Devastated and need help !!!

Question

Hello,

I got 590(Q45 V26) in my 1st attempt which I was way less than my potential. I realised that concentration and time management were the most critical especially in the verbal which is why I think I got screwed.
So, I basically worked mainly on the time management, took 5 mock tests and got scores of around 640, and retook the test after a gap of around 1 month and twenty days.I was very confident that the test was going on quite well and my expectation grew through the test especially in the verbal section but was completely devastated when the score on the screen was 580(Q44 V27).
I badly wanted to get into in fall 2014 and now it seems as though I will miss out cos the score is way too awful and there is not much time left to retake the test again before the deadlines.
Any suggestions/help would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

Best regards,
A hapless,disappointed soul

mikemcgarry · Answer

Dear rakeshk24 , I'm sorry to hear about your struggles, and I am happy to help! :-)

Here's a free GMAT Idiom ebook: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/gmat-idiom-ebook/ Here's a blog about GMAT CR, with links to other blogs with strategies for individual question types: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/save-time- ... questions/ Here's a blog about GMAT SC, with links to other blogs with grammar content: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/gmat-grammar/ It sounds from your post that you have made the difficult decision to postpone your application for a year. I really think that's for the best. Take this coming year to get more work experience and to hone your GMAT-taking skills. Here's a three-month study schedule designed for folks who struggle in Verbal: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/3-month-gm ... l-focused/ Here's a six-month schedule, which is even more thorough: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/6-month-gm ... -schedule/ Following either one of those study schedules would help you immensely. My biggest piece of advice consists of a magic one-word strategy that is the best preparation for the GMAT verbal: READ . Read every day, for at least an hour a day --- that's above and beyond any GMAT preparations you do. Read hard challenging material in English. First of all, the Wall Street Journal is an excellent publication, and if were deeply familiar with its content, you would look like a pro in the interviews. Get the WSJ and read it every day. Another excellent publication is the Economist magazine --- that's worth reading cover-to-cover each week. For more recommendations, see: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/gmat-reading-list/ When you read, look for main ideas and the purposes of each paragraph; identify the reasons the author mentions particular details in particular places; analyze arguments, identifying assumptions as well as possible strengtheners & weakeners; and analyze sentence structure --- the grammar, logic, and rhetoric of each sentence. If you maintain a habit of reading and apply yourself to one of those study schedules, you will be in excellent shape the next time you take the GMAT. Please let me know if you have any questions. Mike :-)

rakeshk24 · Answer

How do I figure out what the actual problem is for me ?
Cos, I had prepared well enough and even was feeling good all through the 4 hours while at the exam.
And, had to really pull myself out of the test venue after I saw the score in the end

Any suggestions ?

mikemcgarry · Answer

Dear rakeshk24 , My friend, have patience with yourself. Learning to master the GMAT Verbal section is not simple straightforward process. You have done a great deal of prep already, so what you are still missing is probably, among other things, an intuitive appreciation of the subtleties. That's not something someone else can "give" you in a quick way; rather, it's about developing the right mindset, which take time and practice. Furthermore, there may be concrete grammar rules or argument strategies you need to know, but you would need to keep a diligent error log so you could see the patterns in what you are getting wrong. The overall score from a real GMAT or a practice test tells us nothing --- it depends on precisely what you got wrong and for what reason. That's the kind of error log you need to keep, so that you can understand the patterns among your errors. Does all this make sense? Mike :-)

Devastated and need help !!!

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