Fluctuating mock scores and disappointing official score

Question

Hi guys, I'd like to share with you my experience and eventually get some suggestions on how to improve my score in the next 2 weeks.

Mock scores:

1. 02/04/21 | GMAT MOCK 1 | 610 (Q42V33)
2. 12/04/21 | GMAT MOCK 2 | 670 (Q45V36)
3. 20/04/21 | MGMAT 1 | 640 (Q44V34)
4. 23/04/21 | GMAT MOCK 3 | 660 (Q46V35)
5. 27/04/21 | GMAT MOCK 4 | 710 (Q47V41)
6. 30/04/21 | GMAT MOCK 5 | 600 (Q46V27)
7. 02/05/21 | GMAT MOCK 6 | 640 (Q45V33)
8. 08/05/21 | RESETTED GMAT MOCK 5 | 710 (Q48V41)

Highest score: 710 (Q48V41)
Lowest score: 600 (Q46V27)
Mean: 655
Median: 650
Range: 110
Highest/Lowest Q score: 48/42
Highest/Lowest V score: 41/27
Q range: 6
V range: 14

Exam score

- 04/04/21 | 630 (Q46V31

Material bought

- GMAT OG Guide 2021
- GMAT OG Verbal Review 2021
- GMAT OG Quant Review 2021
- Manhattan Prep Advance Quant
- Aristotle SC
- Aristotle RC
- All official practice tests

Material actually used 
- GMAT OG Guide 2021
- All practice tests
- Youtube lessons (Manhattan Prep Hours)
- GmatClub Forum
- Wiley question bank

Strategy 
- Error log (Format provided by Manhattan Prep)
- 2 Mock exams per week (I had only 4 weeks to prepare)
- 4-5 hours per day of study/practice

I'll retake the GMAT on 22/05/21.

Evaluation after official score 
That 630 (Q46V31) felt like a cold shower for me; I was aiming at a 650+ (cannot pretend to be 700+ with only 3-4 weeks of preparation) and, considering my mock scores, I was almost sure to achieve that score (GMAT MOCK 1, where I scored 610, was without preparation and without even knowing well how the exam is structured). 
What I'm struggling to understand is how can my verbal score fluctuate so much (highest 41 and lowest 27). I consistently score 45+ in the quant section, but I find very difficult to improve my verbal score and I feel like the more I study the less I understand; that is quite frustrating. 
I acknowledge that I have made several mistakes in my preparation, such as: too many mocks, did not really focus on verbal, underestimated the importance of the verbal section. 
I have booked another exam for 22/05/21 and in these two weeks I'll try to improve my verbal to score +35 and improve my quant up to 48-49. My strategy for this is: 
- Study Aristotle SC and RC 
- Study Manhattan Prep Advanced Quant
- 30 SC questions every day
- 5 RC questions every day
- Take first Verbal and then Quant

What do you think about my GMAT experience and what suggestions do you have to improve my verbal score?

Thank you in advance.

Russ19 · Answer

Hi, You have already gone through all the good materials. For verbal score improvement, I recommend the video lessons from the link: https://gmatclub.com/forum/all-gmat-nin ... l#p2396353 Good luck!

MartyTargetTestPrep · Answer

When someone's verbal score fluctuates that way, the issue generally is that the person's methods for answering verbal questions have holes, for lack of a better word, in them.

So, what's happening is that, if you see questions that fit the way you have been answering questions, you score relatively high on the verbal section. On the other hand, if you see questions that have tricks or traps not accounted for by your methods, in other words, questions that fall through the holes in your methods, you score relatively low in verbal.

So, to reliably hit your score goal, you have to refine and improve the way you are handling verbal questions so that what you are doing works consistently.

Here's an example.

Let's say your method for answering Weaken questions is to eliminate strengtheners and choices that appear to be irrelevant. OK, so whichever answer is not a strengthener, could weaken the argument, and seems to be relevant is the one you choose. Great. Now, if only one choice seems relevant, you are set. You get that question correct. However, what if there are two or more choices that seem relevant and could conceivably weaken the argument? Well, now your method doesn't work.

The same type of thing can happen with other types of CR questions and with SC and RC questions. So, for all types of verbal questions, you have to use relatively sophisticated methods that work reliably.

In fact, I recently completed this post on scoring high on GMAT verbal and increasing the sophisticating and reliability of your approaches.  How to Score High on GMAT Verbal

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi HiddenBox,

Many GMATers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores, so if you studied for just 4 weeks, then that would help to explain why you have not scored higher YET.

While the most realistic CATs available are the 6 from GMAC, retaking a CAT that you've already taken is NOT a realistic way to assess your skills - since you will likely see some 'repeat' questions that you have already faced. Unfortunately, seeing even a couple of repeats can 'throw off' the Scoring Algorithm and impact your pacing, energy levels, fatigue, etc. (meaning that they would likely all appear to be better than they actually are). This means that your most recent 710 is likely an 'inflated' result.

GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +/- 30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function, most of your CAT score results - along with your Official Score - show that you essentially performed the same each time (640 +/- a few points). Your 710 on Official CAT#4 is an interesting outlier (since it includes a V41, which is considerably higher than all of your other Verbal Scaled Scores); as such, we have to be careful about assuming that this was an accurate assessment of your skills. You clearly handle certain aspects of the GMAT consistently well, but you also make certain consistent mistakes.

Many GMATers who use a 'book heavy' study approach end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level - and it's possible that this has happened to your as well. Even the best books are limited in what they can teach you; they also can't force you to approach questions in a certain way and their explanations are often one-sided. As it stands, you could potentially take the GMAT tomorrow and earn a 650, but if you want to get to the point that you can consistently score at a higher level, then you will have to make some fundamental changes to how you 'see' (and respond to) the overall Exam.

Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on your timeline and your goals:

Studies:
1) Have you been studying every day or did you take any 'days off' over the last 4 weeks?
2) For your next attempt, are you planning to take the At-home GMAT or are you planning to take your GMAT at a Test Facility?
3) When are you planning to apply to Business School and what Schools are you planning to apply to?

If you took your Official GMAT at a Test Center, then you might also choose to purchase the Enhanced Score Report. While the ESR doesn’t provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong on Test Day (and what you should work on to score higher). If you purchase the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you.

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

HiddenBox · Answer

Hi, thank you so much. I'll go through those videos!

HiddenBox · Answer

Hi, thank you for your answer and suggestion. 
I'm sure I have several "holes" in the way I approach the verbal section; the reason for that is underestimation of its importance and inaccurate preparation. In the next 2 weeks, I'll try to improve my overal verbal skills and find the right method for me.

HiddenBox · Answer

Hi, thank you for your help. 
What interests me the most about CAT#4 is that I guessed at most 2-3 answers on the verbal section and I was pretty sure about the reasoning behind my choice for the remaining questions, so, after seeing the scores, I thought I had understood the dynamics of the verbal section, but apparently I didn't. Probably I have just been lucky that day. 
(I still have 2 VeritasPrep mocks; I'll take one 3 days before the exam. I don't to overload my schedule with a lot of mocks without having sufficient time to recover and study my mistakes).

Here are the answers to your questions:

1. I did not study every day. Some days I studied just 1-2 hours (20%) , most the days I studied 4-5 hours (60%), a few days I studied 6-7 hours (10%) and there have been a few days where I did not study/practice at all (10%). I did too many mocks and several times I did not have time to really understand my mistakes and study the contents that I got wrong. That was certainly a mistake.

2. I took the Online Gmat on 4.05 and I'll retake the Online Gmat on 22.05.

Thank you for your attention.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi HiddenBox,

Currently, each person has a 2-attempt limit at the At-home version of the GMAT, so since you have taken the At-home GMAT once already, you have to consider if you want to 'rush in' to take your second/last attempt in 2 weeks.

The process of taking (and reviewing) a CAT requires a significant amount of energy and effort - and takes time to 'recover' from. This is one of the reasons why you typically should not take more than 1 CAT per week - and your last CAT should be taken about 1 week before Test Day. You have taken 6 CATs over the last 2.5 weeks - and that's far too many. At this point, you may be experiencing some 'burn out' (which is something that we want to avoid for your next attempt). By extension, I would advise against taking a CAT just 3 days before your next attempt.

1) What is the specific application deadline that you are facing? 
2) Are you planning to apply to any other Programs besides the one that you listed?

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

HiddenBox · Answer

Hi,

Yes, I agree that I have definetely done too many mocks. This time, I'll do a mock on 15.05 (1 week before the exam).

In regard to the application, the deadline is 31.05.21. There is a small possibility that I don't receive the official scores by that day, but I'll give a try (22.05 was the first available date 16 days after my first attempt). Anyway, results usually come out in about 3 working days, so I should fine. In case I won't get the scores by 31.05, I'll just send my 630 GMAT score and wait for selection results.

In these days I'm focusing a lot on SC and RC (CR is not that big problem; it's the only verbal question type that I feel confident with).

Cheers.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi HiddenBox,

Since you already have a 630 Official Score, I think that your overall timeline and plan for the rest of the month are fine at this point. I've sent you a PM with some additional questions that should help to narrow down your focus for the next couple of weeks.

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

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Fluctuating mock scores and disappointing official score

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