Scored 640 Q48 V29 IR2 on GMAT today. Don't know what lies ahead?

Question

I scored 640 on online GMAT Test today. I know, by all standards, that this is a very poor score. I was scoring 680+ in all mock tests. I am now caught between whether to reapply for the exam or go for colleges that accept a score of 640. Please help me resolve the dilemma.

MartyTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi Ritesh.

I disagree with the idea that 640 is, by all standards, a very poor score. Many people get into good schools with 640 GMAT scores.

At the same time, since you have scored 680+ on practice tests, it's likely worthwhile for you to take the GMAT again.

How have you been preparing so far?

Ritesh110491 · Answer

Sir
Prepared from EGmat. Gave all sigma mocks in Jun-Jul. Average score was 650. After that, I bought the test series of Experts Global. Till the 5th mock, score was above 680, but starting this October, my scores started fluctuating from 600 to 720. I was scoring 600 in one test and scoring 700 on the other. Even on Official GMAT mocks on the GMAC website, my scores were: 640, 650 , 700 , 590. I scored a 590 in Mock 4. 
Throughout this time my quant score has stayed between Q 47-49
While, verbal score has fluctuated from V27 to V39

I cannot understand what is wrong with my approach. Please guide me.

pintukr · Answer

Need to improve IR..While Verbal needs a thorough practice regarding key concepts..

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Ritesh110491,

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as planned, but a 640/Q48 is still a solid Score, so it could be enough to get you into your first-choice School. As such, a retest might not be necessary. Depending on the Schools that you plan to apply to, 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 act on that advice, the better). There's a Forum full of those Experts here:

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

That all having been said, 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 in total? How many hours did you typically study each week?
2) Have you used any other study materials besides the courses that you mentioned?
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?

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

Contact Rich at: [email protected]

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

Scored 640 Q48 V29

In case you retake,  here's someone who went from a Q50 V31 to a Q50 V40 in about 30 days (retake) . They took 6 hours solving approach tutoring for Verbal but also used a variety of resources. They mention some tips towards the end of their post you can potentially leverage as well.

All the best.

MartyTargetTestPrep · Answer

Mostly likely, your approaches to answering verbal questions aren't solid enough. As a result, they work sometimes and fail to work other times.

So, to achieve greater consistency and achieve your score goal, you need to tighten up your approaches to answering verbal questions. For some insights into how to do that, see these posts.

How to Score High on GMAT Verbal

Three Key Practice Tips for Mastering GMAT Verbal

The Best GMAT Practice Methods

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

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Scored 640 Q48 V29 IR2 on GMAT today. Don't know what lies ahead?

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