Strategy advice badly needed! Stuck at ~640, 1.5 months left to study

Question

Hi, So I'm going in for my 2nd attempt at the GMAT on December 30th, I didn't devote the time necessary to study the first time which was monumentally stupid, but either way this time I really am aiming for a 700/710. I spent the last ~2 months redoing my "foundations" in Math & Verbal, but based on my CATs it seems to me like my biggest problem is timing. Especially on IR & Quant. Quant: - Timing is my biggest issue: I always seem to spend too long trying to get everything right in the beginning & then as I speed it up after the first 5 minutes, I botch a line of questions, then start getting 500-600 questions which is discouraging as I know I'm doing badly, and then it's just like a rollercoaster of timing messups of not being able to spend time to finish ones I know I can do, and not abandoning truly hard ones that I'm clueless on because I really want to move into the 700 level questions. - Content/Types: I am still missing some exponents & roots, algebra, quadratics questions - I'm going to work this week on drills on this. I can't keep getting 500-600 level questions on these things wrong :oops:

. On everything else, I find that it's not a knowledge issue, but rather that I'm not able to get these questions right on the test ( somewhat timing related, but also somewhat just not having seen enough of every type of problem to quickly recognize how to solve - but when I review them in practice, 70-80% of the time I can get them right on the first try. this is really frustrating - how can I get more of these right?? Verbal: Timing : I actually don't tend to run out of time on verbal. I think I am a pretty quick reader so I tend to make up for time spend deliberating over SC questions in the RC. I am not so fabulous at grammar but have a really good ear. - Content/Types: My verbal score is ok, but the challenging thing for me here is that unlike Quant - I don't really know what to work on. When I review the questions, I have a hard time categorizing the types of mistakes I'm making on verbal. I think if I had a more "systematic" way of understanding why I'm missing the ones I am on Verbal, I could get the boost here that I need. Any suggestions there? IR: I only just started taking the IR section on my test this morning, so I'm sure I'll improve some. But my gut-reaction is, I didn't have enough time to thoroughly answer anything! 12 "questions" in 30 minutes, and each one is 5-10 minutes of work easily! How do you guys recommend the timing piece there? My guess is practice makes perfect, but I have such an uphill battle to climb already with my Quant score, I'm trying to think of a way to get the most bang for my buck in terms of spending time improving IR - but only enough to not raise an eyebrow to the admissions committee. Date Verbal %ile Quant %ile IR Score %ile 10.24 36 81% 37 40% n/a 610 64% 10.31 36 81% 42 51% n/a 640 72% 11.15 37 83% 39 43% 0 630 71% Overall, I have a month and half left to go here, my plan is to take 6 more tests before the real thing and work during the week to fix my problem areas in the meantime. I work full time, so am spending about 2-3 hours max on weekdays, and then Saturday/Sunday about 5-10 hours depending on how that day goes (with Sunday mornings being practice test day). Would love the GMATClub's input on how I can make a 700/710 on the GMAT. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi diyengar,

Before I can offer the pointed advice that you're looking for, I need to know more about your studies so far and your timeline/goals:

1) How long have you been studying?
2) What materials have you been using during your studies?

3) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
4) Do you know which Schools you plan to apply to?

Many Test Takers face pacing problems while dealing with either the Quant or Verbal section (or both). Pacing problems don't exist on their own though - they're the results of OTHER problems. As such, you're likely going to have to adjust your Tactics to improve. Thankfully, the GMAT is a predictable, standardized Test, so you CAN train to score at a higher level.

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

diyengar · Answer

Hi EMPOWERgmatRichC -

1) I've been studying for about 3 months, just covering the basics. I also took a manhattan GMAT prep course.
2) I've finished all of the MGMAT curriculum. The last month or so I have been focused on taking practice tests & drilling on the subjects I miss most often

3) I'm not sure...this year sometime
4) I would like to get into an M7 school, but my goal is to get a 700-720. I have a very strong application outside of the GMAT.

Interesting that the pacing problems don't exist on their own...how should I go about finding out what the "other" problems are?

GMATPill · Answer

diyengar,
Are you studying but hitting a plateau? 3 months sounds like a pretty long time. If you haven't seen the "improvement" by now, you probably won't see it at the rate you're going. It looks like you have another month and a half, which is a good amount of time to "retool" your strategy.

At GMAT Pill, we tell a lot of students NOT to take an insane number of practice tests. So when you say you're going to take " 6 more tests" -- we can cringe.

And the reason is, practice does not necessarily make perfect, particularly for the GMAT which is a reasoning test. Reasoning is something that's more fundamental and difficult to change. Which is why re-takes will often gradually zone into a target score range. However, what makes the jump is a difference in a way of thinking. Thinking strategy is where you want to focus. I challenge you to figure out how best you can change/absorb that kind of thinking.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi diyengar,

GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +-30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function, your 3 CAT score results show that you essentially performed the same each time (+- a few points). By extension, this means that 'your way' of approaching the Exam would likely earn you a score in the low-600s. Your 'default' approaches are keeping you from scoring higher AND causing your pacing problem.

Thankfully, you CAN train to score at a higher level, but you're going to have to learn to 'see' (and respond to) the GMAT in new ways. This will require that you invest in some new materials and learn/practice some new Tactics.

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

99Colleges · Answer

Hi diyengar,

I'll suggest something that doesn't have a direct correlation with your performance, but it has worked for me on 4-5 ocassions. And I've seen it work for few of my friends. Be in good physical state. In other words, if you're not regular at physical activity, then try getting into it at least few weeks leading into the test day. It just improves your concentration, which is so critical in a test like GRE/ GMAT, where few wrong (or right) answers can make all the difference. And you don't need more than 15-20 minutes on it.

You can even google it if you want to get more convinced about it.

Strategy advice badly needed! Stuck at ~640, 1.5 months left to study

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