat yourself with the food you love the most and get your mind off GMAT for a couple of weeks.
After couple of weeks, review your study methodology. Were your study methods and strategies used in preparation/test effective? Did you prepare in the right way? What strategies you were using for time management in the test? Were you aware of your strengthens and weakness? What steps did you take to close the knowledge gaps/weak areas? Google and find out the retaking strategies. There are many advice on retaking strategies.
Here is some more advice from my earlier post.
Prepare in the right way.
Faulty method of preparation:
Solving more and more problems each and every day from multiple sources without reviewing the mistakes will not help you in improving your score. In my first attempt at GMAT I also wasted a lot of time in hunting for resources online.
Right way to prepare for GMAT:
Quality is greater than quantity. Solving a small set of questions, reviewing them periodically and redoing the wrong ones helped me improve 110 points. Stick to retired GMAT questions from OG quesstions and GMATPREP collection. Learn from each and every question. This will definitely help in verbal. In CR and SC you can see that the testmakers use a definite pattern in making the questions. Also work on your stamina. GMAT is 4 hrs long exam. If verbal is your weak area this is even more important as verbal is at the end. Ways to improve your stamina : ensure that your study sessions are 1 hr in length(1 hr of study without any break or interruption), solve 40 questions of one type in 1 hr like 40 PS in 1 hr, 40 DS in 1 hr, 40 CR in 1 hr ( as you are expected to solve 37 in 75 min (quant) and 41 questions in verbal), and take full length tests with AWA and IR. DO NOT SKIP the AWA and IR.
The one thing you wish you knew for taking a test date:
If you are taking the GMAT for the first time, take the test date 3 months ahead.
If you are retaking the GMAT (which you will be doing for considerable point improvement), take the test date only when you feel you are ready. When you feel you are ready take the test date for the next month and use the 3-4 weeks to work on your strategies and to work more on your weak areas.
The one thing you wish you knew for the TEST DAY.
1. Relax the last week before your GMAT Test day. Do small set of questions and work on your strategies. Do not do anything related to GMAT the day before GMAT. Your brain has be fresh and relaxed on the test day. If you are a working professional take a break for atleast 7-10 days before the test day. This is one thing that definitely helped me in my 110 point increase. Also EAT WELL ON THE TEST DAY. In my first attempt I had a light/normal breakfast and took the GMAT. At the start of the verbal session, I was too tired and I just could nt read the words from the screen. My empty stomach was making all sorts of noise and the words were flying on the screen. For a moment I thought that there was some problem with the computer screen. I looked at the ceiling and I knew that it was a problem with me and not the computer screen. On my second attempt I had a heavy breakfast and 1 can RED BULL before the start of Quant section and another can before the verbal session.
Use the 8 min break to relax your mind, write down the time chart for time management, the prime numbers between 1-100. Also the 8 min break is a short break, make sure you return to your desk in time.
Time chart for Quant:
q---Time
0 75
5 65
10 55
15 45
20 35
25 25
30 15
35 5
You can prepare a similar one for verbal with 9 min decrements ( 75, 66, 57 ...)
