Notepads on D-day

Question

Hi guys,

Took the test this morning at ISEIG Lausanne Switzerland and faced a huge blow from the proctor right before Quant.

I basically raised my hand at the break to get a fresh new pad before starting Quant, on which I could apply the MGMAT watertight strategy timing which btw helped me heaps during preparation time and mock tests to keep on track with the timing and not lag behind.
And this morning the proctor didn't allowed me to get my first pad from Essay/IR replaced at the break as it wasn't full already with calculations/inscriptions.. (WHAT?!..).. He justified himself by saying that they had another GMAT session scheduled in the afternoon and their center had barely enough pads to cover the needs of everyone. I just couldn't believe what I heard, and not even had time to argue much with him as the clock was ticking and I had to rush back to my seat to kick off Quant with not even half of a pad to organize myself. Goes without saying that my Quant score crashed as I lost my marks, was disorganized and kinda "flying blind" during most of the test (normally pacing myself each 8mins/4 problems on one single pad, skipping on freebies here and there). Then before Verbal the proctor had no choice but to provide me with a new pad as the first was this time black with calculations - Verbal went great as expected. As a further consequence of this I had to cancel my scores - a whooping 3-month study, transportation & accommodation test costs down the drain!..and now I got to reschedule another test in a different location..so frustrating.

I've just wrote a complaint email to GMAC - waiting to hear about their reply - but would love to hear the most experienced of you guys who may have encountered/heard about similar problems happening at test centers. How many pads are candidates allowed to in total during the test? Can pads be replaced even if they aren't 100% full? Are there any written regulations from GMAC regarding that point? (please share, I couldn't find any). Fully understand about the fact of having only 1 pad at a given time, but I really don't get why the center staff would actually make of themselves one more hindrance on the road to the 700s.

Best, A

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi AygoAhead,

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as hoped. While individual Testing Facilities might have their own policies regarding certain aspects of Test Day, I think that the general rule is that you are entitled to a 'fresh' scratch pad at any time, regardless of whether you've 'fully used' your current pad or not. From your description, it doesn't sound as though any other aspect to your Test appointment was out of the ordinary though, so it's unlikely that GMAC will offer you anything for the inconvenience.

You've alluded to some things in your post, so I'm hoping that you can answer a few questions:
1) What was your Official Score (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores)?
2) How were you scoring on your CATs?
3) How much of your pad had you 'used' before the Quant section started (meaning the time that you spent on the Essay and IR sections)? How many blank pages were left on that pad at the start of the Quant section?
4) What is your goal score?

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

AygoAhead · Answer

Hi Rich,

Thanks for the swift reply, and please find below the answers to your questions:

1) What was your Official Score (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores)?
  I got 640 (Q: 58th, V: 74th) and IR: 6, I only remember the percentiles since I then cancelled my scores and obviously did not get an unofficial report

2) How were you scoring on your CATs?
 I took 3 GMATPrep, on which I scored 700/690/700, so quite consistent and I was quite confident about the outcome of this test

3) How much of your pad had you 'used' before the Quant section started (meaning the time that you spent on the Essay and IR sections)? How many blank pages were left on that pad at the start of the Quant section?
 As I wrote, I used 2 pages for the Essay (didn't write a lot but more like concepts, argument analysis in big letters); then 3 pages for IR (4 questions by page split in 4 boxes). Hence 5 pages left out for Quant.

4) What is your goal score?
 I need minimum 700 with a balanced score between Q and V (both should be around the 75th percentile) to secure admission at my target school.

Best, A

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi AygoAhead,

The frustration/distraction from the situation that you faced could be enough to account for the drop in score, but since your CAT scores were so consistent, I'd like to know more about your CATs:

1) What were your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores on each of your CATs?
2) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
3) Did you take them at home?
4) Did you take them at the same time of day as your Official GMAT?
5) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)? 
6) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?

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

AygoAhead · Answer

Hi Rich, Of course, it goes without saying that I got totally thrown off balance during Quant. I've enrolled into a great Private Tutoring with MGMAT prior to the test so as to improve my score so I don't think I actually need to sign up for any other courses :wink:

(else I'd go to my banker to suscribe a loan for solely the GMAT..) so I'm already aware of the below and am no GMAT newbie..but anyway please find my replies hereafter. I think what we rather have to acknowledge here is that candidates are at completely at the mercy of some incompetent and unprofessional proctors (would probably be the case at test centers in small/tier 2 cities) as by perusing through this forum I can see that many other candidates are complaining about the support provided on test day (lazy proctor, not watching the CCTV screen, etc.). I guess there are service lows like in any other business, yet I was expecting a higher standard from GMAC organization - maybe they should just reinforce the training of their proctors or their awareness of how the GMAT test works and how important it is for candidates that good timing is just crucial and delays in support cannot be tolerated. 1) What were your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores on each of your CATs? 700:Q48/V38, 690:Q49/V35, 700:Q48/V38 2) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)? Yes of course, and everything under the same time constraints. 3) Did you take them at home? Yes. My home environment was quite similar to test center conditions, overall quiet, but with a few noises from outside/the neighbours'. 4) Did you take them at the same time of day as your Official GMAT? Yes always. All were scheduled to start 8:30am, as I tend to be fresher and more performing in the morning. 5) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)? No never. I might have taken the full 8' breaks during mock tests though, whereas on test day you also need to input the time lapses to get out/palm-check/get back in/instructor typing in his login. 6) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE? No never. All questions looked new to me.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi AygoAhead,

From your prior post, there's one potential minor red flag (which I'll come back to), so I have a few additional questions about the lead-up to Test Day and Test Day itself:

1) What did you do in the 3 days before your GMAT?
2) How did you sleep the night before your Test?
3) How long was the ride to the Test Center from your home?
4) Were there any distractions at the facility or during the Test?
5) What did you do during the two 8-minute breaks?
6) Did you finish any sections early?
7) Did you have to rush to finish any sections (and guess on questions just to finish on time)?

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

AygoAhead · Answer

Hi Rich,

Please find below:)

1) What did you do in the 3 days before your GMAT?
 Light review of my notes, solving again problems from my error log, finetuning my game plan for test day based on my known weaknesses & strengths

2) How did you sleep the night before your Test?
 Not bad actually, had dinner with friends then back to the hotel and went to sleep around 11pm. Fell quickly asleep.

3) How long was the ride to the Test Center from your home?
 I ordered a cab from the hotel to Test Center and it took me about 15' ride to arrive on time, about 30' before the test.

4) Were there any distractions at the facility or during the Test?
 Not that I recall. The location was in an industrial area and surroundings were pretty quiet, the only slight disturbance being other candidates going in/out of the room during their breaks but as I wore earplugs that was no big deal.

5) What did you do during the two 8-minute breaks?
 Went out from the room to the desk of the proctors where lockers were located too. Had a snack (cereal bar) and drunk some Gatorade. Rushed back to my seat not to miss the end of the break, also as the proctor had to enter their login credentials in the computer again.

6) Did you finish any sections early?
 Clearly not..I wished;)

7) Did you have to rush to finish any sections (and guess on questions just to finish on time)?
 On Quant yes definitely, as my timing was screwed I was left with guessing on the last 3 questions. Verbal was well-paced though and perfectly aligned on my routine.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi AygoAhead,

Some Test Takers have no choice but to take the GMAT at a Testing Facility that is far from their homes. Due to that inconvenience, those Test Takers either have to travel a far distance to get to the Center or spend the night in a 'foreign' location (hotel, friend's residence, etc.). Either of those situations can have a defined negative effect on a Test Taker's performance. By spending the night in a strange bed, and being forced to go through a sightly different morning routine, you had to deal with something that you were not training for when you took your CATs. Differences such as these cannot be ignored (and while they're sometimes tricky to define and adjust around, you CAN account for them). Since you were taking your CATs at your home, the effect was somewhat 'compounded' - you slept in your own bed, then took the CAT in your home, but NEITHER of those variables matched up with what happened the night before, and morning of, Test Day. Combined with the situation you faced at the Testing Facility, we've defined enough variables that threw off your performance.

At higher and higher scoring levels, the GMAT becomes really 'sensitive' to little mistakes. Making just a few too many per section (especially on questions that really matter) could cost you a bunch of points. The difference between a 640 and a 700 isn't as large as you might think it is - and after experiencing all of the 'stresses' that you did, this score drop isn't surprising.

As you continue to study, you're going to have to make some adjustments to account for these details. Thankfully, the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam - and you've shown that you have the ability to score higher.

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

Stn · Answer

Is it possible to request a new pad in the mid of the quant it the old one is full?

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Stn,

You can request a new pad at any point during the Exam (including when you're on either of the two 8-minute breaks). If you're in the middle of a section though, the clock will keep ticking and you'll have to wait while the Center Moderator brings you a new pad. To avoid that problem, you should plan to exchange your pad during the breaks.

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

AygoAhead · Answer

Hey Stn,

As you could read in my above testimony, in some test centers the proctors won't grant you notepads "at any time" and "as many as you want". I had to rebook a new test date because of all that trouble I went into and the biggest learning for me is: only trust yourself and try to limit your dependency on lazy test center staff as much as possible. At least GMAC acknowledged the issue after checking the facts and agreed to waive the fee of my next test. 
The reality is that most proctors aren't much familiar with the GMAT format and the stakes - they don't check if candidates are raising their hand via their CCTV screen, they don't care if your computer clock is running out, if the test room is noisy or not, etc. - for them doing this job is just a way to make some extra cash at the end of the month on top of a low wage. 
It's a very sad attitude but I guess that's the direction which the world is taking these days. 
My advice would be send an email to the center where you'll be taking the test and have them  state by writing  what they allow and forbid there (also in some countries for instance they'd accept only a passport as a valid ID).

All the best with your study and with your test,

Aygo

Stn · Answer

AygoAhead, thank you for your follow up. 
At least some justice has been made by waiving your fee. Unfortunately this does solve the problem only partially. Fingers crossed for your next test!
As for me, I was asking because I want to make it clear with the proctor before my test. As far as I see, there are not going to be many test takers in the room while I write my exam, so it should be easy for him/her.

Thanks again and good luck!

Dansaw · Answer

From where do you know your official score? In your first post you mentioned that you cancelled the score.
I thought if you don't want to count the actual test and decide to cancel, you won't be able to see the score? Or am I wrong?
Please tell me, i didn't take the exam yet.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Dansaw,

On Test Day, once you've completed the GMAT you are allowed to see your Unofficial Score before you decide whether you want to keep it or cancel it. That scores does not include the AWA score, but it is almost always a match for what you'll see on your Official Score.

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

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