I tried to analyze the gmatprep software to analyze some things I've been always curious about. I've done gmatprep-1 5 times and know the answers to almost all CRs and RCs by heart.
1. What is the importance of the 1st 10 questions?
Experiment : If I mess up the first ten and kick but in the remaining can I reach my normal score (as the
OG claims)
Methodology : Guess the 1st ten and focus on the last 27
Results : Q41 with 12 wrong overall.
Analysis: On the outset 41 seems like a decent Q score esp since I got 8 out of 1st 10 wrong. However, I've touched 50 with 12 wrong. This myth has been busted. Get those 1st 10 right, any amount of catch up later will not help. The next experiment will be to get the 1st 20 right and just guess the last 17 to gauge the importance of the last few questions.
2. Improving SC will greatly improve my final score.
Experiment : how important SC really ?
Methodology: I decide to guess all RCs and CRs and only focus on SCs.
Results - Final V score 13
. Although I got 14/15 SCs correct.
Analysis: This makes sense, since the majority of the SCs tend to appear after Q1-10. I will do another experiment and ignore SCs completely and only focus on the RCs and CRs to gauge their importance in the future.
ps. Suggestions, feedback and further questions on my experiments welcome.
Yup, I was at it again today. Next set of experiments :
3. What is the importance of the last 17 questions?
Experiment : If I get the 1st 20 correct and mess up the last 17 what will happen ?
Methodology : Kick butt in the 1st 20 and guess the last 17
Results : Q49 with 12 wrong overall.
Analysis: Whoa !!! 49 ? with the same number wrong as the 1st experiment ... By Question 20 I had received all the tough quant concept questions that I could have ever hoped for. However, I wasn't expecting a score as high as 49. Although that might be because I got a few guesses on the last 17 right. Even so I'm sure I'd have received 46 or above here. Goes to underscore the importance of those first 10 questions compared to the last few.
4. What is the importance of CR in Verbal ?
Experiment : If I get all the CRs correct and mess up everything else what will happen ?
Methodology : Kick butt in all the CRs and guess everything else
Results : V13 with 29 wrong overall.
Analysis: I think I've busted my own myth that CR is more important than SC in some way. This doesn't seem to be the case. I got 11/11 CRs correct and still could not achieve more than 13. The CRs were different to the ones I usually get (at 40+ level). I encountered 4 of these CRs in the 1st 10 questions.
5. What is the importance of the 1st 5 questions?
Experiment : If I mess up the first five and kick butt in the remaining can I reach my normal potential (as the
OG claims)
Methodology : Ensure I get the first five wrong and focus on the remaining 32
Results : Q49 with 7 wrong overall.
Analysis: I, for some reason, thought that the 1st 5 are pretty crucial to the GMAT score. Boy was I wrong. I made sure that I got all first five incorrect (I actually solved them and then picked the wrong one just to be sure). Then I really focused on the last 32. Got a couple of them wrong but over all 30 correct. Final score = 49. Of course I am sure it would be a 50 if I had some more success in the 1st 5, however, this shows that even if you totally stuff up the 1st five, you can still pick it up and reach 49 Q, a most acceptable quant score.
6. Improving RC will greatly improve my final score.
Experiment : how important RC really ?
Methodology: I decide to guess all CRs and SCs and only focus on RCs.
Results - Final V score 6
. Although I got 10/11 RCs correct. Total 28 wrong.
Analysis: This was again, totally unexpected. I genuinely thought that RCs mattered, at least as much, if not more, than CRs and SC. This experiment showed that if anything, RC mattered LESS
When I did the guess work for CRs and SCs at least I was getting a V score in the 10s. I certainly wont take this result as an indication that I can slack off on RCs just yet ..
Quote:
I thought I would add a unique expereince with GMAT Prep.
I took the GMATPrep2 yesterday and scored 3 wrong (all in a row) in the first 10. Questions 8, 9 and 10 to be specific. I then scored another 3 wrong on the next 10 questions and 1 wrong in the last 17.
Questions.............# Wrong
1-10.........................3
11-20.......................3
21-37.......................1
Overal Quant score: 50
I really do not think the first 10 or even 20 are as heavily weighted as most people think.
MGMAT seems to follow this belief as well.