4 months of studying and still no progress

It sounds like you might need a better strategy for debriefing after your practice exams.

After you take a simulation test (sim test), don’t forget to debrief! You can improve your study strategy immensely by simply debriefing after each simulation test. Debriefing means taking the time to examine your score assessment and using the information to develop a strategic plan for improving your score.

You should conduct a debriefing soon after each test while the test questions are still fresh in your mind. A good debriefing can take almost as long as the test itself.

Look at each question in your score assessment carefully, and determine why you answered it correctly or not. If you answered it incorrectly, what could you have done differently? It’s no use making sweeping statements like “I will pay more attention during studying.” It’s much more valuable to tell yourself tips like “I must remember to plug in negative and positive numbers in inequalities.”

Also, take a look at your time management strategy. Which types of questions took longer? On which questions did you spend too little time?

Another tip: look for recurring patterns within each test. Do your areas of weakness remain the same from test to test? If so, you may not be reviewing these topics properly. This may be a sign that you should schedule a one-to-one tutor session about this subject.

Don’t forget to document your debriefing sessions so you can read your notes before your next simulation test. Good luck!