I just Beat The GMAT!

Ok guys I really need some good advice.

Im 28, an exmilitary officer and pilot, have worked at a F-500 Bank as an AVP, and work for a large manufacturing company as a certified 6Sigma Black Belt. My undergrad is in mathematics (2.75GPA). I consider myself a pretty smart cookie, better than most so to speak.

So I just found out that I have a full scholarship to anywhere I can get in last month. So Ive been cramming for the GMAT and am looking to get into a Top tier B-School. (UT-Austin, HBS, Sloan)

So, with all of my GMAT self practice, I have been blowing away the test questions. I average around 85% (questions answered correctly) on verbal and 90% (questions answered correctly) Math. I also time myself and typically do 20 questions sets and study 4-6 hrs per day.

Ive been feeling pretty good about my chances. I took the GMAT this morning and got a 640! I almost wanted to throw up. I dont get it what did I do wrong. It was almost like I just glassed over during the test. I was (iffy at best) on most math questions. Verbal hell I didnt know what room I was in most of the time. How can I do so well in practice and soo poor on the test.


What should I do now? Deadlines are approaching and I really want into a good school!!! Help please!

Thanks Matt

640 is not a bad score for a first attempt. What is your score split? Being you are a math major you should be able to score well at quant. I took my first GMAT last December and got a 590 and on my 4th attempt this past weekend, I scored 690 and it was enough for me.

I am not sure if you have a lot of time to study and retake. If you are applying for next fall then I don't think you have enough time. And you do not have to score over 700 to be competitive since GMAT is only one of many things they look at.

But many admission consultant say they would like to see at least 680 or above or be in the 80% range for the school you are applying to. You might get better help if you indicate how you study and what materials you used...

Good luck!

Ok fair enough.

My split score....disgustingly enough was as follows.

Quant 42 - 62%tile
Verbal 34 - 68%tile
Total 640-75%tile

This is what I think is making this soo hard to swallow. I mean Im a "Math Guy" I do it for fun and I consistantly get 95+% correct when I practice. Any questions that I do miss are typically boneheaded mistakes and upon a second look I instantly sopt the error and fix it.

Here is how I have been studying. I read the book "Crackin the GMAT" and bought a used copy of the Official Guide GMAT review (9th endition) I worked through the cracking the GMAT book and took notes on all the individual sections. Then I made a 1 page summary sheet for each topic (ie Data Suf, Prob Solving, Sentence Correction, etc) I spent the first few weeks doing this. Working my way throught the book and learning the tips and tricks making summary sheets.

Then a week or so ago I bought the official guide (used) and would break it into 20 question chunks of one type of material (Sentence Correction for example) Id give myself 40 mins and go. I usuasly finsih the math sections with 5-10 mins to spare and the verbal with 3-4 mins to spare. On verbal last weeks total was the following 92 Correct 105 Attempted = 87.6 avg. Of Math 107 Correct of 120 attempted = 89.2% correct.

I actually went into the test really confident that I could pull off a big score anything close to or above 700 was my goal. I figured with the results I was getting from the guide I should reasonably be able to do it.

What I suppose really bothered me was the high pressure enviroment and the running clock on the screen. I also was not used to switching back and forth between question types and reading them from the moniter as well proved more difficult than anticipated. I felt like my eyes kind of glazed over and I wasnt absorbing the material at all. The test was a morning test also and Im NOT a morning person by any means. Grrrr Im so frustrated and depressed not sure what to do!

you have to remember that your percent correct calculations for your practice dont reflect your raw score on the actual test. on the actual test, the questions are graded on difficulty so overall correct is not as important as which questions you get correct. Although to me it sounds like you just got the jitters. what were your scores on gmatprep?

If you havnt taken gmatprep...then you have found your mistake... take gmat prep as it will show you where you stand and around what score you can expect on the real test.

Indeed I do understand that the correlations are not the same, apples to apples as they say. But I do think that only missin a handful of questions esp on the quantative section should be some sort of indicator. I mean I wasnt just sifting throught the easy questions or anything like that.

As far as GMATprep goes, I do agree. I also hate the nature of this application and think that it is a complete rip off. You are telling me that they have an endless data bank of potential or retiered questions and all they can provide are two practice tests.

Ok I only took 1 test, about a month ago when I started this fiasco. When I started my MBA pursuit I down loaded the software and immediatly took the 1st test. Without regard for the outcome and with 0 prep or study. I got a 580 and left most of both tests unfinished. Meaning I ran out of time with 10-15 questions left. But I agree, I need to get more comfortable with the CAT as opposed to the GMAT.

Well im not sure what you mean by "cat as opposed to the gmat", since the gmat is a cat. I can tell you that for me, for both times i took the gmat, the gmatprep software was by far the most accurate indicator of how i did. I took it multiple times (5 time + per test) and it still accurately (within 30 points) told me what i was gonna get on the actual gmat. It is by far the most important resource you have for studying for the gmat. If you are not able to complete the gmatprep software in the allotted time constraints, you are not ready for the actual exam. Practice the test until you have the timing down, as timing is half the battle.

I meant that im having more difficulty with the "Computer Adaptive Test" than with the actual GMAT itself. Its not the test its the format so to speak. I do realize that as the author of this post I do not make a logical argument and CAT and GMAT are not directly comparable as apples to apples. The author states above a condition that most seriously weakens his argument.....

...Hey what happened I just blacked out and started rambling GMAT.

Im still a bit confused by the logical argument you are trying to make. The Gmat IS a cat and there for comparing the gmat to a cat IS comparing apples to apples. Either way...the more important thing i hope you took from my post is that you need to use the gmatprep software. GMatprep is your best friend and it will be your ticket to the scores you seek. This is especially true if the timed format of the test is giving you problems as Gmatprep is identical to the timing and structure you will encounter on the real test.

Allaboutgq wrote:I also hate the nature of this application and think that it is a complete rip off. You are telling me that they have an endless data bank of potential or retiered questions and all they can provide are two practice tests.

If you do GMATPrep over and over, first you will see similar questions, but as you get these familiar questions correct, you will start seeing harder questions. And as you see harder questions, if you answer them correctly, you score will bump up. This way, you can tell whether you have been improving or not. So, the GMATPrep is just like the real GMAT.

I think GMAT730 is trying to say that too.

GMATER 730: Since you've taken the GMAT Prep 5 times, do you know if the test software is adaptive with a data bank of 1000s of questions. Or is the GMAT Prep software only a set of stagnate questions that will throw you random questions everytime, easy, medium and hard and will give you a score based on the number of questions you get wrong in each category? I tried the software but noticed some questions were the same.

Allaboutgq - you should definitely think about re-taking the exam solely on the fact that you're trying to get into a top school with a 2.75 GPA. If your GPA was 3.5+ we could have a different conversation.

1. Are you looking to apply R3 to these top schools to enroll this Fall? If so then you most definitely need to retake the exam ASAP, to get that higher score. The chances of being admitted R3 are slim to none at these schools. They're practically just filling in the holes in the admitted class. You need to be absolutely STELLAR in order to get in. I've been told that last year Wharton admitted 5 STUDENTS in the 3rd Round.

2. If you don't retake the exam again, make sure to stay away from thinking & saying that you're a "Math Guy" in your application. I say this only because the two most important numbers - GPA & GMAT, do not reflect this currently.

3. You CAN be admitted by really honing in on why you NEED to go to the school and how it will help you achieve your short and long term goals. Writing compelling essays can do wonders.

Cheers!

I had a similar experience. I would say that I only recognized roughly half of the quant questions (in terms of having seen those questions in my prep). Also, during prep I was able to recognize almost all of the SC errors. On the test I recognized 4 out of the 14 I got, and couldn't tell what was being tested on the other 10. I think going forward, you need to focus on the fundamentals, rather than focusing on GMAT related materials.

Allaboutgq,

Hey man, here is my best advice: GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE

"I consider myself a pretty smart cookie, better than most so to speak."
- The only people that say this are people that are smart and really are smart, or people that are stupid that think they're smart.

Look you got a 2.75GPA in math. That doesn't mean anything (unless it was a type and it really is 3.75)... In fact, I think it only hurts your profile as you are inadequate to shine in the math portion of the GMAT.

You can fight the CAT/GMAT exams as much as you want, but as long as you do this, you will get OWNED. No argument necessary.

Doing questions out of the OG book are good... but a ton of them are easy. Look to challenge yourself. Don't just get 90+% right on the OG questions to feel good about your abilities while studying. Find more challenging material out there (GMAT Club Challenge questions, MG GMAT Challenge Q's, etc.).

And further, how do you put UT & Sloan even in the same league as HBS. And do you realize that HBS likes to take younger applicants (24-25)?

The point I am trying to make is... be real to yourself. Don't overestimate your own abilities.

Sorry if I sound like an asshole, but I think it's for your own good.

- i'd put Sloan closer to HBS than UT

- but yes the GMAT is a test that will humble many a folks

- Im 28, an exmilitary officer and pilot, (THANK YOU FOR SERVICE)... both of my parents are retired from the army (dad was in vietnam)...

- "And do you realize that HBS likes to take younger applicants (24-25)?" - this is unfortunately true ::sigh:: i'n not a fan since i'm 27... hahah