Need some advice to score 690+ from 640..

Question

Hi GmatClub,

This my first post and I have come here after trying all the options. Yesterday, I appeared for the GMAT & scored 640(Q44, V34). My last attempt 2 months back got me 590. Though this is an improvement but I think it's not good enough to secure admission to a good business school. I am planning to retake the GMAT again after 2 months. I need some pointers desperately to improve. I am 27 & an Indian working at Infosys since 2011. I try to balance my work & my study but this has taken its toll on me.

About the Study Materials I used:
1)OG-12,13 and the latest 2015 version.
2)SC, CR, RC question sets downloaded from GMAT club.
3)A maths book for Quant.
3)Exam packs of Kaplan, Princeton & Manhattan.

I haven't taken any coaching classes till now. I'm considering it because option B is to go through the same materials again.

Earlier I faced a lot of issues while preparing for verbal & because of that, in my first attempt I scored 590(Q46, V28).

I have consistently scored above 680 in Kaplan mock Gmats, often reaching 770!! For Princeton & Manhattan, the scores dwindled between 650 and 730.
To abate my fear for exams I have retaken the mocks a number of times.

Also I feel that there's no way questions such as those in OG are ever going to come in real GMAT.

How do I proceed to score a 690+. Any pointers to improve will be much appreciated.

Please let me know if you need more inputs from me.

Regards,
Dipto

GMATPill · Answer

Review your mistakes religiously each night. And wake up each morning to make sure that you still remember any lessons you may have learned the previous day.

Test yourself with some of these practice questions: www.gmatpill.com/gmat-practice-test/

And remember to think and have extreme confidence as you take the test.

KarishmaB · Answer

Hey Dipto, Which Math book did you use for Quant? Note that GMAT Math is not just Math. It is a lot about strategy and insights. Any Math book will not be sufficient. You must use a GMAT specific Math book. A book that discusses not just fundamentals but also how GMAT makes it hard to identify the fundamentals to be used. Strategy is very important especially for the high level questions. Also, it seems that you did not use any books for Verbal. Practicing questions - though integral part of preparing for GMAT - is not sufficient alone. Covering the basics and identifying the strategies that work for you is step 1 for Verbal. Thereafter, practice is what takes you through. Learning from questions works but takes a lot of time except in cases where the person is super observant and a very quick learner. So I would suggest you to get a complete curriculum (or join a course) with all relevant books and go through it thoroughly. OGs and practice tests are useful for practice once you complete the curriculum. Here is a link which discusses our curriculum and allows you to try out one of our video lessons, a lesson book and a practice test for free. Also check out our GMAT blog: https://www.gmatclub.com/forum/veritas-prep-resource-links-no-longer-available-399979.html#/category/gmat/ It will give you a lot of tips.

JTuquero · Answer

Hi Dipto,

Are you keeping an error log? If not, then start doing so. This will help you identify consistent mistakes and allow you to focus on which areas need improvement. If you already do this, let me know which sections you're struggling with (I assume they are in verbal, based off the information you gave us) and I can provide more specific feedback. Also, is English your second language? Do you find that you're struggling because of this?

Since you are taking the GMAT for the third time, it doesn't hurt trying a different approach. Sign up for a free trial with the Economist GMAT tutor and see if this helps you, especially on the Verbal Section. To develop a strategy that will get you to your target score, you may also want to schedule a session with one of our online tutors: https://econgm.at/freetrialoffer.

Best of luck!

Jessica

Dipto · Answer

Hi Jessica,
I haven't tried keeping an error log. I tried once to keep an error log but could not make head or tail of it. Yes, English is my second language and very often I find myself struggling to decipher the tangled & complex SC and CR questions. Also when I go through my mistakes in SC, I find that its a silly mistake that I've made (fell for a trap answer). In RC I get tired while going through a long passage. I did improve to some extent but still I feel I can do better. RCs ate a huge chunk of my time during the exam and later I panicked due to shortage of time.

Can you please send me a sample error log so that I can start using one in a similar manner?

Regards,
Dipto.

JTuquero · Answer

Hi Dipto There are several error logs that you can see for reference. Check out this gmat club chat thread: the-error-log-129501.html. With regard to SC, the key in answering these questions is patience. While you may feel tempted on relying on gut or ear, the problems with SC questions rarely are only grammatical. You should always be sure you understand what meaning the original sentence is trying to convey. This will allow you to rule out answer choices that don’t make sense or violate the intended logic and meaning of the sentence. You're right that trap answers do appear, which is why attention to detail is so important. Take the time to steadily scanning a line, comparing two sentences and noticing small details such as an added or missing ‘s’ or a comma. Lastly, our blog has some recent posts dedicated to non-English native speakers. Check them out as they provide some good tips on how to approach specific sections: https://econgm.at/freetrialoffer. Jessica

egmat · Answer

First of all, you are in a much better position than you realize. Here is why:

1. You known that to score 700+ you need to focus on Verbal, probably improve your Verbal score to V35.
2. Most of this improvement will come from SC and RC.

Sentence Correction
How do you approach Sentence Correction Questions. I think you know most of the rules as you are already at V30, you probably need to refine your application.

Reading Comprehension
IMO this is one section that is easiest to improve. The key to acing RC is to improve your comprehension. One way to improve comprehension is to read a lot; however such improvement takes time. A more efficient way to improve RC is to consciously follow certain reading strategies. We recommend seven reading strategies. Click here to see how some students who followed these strategies improved.

It is very much possible to improve from V30 to V35+ in a short span of time. Look at the debrief below for motivation.

680-v28-to-740-v40-in-30-days-nailed-verbal-157924.html

Regards,

Rajat Sadana

OptimusPrep · Answer

I agree you should concentrate on your verbal score improvement.

Instead of studying with the help of books you should get an adaptive online course that constantly applies to your personal knowledge level. This guarantees a perfect learning experience.

Optimus Prep's verbal booster costs only $199 in Nov 2014 and is the perfect product for your needs! Please visit https://www.optimus-prep.com/gmat-verbal-booster

manyatpr · Answer

Hi Dipto,

Since you have already scored 590 and 640, we are sure you know your strong and weak areas and all the tricks, surprises GMAT has to offer. For the next 2 months, focus only on giving mock tests. However, more importantly than giving mock test, focus on analyzing your performance in every mock test. Typically, if you spend 2 hours giving a mock test, spend 4-5 hours in analyzing the same. Go through each and every question again, spend as much time as you want. Try to figure out a better, smarter and a faster way to solve every question. Take a note of these points and then apply all of them in the next test. Keep doing this consistently and you should see your score going up.

If so far, you have only done self study, we would advice you to go for gmat coaching at a good institute near your home. This is important because it also get you connected to similar individuals and gives your preparation a competitive edge.

Let us know if you have any queries for us and we would be happy to help. Wish you the best.

Need some advice to score 690+ from 640..

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