Howdy y'all,
I just scored a 39V 44Q 8IR (690) on my first run through with a really strange score combination.
For perspective, I'm a mechanical design engineer and project manager at a fortune 500 company. I have a 4.0 undergrad math GPA in upper level classes and completed a math minor (3.1 major gap in mechanical engineering from top 10 school).
Before the GMAT: Quant: Studied for quant using
Magoosh and GMAT club forums. My last four scores on GMAT club quant CATs were 44, 48, 49, 51. With the last 51 taking place on July 6th. After this date I did not take another quant CAT and I think it really hurt me. Will not make that mistake again. I will say that Hurricane Harvey impacted my study plan significantly as I had no internet for over a week.
Verbal: After studying quant and feeling comfortable I moved on to studying Verbal using
eGMAT's SC course,
Magoosh, GMAT club forums, and the
Manhattan books. I scored a 37, 38, and 42 in that order ending on September 5th.
The Night Before: I probably stayed up too late the night before the exam, I went to bed at 2:00AM and took the test at noon the next day. I didn't feel tired but forgot to eat before the test which I think affected my concentration. (Hurricane Harvey also totaled my car 2 weeks before the exam which severely impacted my study schedule.)
During the GMAT:Quant (44): I feel like I had a really rough start for some reason. I usually have no problem with these questions and didn't think they were that hard.
Time Management: 1st: 2:10, 2nd: 2:31, 3rd: 2:15, Last: 2:00.
Percent Correct: 1st: 71%, 2nd: 100%, 3rd: 43%, Last: 29% (Ouch)
Verbal (39): Didn't feel like I was struggling with any of these problems. Felt good after this section.
Time Management: 1st: 1:56, 2nd: 1:52, 3rd: 1:53, Last: 1:21
Percent Correct: 1st: 62%, 2nd: 57%, 3rd:86%, Last: 100% (Clutch or luck?)
IR (8): Felt pretty good about IR during the exam. I don't know if any MBA programs actually care about this score but I feel like an 8 is pretty good.
After GMAT 1, Before GMAT 2:I know I can score much higher than a 690 on this test. I will be sure to keep studying Verbal and Quant simultaneously instead of one before the other. I think this hurt me with my pacing on Quant. I believe 3 weeks is enough time to study and improve my weakness on the exam; I will also make sure to get plenty of sleep on the preceding nights, make 100% sure to eat a good breakfast, and bring a snack to the testing center. I would love to hear any feedback or advice for my next 3 weeks of studying. I'm pretty upset about the 690 knowing how much better I am capable of doing on the quant section. Is it even worth it to apply to schools ranking from 20-11 (McCombs target) with the 44Q? I have an engineering degree so I think its obvious I know how to do math