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Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE!

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xALIx
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Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 09:45
Test day story:
I was scheduled for my test today at 8am.
I woke up at 6.30, got 7 hours of sleep, felt good about it, had breakfast....on to the testing center.
I get to the receptionist, hand her my driver's license, she then looks and says oh you're not from the US, you need your passport, go home and get it you have half an hour.
I rush home, take the metro/subway, get home with 10 minutes to go (not enough I know). I look for the passport in the one big envelope I store it in, but its not there. I search the entire house, my car, my jackets, my bags, everything. 45 mins pass, still nothing. I go back to the envelope I first search in for the third time, there's a regular letter envelope in there, I picked it up before, but I do so again, I think to myself "that's odd why would this letter envelope be so thick and heavy?" I look in and in there is my passport. How in the world did the passport get in there.
I call the test center, they say you're too late.
Oh well it wasn't meant to be.

Ugggggh! I was too fluttered at that point.

I asked about a reimbursement, they said call the GMAC. I will.


Now, there are some open dates, one is tomorrow, and the other is around July 15. I don't know which to go for. I can bite the bullet tomorrow, or relax for 2 days and hit the books again...I've been studying for way too long.

From a skills perspective, the last full GMATPrep I took (Saturday), I scored a 610, I've scored 650-670 in past exams. I'm shooting for a 700+. So I'm not sure what to do. I've been studying for about a year now, intensely for the last 4 months. Mind you when I first took a GMATPrep exam I scored 490 (around December).
I know I can work on my math and my verbal, I'm at Q39 and V35 (last exam), range upto Q43 V40
If I put it off I'm thinking of doing the Kaplan 800 book, and the GMAT Challenges. What do you think? I've heard people say only go for the challenges if you're at Q45+.
What about the verbal, how can I improve RC and SC?
I've been through the stupid Kaplan course, the OG, the OG supplements, and the MGMAT books.
My other area of weakness is timing. Any suggestions?

Should I wait another 3 weeks?
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 10:12
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I saw this passport issue during my test. I would guess it happens every single time.

If you have only scored in the 650 range, there is no logical reason to expect 700. I would study more if that is your hard requirement.
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 10:18
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It's up to your personal preference. If you feel that you can nail the exam and score as high as your test CAT scores, then take the exam quickly.

If you have beek scoring in the mid 650s but want a 700+, I feel that it is worth taking the 3 extra weeks to fine tune your skills and strengthen your weaker areas.

It's up to you. If you want to take the exam and get it over with, take it as soon as you can. If you have time to spare and are not in a rush to take the exam, take the 3-weeks as time to better prepare yourself.
- tsd
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 10:57
Thanks TSD, Thanks Tarmac. Ya it seems I need to hit the books a bit more.
Can you guys suggest what material I should study/focus on? Challenges, Kaplan 800?
What about Verbal study material? Should I focus on the 1000's?

Thanks!!!!
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 11:20
tough luck man..but i think it was a blessing in disguise ..

as for passport..why do they ask for that? i mean i dont even have a passport..
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 11:29
passport is for non-citizens, I believe. remembering to bring it is like an unofficial mini-TOEFL :twisted:
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 11:31
Were you born in the US?

fresinha12 wrote:
tough luck man..but i think it was a blessing in disguise ..

as for passport..why do they ask for that? i mean i dont even have a passport..
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 11:38
fresinha12 wrote:
tough luck man..but i think it was a blessing in disguise ..

as for passport..why do they ask for that? i mean i dont even have a passport..


I believe its a blessing as well, guess its a sign that I need to study more.
They asked for the passport because I am "taking the exam in a foreign country".
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 12:00
Unless it is cutting you off from meeting a deadline, I really do not see a real downside to having more time to study! Best of luck:)
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   24 Jun 2008, 12:56
Ali,

I came to know about the passport requirement when I checked about the exam requirements and test breaks at the test center. I went to the test center couple of times before actual exam date. The test center staff told me about passport requirement in one of the visits and I took it promptly for actual exam.

It is mandatory for all Non-US citizens writing the exam in USA. They do not consider Driver's license or state as valid id.
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   25 Jun 2008, 08:17
Guys, can I get some advice on what material to focus on? Please see text in bold in my original post ^above^
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   25 Jun 2008, 15:20
Hi x-Ali-x,

I think the material you have used so far is the best material available. I just scored 730, and most questions I got were very similar to the ones in the OG. Just make sure you can answer all of them. Redo the ones you got wrong or spent more than 2 minutes on until you can answer all of them in under a minute and a half. There's no point doing all the harder problems if you don't master the basics. Should you want more difficult questions, there are loads out there (800score, mgmat, crack-gmat...) but from my experience, most questions on the gmat are actually quite "basic".

But it seems to me (from what you were saying) that you main problem is timing. As such, you should practice test-taking. Try and do at leat one full-test a week (and review all the questions). The GmatPrep are the best, so don't hesitate to take them several times. I did each of them four times each!

There are many other tests you can take to practice timing and also harder questions: 800score; crack-GMat, mgma. The crack gmat study package is quite good in that is allows you to focus on the areas you need practice on. For SC, there is no trick, you need to learn your grammar, understand paralellism, recognize a modifier, and know your idoms. The OG is great for that.

Good luck! Don't give up! You can do it!!
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Re: Went for test today, exam wasn't meant to be....NEED ADVICE! [#permalink] New post   25 Jun 2008, 18:30
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That's horrible luck, Ali. Don't let this experience bring down your confidence. This actually happened to a guy while I was waiting to be seated for my last test. The receptionist asked for his passport and he didn't even know he had to bring it. The last thing I remember before I was seated was the poor guy on the phone asking someone to drive his passport to the testing center.

Timing is essential! You can only improve this skill through repetition and practice. I would say take those additional 3 weeks and just do as many full length timed CATs as possible. This should help you improve your concentration and also calibrate your brain to work at an optimal pace.
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