Scoring an average of 650 in mocks

Question

Sir,
 My date of gmat is in july 1st week. I have been preparing since 3 months. This month whatever mocks i am giving wether veritas or manhattan, score is hovering around 650. Start of month it was around 610. Now its 650. I am really afraid whether i will be able to cross 710 mark or not. Today i gave Manhattan CAT 3 , and scores 640 (Q 42, V 36). In quant sections, in MGMAT CATs i am facing timing issues. Unable to get time for last 2 Qs. In verbal my avg corrects answers are: in RC: 7/12.. VA 11/16.. CR: 7/13.. Kindly suggest how to improve. Till yesterday,in every test my scored increased. But today for the first time it decreased. I am nervous of whether it starts my decreasing trend. The maximum is got was in MGMAT CAT 2 , scored 660. Kindly advice what should i do in the next 15 days avaialble.

daveGMAT · Answer

I was in your same boat, and like you say - timing was the hardest part. When you run out of time on the last handful of questions it really knocks down your score because each question gets  easier  when the previous one was answered wrong and therefore hurts your score far worse when you get it wrong simply because you ran out of time. In other words, pacing yourself is just about as important as getting the right answers.

Between my first and second attempt taking the GMAT I decided to download the GMAT Timer app on my iPhone. It mimics the real test timer perfectly but also helps you pace yourself by displaying what question you should be on, and it can ding or vibrate every time you need to move on to the next question. It really helped me get a feel for when my time was up and I was spending too long on a question and should move on.

So check out the GMAT Timer app in the App Store. I think it's on Google Play too if you're on Android. Hope that helps, and good luck!

RichEconomistGMAT · Answer

Hi bestrahul123,

I have a few questions about your previous practice GMATs:

1) Were they full-length, timed practice exams?
2) Did you take them at home or did you simulate an environment more similar to what you'll experience on test day?
3) Have you kept an error log throughout?

That being said, students enrolled in Economist GMAT have seen their scores fluctuate +/- 30 points. However, if you haven't been tracking your errors over these practice exams, consider going back through each of them to identify any trends in your test-taking. You'll quickly identify whether you're struggling with an entire concept or are making silly mistakes because of timing, etc.

Best,
Rich

bestrahul123 · Answer

Sir,

1) Were they full-length, timed practice exams? -- Yes sir. I gave Full length tests which included AWA and IR. Each test i have given to simulate the full condition so that i can improve my patience.
2) Did you take them at home or did you simulate an environment more similar to what you'll experience on test day? I took them at home sir. My exam is scheduled for 1400 hrs. So i have taken all exams at around that time. 
3) Have you kept an error log throughout? I review the Qs after the exams and have identified my weak areas. I think as you suggest keeping an error log will surely help.

One thing i have noticed sir, mostly in VA , there comes a time where i always answer a set of 6 to 7 Qs wrong. In my earlier tests mostly Qs ranging from 30-40 used to be wrong..almost a series of 6... I then analyzed that its happening may be due to of lack of concenetration , but then in last 2 papers (gave on 12th and 14th), i am getting series of Qs between Q no 20-30 wrong. I think i have to have a more sincere concentration in VA. 
The error log concept i have started to apply. Please suggest any more ways to help me improve my score.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi bestrahul123,

If you're currently 'stuck' at this particular scoring level, then we have to define WHY. Pacing problems do NOT exist on their own - they're the results of OTHER problems. As such, we need to talk more about how you've been studying.

1) What materials have you been using?
2) On what date did you take each of your practice CATs (and what were the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for each)?
3) What tactics do you use when dealing with SCs, RCs and CRs?

4) Do you have the flexibility to push your Test Date back?

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

bestrahul123 · Answer

1) What materials have you been using?: OG (revision still ongoing) ; Manhattan SC; Kaplan 800; practice problems from gmat club and Veritas QA.

2) On what date did you take each of your practice CATs (and what were the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for each)?
 The following are my test and respective scores:
01/05/15: Veritas 1: 580 (VA 27, QA 43)
04/05/15: Manhattan 1 : 650 (VA 37, QA 42)
15/05/15: Kaplan 1: 640 (VA 28, QA 49)
21/05/15: Veritas 2: 600 (VA 28, QA 45)
31/0515: Veritas 3: 610 (VA 30, QA 44)
07/06/15: Manhattan 2 : 660 (VA 35, QA 45)
13/06/15: Veritas 4: 650 (VA 34, QA 46)
15/06/15: Manhattan 3: 640 (VA 36, QA 42)

3) What tactics do you use when dealing with SCs, RCs and CRs?

SC: Mostly concentrate on reading carefully wach sentence and identifying error and then cancellation of poor choices.
RC: First read the whole paragraph and get a generalised view and then concentrate on questions
CR: shorthands of arguments, facts ,conclusion and then try cancelling out options.

4) Do you have the flexibility to push your Test Date back?

No sir, this date is not flexible.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi bestrahul123,

With a Test Date in the first week of July, you have 3 weeks (or less, depending on the exact Test Date) to continue studying. Based on these practice scores, you're actually not that far from hitting your goals, but you really have to 'nitpick' what you're doing wrong. At higher-and-higher scoring levels, the GMAT becomes really 'sensitive' to little mistakes, so you cannot afford to let those mistakes happen.

1) On this last CAT, how many questions did you get wrong because of a little mistake that you COULD have gotten correct?
2) Do you have to rush to finish any of the sections?

Based on what you've described about how you handle the Verbal section, on RCs and CRs, spending a few moments working to predict what the correct answer will probably state should help you to increase your accuracy (since you'll then be more focused on looking for the correct answer and less on 'evaluating' all 5 choices).

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

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