Hi all,
This is my first post. Have been a keen user of this site as part of my GMAT prep (especially for looking up superior answer explanations to official questions -- whenever the official answer is a bit fluffy/lazy or goes a bit too crazy!).
Wanted to make a post to cover 2 topics:
1) My experience with the online exam (in case that's helpful)
2) Ask the question whether I should consider a retake
1. My experienceDid the test online with a physical whiteboard (so no issues there - didn't even open the online whiteboard).
Don't estimate the lack of breaks - I found this very challenging to jump from Q to V without even a quick chance to gather my thoughts. The exam check in was smooth - 10 minutes tops. There were a couple of incidents during the exam that I found extremely annoying (and distracting) - the proctor interrupting. So when the proctor wants to get your attention/contact you, they pop open a chat window which opens over your exam screen. I was interrupted twice - once halfway through the Q and then again halfway through the V. First time was to say that my face was at too much of a downward angle when I was using the whiteboard to do the math... Second was to say that I can't hold my hand close to my mouth area (... call it a "tick" that I have whenever I am focused/reading)...
Besides the interruption, I would say the online test worked smoothly, but be prepared for the quick transition from one section to another.
I was positively surprised by the turnaround speed, I got my score within 56 hours of completing the exam.
2. Retake?So my actual score was at the lower end of my target range. 700 (Q47 / V40) and with 8 on the IR (no AWA of course!).
I had done all of the official practice tests (1-6) and generally scored higher. I have included a summary below.
From my below scores, I mentally treated the top and bottom scores as "outliers" when forming my expectations.
But my "mid case" was to target a Q48 / V40 (or V41), which would get me to 710-720.
Hence my question: is it worth considering a retake? Sure, I would ideally like to get it to 720, but it could just as easily move up only 10 points (to 710) or not move at all! Any views here would be much appreciated.
Mock #1 (14 June): 710 (Q46 / V41) and with 7 on the IR.
Mock #2 (22 June): 700 (Q48 / V38) and with 8 on the IR.
Mock #3 (28 June): 720 (Q49 / V40) and with 8 on the IR.
Mock #4 (2 July): 710 (Q48 / V40) and with 7 on the IR.
Mock #5 (5 July): 720 (Q48 / V41) and with 5 on the IR (don't know what happened that day!).
Mock #6 (8 July): 750 (Q48 / V46) and with 8 on the IR.
Thanks!