Getting from low 700s to high 700s

Question

I've taken about every practice test under the sun, and score pretty consistently between 700 and 750. I seem to miss different types of questions every time, so there's nowhere in particular that I need to bone up. Furthermore, many of my mistakes are careless-- computation errors, coming up with answers to the wrong questions (it asks for the total of two numbers, and I give it the difference between them, etc.), and forgetting little things like that zero is a multiple of a number. So I don't know what to study, really.

Nonetheless, I'm trying to come up with a strategy to give myself that last little boost. I won't be taking the test for six months.

Any ideas?

Eli John · Answer

What boost are you looking for??? You're scoring in the 99th percentile. It sounds to me that you have the GMAT nailed down. Why would you wait 6 months to take?? Do it now!!

stoolfi · Answer

Eli,

My undergrad grades are crap, and I think there could be a big difference between a 710 and a 760 to the AdComm. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't mind putting in the hours. It's my life I'm talking about here, and If I can get into an Anderson or a Tuck instead of a Carey or a Krannert, It's worth the effort.

And I'm not badmouthing Carey and Krannert, either. I have (smart!) friends at both.

sm176811 · Answer

I have a similar situation with my undergrad grades.
What practise tests did you use? Your experience would be useful to me.

Thanks

stoolfi · Answer

sm176811:  What practise tests did you use? Your experience would be useful to me.  

Every test I can get my hands on. You can find a lot of the old paper tests if you look hard enough. I prefer the ETS and Kaplan tests because a lot of the ARCO, PR, and Cambridge questions, especially verbal questions, do not have the same feel as the ETS questions. Of course, I haven't taken the real deal yet so I could be sorely disappointed when the time rolls around.

Problem is, I continue to make many careless errors, both in Q and V. I'll try to take another paper test at the library this weekend, with no distractions and an intense focus, and see how I do...

ssk4f1 · Answer

you will continue to make silly mistakes, when you dont have the pressure of knowign when you will be giving that GMAT.

Believe me, under pressure, your brain will focus like a laser

pitts20042006 · Answer

well it could work both ways actually ... it could work as a laser ... but the pressure of the situation might get to you and in nervouness you could miss out even more ...

My advice is just to be methodical and very meticulous in your approach, take all the time you need to read and understand the question thoroughly .. then when you do come up with the answer, before you move on to the next question skim through the question again just to be double sure tat you have answered something that is asked.

drummond · Answer

Hmm. Are you finding that you tend to rush, answering too fast? That was a problem I had early.

Also, are you keeping a formal error log? How's your Quant in comparison to your Verbal?

Hjort · Answer

Have you worked on your goals and community service?

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