Need advise - what do I do now?

Question

Hi all,

I have written the GMAT 4 times. I've given all the OG mocks, all the Manhattan mocks, one Veritas mock, one Magoosh mock. I've done all the practice questions on the mba official guide page.

Let me give you the scores first.

OG mock #1 - 710. V 37, Q 50
OG mock #2 - 710. V 37, Q 49
OG mock #3 - 710. V 38, Q 49
OG mock #4 - 720. V 35, Q 51
OG mock #5 - 740. V 39, Q 50
OG mock #6 - 740. V 41, Q 50

GMAT EXAM scores-
#1 - 680. V 34. Q 49
#2 - 570. V 23. Q 47
#3 - 690. V 38. Q 47
#4 - 700. V 40. Q 46 (Online exam)

I'm supremely tired with this whole exercise but I will explain what went on. I'd really appreciate some insight into this

I studied the prep material from Magoosh starting July, I completed their entire syllabus in 2 months. I thought Ill take one exam in the beginning of Septamber, and take another one at the end of September/start of Oct, in case the 1st one bombs.

I was happy with my 680, because I felt like 1 month was good enough for me to raise my score to 710ish. During this time I took Mock #2 and #3. But 2 days before the exam I panicked and took 2 back to back practice exams (MGMAT and Magoosh).I barely slept before the exam and did much worse (570) on the second GMAT, which I took in October.

I tried to collect myself in October, took more than 5 to 6 weeks to prepare for my 3rd attempt. This time, I focused more on OG practice questions, and worked on getting my verbal score up. I took mock #4,#5 and #6 during this time and scored well in Quant (51,50,50).

Maybe I felt slightly overconfident in Quant, I lost complete track of time in this 3rd attempt. There was an easy geometry problem, but I got stuck for about 8 minutes and didn't even realize it. Because of this, I only had around 10 to 12 min to complete the last 10 questions. I winged a lot of it. And got 47 in my quant. This totally and completely shattered my confidence in Quant.

I thought maybe there was an issue with number properties and basic geometry, so I redid those chapters and tried to manage my time. But today when I took the GMAT online, I found the Quant section to be very difficult. I was blanking out, feeling terrible and blindly guessing on some. I again had only 14 min to complete 10 questions. I had no idea what I was doing.

I dont understand how my quant is going down. My verbal has risen and I'm happy with it. But MBA schools focus more on Quant. And I don't know what to do.

It's already 27th Nov, and I'd like to leave next year. I havent even started on my application/essay/TOEFL/LOR.

What do I do? Should I write the GMAT again?

Mental health - its been pretty bad. I had a bad breakdown in August. Another in October. Today I had a mild anxiety attack. It's rough to manage this and my full time job which is quite demanding(10-11hr/day).
I've been exercising, meditating, going to therapy. I feel like I've done all I can in terms of my mental health but I'm unable to keep my nerves at bay.

Prep material:
Magoosh prep material
MGMAT mocks
OG 2020 book
OG practice questions and mock exams
GMAT ninja videos
CR powerscore 
Manhattan Geometry, number properties, algebra, fractions

Profile:
30 you old, Indian female.
I'm a Program Manager in a tech company.

Let me know if you need any details about my prep. I really do need some solid advice.

Posted from my mobile device

sritamasia · Answer

Hey. I'm really sorry about the experiences you have had. 
Why don't you go ahead with the applications once and see if the 700 score suffices? 
You can keep preparing alongside your applications.

I have heard many cases where such schools as Wharton and other M7 insist that  prospective students  get a higher score. 
So, if your profile is interesting, they'll ask you to get a higher score.

All the best. I hope everything turns out well for you.

sridevivraghavan · Answer

Hi sritamasia, Thank you!

Any advice on how to manage time between apps, work and prep? I belong to the ORM category, so slightly worried my profile will not get a second look. Best, Sridevi Posted from my mobile device

sritamasia · Answer

Ad-Coms aren't as harsh on Indians Females as they are on Indian Males. 
Please focus on crafting essays that catch the attention of Ad-Coms. 
ABSOLUTELY UNIQUE positioning.

I recently started working full-time so I don't think I would be able to give suggestions to someone who's much senior to be regarding time management between work, apps and GMAT.

All I can say is:  You will do it!

sridevivraghavan · Answer

I hope you're right about the ad coms! Thanks for the response and the encouragement

Posted from my mobile device

sritamasia · Answer

Glad to help!

EducationAisle · Answer

Hi Sridevi, I believe most schools are more interested in overall scores and don't fuss too much about sectional scores (except for some Finance centric courses that do emphasize more on your Quant score).

So, the 700 that you already have on GMAT, is a good-to-go score for your applications.

Good luck!

sridevivraghavan · Answer

Hi Education Aisle,

I wanted to crack the top schools, maybe not H/S/W, but the ones after that. I'm not sure if this is enough to crack the top 10 though.

As an Indian woman in the IT field, I'm not sure how I can position myself well enough to stand out. That's my main reason for feeling defeated with this score.

Best,
Sridevi

Posted from my mobile device

MartyTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi sridevivraghavan.

Nice job increasing your verbal score. Now, to hit your score goal, you just need to score a bit higher in quant, as we all know you can.

I'm not sure why your quant scores have been decreasing, but nerves certainly played a role this time, and you still scored Q46. So, your quant skills are clearly pretty strong.

So, what could you do going forward?

For one thing, even with all your prep, it's likely that you still have a few weaker areas of quant, and by strengthening your skills in those areas you'll make yourself more confident.

Another thing you can do is take more practice tests. The more practice tests you take, the more accustomed to the test experience you'll be, and you can use your practice test results as indicators of what to work on. You can play the GMAT like a game.

We're not talking about a long timeline here. Within a few weeks, you can work on some weaker areas, take a bunch of practice tests, become more confident, take the GMAT again, and hit your score goal.

sridevivraghavan · Answer

Hi Marty,
Thank you for the encouragement.

I think my weak areas are - 
1. Probability 
2. Combinatorics
3. Number properties - I'm unable to efficiently use different cases to prove that the statement is sufficient. Stuck on picking numbers here. More than 3 minutes for this type, if I'm unable to set it up properly.
4. Word problems - find them intimidating at times and it takes time for me to set up the problem. I take more than 3 minutes for this type.
5. Coordinate geometry - I know the concept, but I think I havent done enough problems to recognize traps. I take more than 3 min for this type.

Most of all, a wretched amount of careless mistakes. Sometimes I've mistaken 'x-1' for 'x+1'. These mistakes are particularly higher in the actual exam, because I realize the mistake the second I hit the ' Confirm' button.

I wondering if maybe an hour to 2 hours a day (for 3 weeks) is enough to address all the above issues and time management, along with practice tests.

Any advice on the weak areas mentioned above?

Thanks,
Sridevi

Posted from my mobile device

Need advise - what do I do now?

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