Lower score than on mocks, should I retake (650) ?

Hello! Sorry for this very classic title, I'm not very original.

I have mostly been a lurker here as many others, but I have gathered a lot of information here and I thank the community and the moderators for all the work they put into this forum. The huge pool of questions is very helpful, as well as the CATs that I used a little.

I’m currently a French student willing to enroll in an European MSc in Finance, so nothing top-notch like the elite US MBAs most people are seeking here.

I’ve taken two official GMAT Prep in realistic conditions with IR + AWA towards the end of my prep, the first one on 06/19/2020 on which I got a 670 (Q48, V34 and IR8) and the second one on 07/02/2020 – two days before my real test – on which I got a 720 (Q47, V41, IR8).

However, I took the real one today and got a 650 (Q40, V39 and IR6, still waiting for the AWA but should be OK I think). I was disappointed by the result since I managed to score higher on mock tests, but not totally dissatisfied since I felt this was still a fair score that could give me a decent shot for some MSc programs.

But would it be a good idea to retake? I was disappointed by my Quant score – a Q40 seems rather weak for finance programs – but somehow, I also felt the real test was harder that the GMAT Prep. I correctly managed my time on the Quant section and used it all quite evenly on all the questions. I felt that I was doing as good as on the mock tests and though I was of course under a little pressure because of the test, I was not overwhelmed and kept my head cool.

Could the mock tests be easier that the real GMAT and could I have therefore wrongly estimated my Quant level? Because I honestly do not feel like I was underperforming on the real test and that I should have earned some extra points that were wrongfully taken away from me. Maybe the real GMAT is just tougher than the mocks and I am not up to a Q44/Q45+?

Concerning the Verbal, I think V39/V40 is my maximum. Since English is not my native language, I really struggle to grasp the hard and convoluted RC passages about geology, anthropology, astronomy or other complex topics, and the subtle idioms or parallelism tricks on hard SC. Increasing this score seems to be a tremendous effort to me.

Overall, I thought I did a fair job on the test, and I feel like I am unable to do much more. Is it worth it to appear again in one month and work harder in the meantime although I’m starting to get fed up with this exam (I’ve put a little more than two months and a half in it for now)? Would a 650 cut it for an MSc in Finance in an European school? I did not find a lot of information about the required scores for these programs, but only for the MBAs.

Thank you for reading this long post and have a nice day!

Hello all,

@unraveled

I think I can come up with another V39/40, but not more. I’m quite good in English (for a foreigner I mean), and I read quite often in both English and my mother tongue French, so I can read rather efficiently. However, I won’t be able to go further. I really felt that on test day was the GMAT was throwing at me was my maximum level, the RC I got were very hard for me.

@EMPOWERgmatRichC

I enclosed my ESR in my post along with the results of my two GMAT Prep. I would highly appreciate if you have the time to provide any advice.

My feeling after reading this ESR is that my performance is even in both the Verbal and Quant section, though of course I have a much worse percentile in Quant since it is much more competitive. My time management seems OK in Quant and my weaknesses are mostly evenly spread, meaning I’d have to work on everything.

I also saw, in Verbal, the consequences of a very difficult RC passage during the third quarter that took me a lot of time and drained my energy, thus significantly lowering my accuracy in the fourth quarter.

To answer your question regarding mocks, I’ve taken them in realistic conditions, apart from that I had to take them at home since I have no other option. I took each of them at 8:30 am (my real test was at 10 am), in Quant – Verbal – IR – AWA order, with two breaks of only 6 minutes each instead of 8. I did the IR and the AWA each time, with a 600+ words essay.

@ScottTargetTestPrep

Thank you for the the detailed answer! I'll look the links you posted and answer you later when I have more time.

My decision

I’ve definitely made up my mind to try it one more time this month before I become short of time to study for this exam despite the $250 it costs, and start studying again as of tomorrow.

I think I can improve my Quant and, maybe, with a bit of luck and more confidence, land on the other side of the +/-30 points variation while maintaining my level in Verbal. I’d be happy if I can come up with a 670 or 680.

Moreover, I think the pressure will be lower since I know the test center and its material, and that in case I score badly I have a fair back-up score with which I should be able to apply to some programs I want with good odds.

My plan was to focus 90% on Quant and test taking strategies, and do some verbal questions drills to keep my mind fresh on that part meanwhile.

Also, I always chose as a section order Quant – Verbal – IR – AWA, since I always felt that Quant what was required the most energy, but could another order be better?

I think I can study 20 hours a week for the upcoming weeks.