Gave Gmat today for the first time and got 620. need advice to improve

Hello, Yashodh. I see a few warning signs in your post that I feel the need to address directly.


This sort of thinking will not help you. I promise you that there are some Indian males with an IT background who have earned scores below 750 yet still ended up at desirable programs. It is fine to put your prospects into perspective, but even admissions experts cannot guarantee who gets in to a given program and who does not by a GMAT™ score and a little background information.


No, random mocks do not provide a consistent picture, so you cannot predict much from them. You earned a 44 in Quant on the one official mock you took, and you also have the sub-score from your recent official exam. Anything else should be treated as a learning exercise. That part about not making "careless mistakes" is not something that should be taken for granted. In all likelihood, you will keep making those types of mistakes consistently enough not to reach a 49-50 threshold until you can figure out what is causing you to pursue those lines of thought (e.g., not writing down enough information, assuming that numbers are integers). I agree that you will have to focus more systematically on breaking down the Verbal portion of the test.


Try pausing them and taking notes, or, with a guide in hand, seeing how the information GMAT Ninja may be discussing connects with what you see in print form. Think of the video as a verbal instruction manual. Very few people read such a manual cover to cover and then put something together or fix a problem; rather, they often take in one step at a time, stop, and see if they can get through that step. Then, they repeat the process until they finish the job at hand. I agree wholeheartedly that you should work from the basics up to harder material. To earn a higher score, you have to put yourself in a position to see harder questions, and you will only do so if you are not missing easier ones.


Again, get rid of this specificity—a V25 to 45 takes time to achieve, and the amount of time invested will vary from individual to individual. I think it is fine to set goals, but do not let those goals create barriers of negativity. You climb a ladder one rung at a time, and it takes however long it takes. Remember your willingness "to put in the effort required and more" when you feel down about not hitting one benchmark or another (and trust me, you will have bad days).

There are plenty of excellent resources, both in print form and online, for you to explore. You can check out the Marketplace for one; if you are on a tighter budget, you might want to go with a good set of print guides, such as those by Manhattan Prep. (Many top-scoring members start with these.) Whatever you decide, remind yourself to enjoy the learning process.

I have written a lengthy post on common GMAT™ preparation mistakes that you may find to be of interest. Perhaps it will help you along your journey.

Good luck with your studies.

- Andrew