faisalkakar wrote:
I have been preparing for GMAT since last one month, almost done with Manhattan 8 books sets. Now I am familiar (but of course not an except) with all sections of Quant and Verbal (Except Essay and AWA).
I wanted to take GMAT after a month (due to admission deadlines) and did some intense preparation but yesterday and today I scored 390 (Q 29, V 16) on GMAT Prep. I was so disappointed as during preparation my Q was 39 and verbal was the same (but wanted to improve them).
I know I have just gone through the books (Manhattan, CR Bible almost completed), ( Some sections of Kaplan and Princeton) but haven't really practiced questions.I want to improve my score to 650- 700 and I know I am capable of doing it but need time and proper guidance.
When I first started my preparation, I had no clue which book to consult and what not to as the time was short and I focus on Manhattan and few books and could not focus on real study plan.
Please guide how to improve and what should be the study plan (along with practice books) If I have to take the exam in Dec, 2014 or even before.
Thanks, Faisal
Dear Faisal,
Sorry to know you scored less than your target.
A 390 suggests that your basic mathematical and verbal concepts are a little shaky right now. You should focus on developing these basic skills first. Go back to your test to figure out what exactly your weakness is. Say, in a word problem, were you unable to form the equation in the variable or were you unable to solve the equation once you made it. Say you were unable to make the equation. Check out the equation from the solution and see whether you can solve it on your own and get the answer. If you were scoring Q39 in practice, I would assume that you would be able to solve and mathematical capability is not the problem. But still, you do need to figure it out on your own.
Also a V16 implies insufficient comprehension of the reading material presented. Read the passages/arguments slowly. Do you understand them? Did you understand them properly during the test? You might want to start reading extensively to improve comprehension. Take aside two hrs everyday to read books/newspapers/magazines etc. Ensure that you understand everything in the article before you move on.
You need to do these things in addition to whatever you are doing to prepare for GMAT. In fact, your time spent in GMAT preparation will yield better results after you have figured these things out.