Plateauing around 700

Question

Hello,

My score on mocks seems to be plateauing around 700, which given my overrepresented background (white male in finance) doesn't seem to be high enough for an M7 school. My splits are generally around 47-49 in Quant and 37-40 in Verbal. I am a native English speaker, so it seems like verbal is falling short of my potential.

Until recently, I have not signed up for an official prep course, I have worked to this score via GMATClub questions, so thank you to all for your amazing contributions to this site. This weekend I signed up for the Official Guide, but it feels like the resources (ie flashcards and practice problems) are geared more toward people just beginning the journey.

My question: what are the best "advanced" courses to help push me from a 700 to a 750? I tend to work well with self-study, and for that reason and money purposes, I would ideally like to avoid hiring a tutor. It seems like SC is holding down my score, as I am often choosing what "sounds right" instead of applying a concept. Are there any Verbal/SC programs designed specifically for someone who has done a fair amount of studying already and just needs the boost into the more advanced levels?

Thank you for your time.

DisciplinedPrep · Answer

MV94  - I don't think there exists any course that could singlehandedly take you from a 700 to a 760+ score. Anything above 700 depends largely on your ability to solve difficult questions at that level, rely mostly on official questions, and make no mistake in lower difficulty questions. Reviewing every practice question diligently is the key to take your score higher.

homersimpsons · Answer

try this https://gmatclub.com/forum/what-got-you ... fl=similar

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi MV94,

Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

Studies:
1) How long have you studied in total? How many hours do you typically study each week?
2) What study materials have you used so far? What "brands" of CATs/mocks have you used?
3) On what dates (or approximate dates) did you take EACH of your CATs/mocks and how did you score on EACH (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)?

Goals:
4) Are you planning to take the At-home GMAT or are you planning to take your GMAT at a Test Facility?
5) 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

MV94 · Answer

Hi  EMPOWERgmatRichC ,

I should start by saying thank you for your contributions to this community, you always have great explanations for the practice problems and thorough responses to forum posts.

Now for the questions:

1) I estimate my total commitment has been somewhere around 100 hours. My guess is that I averaged about 5 hours per week in October, November, and December, and about 10 hours per week in January. I work relatively long hours, so my productive study time comes on the weekends, which could be the first barrier. I do not feel burned out and am willing to put in another 100 hours, I just want to make sure I have the right strategies for the time ahead. I have focused almost the entirety of my time so far on practice questions, and am uncertain if I need to adjust that approach going forward. 
2) So far just the GMATClub questions. I have found these to be helpful, thanks to people like you. I have done 4 official mocks, and have two additional official mocks to take plus the "reset"
3) In October, I scored a 690, 47Q/38V. After reviewing the results, this seems like a fluke, I guessed correctly on a lot of my "50/50" guesses. In December, I scored a 680, Q49/V34. I took this first thing in the morning and started with Verbal - needed coffee I guess. In January, I scored a 700 Q47/V39. In February, I scored a 700 Q48/V39. This last mock seems like a 710 based on the splits, but from other posts I have come to understand that the splits and the overall score don't follow the exact same formula. Also worth noting on this last mock, contrary to the first mock, it seems like I missed most of the 50/50s. Maybe I was on the low end of my "variance" or maybe I am just rationalizing my lack of improvement.

4) I don't feel strongly in either direction. I live relatively close to a testing center and like the idea of knowing my score immediately. Given this, I think the benefits associated with an in-person test outweigh the present risks. Anything I am missing here?
5) Right now my top R1 targets are CBS, Booth, and NYU. I also have Yale SOM, Duke Fuqua, Tuck, Ross, and McCombs on my preliminary list. I think Harvard and Stanford, and potentially Wharton, might be unrealistic targets. From what I know about Sloan & Kellogg, they might not be the best fit for my career goals. I hope to narrow this list once I have an official GMAT score. My career path seems to fit very well at Columbia, but this is likely the most competitive program on the list. I know this is not a profile evaluation post, but my background is overrepresented at these schools, so a GMAT score at least 20-30 points above the class average seems to be a must.

Does this help? It might be overkill relative to my original question, but given your presence in this forum I wanted to take the opportunity.

Thanks for your time.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi MV94,

I've sent you a PM with some notes and additional questions.

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

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