Down for the count.. Need advice to get back up

[faraz_jeddah]

I find myself in a peculiar situation, a situation I did not imagine I would be in, a situation that I dreaded the most especially after reading very similar stories on the forum.

I gave my gmat today and got a disappointing 640 Q 48 V 29

I stress on 'disappointing' for valid reasons. I started seriously devoting time to the GMAT in April, spending 1-2 hours on weekdays and up to 4 on the weekends. This combined with a demanding full time job has been really tough on me and my social life.

I never scored less than a 670 on my GMAT Cat Mock which includes the new GMAT Exam prep pack. My highest was 720 (without repeating the test). On the Veritas Mocks I was scoring 700 consistently with 680 as my lowest. All CATs were given with IR and Essays under timed conditions.

Test Day experience:

AWA was great!

IR was horrendous! I mean I can't believe how hard a section could be. I couldnt make heads or tails out of at least 4 questions. After the section was done, in the break I phased IR out and let it not get better of me.

Quant: It was straight forward and I could see some of the trap questions and was able to avoid it. However, I had to take an urgent loo break which probably cost me 2 minutes. Nevertheless, it did not detract me as I finished the section with 3 minutes to spare. At this point, I felt confident that I was on the path of inching toward my 690 goal.

Verbal: Ahh yes the most dreaded section of them all. I felt the SC was very different from what I have seen before. Although, I am confident I handled SC well, it was CR and RC that may have been my undoing. There was one particularly annoying long RC. I felt I spent too much time on it. But I recovered well enough to finish in time without rushing. 29 is a shocker for me as I have never achieved such a low score on verbal.

I am not sure where to go from here. I have ambivalent feelings about the GMAT now. Sometimes I feel that this nut can be cracked and then I think of all the hours I have put in only to be beaten.

I would appreciate some advice. I have already decided to shut down for the next week and spend time doing social stuff including the gym which I sorely missed.

Am I allowed to take the gmat within a month? Is an increment of 40-50 points achievable? What is the best approach to CR and RC?

I also want to thank the experts and my e-friends on BTG who have already helped me get this far.

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Hi faraz_jeddah,

A 640/Q48 is a solid combo and one that would give you a shot at every US Business School. You're just about at the 80th percentile, so you should take some measure of satisfaction in that. While you were aiming at a higher score, you don't necessarily need one. The application process is 6 or 7 pieces though (sometimes there's an interview, sometimes there's not), so you have to make sure that the rest of your application is solid.

You could absolutely pick up those missing points in a month's time; it's more a measure of whether you really need to retest or not.

What schools are you planning to apply to?

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

[vinay1983]

faraz my friend. Cheer up. I say forget it. Move on. GMAT takes a very heavy toll on the mind and body. You have scored a decent bunch. I would say start thinking about applying for schools.
Chalk out the names of the school you wish to apply.
Make notes.
Go through the essay questions of the schools.
Think about whose recos you want or will be helpful.
Ask the adcoms any specific question you have.
Remember GMAT is not the end. It is a start and you have made one.

get out of the house. Enjoy life.

That is all i have to say

[melguy]

Hi Faraz

Sorry to hear that you did not reach your target score. I too though that you would surely cross the 700 mark as all you performed very well in your CATs. Still as Rich mentioned 640 is 80% and you have a good chance of getting into the school of your choice.

I agree some IR questions are almost a short version of RC questions! Wonder why they make it so difficult.

Verbal sections are a lot harder than what you see in CATs. Someone (who has scored 800) told you what you see in OG 13 is almost 7-8 years old material and he said that GMAC should release months old questions to public not years old. I too agree that these days CR questions are almost equal length of a short RC passage.

But don't worry its not the end of the world. Take some time off to recharge your batteries

Good luck.

[Brent@GMATPrepNow]

A 40-50 point increase id definitely achievable. In fact, if you took the test again today, it's possible that you'd score 50 points higher.

As you've noted, the Verbal section was your undoing. This is not uncommon. Sometimes a ridiculously long and difficult RC passage can knock you off your game (both in timing and in confidence). Esoteric passages (e.g., one on string theory) can really kill one's confidence. In these instances, it's crucial that you engage 100% in the passage. Rather than approach a new passage with dread ("yeesh, this is going to be a killer"), try to feign interest ("Excellent! This passage is about protozoa!!"). The greater your engagement, the better your results.

If I were you, I'd conclude that you were somewhat unlucky with the passages you received. So, put all of this behind you, schedule another test, and keep doing what you've been doing. It sounds like you're on the right track.

Good idea to take a break (you know what they say about all work and no play . . .

By the way, if you're interested, we have a free set of videos that cover all sorts of Reading Comprehension strategies: https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gmat- ... prehension

Cheers,
Brent

[faraz_jeddah]

A 40-50 point increase id definitely achievable. In fact, if you took the test again today, it's possible that you'd score 50 points higher.

As you've noted, the Verbal section was your undoing. This is not uncommon. Sometimes a ridiculously long and difficult RC passage can knock you off your game (both in timing and in confidence). Esoteric passages (e.g., one on string theory) can really kill one's confidence. In these instances, it's crucial that you engage 100% in the passage. Rather than approach a new passage with dread ("yeesh, this is going to be a killer"), try to feign interest ("Excellent! This passage is about protozoa!!"). The greater your engagement, the better your results.

If I were you, I'd conclude that you were somewhat unlucky with the passages you received. So, put all of this behind you, schedule another test, and keep doing what you've been doing. It sounds like you're on the right track.

Good idea to take a break (you know what they say about all work and no play . . .

By the way, if you're interested, we have a free set of videos that cover all sorts of Reading Comprehension strategies: https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gmat- ... prehension

Cheers,
Brent

Thanks Brent!
You were right. I most probably had an OFF day on the first attempt.

Happy to say I scored a 730.
Thanks for the encouragement and advice.