Review of my plan to boost my score

Question

Hi guys,

So, this is my first post here, but I've done some reading! Last friday I took my first GMAT and ended up with a score of 570, were a score of 600 was needed for my application. I screwed up on math, and did pretty decent (I guess) on verbal. No AWA or IR was required.

So, after some reading here I've come up with a plan to boost my score to 600+ (which I think should be possible). I started studying for the GMAT on the 5th of January, for about 2 hours on weekdays and 4 hours on weekends while working 32+ hours a week, and doing sports for about 12 hours a week. About 3 weeks before my GMAT I took the first GMAT practice exam and scored exactly 600, which I was quite happy about. I did some extra studying the following weeks and thought it would be wise to take another practice exam about 7 days before D-Day. I hesitated a lot before actually taking the second practice exam, because it just didn't feel right, I felt unfocused and not ready. I scored a 500, miserable.

I've now planned a new GMAT, on the 9th of April, approx. 30 days from now. Some people find this too soon, but I'm motivated as can be to get my 600+ score. I've studied the Manhattan GMAT books, and I also have hard copy versions of the OG 15 edition. By the way, I have finished my BBA last July.

In short;
GMATprep CAT 1: Q40, V37, total 600
GMATprep CAT2: Q36, V26, total 500
Real GMAT 1: Q33, V35, total 570
GMATPill CAT: Q28, V26, total 460 (felt really 'off' that day)
The Economist CAT: Q37, V31, total 560 (felt good)
Veritas CAT: Q40, V35, total 620 (felt good, but thought the CAT was a tad easy)

I was wondering what you people think about my plan/schedule for the comming 30 days of studying, with the goal of improving my score from a 570 to a, let's say, 620.

Week 1; 
- Create a plan/scedule to get my GMAT score from 570 up to a 620
- Create an error log
- Review the two practice tests again, make notes on which area's I should focus (these 3 should be done by today)
- Work on my math with the downloadable gmat math book of this site/forum (can't post links yet), (Is this a good choice, or should I pick an other book/method?)
- Check my verbal skills once or twice a week

Week 2;
- Continue with studying math
- Check my verbal skills once or twice a week
- 14 days prior to the real test, make another practice exam, and review this exam
- Adjust study plan according to the outcome of the practice exam

Week 3;
- Study on the weak points according to the review of my practice exam
- Intensify the studying, making more hours a day

Week 4;
- Up the intensity of studying a bit more, untill the 7th of April, then just do some reading on English articles
- Test day; score 620.

Could you guys give me a bit of advice, is my planning right, should I adjust it on some points? I think it's a realistic goal, do you agree?

Eager to hear from you, if you need anymore information, please contact me!

With kind regards,

Savage.

Ps. Sorry for any mistakes, was in a hurry typing this.

AmrithS · Answer

Hi Savage: Your plan sounds great. Go ahead and execute. :beer

:

SavageBrother · Answer

Thanks for the quick reply. Do you think my goal is realistic?

AmrithS · Answer

Yes I do. Your goal of 620 is very realistic and so is your plan. I have some additional observations to offer: 1. Give 80% of your attention to what you're going to do in the coming week and 20% to the remaining weeks. 2. Realize that goals have their own life - they evolve. So be flexible. 3. Make sure you put adequate time for recreation and socializing. 4. Have a weekly reward plan. 5. Be sure to share your progress with members of this community. You will find yourself new friends to cheer you to the finish line. That's all for now... Get going man :beer

:

SavageBrother · Answer

Thank you for your help. I'll update here once a week or something!

AmrithS · Answer

Cool! Frequent updates are desirable... But, we go with what you is okay with mahn! (Sorry.. the Jamaican kicked in... ) 8-)

SavageBrother · Answer

Here I am again already, with some doubts to my plan. I've started reading the GMAT club Math Book, but I don't like it as much as I like the OG '15. So I think I'll be keeping the math book on the side, when the OG '15 isn't sufficient on specific problems. Also, I have 4 practice exams available at the moment, and I think it will be wise to use them, isn't it? Would it be wise to plan 2 practice exams, in the coming 4 weeks? Let's say 20th of March, and then the 28th of March again? I'll have about a week to analyze my errors and do something about them. From the 28th of March till the 9th of April is about 13 days.

What do you guys think? Are these adjustments the right thing to do? Or would I be beter off with just one practice exam in the 4 coming weeks?

Oh and this is what my error log looks like;

Attachments

File comment: Gmat error log
GMAT error log.xlsx [13.05 KiB]
Downloaded 79 times

What do you guys think? Are these adjustments the right thing to do? Or would I be beter off with just one practice exam in the 4 coming weeks?

Oh and this is what my error log looks like;

SavageBrother · Answer

Don't know if I'm breaking the rules or not by 'kinda' bumping this post. Can anyone give some advice on my change of plans?

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi SavageBrother,

As a general rule, I recommend that you take a CAT every 1-2 weeks. As long as you take the CAT in a realistic fashion, those score results will help you to figure out your general strengths and weaknesses and what you have to 'fix.' While you don't have to take a CAT every week, doing so is really the only practical way to track your progress (so you should plan to take more than 1 in this last month).

You're actually remarkably close to your score goal right now, so you should look to fix the easiest problems first. On your last CAT, how many questions did you get wrong because of a silly/little mistake? If you can keep those mistakes from happening, then you should be able to pick up the missing points that you're looking for.

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

SavageBrother · Answer

Thanks for the reply man! I'm going to take a CAT at the end of next week and then another one 9 days later or something, that should work. 
During my latest CATS (and overall I guess) I am making too much silly/little mistakes, so that's what I'm working on right now.

Thanks for the advice, I'll update my post when I've done another CAT.

GMATPill · Answer

That's quite a few CATs, but if you need another test, here it is: https://www.gmatpill.com/gmat-practice-t ... ctice-test

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi SavageBrother,

When it comes to correcting silly/little mistakes, the solution almost always involves taking more notes. Here are some other factors to consider:

1) Do you write the actual question on the pad (or a reasonable abbreviation of it) so you KNOW at all times what your 'goal' is?
2) Do you write down a formula before you try to use it (or do you just quickly jot numbers down?)?
3) How much math do you do "in your head?"
4) Do you label your work (or just write numbers down)?
5) When dealing with RC and CR, what type of notes are you taking? Do your notes properly summarize the ideas/logic involved?
Etc.

This all takes just a little more effort per question, but the work itself is pretty easy.

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

SavageBrother · Answer

Thank you!

I noticed I got a bit sloppy when I thought I knew the answer straight away (finished several question within 20 seconds for example, with some right and some wrong), and I wasn't taking any notes. I'm now focussing on making notes every single question. Seeing your points; I do it sometimes; but not always. That should be something I could improve on I think, working with the same method every single question.

quinnie515 · Answer

Hi SavageBrother,

Hope your game plan is going well and you are starting to feel really good about your next GMAT. You've gotten great feedback already, so I just want to throw in some extra encouragement!

1. Your goal score is absolutely achievable based on what you've scored previously. Day-by-day, you are going to be more comfortable with the exam, that knowledge in addition to actual quant/verbal skills can be a great score booster.
2. Trust your plan! It is a good one, keep executing it. If you have one day where you feel a little off, don't let that deter you. Best advice I've ever read/heard regarding strategies (specific to operations management, but applicable) is this: "stick to the process with absolute discipline...temporarily." So, if you notice some tendencies as you take your additional CATs, maybe tweak your studying a little bit to focus more on DS, or Sentence Correction, or CR weaken questions, whatever. But only a little bit! 
3. I'll keep my eye out for April 9, good luck on your test! We'll all be here cheering for you in the coming weeks.

SavageBrother · Answer

Thanks for the advice, I'll take it into account! Normally I have Tuesday and Thursday afternoon off from work to study, but this week Thursday changed to Friday, so I've decided to take my first CAT tomorrow, Tuesday! I'll keep you guys posted!

SavageBrother · Answer

Sigh. Don't know what happened, but I completely messed it up. Knew it from the beginning I guess, I had loads of trouble solving almost every question. And that resulted in the following score: Total 460, Q26 and V28. This is the lowest I've ever scores (practice 1; 600, practice 2; 500, real deal; 570. This CAT was the GMAT Pill CAT btw.

I got 20 out of 37 correct on Q and 24 out of 41 correct on V.

Quant: 
DS: 11 correct, 3 incorrect
PS: 8 correct, 15 incorrect

Algebra: 5 correct, 2 incorrect, 
Number properties: 2 correct, 7 incorrect
Sum of sequence: 0 correct, 1 incorrect
Word problems: 5 correct, 1 incorrect
Probability: 1 correct, 1 incorrect
Actual vs. Percentage: 1 correct, 0 incorrect
Geometry: 0 correct, 4 incorrect
Cube roots: 0 correct, 1 incorrect
Numberline: 1 correct, 0 incorrect
Arithmetic: 1 correct, 0 incorrect
Rate problem: 0 correct, 1 incorrect
Functions: 0 correct, 1 incorrect
Number vs. Ratios vs. Percentage: 1 correct, 0 incorrect

Avg. time correct: 1m 40s
Avg. time incorrect: 1m 45s

Verbal:
CR: 9 correct, 4 incorrect
SC: 7 correct, 8 incorrect
RC: 9 incorrect, 4 incorrect

Avg. time correct: 1m 45s
Avg. time correct: 1m 50s

Obviously I need to work on PS and RC. But what the heck, how could this have happened? During practice, the OG guide, I did about 50 DS and 50 PS questions, with approximately 10% incorrect. One thing that comes to my mind is that I have a problem focussing when I know 'it's not the real deal'.

So, I'm gonna work on all the math + SC in the coming days, focussing primarily on PS in math. And retake a CAT in like a week or so?

quinnie515 · Answer

Hey there, I'm sorry you didn't get the results you were looking for today.

May I ask how you review your exams after you take them? One thing I like to do after exams is re-visit the questions I got wrong and try again to solve them on my own, without time limit, and without consulting the solution. I find this to be an effective way for me to differentiate between questions on which I just made mistakes and questions that I actually don't know how to solve. I'd be curious with the questions you missed on number properties if it was just a coincidence or if you might have a few skills you can build up there so that you can knock those questions out of the park next time.

If you go back to re-solve some of those questions and find out you can solve most/all of them but just rushed through and made mistakes, it'd be good to keep re-applying the advice that  EMPOWERgmatRichC  gave above. That's something gets better with more and more practice.

AmrithS · Answer

Hi Savage:

It appears that in the quantitative ability section the following are the topics where you performed poorly - Number Properties and Geometry.

In the verbal ability section you performed poorly in sentence correction.

My suggestion is that you work on only these areas for a few days. Then take the next test to see if your score improves.

Regards,
Amrith

SavageBrother · Answer

Thank you for you reply. I tend to review my scores by looking at the questions/explanations again and see why I did not understand them. Mostly this differs between: 'Oh, I should've known that', 'Damn, I had no clue' or 'That's just a silly mistake'. I think it's devided evenly. After that I just analyze the overall data (where did I make the most mistakes, time management etc).

Thank you Amrith. So you suggest working for like a day or three on those areas and then take a new CAT? Looks fine to me. Which CAT do you suggest? The Economist?

Edit: It's been like 5 weeks now since I did the first GMAT prep practice exam, I don't think I'll remember any of the answers there. So it might be good to take that test and see how I perform now?

SavageBrother · Answer

Been studying for a couple a days now, focussed primarily on number properties and geometry, and did a lot of sentence correction the last two days. My plan is to take a practice exam tomorrow. Should I retake my first practice exam (GMAT prep) or take a completely new practice exam (Kaplan/Economist)?

I'm open to suggestions!

I'm open to suggestions!

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