Best advice to improve my poor 540 GMAT?

Unfortunately it was the actual GMAT.

I studied for 3-4 months, but did not study enough apparently. I took only 2 practice tests, scoring around 600 each time. I simply went ahead and took the real test to get a feel for the real deal.

My goal is 700. I know I am strong at math, so I'm a little surprised at my low quant score. My verbal was low, as I expected, as I've always had trouble with passages.

I want to retake the test by July, and apply for school after. NYU Stern is my dream school. UCLA would be ideal also.

Let me know if you need any other info.

I don't think you need new material. Use your magoosh course and the GMAC material you already have and work on your basics for now. A Q37 is 36%, so you have a lot of work to do when it comes to the fundamentals. The GMAT is obviously not using or testing some special or unknown type of mathematics, so the good news is that if you are strong at math, you should be able to improve your score dramatically with additional practice and familiarity with question formats.

Your verbal is at 47%. Why do you not want to improve that as well?

If you are good at math, then I think that you could improve Quant from 37 to up to 50 without much attempt. You just need to be farmiliar with the kinds of GMAT question and the ways to solve them.

Also, you could improve your verbal score as well. I think that Verbal score contributes more to the overall score.

You still have a lot of time to prepare. There is no good class but a good strategy to prepare. The quant questions posted by Brunuel are good enough for you to practice. With verbal section, you could try other materials like OG, Manhattan, Magoosh, Vertias,... No need to read all of them, just try to learn the way they think and the way the questions are made.

Hi Tony,

If you diligently studied for those 3-4 months, then it's likely that you've developed some 'bad habits' that will take time to fix (and replace with new 'good habits'). To that end, continuing to study in the same ways as before - and with the same materials as before - will likely not lead to the big improvement in score that you're interested in.

Thankfully, the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. However, raising a 540 to a 700+ will likely take at least another 3 months of consistent, guided study. Given what you've described about your prior studies, you would likely benefit a great deal from investing in a more formal GMAT Course (either Guided Self-Study or instructor-led). If you're planning to apply for Round 1, then you still have plenty of time to study for the GMAT and work on your applications - but you'll want to be efficient with all of this work so that you don't end up with a similar score at the end of the next few months.

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

Hi Rich,

Does Empower GMAT offer a course with instructor, or is it just videos?

Hi Tony,

Most GMATers tend to lead busy lives and sometimes have to study at odd hours of the day (or even varying hours from week to week). Some of those same people can study for longer periods of time or must compress their studying down into a shorter period. The EMPOWERgmat Course allows for all of those variables. As such, there isn't a live instructor - since that would require a 'fixed' class schedule; you get to set your own schedule (and either follow one of our Study Plans or pick-and-choose the subjects that interest you). Thankfully, you don't need a live instructor to improve your Test-Taking skills and score higher on the Exam. The GMAT is a consistent, predictable Test, so you can train in the easiest/fastest ways to approach each of the questions you'll face and learn all of the little 'secrets' to the Test so that you can maximize your performance.

Rather than try to explain every facet of the Course here, I suggest that you use the free trial and try it out for yourself. You can learn more here:

https://www.empowergmat.com

If you have any additional questions, then you can feel free to contact me directly.

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

i think you should go for Manhattan GMAT books for quant and official questions for practice and review your mistakes.

For quants, practice is the only thing to survive. Get yourself familiar with basics of all topics and work on your timings and strategies.. All the best!!

I understand that you're probably tired, so rest for 2 days, but before that write that all that you learn while taking the test. Think of yourself as someone giving advice to someone who is about to take the test shortly and faces the same testing problems as you do. write them down.


solve gmatclub tests questions, make sure you review each question
buy any quant review
download gmatclub guides to whichever og and quant review you are using.
since you've taken the test once you should be knowing which topics you're weak in by now- use the gmatclub guide and finish all medium level questions topic wise, review them thoroughly. ask doubts on the forum if you can't follow something, don't leave any stone upturned basically.

once you're done with the medium level questions, attempt the hard and very hard questions. they're labeled so on the guide...

simultaneously solve gmatclub tests questions, daily stick to 5-7 questions of 600,700 level. and review them thoroughly.
Whenever you attempt a question ask yourself this after reading the question:
what am I supposed to find out here?
Do I know how to find it out? If the answer is no, then don't waste time on the question. take an educated guess and move on.

since you're enrolled with magoosh-if you really don't understand a solution after checking gmatclub forum solutions then drop magoosh an email, they're very helpful. make sure you specify where exactly you're stuck.

regards,
npin2

For Math-- manhattan guides and gmatclub test will be sufficient