Don't understand GMAT scoring system

Question

Hi,

I'm trying to understand how my GMAT score is so low (565) from my mock exam. Here are my individual screenshots showing which questions I got wrong. Can someone help me understand how I can improve my score?

AjiteshArun · Answer

Hi  optiopossimus ,

The GMAT is an adaptive test, so you won't always see a clear connection between accuracy and score. Generally, instead of focusing on the algorithm, we should focus on the things we can control, like working on concepts, doing practice questions, and analysing our mistakes.

ExpertsGlobal · Answer

Hello  optiopossimus ,

Scoring lower than what you were scoring in mocks is fairly common; many go through this. You just need to focus on prep.

- If you are feeling burnt out, take a few days off. 
- However, making small sacrifices for a few months for (a) securing a good score and (b) getting some fine admits is a part of the game. As they say, if it were so easy, everyone would do it! 
- Getting rusty with concepts is common; most candidates need to revisit the conceptual matter; bring in such 'consolidation phases', once every ~3 weeks, in your prep. 
--- Developing a cheat sheet for revisiting such concepts may help.
- Weekends are a good time for taking mocks and analyzing them.

Advice, from a senior in your quest: Don't consider the prep a burden; it is a skill-enhancement opportunity. Make small sacrifices and work hard for a few weeks/months; the long-term dividends are totally worth it!

Cheers!

Experts' Global

Edskore · Answer

Hey optiopossimus!

I looked at your screenshots and I think I can help clarify what's going on. Your 565 isn't about the scoring system being mysterious—it's actually telling you exactly where the issue is, and it's super fixable.

Here's what jumped out at me: your pacing charts show you spending 3+ minutes on several questions while rushing through others in under a minute. The GMAT Focus is adaptive, which means it's not just about right vs wrong—it's about demonstrating consistent performance. When you spend too long on one question, you're forced to rush later ones, and that creates a pattern the algorithm picks up on.

Your section scores tell the real story: Data Insights at 76th percentile is solid! But Verbal at 30th percentile is dragging you down. Look at your Verbal pacing chart—you're all over the place with timing. That inconsistency signals to the algorithm that you haven't mastered the fundamentals yet.

During my 725 prep, I had a similar pattern early on. What helped was the 2-minute rule: if I wasn't 80% sure of my approach within 2 minutes, I'd make my best guess and move on. Sounds counterintuitive, but getting 16 questions done confidently beats getting 10 perfect and 6 rushed guesses.

For Verbal specifically, try breaking down your practice by question type. Your 30th percentile suggests you're struggling with Critical Reasoning or Reading Comprehension timing. Drill those separately before mixing them in mocks.

You've got the raw ability (that 76th in DI proves it). Now it's about pacing discipline. Good luck!

optiopossimus · Answer

Thanks! That is what I thought too.

The reason why my verbal reasoning is all over the place is due to the reading comprehension questions. I know that we're given one large text which will cover several questions so I spend a good 2-3 minutes reading through the text first so that I know the arguments, premises, perspectives etc. in the text. That is why in the first question, I spend 2-3 minutes then in the next few questions, I spend less than 1-2 minutes because I know where to find the answer. Maybe I should change my tactic in reading comprehension then. It's probably the same for critical reasoning - before I read the question, I read through the whole text first before reading the question.

optiopossimus · Answer

Thank you, this is all really helpful.

I've been studying 7-8 hrs a day for the last 2 weeks, 7 days a week which probably hasn't been helpful. I took yesterday off and I feel much better.

optiopossimus · Answer

Thank you, this is some good advice. I will just focus on the questions and try not to get too distracted.

temporeincidunt · Answer

The GMAT is an adaptive exam, so accuracy doesn’t translate directly into a predictable score. Rather than worrying about the scoring algorithm, it’s more productive to focus on what we can control—strengthening core concepts, practicing questions consistently, and carefully analysing our mistakes.

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