Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! : Share GMAT Experience

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KWizz

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

20 Apr 2016, 20:33

Gotcha - I have found that Sentence Correction is simpler to improve quickly - by identifying splits and recognizing common tricks that the GMAT throws at you (again, that free video on Manhattan explains this extremely well). I know that idioms can be tough for some people, but there are other splits/differences that you can more easily identify to knock out incorrect answer choices.

I consider CR and RC to be very similar in skill-sets needed - if you're good at one, it'll cross over to the other. Are you taking good & quick notes? If not, it may help to just practice taking notes shorthand on many passages (both RC and CR) to get a good feel on what is the minimum you can write down and still get the gist of the passage. If you're at work and are unable to pop open your study books, you can look up various news articles or essays (try to focus on history, science, and business as those are the main themes on reading comprehension) and practice your note-taking. Once you can learn to quickly understand the passage in either CR or RC (main themes, not necessarily all the details), you can quickly eliminate answers on each question and at least have a 50% shot at guessing the right answer on an extremely tough verbal question.

Good luck!

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Hi,

RC is quite inconsistent on verbal. Besides, I'm not hitting the max on CR/SC (Accuracy 60%-70%).

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Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

20 Apr 2016, 23:02

Hi KWizz,

Thanks for your prompt responses. I really appreciate we are on same page. I understand how important note-taking can be - specially when you have to refer back to passage for details/inference questions.

Can you elaborate on what/when to take notes? Is it also recommended for shorter passages which consists of two paragraphs? Should we skim any details we encounter while reading and note only keywords for later references because I learnt it is almost redundant to read details and also refer back the same. Apart from the tone, purpose and intent questions, I think one has to refer back the paragraphs almost all the time. For aforementioned reasons, it is def must to skim and take notes? Also, I felt too much of note which involves frequent pauses, hinders my hold on mental map etc.

Please shed some light on how to become more efficient Note-taker? Thanks for your tip on sentence corrections. I agree with Manhattans spilt find approach.

Cheers!

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 07:57

I don't want to hurt Manhattan's business by giving out their methods for free, so I'll just say that I found their structuring of short-hand note-taking was extremely helpful.

As for when I do take notes, I definitely took some form of notes even for short passages, because this isn't a paper exam that you can underline phrases and key words like the SAT or ACT. I would especially make sure that I write down in shorthand what the conclusion is and why the author comes to that conclusion. Again, to conserve time, learn how to take short-hand notes using symbols, abbreviations, anything you can recognize to cut down time writing.

For larger passages, I definitely do skim the details of longer passages: for example, if there's a whole paragraph dedicated to all the different molecular compounds in celery and how each of them helps your digestive system (totally just made that up), I would write something along the lines of:

"2 Cel cmpds help me poo"

So if I see a question that asked about how celery compounds help humans, I can look for an answer related to poo (easier question).
If the question asks about specific compounds, I know from my notes to examine paragraph #2 (harder question, pun also fully intended).

Good luck!

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Hi KWizz,

Thanks for your prompt responses. I really appreciate we are on same page. I understand how important note-taking can be - specially when you have to refer back to passage for details/inference questions.

Can you elaborate on what/when to take notes? Is it also recommended for shorter passages which consists of two paragraphs? Should we skim any details we encounter while reading and note only keywords for later references because I learnt it is almost redundant to read details and also refer back the same. Apart from the tone, purpose and intent questions, I think one has to refer back the paragraphs almost all the time. For aforementioned reasons, it is def must to skim and take notes? Also, I felt too much of note which involves frequent pauses, hinders my hold on mental map etc.

Please shed some light on how to become more efficient Note-taker? Thanks for your tip on sentence corrections. I agree with Manhattans spilt find approach.

Cheers!

B

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 08:27

Since you seem to think that your primary issue is with time management, let me ask an odd question:

If you had been given unlimited time, how do you think you would have done on the practice tests?

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Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 08:47

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Hi KWizz,

Thanks for your prompt responses. I really appreciate we are on same page. I understand how important note-taking can be - specially when you have to refer back to passage for details/inference questions.

Can you elaborate on what/when to take notes? Is it also recommended for shorter passages which consists of two paragraphs? Should we skim any details we encounter while reading and note only keywords for later references because I learnt it is almost redundant to read details and also refer back the same. Apart from the tone, purpose and intent questions, I think one has to refer back the paragraphs almost all the time. For aforementioned reasons, it is def must to skim and take notes? Also, I felt too much of note which involves frequent pauses, hinders my hold on mental map etc.

Please shed some light on how to become more efficient Note-taker? Thanks for your tip on sentence corrections. I agree with Manhattans spilt find approach.

Cheers!

In addition to what KWizz has mentioned, I followed the good old read a passage such that you understand

1. What is the purpose of that line in context of the entire passage / that particular paragraph/ sentences just before or after it.
2. I never took down any notes as I felt it slowed me down (again, this is my personal take).
3. Make sure to keep a close watch on the transition words such as furthermore/moreover etc that will give you a sense of what to expect in the next sentence/paragraph. Lets say you have "blah blah blah .Furthermore, ....". Here furthermore only goes to show that whatever will be mentioned in the following sentence(s) will only add as an additional example/additional explanation of what has already been discussed before.
4. Keep making a mental (or written) note of the purpose of a paragraph/example etc.
5. Come up with a 1 line summary of the entire passage taking into account whatever you read. This will become your answer for the "main point" or ""main idea" type of questions.
6. Do not try to remember specifics such as dates etc as you will and you should come back to the passage as and when detail questions are asked. Do not rely on your memory.
7. With details, make sure to understand the role of that piece of information. Is it to provide a supporting argument or is it talking about an exception or is it something else entirely?

All these methods will make you become more engaged with the passage , leading to a better understanding of what is getting talked about.

I did not budge from this strategy even when the passage was shorter or longer.

Hope this helps.

HarisinghKhedar

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Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 09:12

HiLine wrote:

Since you seem to think that your primary issue is with time management, let me ask an odd question:

If you had been given unlimited time, how do you think you would have done on the practice tests?

I won't say - I would have bombed it with unlimited time. May be relatively better!

Like I said in my earlier posts, my accuracy isn't great (and similar) in all areas on verbal. I'm trying to overcome few problems like below :

1. How to attack RC question with better speed and accuracy? I did exhaust standard material without considering or consolidating a solid approach.
2. How to parse the critical reasoning argument faster? Though in CR, I still choose one of the best twos and move on if I have spent enough time.
3. How to save some more time on SC? This isn't my forte but still I do better on this section among all.

Hope I did clear my stand in response to your query?

Cheers!

HarisinghKhedar

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 09:16

KWizz wrote:

I don't want to hurt Manhattan's business by giving out their methods for free, so I'll just say that I found their structuring of short-hand note-taking was extremely helpful.

As for when I do take notes, I definitely took some form of notes even for short passages, because this isn't a paper exam that you can underline phrases and key words like the SAT or ACT. I would especially make sure that I write down in shorthand what the conclusion is and why the author comes to that conclusion. Again, to conserve time, learn how to take short-hand notes using symbols, abbreviations, anything you can recognize to cut down time writing.

For larger passages, I definitely do skim the details of longer passages: for example, if there's a whole paragraph dedicated to all the different molecular compounds in celery and how each of them helps your digestive system (totally just made that up), I would write something along the lines of:

"2 Cel cmpds help me poo"

So if I see a question that asked about how celery compounds help humans, I can look for an answer related to poo (easier question).
If the question asks about specific compounds, I know from my notes to examine paragraph #2 (harder question, pun also fully intended).

Good luck!

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Hi KWizz,

Thanks for your prompt responses. I really appreciate we are on same page. I understand how important note-taking can be - specially when you have to refer back to passage for details/inference questions.

Can you elaborate on what/when to take notes? Is it also recommended for shorter passages which consists of two paragraphs? Should we skim any details we encounter while reading and note only keywords for later references because I learnt it is almost redundant to read details and also refer back the same. Apart from the tone, purpose and intent questions, I think one has to refer back the paragraphs almost all the time. For aforementioned reasons, it is def must to skim and take notes? Also, I felt too much of note which involves frequent pauses, hinders my hold on mental map etc.

Please shed some light on how to become more efficient Note-taker? Thanks for your tip on sentence corrections. I agree with Manhattans spilt find approach.

Cheers!

Thanks for responding to all my queries. Great help Mate! :-D

B

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 10:03

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

HiLine wrote:

Since you seem to think that your primary issue is with time management, let me ask an odd question:

If you had been given unlimited time, how do you think you would have done on the practice tests?

I won't say - I would have bombed it with unlimited time. May be relatively better!

Like I said in my earlier posts, my accuracy isn't great (and similar) in all areas on verbal. I'm trying to overcome few problems like below :

1. How to attack RC question with better speed and accuracy? I did exhaust standard material without considering or consolidating a solid approach.
2. How to parse the critical reasoning argument faster? Though in CR, I still choose one of the best twos and move on if I have spent enough time.
3. How to save some more time on SC? This isn't my forte but still I do better on this section among all.

Hope I did clear my stand in response to your query?

Cheers!

Gotcha. Since both accuracy and speed are issues for you, why don't you focus on one at a time? Concentrate on improving accuracy first - give yourself as much time on practice questions as you need to be 100% confident about your answer. Once you are certain you can get right most of the questions you encounter, start building speed into your practice regime.

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Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

21 Apr 2016, 23:00

Engr2012 wrote:

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Hi KWizz,

Thanks for your prompt responses. I really appreciate we are on same page. I understand how important note-taking can be - specially when you have to refer back to passage for details/inference questions.

Can you elaborate on what/when to take notes? Is it also recommended for shorter passages which consists of two paragraphs? Should we skim any details we encounter while reading and note only keywords for later references because I learnt it is almost redundant to read details and also refer back the same. Apart from the tone, purpose and intent questions, I think one has to refer back the paragraphs almost all the time. For aforementioned reasons, it is def must to skim and take notes? Also, I felt too much of note which involves frequent pauses, hinders my hold on mental map etc.

Please shed some light on how to become more efficient Note-taker? Thanks for your tip on sentence corrections. I agree with Manhattans spilt find approach.

Cheers!

In addition to what KWizz has mentioned, I followed the good old read a passage such that you understand

1. What is the purpose of that line in context of the entire passage / that particular paragraph/ sentences just before or after it.
2. I never took down any notes as I felt it slowed me down (again, this is my personal take).
3. Make sure to keep a close watch on the transition words such as furthermore/moreover etc that will give you a sense of what to expect in the next sentence/paragraph. Lets say you have "blah blah blah .Furthermore, ....". Here furthermore only goes to show that whatever will be mentioned in the following sentence(s) will only add as an additional example/additional explanation of what has already been discussed before.
4. Keep making a mental (or written) note of the purpose of a paragraph/example etc.
5. Come up with a 1 line summary of the entire passage taking into account whatever you read. This will become your answer for the "main point" or ""main idea" type of questions.
6. Do not try to remember specifics such as dates etc as you will and you should come back to the passage as and when detail questions are asked. Do not rely on your memory.
7. With details, make sure to understand the role of that piece of information. Is it to provide a supporting argument or is it talking about an exception or is it something else entirely?

All these methods will make you become more engaged with the passage , leading to a better understanding of what is getting talked about.

I did not budge from this strategy even when the passage was shorter or longer.

Hope this helps.

Hi,

Of late, I have worked on this technique. I'm trying to use this technique with some note-taking because I found little harder to trace back detail questions especially if the keywords occur at multiple positions in passage.

Can you elaborate on point 6 please? How was your accuracy on details questions without note-taking and how did you make quick scans for keywords when required? Did you rely on your mental map again to attack particular areas for details/inference questions? In passages related to science, keywords are often repeated at multiple positions.

Cheers.

L

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

22 Apr 2016, 10:46

Expert Reply

Hi HarisinghKhedar,

If you've consistently scored in the 570-600 range, then you do NOT need to be taking lots of additional practice CATs right now - you'll likely just continue to score in that range. You need to adjust how you 'see' (and respond to) the Test to pick up the missing points that you're looking for. To that end, you haven't defined your goals, so it would help if you could answer a few questions:

1) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
2) What is your score goal?
3) When are you planning to apply to Business School?

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

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Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

22 Apr 2016, 11:15

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Engr2012 wrote:

HarisinghKhedar wrote:

Hi KWizz,

Thanks for your prompt responses. I really appreciate we are on same page. I understand how important note-taking can be - specially when you have to refer back to passage for details/inference questions.

Can you elaborate on what/when to take notes? Is it also recommended for shorter passages which consists of two paragraphs? Should we skim any details we encounter while reading and note only keywords for later references because I learnt it is almost redundant to read details and also refer back the same. Apart from the tone, purpose and intent questions, I think one has to refer back the paragraphs almost all the time. For aforementioned reasons, it is def must to skim and take notes? Also, I felt too much of note which involves frequent pauses, hinders my hold on mental map etc.

Please shed some light on how to become more efficient Note-taker? Thanks for your tip on sentence corrections. I agree with Manhattans spilt find approach.

Cheers!

In addition to what KWizz has mentioned, I followed the good old read a passage such that you understand

1. What is the purpose of that line in context of the entire passage / that particular paragraph/ sentences just before or after it.
2. I never took down any notes as I felt it slowed me down (again, this is my personal take).
3. Make sure to keep a close watch on the transition words such as furthermore/moreover etc that will give you a sense of what to expect in the next sentence/paragraph. Lets say you have "blah blah blah .Furthermore, ....". Here furthermore only goes to show that whatever will be mentioned in the following sentence(s) will only add as an additional example/additional explanation of what has already been discussed before.
4. Keep making a mental (or written) note of the purpose of a paragraph/example etc.
5. Come up with a 1 line summary of the entire passage taking into account whatever you read. This will become your answer for the "main point" or ""main idea" type of questions.
6. Do not try to remember specifics such as dates etc as you will and you should come back to the passage as and when detail questions are asked. Do not rely on your memory.
7. With details, make sure to understand the role of that piece of information. Is it to provide a supporting argument or is it talking about an exception or is it something else entirely?

All these methods will make you become more engaged with the passage , leading to a better understanding of what is getting talked about.

I did not budge from this strategy even when the passage was shorter or longer.

Hope this helps.

Hi,

Of late, I have worked on this technique. I'm trying to use this technique with some note-taking because I found little harder to trace back detail questions especially if the keywords occur at multiple positions in passage.

Can you elaborate on point 6 please? How was your accuracy on details questions without note-taking and how did you make quick scans for keywords when required? Did you rely on your mental map again to attack particular areas for details/inference questions? In passages related to science, keywords are often repeated at multiple positions.

Cheers.

I never took any notes , probably a line or two for the entire passage. If you are not able to map the passage mentally, do take some notes.

My RC sectional was 47 out of 51 as per the ESR, so I must have missed 1-2 questions in RC. Even during practice (GMAT or LSAT RC passages), I used to have 85%+ accuracy in RC. It all comes down to understanding what information you have been given and for what purpose. If you can tie in a particular sentence with what you have read before, you will be in a much better position.

I never did any "quick scans of keywords". I always used to spend the first 2-3 minutes in reading and understanding the passages (long or short). This understanding then helped me in finishing the entire passage with 3-4 questions in 7-8 minutes total with longer time for longer passages. As for keywords, they should always direct you towards the type of next sentence (support/against/background etc).

For inferences/details, you must come back to the passage as mentioned before. Mental map is only going to tell me where is the reference to the detail asked in the question.

Try different things , even a combination of things and see what works for you.

Hope this helps.

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Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

23 Apr 2016, 23:24

That really helps. Thanks for your comments.

gmatclubot

Re: Disappointing Manhattan CAT Practice Scores! [#permalink]

23 Apr 2016, 23:24