Hi everyone,
My name is Dan. I need to get a 600 score on the GMAT to start my MSc next September. I have been studying for the GMAT for about 7 months now, and I have had 2 tries on the actual test. The results were 580 (Q38, V33) and 590 (Q39 V31), very close to my goal, yet so far away. My main problem is Quant, about 90% of my prep time is in this part of the test. My Verbal is quite OK (I am not a native speaker), but I think that I might be able to improve here.
I could really use some advice on how to get a small improvement in my score, or actually a large improvement, just to be safe. I am quite tired of just missing my target and I have no idea about how I can further improve. Below I will describe my prep and GMAT experiences so far.
First mock (after going through the MGMAT Basic Quant)
GMATPrep 1: 480,
Prep tools for first try:
- 9 MGMAT Online lectures
- All Manhattan GMAT books
- OG13 + Quant
MGMAT Mocks (all mocks under perfect test center circumstances):
1: 650
2: 580
3: 670
4: 640
5: 680
GMATPrep 2: 640
Testday:
First try, 15th of December 2013: I was actually sick and feverish from all the prep and especially the stress. After a terrible sleepless night, I started out very badly on the test. After a couple of questions in the Quant part I only got very easy questions... it just wasn't good enough 580 (Q38, V33). I decided to focus on school for a while to regain my energy to start studying again.
Prep for the second try:
- OG13 (Q+V) + GMAT Quant questions multiple times
- All Manhattan GMAT Quant books 2nd time
- MGMAT OG Archer (to find and focus on my weaknesses)
Mocks:
GMATPrep 1: 640
GMATPrep 2: 650
Testday:
Second try, 17th of February 2014: when I arrived at the test center, they told me that I could not do the test because of some software update, this was a huge downer and it really pissed me off, I would have to maintain my GMAT "peak" for another week...
Actual second try: 24th of February 2014: This time I started out very well on quant. I was quite sure that I had at least the first 6/7 in row correct, and the difficult problems that followed confirmed this. I had to guess on the following problems but the problems were not getting any easier after that. The problems remained quite difficult and I did not understand how this was possible, was I guessing them all right? At the end I found out that I messed it up... 590 (Q39 V31). My time management was quite OK (I practice with timed Archer).
As you can see, I am doing quite well on the mocks, but I think that I am scoring so high on them because of the very easy Verbal (MGMAT). I have the feeling that the regular OG problems (and GMAT prep) are just too easy, because the OG Archer says that I have score 75% correct on 'moderate' questions (Quant). After having finished some difficult subjects for my Bachelor's degree, I am ready to take on the GMAT again. The deadline for the 600 GMAT score is the 15th of July. I figured that if I would start prepping now, and take the GMAT again at the end of April, that I can have a total of 3 more tries to improve the 10 points before the deadline. I have a lot of time on my hands now and I am willing to spend quite some money on prep material that is worth it.
Could you guys please help me in finding the right materials/way to improve my score? I would be very grateful.
Regards,
Dan
My name is Dan. I need to get a 600 score on the GMAT to start my MSc next September. I have been studying for the GMAT for about 7 months now, and I have had 2 tries on the actual test. The results were 580 (Q38, V33) and 590 (Q39 V31), very close to my goal, yet so far away. My main problem is Quant, about 90% of my prep time is in this part of the test. My Verbal is quite OK (I am not a native speaker), but I think that I might be able to improve here.
I could really use some advice on how to get a small improvement in my score, or actually a large improvement, just to be safe. I am quite tired of just missing my target and I have no idea about how I can further improve. Below I will describe my prep and GMAT experiences so far.
First mock (after going through the MGMAT Basic Quant)
GMATPrep 1: 480,
Prep tools for first try:
- 9 MGMAT Online lectures
- All Manhattan GMAT books
- OG13 + Quant
MGMAT Mocks (all mocks under perfect test center circumstances):
1: 650
2: 580
3: 670
4: 640
5: 680
GMATPrep 2: 640
Testday:
First try, 15th of December 2013: I was actually sick and feverish from all the prep and especially the stress. After a terrible sleepless night, I started out very badly on the test. After a couple of questions in the Quant part I only got very easy questions... it just wasn't good enough 580 (Q38, V33). I decided to focus on school for a while to regain my energy to start studying again.
Prep for the second try:
- OG13 (Q+V) + GMAT Quant questions multiple times
- All Manhattan GMAT Quant books 2nd time
- MGMAT OG Archer (to find and focus on my weaknesses)
Mocks:
GMATPrep 1: 640
GMATPrep 2: 650
Testday:
Second try, 17th of February 2014: when I arrived at the test center, they told me that I could not do the test because of some software update, this was a huge downer and it really pissed me off, I would have to maintain my GMAT "peak" for another week...
Actual second try: 24th of February 2014: This time I started out very well on quant. I was quite sure that I had at least the first 6/7 in row correct, and the difficult problems that followed confirmed this. I had to guess on the following problems but the problems were not getting any easier after that. The problems remained quite difficult and I did not understand how this was possible, was I guessing them all right? At the end I found out that I messed it up... 590 (Q39 V31). My time management was quite OK (I practice with timed Archer).
As you can see, I am doing quite well on the mocks, but I think that I am scoring so high on them because of the very easy Verbal (MGMAT). I have the feeling that the regular OG problems (and GMAT prep) are just too easy, because the OG Archer says that I have score 75% correct on 'moderate' questions (Quant). After having finished some difficult subjects for my Bachelor's degree, I am ready to take on the GMAT again. The deadline for the 600 GMAT score is the 15th of July. I figured that if I would start prepping now, and take the GMAT again at the end of April, that I can have a total of 3 more tries to improve the 10 points before the deadline. I have a lot of time on my hands now and I am willing to spend quite some money on prep material that is worth it.
Could you guys please help me in finding the right materials/way to improve my score? I would be very grateful.
Regards,
Dan
