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shobhitkh
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EMPOWERgmatRichC
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shobhitkh
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Thanks EMPOWERgmatRichC our your valuable suggestion. I’ve been studying for past one and a half months but the problem is I am not able to determine when to appear for GMAT exam.

Below are the answers to your questions -

Studies:
1. As mentioned above, I’ve been studying for past one and a half months
2. Powerscore - CR, Manhattan - SC and Quant books
3. I have given Manhattan mocks and have scored as follows -
1. CAT 1 - 590 (Q 42 and V 31)
2. CAT 2 - 590(Q 47 and V 25)
3. CAT 3 - 740 (Q 47 and V 45)
4. CAT 4 - 740 (Q 47 and V 44)
5. CAT 5 - 740 (Q 47 and V 45)

Goals:
4. My goal score is ~730
5. Skeptical on deciding date. Have a fear that preparation is not over.
6. I would like to apply in R1
7. I am targeting Indian School of Business (ISB)


Could you please advice basis the above details. Your feedback will be much appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.
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Hi shobhitkh,

From the information that you've provided, you have now scored 740 three times - and with a Goal Score of 730+, your results would make it appear that you are actually performing at your Score Goal level... and yet you haven't scheduled your Official Test Date and you seem unsure of when to do so. Do you not 'trust' these Scores? Have you been taking your CATs in ways that are not realistic (for example, pausing the CATs, retaking a CAT you've already taken, seeing 'repeat' questions that you already know the answers to, etc.)?

The jump in your CAT Scores (especially from CAT2 to CAT3) is rather large for such a short period of time (and from a statistical-standpoint, that legitimacy of that improvement seems questionable). As such, I have a few questions about how you took these CATs:

1) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
2) Did you take them at home?
3) Did you take them at the same time of day as when you plan to take your Official GMAT?
4) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
5) Did you take any of these CATs more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE (re: on a prior CAT, in an online forum or in a practice set)?

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Hi EMPOWERgmatRichC,

After the performance in CAT 1 and CAT 2, I realised that I am doing something wrong so I took a detailed analysis of the mistakes committed in both the tests and after working on it gave the other tests and the result can be seen as the score improved.

1. Yes, I took the entire CAT each time but I took some pauses’ in between.
2. Yes I gave them at home
3. No, I did not take them at the same time as when I plan to appear for official GMAT
4. Sometimes I took longer breaks but did not skip any section
5. No, I did not take any CAT more than once. I did not see any question beforehand.
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Hi shobhitkh,

With the information that you've provided, you've now defined FOUR aspects of how you took your CATs that are NOT realistic (re: pausing the CATs, taking them at home, taking them at different times of day and taking longer breaks), so it's likely that these results are NOT completely accurate. If you want to properly train for the GMAT - so that you can maximize your performance on Test Day - then you really have to train for that full day in as realistic a way that you can. As such, I strongly recommend that for your next CAT, you plan to take it in a realistic fashion (take the FULL CAT - with the Essay and IR sections, take it away from your home, at the same time of day as when you'll take the Official GMAT, no pauses, no extended breaks, etc.). Once you have that score, you should report back here and we can discuss how best to proceed.

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