How do I improve my Sentence Correction scores?

Hi Ayush,

Grammar is the root of solving SC questions correctly. While you may have tried different sources, I would suggest you download the GMATCLub Grammar book, and go through it in detail. Its one of the most comprehensive sources for grammar relevant to the GMAT.
Once you are through, check your accuracy on the SC questions. They should improve. At the first stage, don't focus on timing / speed. Improve accuracy, speed will follow.
You should target accuracy of 70-80% in SC alongwith good performance in other sections for a killer GMAT score.

For quant, again GMATClub Quant book is pretty comprehensive. What is needed is targeted practice to improve your accuracy and speed. DS is usually the section that needs most attention, though it depends on skill level of individual persons.

And remember to prepare and give GMAT in 3-4 months time. Go more than that, and your scores will tend to drop as you would forget concepts. Its very human, but its true.

Do get in touch with us at toptiermba.org for any query regarding your GMAT or the stages post GMAT.

Cheers !
TopTierMBA

Hi
For Sentence Correction, I think you can study from the Manhattan Gmat guide book. They are comprehensive and cover all the Gmat topics.
For more basics on english grammar, you can study the Gmatclub grammar handbook.
In my opinion, the topics that you mentioned - combinations, probability, are tough topics, and you should first focus on the other easier topics and then come to these topics.
Also, these topics cover only 1-2 questions on the Gmat and you can do better by focusing on other topics.
All the best.

Hi ayushsaxena04,

Regarding verbal resources, in addition to seeking advice in this thread, take a look at the GMAT Club reviews for verbal courses, and also read through some GMAT success stories to see what materials have worked well for other test-takers.

Also, would you like some general advice on how to improve your SC skills?

You also may find it helpful to read this article about how to score a 700+ on the GMAT.

Thank you for the reply sir.
I'll surely take a CAT and will let you know the scores I have received. It's just that, I'm kinda scared what If I haven't improved at all after all this practice. I fear I might feel demotivated.
Answers to the question you have asked:

1. I have been studying since January, I used to study 4-5 hours a day. And on the weekend a few more hours in comparison to weekdays.
2. I have been practising RC from RC Grail - Aristotle. I completed all the easy passages. I took a break in February, due to my B.Tech exams. I have started GMAT practice again.
Currently, I started with SC now, since I didn't practice it before. I did go through Manhattan Prep SC Guide - 6th Ed. But, I'm not able to remember all the rules. Even if I understand the Grammar rule, when I solve a question I'm not able to implement the grammar Rule.
3. I'm planning to apply in 2021. And I really want to apply to the top school like: Harvard University, Stanford, University of Pennsylvania: Wharton, London Business School, University of Chicago: Booth, MIT: Sloan etc

Hello Sir,
I would like to hear general advice on how to improve SC skills.

Thanks for the advice, I'll start the GMATclub grammar handbook, I did go through Manhattan, but I tend to keep forgetting the rules. And I find it hard to implement the rules I have read in theory. That's one major issue I'm facing.
And I didn't know that Combinations, probability are the tough topics and they are less in number. I'll take your advice and I'll focus on the easier ones first and get a good grip on them.

Hi ayushsaxena04,

GMAT skills can "fade" over time - and many GMATers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores. Thus, if you studied for the GMAT in January - then stopped studying in February (so that you could focus on OTHER exams) - then restarted your GMAT studies in March, then that might help to explain some of the issues that you are facing. At this point in time, you likely have not put in enough consistent study to hone all of your Test-taking skills to a high level YET.

That having been said, the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. In addition, focusing on the GMAT now - far in advance of when you'll actually "need" your Score - is a really smart choice. If you can commit to the proper study timeframe and focus on learning and practicing the proper Tactics, then you should be able to improve a great deal on that earlier 460 practice CAT Score.

Since you're interested in some highly-competitive Schools, you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile and plans. Those Experts should be able to answer your Admissions questions and help define the specific areas of your profile that could use some improvement.

There's a Forum full of those Experts here:

https://gmatclub.com/forum/ask-admissio ... tants-124/

Once you've taken that next CAT/mock, you should post back here (and you can also feel free to PM me directly) and we can discuss the results and how you might best proceed with your studies.

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

There are three aspects to getting correct answers to GMAT Sentence Correction questions: what you know, such as grammar rules, what you see, such as violations of grammar rules and the logic of sentence structure, and what you do, such as carefully considering each answer choice in the context of the non-underlined portion of the sentence. To drive up your Sentence Correction score, you likely will have to work on all three of those aspects. Furthermore, the likely reason that your Sentence Correction performance has not improved is that you have not been working on all three of those aspects.

Regarding what you know, to be successful in Sentence Correction, first and foremost, you MUST know your grammar rules. Let's be clear, though: GMAT Sentence Correction is not just a test of knowledge of grammar rules. The reason for learning grammar rules is so that you can determine what sentences convey and whether sentences are well-constructed. In fact, in many cases, incorrect answers to Sentence Correction questions are grammatically flawless. Thus, often your task is to use your knowledge of grammar rules to determine which answer choice creates the most logical sentence meaning and structure.

This determination of whether sentences are well-constructed and logical is the second aspect of finding correct answers to Sentence Correction questions, what you see. To develop this skill, you probably have to slow way down. You won't develop this skill by spending less than two minutes per question. For a while, anyway, you have to spend time with each question, maybe even ten or fifteen minutes on one question sometimes, analyzing every answer choice until you see the details that you have to see in order to choose the correct answer. As you go through the answer choices, consider the meaning conveyed by each version of the sentence. Does the meaning make sense? Even if you can tell what the version is SUPPOSED to convey, does the version really convey that meaning? Is there a verb to go with the subject? Do all pronouns clearly refer to nouns? By slowing way down and looking for these details, you learn to see what you have to see in order to clearly understand which answer to a Sentence Correction question is correct.

There is only one correct answer to any Sentence Correction question, there are clear reasons why that choice is correct and the others are not, and none of those reasons are that the correct version simply "sounds right." In fact, the correct version often sounds a little off at first. That correct answers may sound a little off is not surprising. If the correct answers were always the ones that sounded right, then most people most of the time would get Sentence Correction questions correct, without really knowing why the wrong answers were wrong and the correct answers were correct. So, you have to go beyond choosing what "sounds right" and learn to clearly see the logical reasons why one choice is better than all of the others.

As for the third aspect of getting Sentence Correction questions correct, what you do, the main thing you have to do is be very careful. You have to make sure that you are truly considering the structures of sentences and the meanings conveyed rather than allowing yourself to be tricked into choosing trap answers that sound right but don't convey meanings that make sense. You also have to make sure that you put some real energy into finding the correct answers. Finding the correct answer to a Sentence Correction question may take bouncing from choice to choice repeatedly until you start to see the differences between the choices that make all choices wrong except for one. Often, when you first look at the choices, only one or two seem obviously incorrect. Getting the right answers takes a certain work ethic. You have to put in the necessary time to see the differences between answers and to figure out the precise reasons that one choice is correct.

To improve what you do when you answer Sentence Correction questions, seek to become aware of how you are going about answering them. Are you being careful and looking for logic and details, or are you quickly eliminating choices that sound a little off and then choosing the best of the rest? If you choose an incorrect answer, consider what you did to arrive at that answer and what you could do differently to arrive at correct answers more consistently. Furthermore, see how many questions you can get correct in a row as you practice. If you break your streak by missing one, consider what you could do differently to extend your streak.

As with your Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension regimens, after learning a particular Sentence Correction topic, engage in focused practice with 30 questions or more that involve that topic. As your skills improve, you’ll then want to practice with questions that test you on skills from multiple SC topics.