Directions needed - Kaplan CAT 1 570 (40Q, 28V)

[stormier]

I have been preparing for the last 3 weeks or so, and have read through the following:

1. Princeton cracking the GMAT 2010
2. Manhattan SC guide

I have taken 3 GMAT CATs thus far, and my scores have not been encouraging at all -

1. Crack-GMAT free test 615 (49Q,20V)
2. Kaplan CAT 1 570 (40Q,28V)
3. Kaplan CAT 2 570 (39Q,30V)

I was disappointed in my 570 CAT1 score and took the CAT2 the very same day, today that is, only to double my disappointment.

The Kaplan tests are from CD-ROM, one of 2008. The RC on these tests was extremely hard for me - the subject matter was incomprehensible. At best, I could understand the contents of the science passages.

I plan on working problems from OG12, but I really do not want to see repeat questions on official GMATprep tests. Should I work through the OG12 and then take the other tests, or should I take a GMATprep test to gauge my standing ? I am an engineer by profession and am fairly comfortable with Math.


I must point out that although my preparations have mostly been on airplanes and airport lounges while travelling for work, I feel the quality of my learnings was not poor. Any help or guidance would be appreciated. I really want to go beyond 720 on the GMAT.

[karanrulz4ever]

570 in Kaplan is a real good score. Give a GMAT Prep test to gauge where u really stand.

[stormier]

570 in Kaplan is a real good score. Give a GMAT Prep test to gauge where u really stand.

Karanrulz4ever, Thanks. That is encouraging. I still think I may have a wide gap to cover. I'll practice a bit on the verbal section and then take the GMATPrep test 1. The plan is to get a test appointment immediately after GMATPrep test 1. I just hope there's plenty of practice CATs between the date I get an appointment and the actual appointment. What other test software is closest to GMAT ?

[WilliamGCash]

Isn't this in the wrong forum?

Anyway... In my opinion, Kaplan's scores are off. Older Kaplan CATs by as much as 80-100 pts off from what I've heard, and the newer ones still about 20-40 pts off. Their Quant is definitely harder than actual GMAT.

I don't know what Crack-GMAT is (the first test you took), but you had a 49 on the Quant on that, so the 40 and 39 Quant scores on the Kaplan CATs aren't a huge concern.

Continue to practice Quant, obviously, so you can get better and more efficient, but in order to get a 720, you're really going to need to get your Verbal score up.

I actually think Kaplan's Verbal, particularly their SC questions are easier than the actual GMAT. So, you might want to really buckle down and work on your Verbal. I see you have the Manhattan SC Guide, so that is a good start. Be sure to really work on the RC and CR questions too.

[gsbjake]

I agree man, I think Kaplan's tests are way off too. I would not trust them at all.

[papgust]

Moved from 'I Just beat the GMAT'

[stormier]

Isn't this in the wrong forum?

Anyway... In my opinion, Kaplan's scores are off. Older Kaplan CATs by as much as 80-100 pts off from what I've heard, and the newer ones still about 20-40 pts off. Their Quant is definitely harder than actual GMAT.

I don't know what Crack-GMAT is (the first test you took), but you had a 49 on the Quant on that, so the 40 and 39 Quant scores on the Kaplan CATs aren't a huge concern.

Continue to practice Quant, obviously, so you can get better and more efficient, but in order to get a 720, you're really going to need to get your Verbal score up.

I actually think Kaplan's Verbal, particularly their SC questions are easier than the actual GMAT. So, you might want to really buckle down and work on your Verbal. I see you have the Manhattan SC Guide, so that is a good start. Be sure to really work on the RC and CR questions too.

Bill - thanks for the feedback. I commit silly mistakes on quant, which I think will reduce with practice. I just realized that, while I thought I had reviewed the Manhattan SC guide, I had just read their grammar notes. I do have their SC guide now and will review other sections of the verbal as well. I generally do fine with the CR questions, however RC was a nightmare for me. On the Kaplan CD CATs that I took, I had answered just one question correctly on RC. I thought the passages were not only lengthy, but also difficult. I will work on this.

My unanswered question still is - Should I work on OG before any GMATPrep tests ? As I said earlier, I would not want any repeat questions from OG on the GMATPrep tests. I worry that doing so will skew my score. Any feedback from folks who have both reviewed the OG12 and taken the GMATPrep tests ?

[WilliamGCash]

Isn't this in the wrong forum?

Anyway... In my opinion, Kaplan's scores are off. Older Kaplan CATs by as much as 80-100 pts off from what I've heard, and the newer ones still about 20-40 pts off. Their Quant is definitely harder than actual GMAT.

I don't know what Crack-GMAT is (the first test you took), but you had a 49 on the Quant on that, so the 40 and 39 Quant scores on the Kaplan CATs aren't a huge concern.

Continue to practice Quant, obviously, so you can get better and more efficient, but in order to get a 720, you're really going to need to get your Verbal score up.

I actually think Kaplan's Verbal, particularly their SC questions are easier than the actual GMAT. So, you might want to really buckle down and work on your Verbal. I see you have the Manhattan SC Guide, so that is a good start. Be sure to really work on the RC and CR questions too.

Bill - thanks for the feedback. I commit silly mistakes on quant, which I think will reduce with practice. I just realized that, while I thought I had reviewed the Manhattan SC guide, I had just read their grammar notes. I do have their SC guide now and will review other sections of the verbal as well. I generally do fine with the CR questions, however RC was a nightmare for me. On the Kaplan CD CATs that I took, I had answered just one question correctly on RC. I thought the passages were not only lengthy, but also difficult. I will work on this.

My unanswered question still is - Should I work on OG before any GMATPrep tests ? As I said earlier, I would not want any repeat questions from OG on the GMATPrep tests. I worry that doing so will skew my score. Any feedback from folks who have both reviewed the OG12 and taken the GMATPrep tests ?

OG questions will definitely repeat on the GMATPrep CATs, so it could possibly skew your scores, yes

[nk_81]

Hi Guys,
Need help.
I am appearing for GMAT on 14th Jan'11. I have been using the KAPLAN CAT for my practice.

KAPLAN CAT - 1 = 610
KAPLAN CAT - 2 = 610 - Q41,V34
KAPLAN CAT - 3 = 590 - Q40,V27
KAPLAN CAT - 4 = 610 - Q40,V32
KAPLAN CAT - 5 = 560 - Q40,V30
KAPLAN CAT - 6 = Pending

PR CAT - 1 = 630 - Q47,V30
PR CAT - 2 = 570 - Q43,V25
PR CAT - 3-5 (Don't intend to give)

GMAT Prep 1 - 600 (Unable to open the Prep software, can't give the Q and V score)
GMAT Prep 2 - Pending

This will be my second attempt at GMAT. My last attempt in Nov'07 yielded 590 which I thought did not represent my true potential.

But after getting the scores above, with the latest one of 560 (KAPLAN CAT-5) that I took today, my shoulders have started to droop. Besides, the GMAT Prep 1 also did not turn any great score. I can't seem to break past the 600 barrier.

My initial target of 680-700 seems way off. At this rate if I even get a 630-640 would be a big thing. Can someone show me a silver lining?

I have revised the concepts and I understand that P&C and probability is my weakness in Quants and RC is my perennial weakness in Verbal. However, I have to mention that in today's test I did not come across a single P&C problem and only 1 probability problem. (I haven't reviewed the test yet coz i feel drained)

Now, to my "apparent" strengths... needless to say I am making a heck of a lot of silly mistake..... sometimes reading too much into the question (in quants... can u believe that) and sometime reading too less. I thought I did fairly well in my quants today but to my horror i just got 14 out of 37 right. I was over 50% right for all my previous test. (Does KAPLAN CAT get a lot tougher a we move from #1 to #6, coz then this might not be as bad as I think it is). I really don't intend to spend too much time trying to strengthen my weakness, but i am gonna go through all my previous test mistakes and review them again. I have already done it before. Would KAPLAN CAT 1-6 cover the majority of questions types that we can expect to encounter? I think when i review my questions, i am on the right track cause i look for the points that i did not know or made an error in and that way hope to remember them the next time a similar concept comes up for application.

However, I am unable to pinpoint my problem in Verbal. My practice questions in OG and KAPLAN, i get on an average 4 out of 5 right in SC and 3/4 out of 5 right in CR. Its a problem that i need to fix, is there a better approach to these problems.

Would appreciate any feedback, +ve or -ve
Cheers
Naveen

[towerSpider]

stormier, i actually did very few of OG 10E questions and there was repetition in gmat prep cat 2.

[towerSpider]

I actually got very different experience from most me other. My score was 560 on GMATPrep and 560 on Kaplan so in my opinion Kaplan is okay.

[stormier]

I actually got very different experience from most me other. My score was 560 on GMATPrep and 560 on Kaplan so in my opinion Kaplan is okay.

Hi, You must have taken the online version of Kaplan tests, or current ones. The older version of Kaplan tests available on CDs award a much lower score than your capability.

[towerSpider]

Yes you are correct. Why dont you try gmatprep? Or kaplan free online .

[stormier]

Yes you are correct. Why dont you try gmatprep? Or kaplan free online .

I've taken 1 GMAT prep - this post has my updated test history.

https://www.beatthegmat.com/practice-cat ... tml#327703