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Test day in 3 days...Still feel stuck up. Please advice.

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Test day in 3 days...Still feel stuck up. Please advice.

by asherkunal » Sun Apr 09, 2017 12:35 am
Hello,

I have been preparing for the GMAT for the past 3 months now. The initial month of study wasn't too good. I would say it wasn't defined. I could not grab concepts, kind of unorganized. I kept at it and then ran into GMATPrepNow videos. Have been using those for the past 2 months now and they have surely helped ALOT. Being a working individual, I used to dedicate approx 2 hours on weekdays, and 5-6 hours on weekends.

My test day is on 12th April, 3 days from now. My GMATPrep test scores were 540 (before using GMATPrepNow), 600 last week and 590 yesterday. I do feel I am missing quite a few key concepts in some of the questions, especially quant, so currently I am going through the various questions, topic wise.

My target score is 700 and I wish to apply to the colleges in the UK (Warwick, LBS), India (ISB, Hyderbad) and South Africa (GSB, UCT). The former ones have their deadlines approaching in a few weeks, so I do not have much time to give the test another good shot.

I started following BeattheGMAT just a week back. I so wish I had started doing so earlier.

Anyways, cribbing about things won't help. I need to give the test, and I need to give it well.

Any advice is welcome. Thanks.
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by [email protected] » Sun Apr 09, 2017 9:55 am
Hi asherkunal,

It's unrealistic to expect a 100-point increase in 3 days, so we have to look at your overall goals in a more practical way. To start, you have to think about what is more important: getting into your first-choice Business School or rushing to send in a bunch of applications now (and hoping that you have a strong enough application to get into at least one of the Business Schools on your list).

Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores. From what you've described, your first month of study was disorganized and/or not particular effective - so you've really only been studying consistently for about 2 months. This is meant to say that you would likely improve as you continued to study.

1) Looking beyond the immediate application deadlines that you've referred to, what are the NEXT set of application deadlines for the Schools that you're interested in?

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by asherkunal » Sun Apr 09, 2017 11:21 am
Hey Rich,
Thank you for the response. It would rather get into my choice of school than send out a bunch of applications and hope for the best.
The good thing is that just a couple of colleges have deadlines in the coming few weeks.
ISB ends in October and GSB has not yet started taking in applications.

Looking at it practically, I was thinking of accepting the score if it crosses 630.
In case I accept my score, and then decide to give it another shot, can I send the scores to the same schools (provided I get a better score)? Would that be considered for the same academic year? I hope I am making some sense here.

Thanks again.
Kunal.
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by [email protected] » Sun Apr 09, 2017 6:19 pm
Hi Kunal.,

As a general rule, Business Schools don't care if you take the GMAT more than once, so having more than one score on file is not a bad thing. Ultimately, Schools will assess your application with whatever information they have; whether that's one GMAT score or multiple GMAT scores is up to you (depending on the Schools that you choose to send each score to). Most Schools tend to take an applicant's highest overall score and many will even accept a newer GMAT score after the application deadline has passed (as long as your actual application was sent in on time).

When you take the GMAT in a few days, you do not technically have to select any Schools to receive the Official Score Report - although you would have to pay a per-school fee later on to do so (currently $28 per Report per School). This would give you the flexibility to 'bank' this score, retest later and choose which score to send out when you apply.

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by asherkunal » Mon Apr 10, 2017 1:01 am
Hey Rich,

Thanks a lot for this valuable piece of advice.
This is what I plan. Select the schools, accept the score and apply to the schools for which I know I shall stand a chance. I shall let this be my game plan for now.
Lets see how things go from here.
Thanks again for the help Rich, truly appreciated.

Cheers,
Kunal.
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by asherkunal » Sun Apr 23, 2017 12:14 am
Hey there Rich,

I scored a 550 (Q-35/V-31, IR-3, AWA-4.5). I was kind of expecting that at the back of my mind.
Quant did not go too well. I could tell as the questions came by. Most of them got easier as I went forward. The wordiness and framing of the questions and the time pressure got to me. Those were my biggest let downs.
By the time I reached the verbal section, I could bet the letters had started dancing in front of my eyes. I got hit by the RC questions. Just could not give them enough justice.
I wish to re-seat the test in 60 days. What do you advice?

Cheers,
Kunal
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by [email protected] » Sun Apr 23, 2017 9:51 am
Hi Kunal,

GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +/- 30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function - and that you took your CATs in a realistic fashion - your Official Score isn't too surprising (if we assume an ability level around 570, then you would have an 'upper end' around 600 and a 'lower end' around 540).

Assuming your score goal is still 700+, then you still have a lot of work to do - and you'll have to make some significant improvements to how you handle BOTH the Quant and Verbal sections. That work will likely take at least another 3 months of consistent, guided study, so I suspect that 60 days will not be enough. However, we won't know for sure until you make some changes to your study routine and get back to work.

1) What study materials do you currently have?
2) Going forward, how many hours can you consistently study each week?

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by sukhman » Mon Apr 24, 2017 7:19 am
I improved from 460-500 to 610, there is no shortcut to success, You have to learn the content . To increase your score you need to focus on Verbal and Quant separately. Math Revolution is good website to learn Maths content , for verbal E-Gmat is good.You also need to practice official questions , I practiced Official Guide 10 Th Edition for Maths it has lot more official questions , you can get it on Amazon.com for as little as $1 add $24 if you live outside of US . Get hold of all old Official Guides on Amazon and start practicing. You also to practice IR Official questions , you can get them free along with latest Edition of Official Guide I got 5 in IR.Buy Exam Pack 1 and 2 and other official questions, they help a lot in practice.
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by DavidG@VeritasPrep » Mon Apr 24, 2017 7:43 am
The wordiness and framing of the questions and the time pressure got to me. Those were my biggest let downs.
By the time I reached the verbal section, I could bet the letters had started dancing in front of my eyes.
A good reminder that we cannot overstate the importance of the psychological component of testing. In addition to honing your strategies and solidifying your knowledge base, consider incorporating some mindfulness work for your next go-round: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/arch ... on/275564/
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by asherkunal » Mon Apr 24, 2017 8:05 pm
[email protected] wrote:Hi Kunal,

GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +/- 30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function - and that you took your CATs in a realistic fashion - your Official Score isn't too surprising (if we assume an ability level around 570, then you would have an 'upper end' around 600 and a 'lower end' around 540).

Assuming your score goal is still 700+, then you still have a lot of work to do - and you'll have to make some significant improvements to how you handle BOTH the Quant and Verbal sections. That work will likely take at least another 3 months of consistent, guided study, so I suspect that 60 days will not be enough. However, we won't know for sure until you make some changes to your study routine and get back to work.

1) What study materials do you currently have?
2) Going forward, how many hours can you consistently study each week?

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

I possess the following study material:
- OG 2015 with separate Verbal and Quant guides
- OG 2016
- Manhattan Prep books
- Princeton Review GMAT Questions
- An on-going subscription on the GMATPrepNow video series

As for the time, I can spend at least 15-17 hours a week. In a good week, it could go to 20.

Kunal.
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by [email protected] » Tue Apr 25, 2017 9:19 am
Hi Kunal,

Many Test Takers who use a 'book heavy' study approach end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level. Since you appear to have worked with a lot of different books, it's possible that this has happened to you as well. 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 you'll likely find it beneficial to invest in some new non-book materials.

Most GMAT Companies offer some type of free materials (practice problems, Trial Accounts, videos, etc.) that you can use to 'test out' a product before you buy it. We have a variety of those resources at our site (www.empowergmat.com). I suggest that you take advantage of all of them then choose the one that best matches your personality, timeline and budget.

If you have any additional question, then you can feel free to contact me directly.

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by jaiyeolab » Sun May 28, 2017 6:00 pm
DavidG@VeritasPrep wrote:[quote consider incorporating some mindfulness work for your next go-round: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/arch ... on/275564/
Hi David,

I'd love to hear your thoughts on how I can incorporate mindfulness in my study plan. I have seen you mention it a few times and I think this could really help me. Do you have any tips on processes I can incorporate into my day to day to complement my studying? Right now, the questions I keep getting wrong in my practice test that are stopping me from getting my target score seem a little silly, when I review them after the fact. Something is just not right with the way I take the exam.

Thanks in advance
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by DavidG@VeritasPrep » Mon May 29, 2017 9:26 am
jaiyeolab wrote:
DavidG@VeritasPrep wrote:[quote consider incorporating some mindfulness work for your next go-round: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/arch ... on/275564/
Hi David,

I'd love to hear your thoughts on how I can incorporate mindfulness in my study plan. I have seen you mention it a few times and I think this could really help me. Do you have any tips on processes I can incorporate into my day to day to complement my studying? Right now, the questions I keep getting wrong in my practice test that are stopping me from getting my target score seem a little silly, when I review them after the fact. Something is just not right with the way I take the exam.

Thanks in advance
First, don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Any guided meditation from a reputable source is a viable option. And any time of day is a reasonable time to practice. There's an app called "Calm" that I really like. (It has a handful of free meditations, others you can buy.) Alternatively, you can simply google "Jon Kabat-Zinn meditation" and plenty of meditations will pop up. Try to do one everyday.

During an exam, whether it's a practice test or the real thing, be conscious of your breath. When we're nervous/anxious/frustrated our breath tends to become rapid and shallow. We don't think as clearly in this state. If that happens, deepen your inhalations and slow your exhalations. Anytime you're stuck, remind yourself that difficult GMAT questions are designed to appear more challenging than they are. The better you can maintain your composure, the more likely out are to suss out the relevant pattern, and the less likely you are to make a careless mistake. Maintain a Zen-like attitude. The only things you can control during the test are how you approach the question on screen and how deeply you're breathing. That's it. Don't try to figure out how well you're doing. Don't dwell on questions you've already answered. Control what you can control and accept that everything else is out of your hands. (And know that this is easier said than done.)
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