ideal time to give gmat to apply for Jan 2018 session.

Hi anniesgh,

Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

Studies:
1) How long have you studied?
2) What materials have you used?
3) How have you scored on each of your CATs (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores)?

Goals:
4) What is your goal score?
5) What Schools are you planning to apply to?

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

Next month means i can give gmat by march 2017 to apply for colleges for Jan 2018 sessions?

Hi, Thanks for your reply! By your status on the left i could see that you are from the same field that i am i.e. IT and looking for almost the same for MBA i.e. GM and Tech. Well i was to give gmat by Nov last year but due to health issues i had to postpone it to this year. I have almost 9 years exp in IT and iam 30 years old. I was thinking about giving it by feb end thinking that i dont have much time left but since now i see i have time i think i will give it by march first week or may be feb end as i will be applying to Canada only and i need 680-700 for that and im already 650 as of now(gmat prep) . I want to ask one more thing since we are from the same field - is it ok for me to go for mba this late and in canada?

Hi, Thanks for your reply!

well i gave IELTS in Nov 2015 and Gmat in March 2016 quite unprepared so got 530 only. Then i was to give it again in NOV'16 but due to health issues i couldn't and postponed it to Feb-March 2017. Earlier wanted to apply for Sept 2016 session and now shifted it to Jan 2018 session. So i have been studying on and off since then only. I have 8 years exp of IT industry and am 30 yrs old Female.
I am little worried that im a bit late as "per standards" as i'll be 31+ if i will get Jan 2018 session and 32 if i get Sept 2018 session so is it ok to do MBA from Canada at this age and considering i will prefer doing job over there only and may be relocate there.

I have been using OG 16, and online resources from GMATclub etc
And im getting scores between 600-660 in CAT's that i gave recently.


My Goal score is 680-700 as colleges in Canada are having average scores less than 700 so im targeting that only considering i dont have much time left to prepare.

Colleges that im planning to apply to are - Rotman, Ivey, Schauders, Schulich, Queens, DeSautels etc Only Canadian colleges.

Now, Please let me know for which session i should apply for and how much time i have for that and should i really take this big step at this age?

Hi anniesgh,

Since you've studied previously, and you've mentioned how you've been studying "off and on", I have a few questions about your recent CAT scores:

1) What were the exact scores for each CAT (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for each)?
2) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
3) Did you take them at home?
4) Did you take them at the same time of day as when you plan to take your Official GMAT?
5) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
6) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?

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

Hi,
here's the answers -

1) What were the exact scores for each CAT (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for each)?
A- 560,580,610,650,660

2) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
A - Just once

3) Did you take them at home?
A- yes

4) Did you take them at the same time of day as when you plan to take your Official GMAT?
A- not really

5) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
A - yes i took longer breaks sometimes plus few pauses

6) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?
A - yes but never saw same questions except 1 or 2

Hi anniesgh,

Test Day is a rather specific 'event' - the details are specific and they matter, so you have to train as best as you can for all of them. The more realistic you can make your CATs, the more likely the score results are to be accurate. The more you deviate, the more "inflated" your scores can become - and that's likely what has happened here. By skipping sections, taking the CATs at home, pausing the Tests, etc., you have not been properly training for the FULL GMAT 'experience.' As such, we cannot assume that any of your recent CAT scores is accurate. By extension, it's difficult to suggest a Test Date for you until we have a realistic sense of your current skills. I suggest that you take a new, FULL-LENGTH CAT (with the Essay and IR sections) sometime soon and make sure to make the experience as realistic as possible (so take it away from your home, at the same time of day that you plan to take the Official GMAT, without pausing the Test, etc.). Once you have that score result, you should post back here and we can discuss your Study Plan going forward.

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