First Mock test. Unexpectedly high score?

Hey aiming for a 700+. I was just wondering if the official mocks are a good measure of performance? Because if I'm scoring 630 right now with a month's active prep, then given I have another month before D-day, should I be optimistic?

Hey, yes you're absolutely right. I need to slow down on verbal to score higher.

I used the OG verbal and quant review for questions, manhattan strategy guides for concept building, and also went through manhattan advanced quants for some more tricks.

Hi st19931219,

A 630 is a strong initial CAT score (the average score on the Official GMAT hovers around 550 most years). That having been said, there are a variety of different factors that can impact your performance on a Test - and if this is your only CAT result so far, then it's not clear how detailed you were about taking this CAT in a realistic way and whether you may have gotten a bit lucky or unlucky with this performance. A CAT is really a 'measuring device' - when used correctly, it will give you a realistic score and help define your strengths and weaknesses, but it will NOT help you to fix any of those weaknesses. To raise your scores, you have to learn the necessary Tactics and put in the proper practice and repetitions. The CAT will show you whether your studies are helping you to improve or not. As such, you really shouldn't take more than 1 FULL CAT per week.

Many GMATers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores; from what you describe, your overall planned study timeframe is closer to just 2 months though - so with that shorter study window, there might be a limit to how high you will be able to Score on the Official GMAT.

Before I can offer you any additional advice for your studies, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

1) How many hours do you typically study each week?
2) Have you used any other study materials besides the books that you mentioned?
3) Are you planning to take the At-home GMAT or are you planning to take your GMAT at a Test Facility?
4) When are you planning to apply to Business School and what Schools are you planning to apply to?

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

That’s great! It’s a nice post for a change

I think the answer depends a bit on what materials you using and how much you’ve already studied and how much you can study. Usually, on average people who take an in person class or live online class will improve about 120 points. You can match that doing on-demand classes or using books as long as you put systematic effort and you can improve 150 to 200 points if you are aware of your mistakes and aware of your weaknesses and know how to overcome them.

Making a very big generalization, my guess is people improve The most during the first month. At the same time, scores sometimes even go down during the first month of study sense approaches and strategies of being changed and still need to get refined and memorized.

In any case, if you haven’t done much studying, improving 70 points it’s totally doable. A month is a bit tight... Rich is modest but empowerGMAT has a great program which cost only $99 for a month. Hard to beat the value if you are looking to start right away.

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Agreed to above posts . 630 Q42, V35. is a strong initial score . Hope you understand all of your correct and incorrect responses in the score . Dedicated prep of 3 + month can definitely lead to 700 + score .

Hi st19931219,

630 is a decent score. If you feel that the score is inflated, then ask yourself whether you got lucky with a few questions. Consider this score to be your correct prediction only if you solved all the questions using the right methods. If you got even a single question correct by guess work, then the score is not the actual reflection.

Hi st19931219,

The good news is that 630 is a very nice start. I do think you can reach 700 (eventually) and perhaps even in a month if you really work your butt off, but is there a particular reason why you need to take the GMAT in just one month? Also, in the meantime, here is a helpful article:

How to Score a 700+ on the GMAT — A Mini Guide for Success