Princeton Review Prep

Question

Hi all,

I just want to preface this by stating that I am completely new to this forum. I've been studying for the GMAT for close to a month now, about 3 weeks via Princeton Review, and I just wanted to see if anyone could verify some inconsistencies in the Princeton Review scoring algorithm.

Before I even picked up a book, I took a test on the official GMAT Prep site to get a baseline for where I'm at. I scored at a 40Q 38V 640 overall with 15 out of 31 correct on the quantitative section (wrong answers were scattered throughout) and 24 out of 36 correct on the verbal section (wrong answers also scattered throughout).

I then enrolled in Princeton Review's basic GMAT Prep online plan. I began by studying via Princeton Review for roughly a week and then taking one of their practice tests. To my surprise I dropped a ton in the verbal section: 40Q 32V 590 overall with 20 out of 26 correct (did not answer 5) on the quantitative section and 26 out of 36 correct on the verbal section. Both the quant and verbal had wrong answers scattered throughout.

Over the past 2 weeks I would repeat the pattern of studying all week and taking a PR practice test on the weekend. Of those two most recent tests I scored 41Q 29V 580 overall (19 of 23 correct on quantitative, did not answer 8 questions & 22 of 31 correct on verbal, did not answer 5 questions) and 44Q 29V 600 overall (21 of 31 correct on quantitative & 26 of 36 correct on verbal).

I seem to be going up in the quantitative area, however the verbal scoring seems off. I find it strange that I'm performing better than I did on the official GMAT prep test but scoring significantly lower. I was curious if anyone knows anything that could help clear my confusion on this.

Thanks!

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  drkuster . To be brief, yes, there is a noticeable difference between the way an official mock is scored and a Princeton Review mock is scored. In 2017, I checked out a Princeton Review GMAT™ guide from the library and gained access to a free online test. I cannot see the results of that test anymore through the Princeton Review site, but I remember missing 2 questions in Quant and getting a predicted score well below the 50 I had earned on an official mock after missing more than 5 questions; my predicted total score was a 690, more than 50 points removed from what I had turned in on official practice tests. My advice is to learn what you can from Princeton Review questions, but do not take the scoring too seriously, and always center your studies on official material.

Best of luck to you.

- Andrew

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi drkuster,

The scoring algorithm on the Official GMAT is far more complicated than most people realize - and factors in far more than just the number of correct and incorrect answers. Since that algorithm is proprietary, no GMAT company has an exact match for it, thus CAT scores can vary a bit based on the 'biases' involved in their respective designs. The most realistic CATs available are the 6 from GMAC (the 2 free CATs, and each of the 2 that come with Exam Pack 1 and Exam Pack 2), but retaking a CAT that you've already taken is NOT a realistic way to assess your skills - since you will likely see some 'repeat' questions that you have already faced. Unfortunately, seeing even a couple of repeats can 'throw off' the Scoring Algorithm and impact your pacing, energy levels, fatigue, etc. (meaning that they would likely all appear to be better than they actually are). Thankfully, the CATs from Kaplan, MGMAT and Veritas are all 'close enough' to the real thing that they will provide you with a relatively realistic score assessment (assuming that you correctly take the CAT in a realistic fashion).

1) What is your overall goal score?
2) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
3) 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

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi drkuster,

It’s important to understand that when you take practice tests from companies other than GMAC, you may find some variation in algorithms used and thus variations in your score. With that in mind, when do you plan to take your next official GMAC practice exam?

IanStewart · Answer

This is not true. The GMAT scoring algorithm is simpler than most people claim - it's just based on probability theory, nothing more. I won't speculate about why so many people want to make it out to be something mysterious. And the GMAT scoring algorithm is in the main not proprietary (beyond some unimportant details); it is based on Item Response Theory principles that have been published in countless academic papers.

drkuster - you should only trust scores from official practice tests. I'd just ignore any scores you get from prep company tests, regardless of the company. It's true that no company models the official scoring algorithm correctly, but that's only one reason company test scores are untrustworthy. Company tests use company-written questions. Those questions will generally overemphasize certain skills that aren't that important on the real GMAT, and underemphasize other skills that are important on the real test. So some people will do better on company tests than on the real thing, and others will do worse, and this will vary from person to person and from company to company. That issue is especially pronounced in Verbal; many company questions posted to this forum either have no right answer or two right answers, and if a test includes flawed questions, that test cannot produce meaningful scores.

You're starting from a strong baseline - your Verbal score is especially good (Quant scores tend to be a lot higher than Verbal scores, so even if it might not seem that way, you're starting from a much higher Verbal level). That's a great place to be, because it's much easier to improve at Quant through study. So I'd suggest devoting more time to Quant than to Verbal, since that time allocation will be most rewarding. In general, you should be primarily using official questions for practice, and official tests when you need an accurate score assessment. There isn't much reason to assess your score again though until you've reviewed everything, so I wouldn't suggest attempting another test soon. Unfortunately official sources don't explain things very well, so you'll want other resources that explain concepts and theory - make sure you find a resource that explains things clearly, in a way that you understand. Often the explanations tutors post to this forum are more useful than those in the official books as well, so that's one way to take advantage of gmatclub. Good luck!

drkuster · Answer

Thank you all for the helpful responses! I really appreciate it. To answer a few questions I saw from the replies:

I'll be taking my first official GMAT exam on 6/17 (next Friday) online. I'll only be applying to The University of Alabama's Manderson School of Business. I'm enrolled in a STEM to MBA program within the university so Alabama is my only graduate school option. Their average accepted GMAT was 656 in 2019 so I would be content with a score at or above 680. I've been studying for roughly 2-4 hours every day via Princeton Review. I plan on taking another official GMAT prep test on 6/15 to prepare me for the exam.

I'm really hoping I can achieve my goal score on this upcoming test. If not, I have until November of this year to improve upon that score. If any of you have some tips on things I can work on within the next week, please let me know! I will update this topic with my results.

Again, thank you all for the kind assistance!!

- Dylan

AndrewN · Answer

Hello again, Dylan. It is fine to spend time with Princeton Review material, but you will notice that several of us have recommended using official questions for the bulk of your preparation. You do not want to risk getting comfortable with Princeton Review questions and then feeling blindsided by official questions on the actual exam. They have a certain look and feel to them, and you will want to spend the next week ensuring that you grow accustomed to GMAC™-generated questions. If you do not have an OG, you can still use the  question directory  to locate official questions by tag.

Apart from that, do not log significant hours in the day or two leading up to the exam. You want to feel fresh, not exhausted, when you go to take the test. (A marathoner does not run a marathon right before the event, but may do a few small runs in the days leading up to it. The GMAT™ is a mental marathon.)

If you have further questions at any point, you know how to seek advice.

- Andrew

drkuster · Answer

Update for you guys:

I took the online GMAT via Pearson VUE on 7/17. I just got my score back today and received a 680 (45Q 38V)! One thing I did find weird though is that my test did not have an essay portion. Is this standard for the online GMATs? Would this significantly affect my B school application?

And just out of curiosity, I was wondering if you guys could give me an opinion as to the strength of my B current school credentials. I'm majoring in computer science with a 3.73/4.0 GPA and am involved with various organizations at Alabama. The average admit for Alabama's B school has a 652 GMAT and a 3.67 GPA. Would it be worth my time and effort to study more and retake the GMAT?

Thanks for all of your help!

AndrewN · Answer

Thank you for the update, Dylan. Congratulations on achieving a fine GMAT™ score, and that improvement is impressive. An essay on the online exam? That is the first I have heard of it. I assume you know the difference between the AWA and IR sections. In any case, I will look out for other such reports. If you did have to write one and it is scored on the typical 6.0 scale, as long as you can hit a 4.0, you should be fine. The AWA is nowhere near as important as the total score.

As for the larger picture, being a current Alabama student should help your chances of gaining admission to its own business school. Such might not be the case at an M7 school, but Alabama is not quite as competitive. You may want to talk about your admissions prospects with staff at the business school, but everything looks in place to me. (In your shoes, I would only retake the GMAT™ if I had to.)

Best of luck to you. I hope you hear some promising feedback from the people at U of A.

- Andrew

drkuster · Answer

MentorTutoring  Thank you so much for your help Andrew!!!

- Dylan

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi drkuster,

That's great news about your recent Official Score (and to answer your question, the At-home version of the GMAT does NOT include an AWA/essay portion). It's not clear how Business Schools might adapt their respective Admissions criteria to account for this aspect of the At-home Exam (if they adapt it at all). Since you're applying to just one School, you might consider reaching out to the School to ask.

Since you have some admissions-related questions, you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile and plans. There's a Forum full of those Experts here:

https://gmatclub.com/forum/ask-admissio ... tants-124/

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

drkuster · Answer

EMPOWERgmatRichC  Thank you so much! I'll be sure to consult someone on the admissions forum.

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