Dear experts,

One week ago I took the GMAT test and it was a real disappointment, score wise, I got an embarrassing 340 score which I cancelled right away. Now, coming to the test day with some prep that I have done inconsistently over a period of 4+ months of which only the last month was some what more consistent with an average of 3-4 hours of study time. The focus was more on the concepts than practicing questions. In fact, I didn’t do any practice exams except the initial one where I had to guess on many questions since I wasn’t familiar with concepts (especially in Quant).

I used e-gmat to practice learning the concepts but it was very time consuming as I had to purchase an extension towards the last month of my prep time. In all fairness I don’t want you to think that I’m blaming e-gmat for my low score. If anything it helped me with so many strategies in approaching the questions. During practicing e-gmat questions and OG 18 questions i was answering above average.
However during the actual exam (V16; Q20) I found myself guessing although some questions appeared easy ..!?!
Now, I’m not willing to give up as yet if ever !!! I know that I can improve a lot if given the right study plan and the right approach/strategies to get to my target score of 650. I’m planning to retake the gmat some time before January of 2019 but I want to plan for it right and plan early. Any help or guidance is truly appreciated. Looking forward to your responses

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Hi knowledgeispower,

While this initial Score was clearly a disappointment, you can use your knowledge of Test Day to better prepare for your next attempt. Thankfully, the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. Raising a 340 to a 650+ will take a significant amount of work though (it will likely require at least another 3 months of consistent, guided study) and you'll have to make significant improvements to how you handle BOTH the Quant and Verbal sections.

1) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
2) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
3) Going forward, how many hours do you think you can consistently study each week?

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

Thank you so much Rich for your response and for your optimism.
As far as the time I have a good 3-4 months of study time set a side. Here is my responses to your 3 questions:
1) I’m planning to apply to Business school by early January 2019
2) The schools that I’m planning to apply to are located in Texas but I have not narrowed down my top 5
3) I can commit ~ 30 hours a week (avg 3 hours on week days and 8 hours on weekends. I work full time but I have weekends off)
Again I appreciate your feedback and your help in better guiding me through this process


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Hi
Sorry to hear that your Gmat didn't go well. I would suggest to order an ESR to know your strengths and weaknesses. Also, I would like to know whether you appeared for any Gmatprep test and what was your score. Your score suggests that you need significant improvement in both Quant and Verbal. Revise the strategies of Egmat and try to implement them to the T. Alternatively you can purchase another course or try the Mgmat guides. They are comprehensive and cover the entire syllabus of the Gmat. It will definitely help you to score a 650+.
All the best.

Thanks Souvonik2k for your response. Yes I did order the ESR and I’m sure it’s a great tool.
I only took one initial gmat prep test early on in my prep. I’m definitely going to order the Mgmat guides (these are the Manhattan gmat guides right?) I appreciate your recommendation and if you think of something else that will help me (strategies, books, etc.) please share with me! Truly appreciate it !!


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Hi knowledgeispower,

With the amount of potential study time that you've described, you could potentially improve a great deal. Since you tried studying "your way" for several months and ended with this score result, you really should not continue to approach this process in the same ways. To be efficient during this next phase of your studies, you would likely find it beneficial to invest in a GMAT Course of some type (either Guided Self-Study or instructor-led), so you should plan to look into the available options.

Most GMAT Companies offer some type of free materials (practice problems, Trial Accounts, videos, etc.) that you can use to 'test out' a product before you buy it. We have a variety of those resources at out site (www.empowergmat.com). I suggest that you take advantage of all of them then choose the one that best matches your personality, timeline and budget.

If you have any additional question, then you can feel free to contact me directly.

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

Rich, thank you so much for the wealth of advices and recommendations you’ve provided me. Will definitely re-visit your posts and follow your advices. Thank you so much again


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Best Books

For Concept Learning

Manhattan Quant Guides
Manhattan Verbal Guides
For CR: The Powerscore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible
For RC: Aristotle RC Grail

For Practice

The Official Guide for GMAT 2015-18
The Official Guide for GMAT Quantitative Review 2015-18
The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review 2015-18

Strategies

You can start with Quant or Verbal which suits you. If you have started with Quant then Start with the Arithmetic but if started with verbal then start first with Sentence correction. One month for learning Quant concepts and one month for practicing question and same practice for Verbal. During you Practicing question don't forget to make an error log to track your weak areas after practice. Once you know your weak areas revise your Concepts related to those areas and do some more Practice. 6-8 CATs are enough for practice the real tests. Make your Stamina for sitting 3 hours in the test and don't study more than 2 hours in one sit and 4 hours per day

Top CATs for Practice

1. Official GMAC CATs
2. Manhattan CATs
3. Kaplan CATs
4. GMAT Club Quant CATs

Good Luck
_________________

SajjadAhmad, thank you so much for the recommendations and I truly appreciate you taking the time to provide me with this valuable feedback !! THANK YOU !!!


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Hi There,

Sorry to hear that your exam didn't went well. I was in the same state after my 2nd attempt (I scored 640). The important thing is to believe in yourself and don't let GMAT crush you. Take a week break from GMAT. In your case (as you have so much time), take 10 - 15 days time and start preparing again. If you feel that you are not getting most out of e-gmat, go for some other prep companies which focus more on answering the question right. I took this approach and i benefited from it. I won't say that it helps for everyone. Try different demos and look for what is best for you.

All the best . Hoping to see a good score in your next post

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Thank you so much Bharath99. Your words and advice mean a lot to me. Yes I will not give up on this task and yes will try a new approach. Could you please share with me, if you don’t mind, what prep company did you use for your second attempt? Again thank you so much for your uplifting feedback.


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