GMATPrep # 1 under bad conditions - help to evaluate

Question

Hello all, I've been a long time lurker around here but haven't had the opportunity to post much (sorry :roll:

) however i really do appreciate this forum's quality and hope to be a contributer in the latter stages of the mba process (post-GMAT that is). I've read a number of posts on the meaning/relevance/representation of the gmatprep and other CAT's, but i would like to have some insight on my results. I took the gmat prep test 1 last night under the following conditions: - i work on a macbook pro laptop so i had to dig out a compaq laptop i bought back in 2001 to run the gmat prep software - this PC is in a terrible state: takes forever to load, to confirm each question i am faced with the hourglass cursor for anywhere between 30 and 45 seconds. Very frustrating. - the battery is defective and does not charge, so the laptop needs to be plugged in to a socket in order to run (think desktop pc) - i currently reside in a country where power outages occur around 2-4 times a day (see what i'm getting at? :lol:

) Yesterday, electricity was behaving well (not a single power cut) so i decided to take my 1st gmat prep at 9pm - this is after all day study with PR CAT in the morning, needless to say I was tired. Cut to verbal question #24, BAM!, just like cinderella, power goes out at midnight sharp! I cry myself to sleep. :cry:

I wake up this morning and am pleasantly surprised that the software kept track of my progress (great!) but i finish off the exam just to finish the bugger, so cup of coffee in hand, listening to music, i navigate myself through the last questions, my 7 year old pc churning its last churns. (btw another power cut happened somewhere along the line). Before I reveal my score, i have to say that during the test i was not feeling confident, i was tired, i found the math to be difficult, i wasn't doing good. My preparation consists of, for test-taking strategies, PR2008, and all problems in OG11 and OG Quant review. I have been doing quite well with the OG problems but the gmatprep still seemed harder. CAT scores so far: PR 1: 560 Q39 V28 PR 2: 570 Q40 V28 PR 3: 650 Q39 V41 and now... GmatPrep 1: 690 Q45 V39 I do not get it. I had 15 out of 37 incorrect in Q (whereas in PR CAT, 6-8 wrong) and 9 out of 41 incorrect in V. Worst ratio of wrong to ratio since beginning of prep. I'm concerned about this Q score, did i get all the experimental questions wrong? (do they exist in gmat prep?) in addition i did see 2 or 3 questions from OG. Could it be a hardware/software glitch. Oh and I'm scheduled for the test next friday 18th and i'd be ecstatic with a 700... :shock:

Sorry for the long post, i would appreciate any opinions on this. Thank you.

eschn3am · Answer

I know nothing of the ratio between questions wrong and scoring, but GMATPrep tests are supposedly the most accurate CATs out there. I can't imagine 22/37 in quant nets you a Q45 though...

Anyone want to shed any light on this?

eschn3am · Answer

but how accurate is their scoring in this situation? Can you really get 15 quant problems wrong and score a 45q? That seems very hard to believe

maverick101 · Answer

Sorry to bother you guys, I wish there was a legend to decode the terms.

What is GMATPrep? I assume its a Software, but does it come with Kaplan? Princeton Review?

I would appreciate if you could elaborate for a new comer (relatively).

Thnx

eschn3am · Answer

https://www.mba.com/mba/TaketheGMAT towards the bottom. MBA.com has two free practice CATs available for download. They remain the best indicators of how well you'll do on the real deal.

Tangaroo · Answer

Just curious: I read that you can retake GMATPrep numerous times without seeing any (or very little) repeat questions - can someone really potentially "waste" these by taking them too many times?

eschn3am · Answer

Take them when you're ready to see how well you can expect to score in the near future. If you just take it over and over again before you do any real studying you'll burn up all the questions in the question bank without really getting much benefit. The first time you take each test is obviously the most accurate, but I've also heard that you can take it a couple times and get new questions each time (with maybe a few repeats).

Phish · Answer

yes that's my main point. i would maybe understand if experimental questions (ones that do not count toward your score) somehow were included in the simulation?

solaris1 · Answer

Ignore the number of questions you got wrong - that by itself has very little to do with your final score. I've gotten 13 questions out of 37 wrong and ended up with a q49 on my second GMATPrep exam. I ended up with q47 on the actual test, so it was a reasonably accurate predictor.

And yes, GMATPrep does have experimental questions that are not scored.

And yes, GMATPrep does have experimental questions that are not scored.

eschn3am · Answer

Wow...I didn't know accuracy had so little do with final score. I was under the impression you could only miss a couple questions to score around q49 good to know!

solaris1 · Answer

The kind and difficulty level of questions you are getting wrong is much more important than the number. And bear in mind, 7 or 8 question are experimental and not scored - so luck plays a big role as well. You can get all experimental questions correct, even truly mind numbing ones, make mistakes in 600 level ones, and end up with a much lower quant score than you deserve. Or you could do all scored questions correct, mess all experimental questions up save for one or two and still get a 49-50!

Phish · Answer

thanks for this input.
i was aware that different questions have different weights but i was not sure how this actually translates into a final score. it's still unclear as i look at the sequence of correct and incorrect answers, they are sort of spread evenly all over the place - it's not like i had the first 10 (seemingly crucial) questions right and then it was downhill from there

solaris1 · Answer

The GMAT scoring algorithm is obviously proprietary and hard to figure out - which is why none of the test prep companies have been able to design a CAT that's as reliable a predictor of your test day GMAT performance as is GMATPrep.

The first 10 questions are no more crucial than the middle 10 or the final 10. Since GMATPrep doesn't really tell you what level questions you got right or wrong, it's fruitless for you to think so much about this. Just work on reviewing the concepts involved in the questions you got wrong and that by itself should help you improve.

jfals82 · Answer

FYI-- I scored a 48Q and missed 11 questions.

GMATBLACKBELT · Answer

For Quant I have found this to be true. Verbal is much different though I think. Ur accuracy here is key. Missing around 13 verbal questions will significantly lower your score.

Phish · Answer

thanks all I just completed test 2 with a 610

Q42, V32 Completely bombed the verbal section, and i do see here instances of your inputs. 15 wrong questions in verbal really made the score plummet, and 12 wrong in quant. Most of the math questions I missed out were extremely simple and were due to calculation mistakes and/or not reading the complete question. So much for trying to figure out how gmat score works, my test is on friday and i'll be doing two more gmat preps one tomorrow and the other on Thursday. At this stage, i'm not sure what else i can do besides practicing my pacing and focus, My quant seems quite level however my verbal is all over the place (specifically CR).

kidderek · Answer

Sorry, a bit late. What I meant wasn't to try to determine a score for you, but rather to let you know that you should not waste a GMATPrep when you're not ready or if conditions are not that of what you should expect on test day.

As for re-takes, yes, you can re-take them and you will get a handful of repeat questions. Again, the first two are golden, do not waste them.

Phish · Answer

So I took the actual exam on friday, and the results were in the expected range. 640 Q42 V36.

There were no major surprises as far as the content goes, and i was ok with my performance, but i quickly decided to take the exam again in a month and boost my verbal (when i first started studying i thought that this was my strong area!) because i know i can do much better, plus my undergrad GPA is average.

My work experience and professional record is quite unique (i'd like to think

) and rock solid and i do not want a variable such as the gmat to jeopardize my chances. Anything below 700 is now unacceptable! See you on the verbal forum.

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GMATPrep # 1 under bad conditions - help to evaluate

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