GMAT gave me a good hiding!!!! After 5 months of hardwork

[MBAsa]

Hi Everyone

I took the GMAT this morning (07/04) and I got a serious hiding. I scored a miserable 550 (Q42, V23). I nearly fell off my chair when I saw my verbal score. I really don't know what happened. My target was to break the 700 mark and I felt that my preparation was solid.

I first took the test in February this year after about a month of studying. I realized, after getting a horribly low score of about 420 (Q23, V20), that I had really underestimated the exam and that I needed to spend more time studying. I got as much material as I could i.e (OG 12, 13, Manhattan Strategy Guides, CR Bible etc) and started working my way through these books. I have a really demanding job and could only put in a couple of hours during the week, but majority of my time during the weekends was spent working. With about 6 weeks to go till D Day, I had covered almost all the sections that the exam covered. I decided to take 5 weeks off from work to focus solely on the exam. I started taking full exams on line.

GMAT Prep Test 1 = 510 (Q37, V21)
GMAT Prep Test 2 = 620 (Q47, V29)
Downloaded 800score tests:
Test1 560 (Q38, V29)
Test2 580 (Q36, V34)
Test3 680 (Q44, V38)
Test4 690 (Q47, V40)
Test5 660 (Q43, V37)

I got an uneasy feeling that the 800score tests were a bit too easy and were not true reflection of what I would experience on the real exam. Verbal was one of my weakest points, yet I was getting all SC questions correct!!!! I took the free Manhattan test and I scored 650 (Q47, V35). I was taking all these test under real conditions. Upon reviewing my answers after each test, I realized I kept making silly mistakes on Quant, especially on DS. Verbal was my biggest worry. I am not a native speaker and found CR and RC a bit challenging, though manageable. I was ok with SC (so it seemed). I ran out of prep time and had to take the exam.

So I clearly need to put in some more work on my verbal. My problem is I don't know where to start and I have ran out of material. I also feel I need to retake the exam very soon (within a month or two).

Any suggestions will be really appreciated. In the meantime, I'll be in my corner licking my wounds.

[mbaconnected]

Hi MBAsa,

Just saw your message and wanted to put your mind at ease.

1- Its OK to not do as well as you had expected - it happens to most people taking the GMAT. It doesn't really matter if you've taken the test once or four times, the key thing is for your score to improve (ie. show that you are learning from your mistakes!!). A good friend recently went from a 450 score to 700 after 5 attempts over a year and got admitted to Columbia. The truth is that this exam rewards persistence, not intellectual ability. Schools only care about statistics (ie. what the "average" and "median" scores are for a given class - NOT how many times students have taken the test)

2- Of course, the issue is that people usually disclose their good/final scores, but not how many attempts it took them to get there . If I had a $ for the number of students that have taken the GMAT more than twice and got admitted into a top-10 MBA....the bottom line is, don't compare yourself to what others tell you.

3- Not managing test day well enough happens very often. You'll do better next time (it took me 3 attempts to get to 720 because I freaked out in the middle of the first two tests despite very good mock test scores both times).

4- You've identified your weaknesses. That's a huge plus. Don't spend ANY additional minute on stuff you already know about.

5- I agree that 800scores tests are easier than the norm. I would spend more time doing other tests like manhattan gmat (you may need to pay for those but its really worth the money). You may have noticed that Manhattan gmat have a more difficult quant part. The Veritas prep tests are pretty good too, and they have a more difficult verbal part, which may be relevant in your case

6- If you need materials, just drop me a private message I can send you a free book in pdf (it's a lot of work so only if you are committed!)

All the best and good luck with your next test.

Matt (www.mbaconnected.com)
PS:You may have noticed that these "tips" address your mental approach. I sincerely think that 50%+ of how you get to a 700 is about how you deal with emotions throughout the whole period.