GMAT in 10 days -Advice to improve

Question

Hi All,

I am really tensed . I have been trying to retake the GMAT examination after a miserable 560 in my first attempt. I have exam in 10 days and I am scoring miserably in the MGMAT CATs :-

Please find below my breakups :-

MGMAT 1 - 590 - V-35 Q-35

MGMAT 2 - 520 - Q 30 V-32

MGMAT 3 - 630 - Q-39 V-37

MGMAT 4 - 630 - Q 39 V-37

MGMAT 5- 590 - Q 37 V-34

I am really shattered . I am aiming of a 650 + not even a 700 but I really do not know how I can improve. The biggest challenge that I face is in the quant section , I always run out of time and waste so much time on the first few questions that in the end I am left with random guesses on the last 15 or more questions !!. When I go back to the questions after the examination I am able to solve a few more around 40% more questions ) .

Also are Kaplan CATs a bit easier as I was scoring in range of 600 to 670 in their tests ( 8 test series) . This was a year back when I was preparing for the GMAT again but had to give up on my dreams due to personal family problems. Then I had a gap of around a year and again mustered courage to take the exam.

Also what is the acceptable score for IR , is 5 good enough ? I score in range of 4 to 5 in the IR section.

Please advice on how can I reach my goal. Anything above 650 is good enough for me considering the dismal performance in the CATs . I am really concerned as I have just 10 more days left for the D day . This forum has been very helpful , the way the questions are categorized makes navigation really easy . Thank you for creating gmat club !!

bb · Answer

Hi and thanks for your post. It is going to be hard to figure out. I would take a GMAT Prep ASAP so that you can figure out if you need to reschedule (you can do so only until 7 days before the test). In general the test is close enough though there is an element of error obviously.

10 days is not much at all and I would focus on your error log (whatever questions you missed, did not answer right and focusing on the reasons why you did not get them right). You need to understand why you made the mistake, review the material with the main goal of never making the same/similar/related mistake again.

Also, this may be of interest: what-to-do-30-14-7-3-1-days-before-the-test-152506.html

sarahrs · Answer

Hey, good luck with your test.

I would practice on timings and knowing when to skip a question.This can make a big difference on test day. Main aim is to finish the section within the required time. therefore it is worthwile to work out a timing strategy that works. Eg half through test I should be at this question. Then know what to do if you are behind.

I would also schedule in some and relaxation before test day to ensure your refreshed.

Posted from my mobile device

bb · Answer

Just to add, if you have one weakness in particular that bugs you, I would focus on that one as well (assuming you have time).

E.g. If you know you are weak with a certain type of CR questions or Geometry. However, if you are weak in PS or RC - those are too big of topics to cover in this period of time.

Also, don't kill yourself with CAT's - take about 3-4 tests in this time period. Not more than that.

Good Luck! And take that GMAT Prep!

gmat2805 · Answer

Many thanks BB and Sarah . I took the GMAT Prep - Test 1 and scored a 650. Shockingly I did well in quantitative section 44 and not that good in the verbal section !. The result is definitely not in consonance with my MGMAT scores.

BB thanks for your advice. I realized that my strength was SC in MGMAT exams but strangely I fared poorly in GMAT Prep SC. I did well in RC section. My first question on the verbal front was a complicated but short RC. CRs also need to be worked on. I got a lot of number/percent CRs and one CR was based on " which of the following provides the same reasoning as the bold faced part".

I have completed MGMAT SC book once again with all the excercises and have solved a lot of CR questions on gmatclub especially those on numbers and percents.

In quantitative section I tried not to waste much time on the questions I was not able to solve in 2.5 minutes . This helped me complete the section rationally and the number of random clicks on the last few questions was reduced.

I was running out of time on Verbal part. I made a lot of mistakes in the first 20 questions which dropped my verbal score ;even though I did fairly well in the last 21 questions my score did not improve. Hence I will be concentrating a lot more on verbal now and have made a detailed error log on each SC and CR to identify my mistakes.

I have decided to go ahead and take a plunge in the exam and come out not only as a survivor but as a modest winner !!.

Please advice when should I take GMAT Prep 2.

Thank you once again for your advice and help.

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