Real GMAT exam went all south

Question

Hello experts,
I gave my exam yesterday, Score was 590 Q47,V25,IR8. I have never got such low score in any mocks i gave
The least I scored was a 670 Q50, V27. Quants score in practice and mock tests never went below 49 and Verbal too I reached 35 by the time I gave my last mock!
IDK how to restart my prep because I need to attempt exam in maximum a month’s time, will I be even able to achieve 700?
Thanks

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EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi avinash231,

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as planned. When these types of score drops occur, the two likely "causes" involve either something that was unrealistic during practice or something that was surprising (or not accounted for) on Test Day. Before we discuss any of those potential issues though, 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? 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) What is your overall goal score?
5) When are you planning to apply to Business School and what Schools are you planning to apply to?

If you took your Official GMAT at a Test Center, then you might also choose to purchase the Enhanced Score Report. While the ESR doesn’t provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong on Test Day (and what you should work on to score higher). If you purchase the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you.

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

Contact Rich at: [email protected]
www.empowergmat.com

bb · Answer

If you’re looking for helpful advice, I suggest providing more information.

For example, one aspect to point out, you did not mention anything about how the test went. Was this the most beautiful morning in your life with flawless execution, you did not run out of time on a single question or a single section and you did not get stuck up paralyzed or freak out during the test and the test just surprisingly give you the low score?

avinash231 · Answer

Hi Rich and BB
thanks for the reply. I shall answer each of your question
Firstly, yes, it wasn't a great day, I woke up in the morning with a fever of 102 degrees, I had to take 2 paracetamol tablets in breaks to make things better. In addition to it, to make things worse my 3 minutes in Quants were eaten up by a system glitch, where the administrator had to login to my system again. Also, during verbal section, I had to call the administrator thrice for fixing up a message that was popping up saying connection to GMAC server is lost or something on that line. But, I completed all my questions in time, maybe have rushed a few questions in mid way.
1) I have been preparing for 10 weeks now, giving about 30-35 hours a week.
2) I have referred to the official practice test 1-6 only, alongwith some free materials available online. For study material I have relied on OG, an Indian institute called CareerLabs and GMAT CLUB.
3)i took my first mock on 18/8/23 with a score of 670 (Q50, V29). Second one on 21/8 score was 650 (Q49, V29), Third one was 26/8, 710 (Q51, V35), next on 3/9, 690 (Q49, V35) and the last one on 13/9/23 700 (Q50, V34).

and, my target score is 720, 700 would also work.
I am trying for 2024 fall intake in Indian colleges like ISB and IIMs, also I am interested in applying to Cambridge Judge, Oxford Said, NUS and NTU.
thankyou!

avinash231 · Answer

Hi Rich and BB
thanks for the reply. I shall answer each of your question
Firstly, yes, it wasn't a great day, I woke up in the morning with a fever of 102 degrees, I had to take 2 paracetamol tablets in breaks to make things better. In addition to it, to make things worse my 3 minutes in Quants were eaten up by a system glitch, where the administrator had to login to my system again. Also, during verbal section, I had to call the administrator thrice for fixing up a message that was popping up saying connection to GMAC server is lost or something on that line. But, I completed all my questions in time, maybe have rushed a few questions in mid way.
1) I have been preparing for 10 weeks now, giving about 30-35 hours a week.
2) I have referred to the official practice test 1-6 only, alongwith some free materials available online. For study material I have relied on OG, an Indian institute called CareerLabs and GMAT CLUB.
3)i took my first mock on 18/8/23 with a score of 670 (Q50, V29). Second one on 21/8 score was 650 (Q49, V29), Third one was 26/8, 710 (Q51, V35), next on 3/9, 690 (Q49, V35) and the last one on 13/9/23 700 (Q50, V34).

and, my target score is 720, 700 would also work.
I am trying for 2024 fall intake in Indian colleges like ISB and IIMs, also I am interested in applying to Cambridge Judge, Oxford Said, NUS and NTU.
thankyou!

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

Consider getting the ESR. May provide some helpful insight. The person below went from a V31 to a V40 in about 30 days. Maybe some quick tips/resources they mention you could check out. https://gmatclub.com/forum/gmat-online- ... 68599.html -contact: gmatknight site | gmatclub dm

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi avinash231,

To start, since you are interested in some highly-competitive Schools, you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile and plans. Those Experts should be able to answer your Admissions questions and help define the specific areas of your profile that could use some improvement (and the more time that you have to implement those suggestions, the better). There's a Forum full of those Experts here:

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

Having to take the GMAT while sick - along with the technical issues that you faced during the Exam - could certainly have impacted your performance. Obviously, we have to be careful about assuming that those were the only reasons why you scored lower on the Official GMAT though. I've sent you a PM with some notes and additional questions.

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

Contact Rich at: [email protected]
www.empowergmat.com

avinash231 · Answer

Hi GMAT knight, Thaks for the reply.
Because of the technical glitch I have raised an objection with GMAC, and hence they are not showing any score in front of my appointment details, so I don't actually know what's happening there.
Also, thanks for the link, will look into it.
Thankyou!

avinash231 · Answer

HI Rich.
I've received your PM and have replied to it. Thanks.
and thanks for the suggestion on admission consultants, will surely speak with them soon.
Thankyou.

KarishmaB · Answer

Though I don't know much about your skill level and whether this score was justified, what caught my eye was the IR8. If you have the time, you could consider GMAT Focus. You certainly have strong reasoning and quantitative skills. Your performance may have been affected by your illness and you should be able to get your Quant up to 50. Check out these two posts of mine to understand why I am recommending this: https://anaprep.com/gmat-vs-gmat-focus- ... ld-i-take/ https://anaprep.com/gmat-vs-gmat-focus-percentiles/ If you must take GMAT within a month, then get your ESR (if available) and start working on your Verbal. I think that as far as Quant is concerned, it was just a bad day for you. The ESR may throw some light on your Quant performance too.

avinash231 · Answer

Hi Karishma,
Thanks for the reply.
Yes, I was considering focus too, but since I am targeting 2024 admissions, and if I give focus, I might end up losing on Round 2 of Indian B schools. The only reason I dropped the plan altogether!

Thanks

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi avinash231,

Here is an article that provides some advice on how to move forward:

How to Improve Your GMAT Score

avinash231 · Answer

Quick update
GMAC has cancelled my exam as I had reported then about system crashing.

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