GMAT - target score 550

Question

Hello, everyone!

I've been preparing for my GMAT exam for three weeks now and was following a lot of discussions here. I decided to create a profile and ask a couple of questions myself.

1. The program I'm applying for requires a score of 550 for only the Quant & Verbal sections. Can someone please let me know whether in this case I must also complete the other two sections - Integrated reasoning and Analytical Writing? Will not completing them automatically make my entire exam invalid? 
2. As far as I know 550 is considered a relatively low score to achieve. Should I focus on the easier questions? I did all the Verbal practice question from the Official guide with just a few mistakes. I'm mostly struggling with the Quant part and would appreciate any suggestions regarding my preparation for it. 
3. Will a high Verbal score somehow compensate for a lower Quant one?

Thank you very much for your time.

VoltAmpere · Answer

Hi there,
1) Although IR and AWA are not included in the calculation of the overall GMAT score, you definitely should not skip these parts.

2) Try some mock tests/CAT to assess your current standing. There are many free CATs available.
https://gmatclub.com/forum/all-gmat-cat ... ight=ml502

3) I suggest you try free CATs first and evaluate your current performance. Nevertheless, do not rely on one section only, improve in your Quant. Manhattan All GMAT is highly recommended here in the forum.

Hope this helps!

cherr012 · Answer

HI!
Can someone let me know how this 5 school selection thing works properly?
I select 5 schools and can send them the results for free if I accept.
And if I want to apply to additional schools with that score aprt from that 5 do I need to pay $35 for every school? 
What is this entire system ?
Can someone please explain.

Posted from my mobile device

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi lpir,

The average Score on the GMAT hovers around 550 most years, so many GMATers don't hit this level when they take the Official Exam. That having been said, to earn this type of Score, you do NOT need to correctly answer ANY questions that you think are too hard or too weird, but you have to keep the little mistakes to a minimum on everything else. While the IR and AWA sections have NO impact on your score out of 800, you shouldn't be thinking in terms of 'skipping them' on the Official GMAT - since while the School that you plan to apply to might not care about your IR and AWA Scores, the School might care that you actually took the FULL GMAT.

There are a variety of different Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores that will lead to a 550 (meaning that you could earn this type of Score with a higher Verbal performance and a lower Quant one), but you might want to see if the Program that you're interested in has any 'minimum requirements' for either section.

Based on your initial post, it's not clear if you have taken any practice CATs/mocks yet. If you have not, then it would be a good idea to take a FULL-LENGTH practice CAT Test sometime soon. You can take 2 for free at www.mba.com (and they come with some additional practice materials). That score will give us a good sense of your current skills, strengths and weaknesses and will help provide a basis for comparison as you continue to study. A FULL CAT takes about 3.5 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to take it in one sitting. Once you have that Score, you should report back here and we can discuss the results and how you might best continue your studies going forward.

I'd like to know a bit more about your timeline and goals:
1) What study materials are you currently using?
2) Are you planning to apply to School sometime soon? If so, then what application deadlines are you facing?

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

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi lpir,

I see you have a number of questions related to your GMAT; however, I think the first thing you need to do is spend some time familiarizing yourself with the GMAT and then take a full-length MBA.com practice exam, so you can get a baseline score. Once complete, please report back with your score breakdown, and I can provide some further advice. In the meantime, here are a few helpful articles:

What is the GMAT Format?

What Does GMAT Stand For?

lpi55 · Answer

Thank you everyone for your replies!

I had purchased the 2021 Official Guide, along with the Math and Verbal Review books. I went through all the theoretical info for the exam and completed almost all the practice questions in the OG.

I haven't however completed a full-length practice exam - something that, judging from your replies, I should do asap. Once I do, I'll share my score here.

lpi55 · Answer

Hello, everyone!

So I took a practice full-length exam and scored Q22 and V37, which is not the perfect score but I hope to improve.
I have two questions:

1. Is the Total score at the end for all the sections or for the IG and AW as well? I scored 500 and can't understand if this is for Verbal and Quantative only.
2. I need to improve my score with 50 points. Do you think this is achievable for 40 days? Do you have any tips?

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi lpir,

A 500 is a solid initial CAT Score (the average Score on the Official GMAT hovers around 550 most years). IR and AWA sections have NO impact on your score out of 800 (those two sections have their own separate Scores - out of 8 and 6, respectively).

With a Score Goal of 550+, you do NOT need to correctly answer ANY questions that you think are too hard or too weird, so raising this 500 to a 550 in 40 days is an absolutely achievable goal.

"Review" is an exceptionally important part of the GMAT training process; your ability to define WHY you're getting questions wrong is essential to defining the areas that you need to work on (and the specific things that you need to 'fix'). As such, I'd like to know a bit more about your last CAT. While a full Mistake Tracker would provide a lot more information, there are some basic questions that you should be able to answer (and the more EXACT you can be with your answers, the better):

After reviewing each section of this recent CAT, how many questions did you get wrong....
1) Because of a silly/little mistake?
2) Because there was some math/verbal that you just could not remember how to do?
3) Because the question was too hard?
4) Because you were low on time and had to guess?
5) How many Verbal questions did you 'narrow down to 2 choices' but still get wrong?

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

lpi55 · Answer

As everyone can see from this topic, my initial mock exam's result was  500 - Q22, V37. 
I have always been extremely bad at Maths and the whole idea of having to study it 5 years after graduating high school was terrifying to me. And my score above serves as a proof for that. I subscribed to TargetTestPrep and what I loved about it is that it allows you to choose the score you're aiming at and not overwhelm you with 700+ questions that you won't even need. I had a very clear goal of 550 and I knew I don't need Q45 or so to achieve it. It is also extremely affordable compared to the other courses out there. These are my results from the mock exams I had taken after subscribing for TargetTestPrep:

Gmat Practice exam 1: 520, Q30, V32
Gmat Practice exam 2: 620, Q36, V39
Gmat Practice exam 3: 620, Q38, V38
Gmat Practice exam 4: 700, Q47, V38
Kaplan Practice exam: 650, Q41, V38

On my official GMAT, which I took on January 3rd, I got  610, Q37, V36  - I would have probably got even more if I wasn't so stressed out. Nonetheless, this score is more than sufficient for the university I'm applying for.

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