Requesting Advice from friends

Question

Dear Friends,

I started my GMAT journey about 1 month ago. It was tough journey. 
My GMAT first trial score was 470 via its official page. 
(I thought I will score at least 550 given that I did GRE just one month ago and my maths skills are more than basic at this time)
My second trial after 1 month is around 460 because I wasted sometimes on some hard problems.
My Manhattan GMAT score was around 460 too.
My main weakness is in Verbal. I score between 16-22.
My Quant is between 41-45.
And today, I took the test at test center. The maths was harder and I scored only 34. But my verbal was 7. (final score is 340)
I cant even believe myself. I thought I made most of the problems right (compare to my normal range) in verbal and might score around 22-25 at least.
I was even more confident on verbal score than my quant score. 
I don't want to give up and my dream score is 700. 
But, I am not sure at this moment and I am very down now. I need some study plans and suggestions.
Please kindly help.

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

A few general suggestions for Verbal (I'll link a 5 tips thing below but these may be more helpful right now)

1) Start reading articles from The Economist regularly
2) Find an idiom list relevant to the GMAT and begin to memorize them (stuff like Both X and Y)
3) Get used to really reviewing a question thoroughly, figuring out why an answer choice is correct and why the other ones are probably wrong.
4) Learn the concepts surrounding SC: subject/verb agreement, etc.

5 verbal tips

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi thetmon,

First off, you need to understand that you really have not been studying for that much time. Many folks need 6+ months to achieve their target GMAT score, so to be honest, I'm not totally shocked that you are still far off your score goal. That said, if you can give yourself more time, and work hard, I am confident that you can eventually hit your 700 score goal. If you want some more advice on how to move forward with your prep, here are two helpful articles that you can check out:

The Best Way to Study for the GMAT

How to Score a 700+ on the GMAT — A Mini Guide for Success

sivatx2 · Answer

You may have to dedicatedly study Official Guide before you even attempt next time. Anything over 600 requires at least 2 months of wholehearted effort for someone who is starting from scratch. GMAT is a different ball game than GRE. Once you learn the basic it may require another 3-4 months of dedicated effort to score in the level of 700+ score. Good luck!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi thetmon,

Many GMATers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores, so if you've been studying for just one month, then it's likely that you just have not put in enough time and effort to score higher YET. Obviously, you will have to make some significant improvements to how you handle both the Quant and Verbal sections - but thankfully the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam, so you CAN train to score at a higher level.

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:

1) Over the last month, how many hours did you typically study each week?
2) You mentioned that you took the Official GRE? How did you score on THAT Test and how long did you study before taking it?
3) What study materials have you used so far to prepare for the GMAT? What “brands” of CATs/mocks have you used?
4) 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)?
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

Contact Rich at: [email protected]

GMATWhizTeam · Answer

Hi thetmon,

Before you start preparing for any test, it's important to understand the structure of the test, what is tested on it and then prepare accordingly. In this case, GMAT is a test which focuses on your application skills along with the conceptual knowledge. So, just learning the concepts and practicing questions without focusing on the right methodology will not do any good. So, I suggest you to first focus on the methodology to solve questions of a particular topic and only then move to practicing questions of that topic.

I have a couple of articles for you which can help you understand the right way to prepare for GMAT.

How to effectively plan your studies for GMAT  
  How to score 700+ on GMAT   
  The 3 key skills you need to develop to score well on GMAT   
  How to start preparing for GMAT  
 
I would suggest you to choose a resource which can help you:

Learn the concepts 
 Learn the methodology (Most important) 
 Practice questions 
 Analyze detailed solutions 
 Follow a study plan 
 Work on your weak areas

The best thing to do would be to check out the free trials of the online courses out there and choose the one which suits you the most. But make sure you choose the one which can help you with the above factors. You can check out the below article to know more about the factors to consider while evaluating an online course.

Key factors to consider while evaluating an online course

And I would suggest you to check out the free trial of GMATWhiz before taking a decision. It is an AI driven course which focuses on the application and strategy and also provides you with a personalized study plan which is integrated with the course. If you wish to have a detailed discussion regarding the study strategy, you can get in touch with me using the below link.

Click here to schedule a call

RetaketheGMAT · Answer

It seems like you went in to your first attempt thinking the GMAT was like other tests you've taken before. It's not. There's a layer of reasoning challenges that take great test taking skills (specific to the GMAT) to overcome them and you need to build them before you can get even an average score.

There's nothing holding you back from you target score but it's going take steady consistent study and a very PRECISE prep plan that equally weights Test Taking Skills and conceptual knowledge.

We do exactly this everyday as GMAT performance coaches -- happy to discuss more specific if you message me.

	Manhattan Prep: $99 Bonus Score Higher on Your GMAT Exam. Guaranteed.
	Target Test Prep - Save up to $599 $400 Discount + $99 Bonus GMAT Club Tests
	e-GMAT: 60% Off on GMAT Focus Get to 735+ from any starting point
	Magoosh increases your score, guaranteed - 15% off ALL Magoosh GMAT plans with code GMATCLUB15 + Free GMAT Club Tests.
	Experts' Global - ~~$1720~~ $960 End-to-End GMAT Prep + App Support: 150+ Videos, 2000+ Questions, 15 FLTs +
	GMATWhiz - $299 ~~$499~~ Experience the course through a free trial.
	GMAT Club Tests - Free Included with every course purchase of $149+ View all deals

Requesting Advice from friends

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