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09 Feb 2017, 19:13
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Hello everyone 
. I started studying about 2-3 months ago, part time. On January 15, after a little over a month of studying, I took my first MGMAT CAT and scored Q38 V33 (580 combined). On January 25 I took the official GMATprep CAT and scored Q38 V41 (650 combined). Today I took another MGAT CAT and scored Q37 V33 (combined 580). I have 3 questions...
1) Why is there such a large discrepancy in my verbal score between the MGMAT and GMATprep CATs?
2) I've devoted 90% of my study time the past 2-3 months to Quant. I've learned a lot and feel much better equipped than when I started. Why am I not improving here???
I have a solid plan in place where I go over each question I get wrong - understand what I did wrong - and focus on those topics I am less confident in. I keep track of my strengths and weaknesses and focus my studying on my weaknesses.
3) I would like to score above 700
, with a target test date in two months from now. Is this realistic? I'm an otherwise high performer academically - I don't understand - there is just no reason I shouldn't be scoring higher than I am right now!
Thank you to anyone who can offer advice! I really appreciate it!
. I started studying about 2-3 months ago, part time. On January 15, after a little over a month of studying, I took my first MGMAT CAT and scored Q38 V33 (580 combined). On January 25 I took the official GMATprep CAT and scored Q38 V41 (650 combined). Today I took another MGAT CAT and scored Q37 V33 (combined 580). I have 3 questions...1) Why is there such a large discrepancy in my verbal score between the MGMAT and GMATprep CATs?
2) I've devoted 90% of my study time the past 2-3 months to Quant. I've learned a lot and feel much better equipped than when I started. Why am I not improving here???
I have a solid plan in place where I go over each question I get wrong - understand what I did wrong - and focus on those topics I am less confident in. I keep track of my strengths and weaknesses and focus my studying on my weaknesses.3) I would like to score above 700
, with a target test date in two months from now. Is this realistic? I'm an otherwise high performer academically - I don't understand - there is just no reason I shouldn't be scoring higher than I am right now!Thank you to anyone who can offer advice! I really appreciate it!
09 Feb 2017, 19:36
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi mbah191,
There are a variety of factors that could influence how well you score on a practice CAT, including (but not limited to) the 'brand' of CAT, whether you take the FULL CAT or skip sections, the time of day that you take the CAT, how well-rested you were before you took it, the environment you take the Test in, etc.
From the timeline that you've described, you've taken 3 CATs over the course of about 3 weeks. Your Quant Scaled Scores are remarkably similar, which means that you're doing certain things consistently well, but you're making certain consistent mistakes. The 'swing' in your Verbal scores in such a short period of time is tougher to assess. The Official GMAC CATs are the most realistic ones available, so maybe that V41 is a measure of how well you might perform on the Official GMAT. However, you might have just gotten a bit 'lucky' when you took that CAT and it's the other two scores that are a more realistic measure of your current skills.
Regardless of which score is "more" accurate, you can still make some big improvements to your scores in the time that you have. Before I can offer you any advice on how to adjust your studies, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:
Studies:
1) What study materials have you used so far?
2) Did you take the FULL CAT each time (with the Essay and IR sections)?
Goals:
3) What is your exact Test Date for the GMAT?
4) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
5) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
There are a variety of factors that could influence how well you score on a practice CAT, including (but not limited to) the 'brand' of CAT, whether you take the FULL CAT or skip sections, the time of day that you take the CAT, how well-rested you were before you took it, the environment you take the Test in, etc.
From the timeline that you've described, you've taken 3 CATs over the course of about 3 weeks. Your Quant Scaled Scores are remarkably similar, which means that you're doing certain things consistently well, but you're making certain consistent mistakes. The 'swing' in your Verbal scores in such a short period of time is tougher to assess. The Official GMAC CATs are the most realistic ones available, so maybe that V41 is a measure of how well you might perform on the Official GMAT. However, you might have just gotten a bit 'lucky' when you took that CAT and it's the other two scores that are a more realistic measure of your current skills.
Regardless of which score is "more" accurate, you can still make some big improvements to your scores in the time that you have. Before I can offer you any advice on how to adjust your studies, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:
Studies:
1) What study materials have you used so far?
2) Did you take the FULL CAT each time (with the Essay and IR sections)?
Goals:
3) What is your exact Test Date for the GMAT?
4) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
5) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
09 Feb 2017, 20:17
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi Rich,
Thank you very much for your response
I feel much more confident with Verbal and given how little time I've devoted to studying Verbal, I really would like to see an increase in my Quant score. You're right - my Quant score has been consistent on both CAT brands - and this score is well below what I am hoping for.
To answer your questions....
1) I purchased the full MGMAT prep guide (set of 9 books). To date I've read all 5 Quant books and one Verbal book (i.e. Sentence Correction). I've also parsed through a Kaplan GMAT Premier book, although it was an outdated version and I don't have access to the online materials.
2) I have not yet taken a full CAT. I've always skipped the Essay and IR sections. I had planned on focusing on the Essay and IR sections closer to my test date, after I felt confident with Quant (and Verbal).
3) I plan on signing up for a test date this week. I was planning to sign up for April 25/26 (or around then). There is availability in my area on those dates and that time would be most convenient for me, given work and other commitments.
4) I'm not rushing to take the GMAT based on application deadlines. I'd be interested in attending business school in Spring 2018 or Fall 2018, which is still a long way away. However, I would prefer to be finished with my GMAT asap - definitely, before this summer.
5) I'm still doing my research on business schools, but most generally, I would hope to get into a top(ish) program. I'm based in NYC and would likely be attending a part time MBA program, while continuing to work (e.g., NYU part-time MBA).
Thanks again for taking the time to respond!
-Max
Thank you very much for your response
I feel much more confident with Verbal and given how little time I've devoted to studying Verbal, I really would like to see an increase in my Quant score. You're right - my Quant score has been consistent on both CAT brands - and this score is well below what I am hoping for.
To answer your questions....
1) I purchased the full MGMAT prep guide (set of 9 books). To date I've read all 5 Quant books and one Verbal book (i.e. Sentence Correction). I've also parsed through a Kaplan GMAT Premier book, although it was an outdated version and I don't have access to the online materials.
2) I have not yet taken a full CAT. I've always skipped the Essay and IR sections. I had planned on focusing on the Essay and IR sections closer to my test date, after I felt confident with Quant (and Verbal).
3) I plan on signing up for a test date this week. I was planning to sign up for April 25/26 (or around then). There is availability in my area on those dates and that time would be most convenient for me, given work and other commitments.
4) I'm not rushing to take the GMAT based on application deadlines. I'd be interested in attending business school in Spring 2018 or Fall 2018, which is still a long way away. However, I would prefer to be finished with my GMAT asap - definitely, before this summer.
5) I'm still doing my research on business schools, but most generally, I would hope to get into a top(ish) program. I'm based in NYC and would likely be attending a part time MBA program, while continuing to work (e.g., NYU part-time MBA).
Thanks again for taking the time to respond!
-Max
