Advice - discrepancy between practice test and real scores
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08 Jul 2020, 14:08
Hi All,
Hoping to get some advice re: potential reasons for consistent discrepancies between my official (mba dot com) GMAT practice test scores and actual outcomes (both GMAT Online, unfortunately). As some background, my scores:
PT1 (Jan 2020, prior to any prep whatsoever): 700 (Q42, V44)
PT2 (Feb 2020, ~33% of the way thru prep syllabus): 730 (Q45, V45)
PT3 (Feb 2020, ~66% of the way thru prep syllabus): 760 (Q49, V47)
PT4 (Apr 2020, after finishing prep syllabus): 790 (Q51, V51)
GMAT Online Attempt 1 (May 2020): 730 (Q47, V44)
PT5 (Jun 2020): 770 (Q49, V48)
GMAT Online Attempt 2 (June 2020): <= 730 (actual score not published)
To anticipate a few potential questions, my practice exams have simulated real testing conditions (no pausing, same section order, online/physical whiteboard for the more recent ones, etc.) I do not have high test anxiety, and I have come out of both GMAT onlines feeling like they went similarly to my practice tests (e.g., I did not anticipate the lower score). Outside of practice tests, I've stayed fresh since finishing my syllabus by doing ~20-30 "Hard" level practice questions each week.
I am planning to take a third time in-person later this month, and have a second in-person test booked for a few weeks after that, though I'm pessimistic that a fourth attempt would see a serious improvement. I'm basically wondering if folks have hypotheses on a) why the discrepancy b) strategies for avoiding the discrepancy in the future. I'm wondering if the standard deviation of ~30 points simply has not worked in my favor, or if there's a better causal explanation.
Thanks so much - really appreciate it!