Seeking some advice after my 1st mock

Hi Raunak_Bhatia,

From what you've described, it sounds like you're using a 'book heavy' study plan. Unfortunately, many Test Takers who use a 'book heavy' study approach end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level. Since you've only taken the one CAT though, we can't say for sure whether this has happened to you or not. Considering your score goal though, you will likely end up needing to invest in some new, non-book resources.

Based on everything that you’ve described, I think that you would find the EMPOWERgmat Total Score Booster to be quite helpful. Most of our clients complete that Study Plan in well under 2 months, so the time commitment wouldn't be that bad. We have a variety of free resources on our site (www.empowergmat.com), so you can 'test out' the Course before setting up an Account.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Hi Raunak_Bhatia,

A 590 is a solid score for your first practice test. Given that you have two and a half months left to prep, if you really push yourself during that time and study “smart,” it’s possible that you can improve your GMAT score to a 700+. However, since you have already completed a review of the GMAT topics and still need around 110 point score improvement, you may consider implementing a more thorough study routine, so that you can learn the GMAT quant and verbal knowledge you need to achieve your goal score.

The GMAT is such a challenging exam because there are relatively few questions asked in a given exam, yet those questions come from a huge topic pool. Thus, the best way to get a great GMAT score is to have a thorough understanding of all the topics that may be tested on the exam. To develop such mastery, you want to strive for linear and targeted learning, and follow that with focused practice. In other words, you want to master one topic before you move to the next.

For example, if you are learning about Number Properties, you should learn everything possible about that topic: LCM, GCF, units digit patterns, divisibility, remainders, etc. After that, be sure to practice with a lot of questions (50 or more) just on Number Properties. Doing such thorough practice will hone your ability to apply what you have learned to realistic GMAT practice questions. The more realistic practice problems you solve using proper strategies and techniques, the stronger and faster you’ll become at working with GMAT concepts. It is through this deliberate practice that you will continue to build sophisticated critical thinking, analytical reasoning, and decision-making skills, all skills that the GMAT rewards and that many students lack.

Follow a similar routine for verbal by learning one section at a time. When learning about critical reasoning, for example, you want to be able to learn about all aspects of critical reasoning: strengthen and weaken the conclusion, resolve the paradox, find the conclusion, must be true, etc. Follow up your learning with focused critical reasoning practice, so you can determine your specific weaknesses within that topic. You should do the same for sentence correction and reading comprehension.

Once you feel you have improved your GMAT quant and verbal knowledge, begin taking practice exams to track your overall progress. When taking practice exams you may consider taking the exams offered by GMAC, since those exams have an accurate scoring algorithm and contain retired questions from past GMAT exams.

Please keep us updated with your prep and, if you have any further questions, feel free to reach out to me directly.

Good luck!