GMAT hosed me today (680)...need some advice on next steps

Oh, and Im def going to start using a timer for EVERY problem.

Just found the GMAT Club Diag Test (gmatclub . com / forum/ gmat-diagnostic-test-quest-for-best-gmat-diagnostic-test-79502 . html -- had to add spaces). Seems like a great resource. Will do all 45 questions -- hopefully will be able to help me pinpoint weak areas. Still open to other resources/suggestions.

Thanks.

First, can a mod move this thread to the "Share GMAT Experience" forum? I'd like to make updates to my status periodically which will hopefully help others in the same boat as me. It seems like this isn't the most appropriate forum.

Second, I signed up for my second take. Its in the books for mid-December. Gives me about 30-40 days to improve my quant, which I fully believe I can do.

In terms of where I stand, I am going to do the GMAT Club Diag Test tonight (all 45 questions) under strict time conditions. Will make note of any questions I either 1) have trouble with, or 2) get wrong. This will hopefully point out any weaknesses I have. From there, will do a review of theory using the MGMAT books + the GMAT Club Math Book. Will give periodic updates on how this goes.

Still looking for suggestions on good sources for medium-level questions.

Thanks.

Another update. Found out about Jeff Sackmann's Math Sets. Seems like its exactly what I needed to complenent the theory that I've learned from MGMAT guides. GMAT-style questions (which MGMAT does not provide, IMO) with a range of difficulties. Really psyched about this. Once I get my plan together, I'll post it up for others to see.

Quick update.
Going through Sackmann's GMAT problem sets. I realized that the Fundamentals were way too easy so I just skipped over to the Challenge sets. The Challenge sets have mid (550ish) to high (720+) level questions, which is exactly what I was looking for. After having gone through all of the OG problems while I was studying with the MGMAT guides, I finally have a set of fresh questions to do, which is great because its now becoming very apparent where my weak areas are. Have about 4 weeks left. I think I'll be able to finish all of the Challenge sets in the next 2-3 weeks, and use 1 week to review verbal/do some CATs.

Also, if anyone is interested, I found this amazing stopwatch that was posted on GC. Best one I've seen yet (although I haven't seen many). You can find it here: gmatclub (.) com/forum/stopwatch-and-countdowntimer-91400 (.) html

680 is an excellent score. Q43 can be improved by a few points without much of an issue. Have you considered a tutor? Or a prep course?

Hi there.

As others have said, 680 is a great score. However, I think you can improve it given what you wrote and the nature of the Q/V split. Check out the free 'OG Archer' on MGMAT. I found it very useful. Basically, each day I answered some 30 questions (usually from the upper third in terms of question numbers). You can then get the tool to plot your profile stats (you can obtain this plot for that particular day or any number of consequative days). You'll then know which particular area(s) is/are your weakest both in terms of accuracy and time - very useful. I would then focus on those areas.

My approach was to choose OG questions e.g. 101, 111, 121, 131, .. etc. Then go for 102, 112, 122, 132 etc. and so on to get a range of questions in terms of difficulty. You could also choose mid-range questions e.g. from 100 for DS and 150 for PS and do some 30 consequative questions. Do this on the MGMAT OG Archer under strict times as if you were on the real GMAT and this will give you a reasonably accurate idea of your strengths and weaknesses.

Best wishes.

Thanks for the replies. Appreciate the tip, kkma2000. I used the OG Archer when I was prepping for my first take. It seems like I did everything down to a T, yet still wound up with a low Q. After much thought, I've come to the conclusion that it was just a "bad test day". Hopefully going through Sackmann's question sets will give me a bit of a confidence boost.

I've also hired a consultant, and from the sounds of it, I should be able to produce some pretty strong essays. After sitting on the 680 for about a week now, I think I'd be able to crack at least 1-2 of the top10 schools, so I'm not as worried anymore. Thats not to say I won't re-write, as I def will...just that I don't feel as bad anymore .

Thanks again everyone. Will keep you updated.

Improvement in quant generally doesn't take as much time as that in verbal. I think if you can keep the verbal at the same level, you can easily add another 40-50 points to your overall score in a month's time.
You may like to check out these two links:-
a-way-to-increase-from-q35-40-to-q-138750.html
the-final-climb-quest-for-q-50-from-q47-129441.html#p1064367
Good luck!

This topic got me thinking of "what is generally considered a acceptable QUANT score for TOP 10-20 MBA Programs". Going over this website and other sites which publish debriefs I see a large spread of Q scores for test takers that get 700+. People from Engineering backgrounds, or Financial backgrounds usually get 48+ on their way to 700+ but where do the adcoms draw the line for people like me who come from a non quant background? What do they consider as an acceptable quant demonstration (in the GMAT) ? Ofcourse a Non quant background may be a red flag while applying but one can always take college level math courses in stats or calculus if one is weak (to boost his/her application)...

Thanks rajeevrks27. The links are super helpful.

My month of extra studying is up. Got my exam this Saturday (6 days left). Took my GMATPrep Test#2 (already did it about 5 weeks ago but I could not recall any questions/answers). Scored a 750 (Q-85% ; V-97%). Now if I can only pull this off on test day...I noticed I got test-day anxiety last time. Its a real possibility it happens again this time around -- so that's my biggest worry.

I'll be doing a few more questions over the next week before my exam but I think my studying is pretty much done. Not that I don't care anymore, but I also worked on my actual applications over the last month and have been able to produce an amazing story/set of essays. This, along with my initial 680, should be enough to crack at least 1-2 of the schools I am aiming for.

Regardless, as a quick debrief of what I did over the last month: I studied almost purely Quant. The only time I looked at Verbal was when I actually did my 2 CATs. I'll probably do a quick refresh of the some of the primary SC rules (fewer vs less; between vs among; etc...) but I think my Verbal should be good enough at this point. For Quant, I ONLY used Sackmann's material. I got both the Total GMAT Math book and the 1,800 questions set. I went through the TGM book cover to cover, and did all of the "Challenge" level questions (roughly 1,000 in total I think).

As someone who has already done MGMAT, Sackmann's TGM has been PHENOMENAL! It really solidified what I already learnt in the MGMAT books. The amazing thing is, he teaches you each subtopic in approximately 2-3 pages of text (max of 4), followed by about 10 drill questions and then 5-10 GMAT style questions. I was cranking through subtopics in literally less than 15-20 minutes, and could usually get through a full topic (Number Properties; Word Trans; Geometry) in under 3 hours. That just speaks to Sackmann's ability to concisely present each topic. I wish I had picked up his stuff before my initial GMAT test...would have made a huge difference.

Anyways, wish me luck. Will post again next week and let you know if studying actually paid off or if anxiety got the best of me.

Good luck..Go out and hit it out of the park...

Wrote my second GMAT today. Here it is:

720 - 94th %ile
Q48 - 78th %ile
V41 - 93%ile

That is it, I am done with the GMAT! Very happy with my overall score. Quant was still lower than my target 80th %ile, but I am not complaining as I came very close. Plus my verbal improved from last time (I put in only 1 hour of verbal study since then). I have Total GMAT Math to thank for this improvement. I literally did not use a SINGLE other resource over the last month (no MGMAT, not even GMATPrep). Sackmann is a genius; I highly recommend his stuff.

I've already thrown in my INSEAD app for R2, but I'll email my score to the school now as supplemental information. Columbia (almost done) and Wharton (still to do) are next.

Thank you for the support everyone. It was a great (and difficult) journey.

Good luck to everyone else!

Congratulations! It sounds like you're golden. Let us know when you get into your dream school!