Request to Evaluate ESR

Question

Hi there,

Request you to evaluate my ESR. I wish to take the exam in the next two weeks while preparing for R2 applications for B-Schools.

Study materials used so far -
1. OG 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
2. OG Verbal and Quant Review 2016, 2017, 2018
3. Manhattan Quant Guides
4. Manhattan Verbal Guides
5. E-GMAT online course

Tests Taken - 
1. Kaplan
2. Manhattan
3. GMAT PREP (Avg. score in mocks - 720)
4. Princeton
5. Tests from Experts Global

I want to apply to Cambridge, Kellogg, Ross, INSEAD, IMD and other top-tier B-Schools and hence want to improve my score.

DavidTutorexamPAL · Answer

Hey  aj42442 , 
I can give you my quick impressions:
first of all, obviously - good job! 
in verbal, you gave yourself a huge leg up by having a perfect first quarter of the section. amazing! questions consequently got harder, and you made some mistakes in the 2nd quarter, but still impressive (71% correct). I'm more concerned with what happened next: eve though the questions kept getting easier, you did progressively worse. this suggests to me that you either got tired or stressed. either way, the implication is that you need to work on your test taking skills - the ability to sit still and solve 30 questions or more in a row is a skill in and of itself, and needs to be developed. 
This is strengthened by the fact that the end of the Quant section took you way, way longer per question than throughout the section, even though the questions weren't harder. I'm guessing you just got tired?
In quant, problem solving clearly stands out as a question type which takes you way longer than the others. this suggests that you are probably solving it precisely (i.e. doing all the calculations), and that you could benefit from using some alternative or logical solution strategies. this is what the PAL system on  examPAL  is all about - if you sign up for the trial version, take a loot at our first lesson - Intro to PAL. 
-

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi aj42442,

I'll be happy to analyze your ESR for you. First though, I've sent you a PM with some questions.

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

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi aj42442,

First off, nice job on the 700! That being said, I see that you want to improve your score, so I’m happy to provide some feedback on your current score. Let’s start with verbal.

Since you scored in the 57th percentile in Reading Comprehension, it’s clear that RC dragged down your verbal score. When you are incorrectly answering Reading Comprehension questions, it’s partly because you do not truly understand what you have just read, right? So, you likely have to slow down in order to understand what you are reading and (eventually) speed up. In other words, you have to learn to comprehend what you read, keep it all straight, and use it to arrive at correct answers. At this point, your best bet is to focus on getting the correct answers to questions, taking as much time as you need to see key details and understand the logic of what you are reading. If you don't understand something, go back and read it one sentence at a time, even one word at a time, not moving on until you understand what you have just read. There is no way around this work. Your goal should be to take all the time you need to understand exactly what is being said and arrive at the correct answer. If you can learn to get answers taking your time, you can learn to speed up. Answering questions is like any task: The more times you do it carefully and successfully, the faster you become at doing it carefully and successfully.

Another component to understanding what you are reading is being “present” when reading. Don’t worry about how things are going at work, or what you will eat for dinner, or even how long you’re taking to read through the passage. Just focus on what is in front of you, word by word, line by line. Furthermore, try to make reading fun. For example, even if you are reading about a topic that bores you, pretend that you are the person making the argument. By doing so, you will make the passage more relatable to YOU, and ultimately you should be able to read with greater focus.

One final component of Reading Comprehension that may be tripping you up is that RC questions contain one or more trap answers that seem to answer the question but don't really. So, a key part of training to correctly answer RC questions is learning to notice the differences between these trap answers and correct answers. You have to learn to see how trap answers seem to follow from what the passages say, but don't really, while correct answers fit what the passages say exactly.

Now, regarding quant, although a Q47 is a pretty great quant score, you should look to bring up your quant score by a few points. Although your ESR indicates that you are weakest in Geometry and Equalities/Inequalities/Algebra, you must be careful not to over-infer based on that data, since you are looking at a sample size of only 31 questions.

So, to improve your quant skills between now and your retake, engage in focused practice so you can find weaknesses and fill in knowledge gaps. For example, if you find that you are not strong in answering Number Properties questions, then carefully review the conceptual underpinnings of how to answer Number Properties questions and practice by answering 50 or more questions just from Number Properties: LCM, GCF, units digit patterns, divisibility, remainders, etc. When you are working on learning to answer questions of a particular type, start off taking your time, and then seek to speed up as you get more comfortable answering questions of that type. As you do such practice, do a thorough analysis of each question that you don't get right. If you got a remainder question wrong, ask yourself why. Did you make a careless mistake? Did you not properly apply the remainder formula? Was there a concept you did not understand in the question? By carefully analyzing your mistakes, you will be able to efficiently fix your weaknesses and in turn improve your GMAT quant skills. Number Properties is just one example; follow this process for all quant topics.

Each time you strengthen your understanding of a topic and your skill in answering questions of a particular type, you increase your odds of hitting your score goal. You know that there are types of questions that you are happy to see and types that you would rather not see, and types of questions that you take a long time to answer correctly. Learn to more effectively answer the types of questions that you would rather not see, and make them into your favorite types. Learn to correctly answer in two minutes or less questions that you currently take five minutes to answer. By finding, say, a dozen weaker quant areas and turning them into strong areas, you will make great progress toward hitting your quant score goal. If a dozen areas turn out not to be enough, strengthen some more areas.

So, work on accuracy and generally finding correct answers, work on specific weaker areas one by one to make them strong areas, and when you take a practice GMAT or the real thing, take all the time per question available to do your absolute best to get right answers consistently. The GMAT is essentially a game of seeing how many right answers you can get in the time allotted. Approach the test with that conception in mind, and focus intently on the question in front of you with one goal in mind: getting a CORRECT answer.

You also may find it helpful to read this article about 
 how to score a 700+ on the GMAT .

Please reach out with any further questions.

Let’s do this!!

egmat · Answer

Hi  aj42442 ,

I am sorry that your scores were not in line with your expectations. Since you have used our course, I would request you to write to us at support@e-gmat.comwith your registered email id so that we can look at your Scholaranium and course dashboard to give you precise inputs.

Looking forward to your email.

Regards,
Aditee

vanam52923 · Answer

Hello All

I gave last gmat on 18th sept 2018 and scored 570 .then i registered egmat and gave another yesterday and could score 580 only.I really donot know what went wrong.My verbal score decreased from V29 to V28 this time.even in quant i scored 42 only.I marked last qsn but could not submit it before time ran out.Did it affect? I donot know why i am not able to score in exam .I gave Mgmat test and scored 660 .I can solve tough questions of gmatclub easily too. Donot know what happens in exam.I am attaching both esrs .Please evaluate and let me know which areas to focus on.Is there any fun of giving exam again as most colleges deadlines are ending?I am ready to study one more month and give exam,but i do not know what to study now.And will it be beneficial if i have to apply this year itself.Please look into this.I shall be highly thankful.

I havecompleted OGS 2018,2017,2016 Approx 600 qsns of SC,500 qsns of CR,250 qsns of RC.
In quant i have solved mgmat,og and jamboree material.
Have solved approx 600-700 question of 700+level.
Do not know what to do now.Please guide.
 DavidTutorexamPAL   EMPOWERgmatRichC   ScottTargetTestPrep

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi vanam53923,

I’m sorry to hear about how things went with your GMAT. Before providing specific advice regarding your ESR, I’d like to learn more about your situation with the GMAT. I have some questions:

1) How many practice GMAT tests did you take? Please list the dates on which you’ve taken any practice GMATs, the total scores, and the quant, verbal, and IR scores, as well as how you were feeling while taking the tests. Also, please tell me where these tests came from (ex: mba.com).

2) Please describe how you studied. For how many hours a day did you study and for how many months? 
 
3) To what programs will you be applying? What are the deadlines for these programs?
 
4) By when would you LIKE to take the GMAT? By when MUST you take the GMAT?
 
5) For how many hours a day, on average, can you study between now and your next GMAT?
 
6) What is your GMAT goal score?

Once I learn more about you, I can provide some detailed advice.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Manav,

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

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

vanam52923 · Answer

Please guide
 ScottTargetTestPrep 
Please see my replies below:

1) How many practice GMAT tests did you take? Please list the dates on which you’ve taken any practice GMATs, the total scores, and the quant, verbal, and IR scores, as well as how you were feeling while taking the tests. Also, please tell me where these tests came from (ex: mba.com).
Last time i took 4 gmat tests from mba.com exam 1 and 2 and 2 times after resetting,this time i gave one free cat of Mgmat only.Scored 660 (v36,q44)

2) Please describe how you studied. For how many hours a day did you study and for how many months? 
Per day on average i have studied 6 hours.Weekends i use to study 10-12 hours.
In last 3 months i have finished egmat verbal,ogs(compilation of egmat),verbal review(compilation of egmat)
For quant : mgmat all 700 +qsns,jamboree material,ogs

3) To what programs will you be applying? What are the deadlines for these programs?
This thing i have no idea.I want to apply to one of top 100 colleges of world.

4) By when would you LIKE to take the GMAT? By when MUST you take the GMAT?
I am ready to take it with in a month

5) For how many hours a day, on average, can you study between now and your next GMAT?
6 hours a day i can study .
6) What is your GMAT goal score? 
720+

Request to Evaluate ESR

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards