660 (Q48, V33) - Retake strategies??

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660 (Q48, V33) - Retake strategies??

by getsunnyy » Tue Aug 05, 2014 10:32 pm
Hi GMAT Experts!

I gave my first GMAT attempt 2 days back and got a 660 (Q48 V33). This is about 60 points below my base target of a 720+ score. I wish to retake the GMAT in a month, and wanted advice on what approach to follow. To give you guys more insight into my preparation and ability:

I'm generally weaker in Quant and Verbal happens to be my strong point (as opposed to what is evident from my sectional scores). In my mock tests also, I was getting lower Quant scores and Verbal used to be my savior. But I don't know what happened on the real GMAT.

Quants:

In terms of capability, my PS is generally good - maybe not that good on the really tough questions. DS is certainly my Achilles heel, especially on the number properties questions (surprise! surprise!). I was still able to improve a lot on DS by focusing a lot on curbing silly mistakes and trying to work with more logic than brute force - thanks to the strategies & videos by Veritas Prep available on the IOS platforms. Thanks Brian!

However, I still can't get over the 48 mark in quants. Any suggestions on what I should do to reach a 50 on quants?

Verbal:

In verbal, SC and CR have become my strong areas. Again, I have the Veritas Prep videos to help. Initially I built my skills through Manhattan GMAT guides, but I gained new perspective with the help of Veritas prep and Brian.

Surprisingly, I completely lost my base in RC. I do blame myself for that because other than the OG13 questions, I only worked on RC questions during the mock tests. I was good with RC generally, but then I don't know what happened and I completely lost my accuracy in them. I do intend to focus more on RC during my retake preparation, but do need help on how to approach RC questions on the really tough & convoluted passages. Any suggestions?

TARGET:

I am hoping to improve my score from a Q48 V33 to a Q49+ V40+. I would appreciate any help on defining what my strategy should be for each of the 5 segments (PS, DS, CR, SC and RC). Also, suggestions on overall strategy on test taking & timing would also be helpful. Thanks!