Quote:
I took the GMAT yesterday. Scored 640 ( Q 48 V29). I am planning to retake the exam after improving my verbal score.
Studies:
1) How long have you studied? How many hours do you typically study each week?
- I have been studying for GMAT since time immemorial. I don't have a fixed time to sit and study for the GMAT. It ranges from studying 50 hours per week to no time to even think about GMAT.2) What study materials have you used so far?
Again, I can't pin point on one study material. I've read every study material that comes my way.3) On what dates (or approximate dates) did you take EACH of your CATs/mocks and how did you score on EACH (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)?
GMAT Prep mock 6: Jan 1st - 700 ( Q49 V36)
GMAT Prep mock 5: Jan 4th - 640 (Q49 V29)
Official GMAT : Jan 6th - 640 (Q48 V29)Goals:
4) What is your overall goal score?
720+5) When are you planning to apply to Business School and what Schools are you planning to apply to?
I want to apply asap since I have 6+ years of work ex now. Predominantly top-notch schools in EuropeIt would be helpful if anyone can guide me on the next steps to take so as to achieve 720+ score by march
Hi urshi,
Your quant score seems consistent. On a good day, you are capable of scoring Q49 if you focus a little on the test taking strategy. The actual concern is the verbal part. Seems like you are struggling with almost all the three modules and it is likely that you are not using the right methods to solve questions. Let me elaborate it to you.
How to approach Verbal?
Verbal questions can be very tricky. You will often come across close answer choices which are worded similarly. So, it's important that you are conceptually clear and that you use the right methods and strategies to solve questions. Remember that, GMAT Verbal is all about eliminating four answer choices rather than choosing the right one.
So, I suggest you to focus on the methods along with the concepts. When you finish learning the concepts of any topic,
- make sure that you learn the methods to solve question types tested from that topic.
- Once you do this, practice a few questions to solidify your learning.
- Repeat the process for all the topics
- Once you are done with all the topics, start taking timed quizzes to get used to the time constraint
The path ahead:
I understand that you have studied a lot but your score suggests that there are certain conceptual gaps and that you are highly struggling with the application of concepts. So, the primary focus has to be to identify your weak areas and work on them. There is a certain structure which you have to follow while preparing.
- Identify if it's the concept of a topic or it's application that you are struggling with
- If it's the concept, revisit it and make sure you do it perfectly this time
- If it's the application, learn the right methods to solve question types tested from that topic
- So, you move to the next topic, only once you are confident about the concepts and methods of the previous topic
You can practice a few questions without any time limit to get used to the methodology. You start taking timed quizzes only once you are done with all the topics. I hope you have understood the structure. You can go through the below recording to understand the approach better.
Hope it helped. I suggest you to focus more on the process than on practicing questions. If you wish to have a detailed discussion regarding the same, you can get in touch with me using the below link.