2+ months GMAT prep. MGMAT CAT 1 score 610. GMAT in 2 weeks

[josh80]

I have been preparing for the GMAT since August end this year. Started with Kaplan Premier but then moved to MGMAT material. Used OG 13 and official quant/verbal guides along side for practice. Worked extensively on quant since I need a score of 700+ and 90 percentile on quant to qualify for the programs I am looking to apply to.

Did my first MGMAT CAT and got a score of 610. Quant: 40 (52%) and verbal 34 (69%). I have scheduled my GMAT on November 17th but looks like I should post-pone it by a month and do some more online sectional tests.

Any suggestions would be very helpful.

Thanks.

[David@VeritasPrep]

Have you taken the GMATPrep Official Practice test yet? Certain people score higher or lower on that practice test you took when compared to the Official GMAT practice test.

You might take that test and score closer to 700. If you are close to 700 then you can possibly get there within the two weeks that you have until November 17th. Now if you are still under 650 it is likely to be tough.

Just remember that if you going to postpone you want to do that at least 7 days before the exam date.

[josh80]

David,

Thank you for your reply!

I was planning to take the 2 prep tests next week (keeping it light in the final week of the exam). My observation so far on today's exam:

1. I am hurrying through the questions, especially quant. Around 3-4 questions were just silly mistakes.

2. Was nervous as this was my first full length CAT. I reckon with bit more practice on sectional tests (combining 37Q and 41V from either GMAT Test prep package or Magoosh), I can improve the score to around 660-690.

The only other way I can think of is to re-do 60% of the prep material. My RC is weak and I am aware I need more work on that.

I will give 3 more tests in the next 3 days and then assess where I am at.

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Hi Josh80,

Based on your goals and current level of performance, the smart play is to push your GMAT back a month, make some adjustments to how you approach the exam and really plan out the next 6 weeks.

You've properly assessed some of your problems: self-pacing and silly mistakes. Those are discipline issues, not intelligence or content issues, so you're going to need time to ingrain the proper calm and attitude into your performance. You've mentioned how nervous you were; familiarity/time should help with that, but the rest is going to come down to your attitude.

You mentioned taking 3 more CATs in the next 3 days. THAT is a TERRIBLE idea. Each CAT is a measuring device (it's really no different than stepping on a scale to gauge your weight); it does NOT make you a better Test Taker. It will give you a reasonable score/assessment of your current ability and will certainly point out the things that you screw up. Without the necessary time to practice and improve, there's a really good chance that your 3 CAT scores would all be within a small range of one another. Plan on taking no more than 1 CAT/week and spend the balance of your time on review and continued study.

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

[josh80]

Hi Rich,

Thank you for your reply. The whole idea behind taking 3 CATs (I will be using Kaplan tests for this one since I already have access) in the next 3 days is to practice the 37Q + 41V format and to discipline myself with concentration and pacing. There are a couple of areas (RC, Word Problems, Number Properties etc) that I need to work on more, but besides that I am not really sure what else I can do to go beyond 700.

[David@VeritasPrep]

I have to agree with Rich. You do not need 3 tests to assess where you are. 1 test will do to evaluate where you are and 1 test per week is plenty.

I also agree that you should likely push the test back to a later date if what you are saying is that your best composite test - best Quant and best Verbal from different tests - is 660 then you are not likely to go over 700 on a test on the 17th.

Working on those areas that you mentioned should certainly help you on your way to 700.

[josh80]

David,

If not the timed practice from the CATs, what else can I do to work on my weak areas of getting the focus and attitude right? I have already finished the OGs as well as the quant and verbal official review guides. Any other resource that the experts can suggest to strengthen weak areas? Reading the posts here, I thought going with the prep tests (practice questions, not CATs) from GMAC or Magoosh would help.

If I do push back the GMAT to 3rd week of december, what is the best way to proceed to build not only on the fundamental topics but also practice the pacing and concentration on the actual GMAT?