3rd try - tend to lose self-confidence on D Day...

[emman]

Hi everybody, Hi Eric,

Here is my story: I have been practising Gmat for several months now and failed twice. My next attempt will be the last one because of Universities deadlines. My objective is "only" 650.
My first try came probably too early (end of october) and I scored 540 (44Q, 21V) as I had only worked quant part. I am french but was (too) confident about my Verbal Level.
Anyway, I accpeted this failure, and registered for end of Nov. In the meantime, I strongly worked both parts and started to feel stronger and stronger as the exam was approaching. I scored 600 three times in a row at Kaplan CAT 5,6,7 ( i forgot to precise that I did the expensive useless Kaplan preparation in June) before my exam, (with above average Verbal score), and that was probably the reason why I didn't feel that confident the day of the test. I read yesterday on Eric Blog that these scores were voluntarily under estimated of about 70-120 points and I now hate Kaplan for having made me feel so unconfident the day of my 2nd try...Anyway, I took it again and scored 500 !!!!. I felt desperate, my scored were Q42 and an awful V18...I lost time, felt bad in both parts, and went into panic during Verbal Part...
Now I have my 3rd attempt on Jan.4 and am still targetting 650 at least.
I discovered this extraordinary site 2 weeks ago and read it everyday. I go on working regularly and bought the OG 11 (really really good).

I am waiting for you comments and advice about the rest of my preparation, do you think Eric that I can make it ? Thank you for all your advice and your blog, it s great.

Best Regards, J-21...

Emmanuel

ps: where can i find your flashcards ?

[beatthegmat]

Hi Emmanuel:

I'm sorry to hear about all the stress the GMAT has been giving you over the last few months!

If you are scoring 600+ consistently on Kaplan tests, then this is usually an indicator that your target score of 650 is within your reach. Have you taken any GMATPrep tests? GMATPrep is the most accurate representation of the actual GMAT because it uses actual but retired GMAT questions. Download this software (for free) from MBA.com, and take one of two tests. Let us know what result you get.

From what you have described about your situation, it sounds like you have the knowledge and the skills to achieve your target score--but that your nerves on test day overcome you and affect your performance. The best way to get over your nerves is to take a lot of timed practice tests, in a simulated testing environment--when I was prepping for the GMAT myself, I took all of my practice tests in a somewhat public area of a library to simulate ambient noise, etc.

It seems like you have all ready discovered my GMAT blog--take some time to read through to get a sense of what one successful study strategy looks like, and compare to your own strategy.

To address your final question, the Beat The GMAT Flashcards can be found here: https://www.beatthegmat.com/viewtopic.php?t=32

Best of luck! I encourage you to stay active on this forum and use this community to help you succeed your third time around!