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13 Sep 2011, 19:13
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It has taken me some time after taking the official Gmat exam to log on and actually speak of my journey which I am very disappointed with. I desperately need advice as to what my next steps/preparations should include. I scored a horrible 500 (Q31; V27) on the official exam after 4 months of preparation (2 months course; 1.5 solid preparation). The only good news is my AWA score is a 5.5 (if only the rest could have went as well). My practice scores are below:
MGMAT CAT 1: 370 (Q: don’t remember (bombed); V31)
MGMAT CAT 2: 450 (Don’t remember the break down)
MGMAT CAT 3: 530 (Q32; V31)
MGMAT CAT 4: 560 (Q35; V32)
*MGMAT CAT 5: 620 (Q39; V36)
*Official GMAT Practice Exam 1: 610 (Q44 and V31)
*The last two scores were about 2-3 weeks prior to when I actually took the test.
I need advice on where to go from here. While studying the first time, I spent time on this forum and feel as though I included almost all of the resources people mentioned that were helpful to them. I am just nervous that I did everything I could the first time and afraid that the using the same resources, my test results will be the same the second time around. I don’t know if it would be worth it to get a tutor.I am going to attempt to begin studying again in Jan of 2012. My goal has been and still is a 650-680 and I know that I am capable and am an intelligent individual. I also am very determined, dedicated, and hardworking. I had a very high GPA in school (greater than a 3.9) but have always struggled with standardized testing. If you think any other posts would be good for me to reference, please note them as well. Apologies for the long post and thank you in advance for taking the time to respond. I really do appreciate it.
PREP:
My preparation began in February of 2011 by enrolling and completing the Manhattan Gmat Online Course which finished around the first week of April. In going through the course, I pretty much kept up with the course reading and the assigned homework. It wasn't until the course was over that I really began working the Math and Verbal OG Problems. I used all of the MGMT books provided for preparation. In addition, I used the CR Powerscore Guide and worked almost all of the official Guide problems (I only did problems in the math and verbal books where I felt I needed extra practice), some of the Brutal SC, and some of the RC99 problems. Additionally, I kept an error log and went back and worked the problems I got wrong. I attempted to understand why I got the problem wrong and tie up any loose ends regarding knowledge and understanding. However, throughout my preparation, I sometimes felt as though I would take an educated guess (in the quant section) rather than really understanding the concepts. I originally had the test schedule for the middle of May but decided to push it back by a couple of weeks to June 3rd. In retrospect, I should have taken the exam when it was first scheduled because I feel as though I was performing much better then. I feel as though I basically burnt myself out in the coming weeks.
WEAK AREAS:
My Verbal score has remained virtually the same for the four exams I took. Around 31-32. Throughout my preparation, RC and SC was definitely my strength but I struggled with CR. Also, my timing was always somewhat off for verbal. I would do really well up until question 31/32 (I was receiving a majority of 700-800 level questions for the first 31/32 questions for RC and SC but was spending more time on them and would have to rush through the rest because I would have almost no time left).
Regarding the Quant section, my weakest area is word problems (in fact, I don’t think I managed to improve much), FDPs and inequalities. My strong suits were number properties, algebra, and geometry. I also was weaker in DS.
EXAM DAY:
On the day of the exam, I woke up early and ate a fulfilling breakfast- oatmeal and a banana. I hit a huge accident, but I called the test center and they informed me to take my time and get their when I could (which I was relieved about). After finishing the essays, I felt very confident that I just aced them. I took a break and ate a protein bar. Since I finally got the courage to discuss my experience, I don’t remember much else about the exam, but I finished the math portion feeling pretty confident. I also recall that I actually went a couple of minutes over the 1st break into my math portion because of complications with getting back into the room. On my second break I ate a few peanut butter crackers. The verbal section is really when I lost it. I felt as though I could hardly focus and I found myself reading and re reading things. I also knew that my questions were very easy but couldn’t even concentrate to answer them correctly. I don’t know if its because I ate much more than I normally do (I typically have a bowl of cereal and that ties me over until lunch). Finally, I received 4 RC passages and I believe 3 were long (I just remember thinking when is this going to be over). I also remember always being really focused on timing and how much time I had left. I think this probably distracted me. Needless to say, after the exam I was completely heartbroken and felt angry, frustrated, deflated, humiliated, ashamed, sad etc (so many emotions at once).
Again, thoughts, strategies, resources etc are much appreciated. Thanks again!
MGMAT CAT 1: 370 (Q: don’t remember (bombed); V31)
MGMAT CAT 2: 450 (Don’t remember the break down)
MGMAT CAT 3: 530 (Q32; V31)
MGMAT CAT 4: 560 (Q35; V32)
*MGMAT CAT 5: 620 (Q39; V36)
*Official GMAT Practice Exam 1: 610 (Q44 and V31)
*The last two scores were about 2-3 weeks prior to when I actually took the test.
I need advice on where to go from here. While studying the first time, I spent time on this forum and feel as though I included almost all of the resources people mentioned that were helpful to them. I am just nervous that I did everything I could the first time and afraid that the using the same resources, my test results will be the same the second time around. I don’t know if it would be worth it to get a tutor.I am going to attempt to begin studying again in Jan of 2012. My goal has been and still is a 650-680 and I know that I am capable and am an intelligent individual. I also am very determined, dedicated, and hardworking. I had a very high GPA in school (greater than a 3.9) but have always struggled with standardized testing. If you think any other posts would be good for me to reference, please note them as well. Apologies for the long post and thank you in advance for taking the time to respond. I really do appreciate it.
PREP:
My preparation began in February of 2011 by enrolling and completing the Manhattan Gmat Online Course which finished around the first week of April. In going through the course, I pretty much kept up with the course reading and the assigned homework. It wasn't until the course was over that I really began working the Math and Verbal OG Problems. I used all of the MGMT books provided for preparation. In addition, I used the CR Powerscore Guide and worked almost all of the official Guide problems (I only did problems in the math and verbal books where I felt I needed extra practice), some of the Brutal SC, and some of the RC99 problems. Additionally, I kept an error log and went back and worked the problems I got wrong. I attempted to understand why I got the problem wrong and tie up any loose ends regarding knowledge and understanding. However, throughout my preparation, I sometimes felt as though I would take an educated guess (in the quant section) rather than really understanding the concepts. I originally had the test schedule for the middle of May but decided to push it back by a couple of weeks to June 3rd. In retrospect, I should have taken the exam when it was first scheduled because I feel as though I was performing much better then. I feel as though I basically burnt myself out in the coming weeks.
WEAK AREAS:
My Verbal score has remained virtually the same for the four exams I took. Around 31-32. Throughout my preparation, RC and SC was definitely my strength but I struggled with CR. Also, my timing was always somewhat off for verbal. I would do really well up until question 31/32 (I was receiving a majority of 700-800 level questions for the first 31/32 questions for RC and SC but was spending more time on them and would have to rush through the rest because I would have almost no time left).
Regarding the Quant section, my weakest area is word problems (in fact, I don’t think I managed to improve much), FDPs and inequalities. My strong suits were number properties, algebra, and geometry. I also was weaker in DS.
EXAM DAY:
On the day of the exam, I woke up early and ate a fulfilling breakfast- oatmeal and a banana. I hit a huge accident, but I called the test center and they informed me to take my time and get their when I could (which I was relieved about). After finishing the essays, I felt very confident that I just aced them. I took a break and ate a protein bar. Since I finally got the courage to discuss my experience, I don’t remember much else about the exam, but I finished the math portion feeling pretty confident. I also recall that I actually went a couple of minutes over the 1st break into my math portion because of complications with getting back into the room. On my second break I ate a few peanut butter crackers. The verbal section is really when I lost it. I felt as though I could hardly focus and I found myself reading and re reading things. I also knew that my questions were very easy but couldn’t even concentrate to answer them correctly. I don’t know if its because I ate much more than I normally do (I typically have a bowl of cereal and that ties me over until lunch). Finally, I received 4 RC passages and I believe 3 were long (I just remember thinking when is this going to be over). I also remember always being really focused on timing and how much time I had left. I think this probably distracted me. Needless to say, after the exam I was completely heartbroken and felt angry, frustrated, deflated, humiliated, ashamed, sad etc (so many emotions at once).
Again, thoughts, strategies, resources etc are much appreciated. Thanks again!
13 Sep 2011, 21:06
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hm... so you finished a course in April and took the test in September? Did I read it correctly?
So you have been preparing for quite a while then? If that's the case, that may be your issue - stretching your prep too much and loosing attention as the result...
So you have been preparing for quite a while then? If that's the case, that may be your issue - stretching your prep too much and loosing attention as the result...
