Just took the GMAT the second time -- Timing was not very good

Hi russ9,

By now you've probably read and tried many of the timing strategies. It could be your nerves on test day that causes your issues with timing. Have you tried doing practice tests in a similar environment to the GMAT (surroundings, time of day, etc.)? The more comfortable you are with the exam day environment, the more confident you'll feel on test day.

If you get the sense that it's something more than test day jitters, I would recommend speaking with a tutor to help with your strategy. Our online tutors can meet with you virtually, if that makes things easier for your schedule. You can sign up for a free trial here: https://econgm.at/freetrialoffer.

Best of luck!

Jessica

Hi Russ,

Without knowing more about your studying habits, it is hard to comment. But here are a few general things that come to mind:

-Practice doesn't make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. What I mean by this is that when you do practice CAT exams, try to mimic the real testing situation as much as possible.
-Put pressure on yourself to perform during mock tests
-Find a completely quiet, isolated study area (preferably one that is not your usual spot such as a bedroom or home office, so that it is as strange to you as the test center)
-Don't keep the per question timer visible to you as you take the test (instead use the overall section timer which you would see during the test). Instead get used to the feel of how much time has elapsed and calculating the time remaining by looking at the overall timer

You may also consider working on changing your reading strategy since that tends to have a big impact on CR and RC. What I mean by this is don't read the passages for great detail. Read them to the extent required to build a mental roadmap and summary. Then refer back to the passage to find answers to questions as required rather than committing the passage details to memory.

If you have done everything right and your problem is 'qualitative' then may be you should read my 750 GMAT story. It has tips on how to manage feelings.

Hi Jessica,

I have gone to great lengths to mimic the testing environment -- I turn off my phone, tell my girlfriend that I need the apartment to myself, etc.

I thought that I had the jitters under control -- it's almost as if I zone out for a minute or two on the Verbal section because of fatigue and then it's down hill.

Any thoughts on how to improve that? The thing is -- I honestly feel that I have content down pretty well for SC, it's RC that is a little bit of a time suck and results in drifting because of the wall of text.

Thanks again for your help!
Russ




Hi LighthousePrep,

Your last bit of advice, I have tried very hard to incorporate that but for some reason or another, I keep on drifting away from that strategy come test time. How do you think I can better improve my reading skills for CR and RC. I am, by nature, a very detailed oriented person(engineer) and maybe that's actually hurting me in this case. I try to look at things and read & re-read. How do I get out of this mode?

Thanks!
Russ



Thanks! Read your debrief. I don't think it's qualitative -- but I loved your story. I incorporated the healthy diet, sleep, day off(took 2 days semi-off before the test) and days off in between. I'm having a hard time pin-pointing the issue. It has to be quantitative because I feel as though i'm comfortable on the qualitative end.

The issue is that even on the quantitative end, I feel as though I am confident but the scores aren't reflecting it. That being said, i'm definitely weaker on the quantitative side than the qualitative side -- that I can say for sure. RC and CR are probably two areas I can improve on. The unfortunate thing is that I am out of things to practice?

Thanks for your help,
Russ

"I've also done pretty much all of the OG problems and taken the GMAT prep practice tests, so at this point, i'm just recalling stuff from memory. Is there a place I should refer to to get additional questions?"

I would strongly urge you to practice with official GMAT questions. I would use the following resources: GMATPrep Question Pack 1, Exam Pack 1, may be GMATFocus, and the pool of questions in the GMATPrep database(all-gmatprep-questions-quant-verbal-187679.html). This should be plenty. Of course, as you go through these questions you need to figure out what is missing in your understanding.

Cheers,
Dabral

Hi Russ,

RC is a tough one, and you're not alone-many people seem to lose track of time or lose concentration in that section. I recommend taking notes while reading those long passages (if you don't already). This will keep you focused. As you take notes, practice determining the main idea, tone, type and structure of texts. Pay attention to how the text flows. Keep an eye out for changes in opinions or content.

You can practice every day by reading publications like The Economist or the New York Times Op-ed section.

Hope this helps a bit. Best of luck!

Thanks -- i'll try to implement what you mentioned.