Help! Not sure how to focus studying after 3 poor CATs

[kittymctaco]

I am scheduled to take the GMAT on March 30 and I have been studying since the beginning of January. I finished the GMAT Kaplan course, and I've been attending all the GMAT workshops and drop-in sessions. My first diagnostic test I scored 520, which I thought wasn't bad for not having done any work or studying. My second, third and fourth tests I scored 430, 450, 500. I was told by my GMAT class teacher that it's normal to see a drop in score after the diagnostic test, but the thing that worries me is that I haven't achieved anything close to my first score!

At the advice of one of the GMAT workshop teachers, I've taken a few weeks off from taking any CATs and I've focused on the Kaplan methods and focused on certain areas that I feel can improve.

I plan to take my 5th CAT tomorrow, but what does it mean if I still don't improve my score again? What am I doing wrong? I study as much as I can but like most people, it's hard to find cram in the time other than on weekends to study. I've been lucky that I can get in a good 30 minutes of practice when I get the train into work, so I've been getting in at least 1 hour of practice a day on the weekdays.

When I do practice questions, I generally get 1 out of 6 wrong, which I don't think is too bad. Anytime I've gotten one wrong, it was usually the other answer that I narrowed my choices down to 2 of the answers. When I'm not being timed, I do so much better and it's really frustrating when I'm doing the CATs and I don't have the time to put into each question!

Do you have any advice to help me focus my practice? I'm aiming for 700 like everyone else. If I score anything less than 655 (which is 30 points below my reach school's average score) I won't re-take the test (which I would like to avoid!). Any help is super appreciated! Thanks!

[KapTeacherEli]

Hi kitty,

The best piece of advice that I can give you is not to worry about your CATs. This is hard to do, of course--it looks so scary when you see drops in scores! And it can be frustrating when your scores aren't near your goals. But it's still necessary, because if you are worried and nervous and unfocused, your scores will keep dropping as the stress prevents you from focusing and concentrating.

My advice is to slow yourself down on the test, concentrate on your breathing. Remind yourself of all the hard work that you've put into the test, but also remind yourself that the CAT is just practice and that your score, good or bad, is a steppingstone on the path to success.

It looks like I missed the window of opportunity and you already took your test yesterday--I hope it went better? If it didn't can you give me a little more detail (did you finish on time? What were your section percentiles) and I'll see about pointing you to some specific resources.

Hope this help!

Eli

[kittymctaco]

Hi Eli,

Yes, I took the CAT on Sunday and scored a 470 I got 19 incorrect on quant and 17 incorrect on verbal. I get through all the questions, I had a few minutes extra at the end of each section. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Maybe I'm rushing, but I don't know. Any advice?

[KapTeacherEli]

Hi Kitty,

Unfortunately, without looking are your scores myself, I can't really help that much. But your teacher should still be able to help you--have you emailed him or her? Kaplan teachers can look at their students' scores, so he can pull up your practice test and give you advice better tailored to that specific situation. I hope that he or she can help, but let me know what else I can do!

Eli