Strategy advice please!

[Darya_NYC]

Hi everyone,

I really need your help guys! Maybe someone have been in a similar situation or experts know what to do.

I started studying for GMAT in October 2010 and my first mock was 450. I am not a native speaker, so it was a struggle, but I took my test in Dec 2011 and got 640 (Q42,V36. I was very surprised by the Q score, because I always was ok in math, so I retook a test in January ad got 680(Q47,V36, which was the Q score I kind of expected. I end up no getting in the school I wanted, so I got a little discouraged and abandoned the GMAT for a while. In august 2012 I started my preparation again, took a mock and got 680. In July 2013 I took a test and got 680 again, this time Q44, V39. Of course I couldn't believe that after all this preparation its all I got. And its not like I am getting nervous on the exam, this all does not bother me at all.

So now I decided to start another attempt. I just not sure where to start. I feel like I studied every book that I could and I know all the Math rules and all the shortcuts, seems like. is that really as good as I can be? Is there anything else I should try or any way I can build my strategy so that I can move at least a little bit.

Thanks everyone! I will appreciate any advice or opinion!

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Hi Darya_NYC,

A 680/Q44 is a really good score, so you shouldn't be too upset by your performance. I'm curious though about why you decided to retest after your prior 680? What school(s) did you apply to? And did you ever follow-up with the school(s) and ask WHY you were not accepted? It's possible that your GMAT score was NOT the problem with your application. If that's the case, then retaking the GMAT might not be what you need to do.

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

[Darya_NYC]

Yes, I agree, its ok score. And the main reason I didn't get in schools i wanted is lack of work experience, which I am working on right now. I just feel that if I get at least 720, it will give me better chance. I also feel that I have potential to do better. And I have time to study while I am working. I just want to have as strong application as possible.

[David@VeritasPrep]

It looks like your quant score is bringing you down a bit. A Quant 44 is much lower than a verbal 39. You say you know all the math rules and all of the shortcuts, yet your Quant score is the 61st percentile while you verbal is the 88th percentile.

I have been considering your posting for a little while and I a thought that may well apply to your situation.

I have worked with hundreds of people for whom English is not the first language and I have found, paradoxically, that the Quant section can involve as much or more difficulty in terms of translation!

Let me explain, on the verbal section they give you too much information - more than you need. One of the keys to verbal is to "narrow your focus." For example, the critical reasoning gives you the context or background information that you do not need to focus on while solving, but that can help you to understand the text. Also, on the verbal you do not need to know what every word means in order to proceed. Take this prompt for example:

"Opponents of peat harvesting in this country argue that it would alter the ecological balance of our peat-rich wetlands and that, as a direct consequence of this, much of the country's water supply would be threatened with contamination. But this cannot be true, for in Ireland, where peat has been harvested for centuries, the water supply is not contaminated. We can safely proceed with the harvesting of peat."

You do not need to know what "peat" is in order to answer the question. There is plenty of context. peat is something found in wetlands and it may have to do with the quality of water when it is harvested.

Now think about the Quant section. There is no context for word problems. You have to know each of the various words that indicate a ratio or division or any number of things. These problems can involve a bigger problem with translation than the Verbal because you cannot use the context or the answer choices as you can in verbal.

Do you find that you miss questions for this reason?

I have some other recommendations for you as well, depending on your answer to these questions.

1) Do you miss more Data suff or Prob Solving?

2) Are you more likely to miss a question because you did not know how to do it or because you made a careless mistake?

3) Do you run out of time on the Quant section on your practice tests (or the actual GMAT)?


It is good that you are getting that work experience since you need that for your application. Yet, you are correct that a 720 will be seen differently than a 680... so improving on the GMAT is important as well.

[Darya_NYC]

Hello David! Thank you so much for such and extensive answer!

Yes, my Quant is very disappointing, especially since I always thought that is my strengths in GMAT. But I guess spending that much time on Verbal really cost me some points.
I never thought that I have a problem with translation; I guess I should pay attention next time I do a test and see if I do. I didn't think it could be a problem. But I noticed I definitely have problems with reading a task wrong. For example, I could jump straight to equation without reading what exactly they are asking me to do. For example it says - find what is NOT, and will check what it is instead.
1.I don't have a clear pattern; it is very hard for me to do an error analysis, because it is always different. But generally I found DS easier and quicker to solve.
2.I cannot think of many questions that I did not know, but there are some of course. I find it common with the PS questions, especially Geometry and Word Problems, where I can see a solution, but it usually takes for me so long to solve a problem, that I and up spending to much time on it and at the end, when I see that I spent too much time on it, guessing anyway. Afterwards, I can get a right answer, when I redo a test.
3.Not always, but yes, most of the time I do. And in Verbal I usually have about 5 min left.

Thank you so much for helping me! Do you think it makes sense to improve on Verbal as well, at least a couple points?