ESR Analysis - GMAT 710 to 700 to 720 - Experts please help

Question

Edited: 22nd June 2021

Nov 2020 Gmat attempt

GMAT experts,

In 2018, i wrote the GMAT and scored 710 (Q49 V36). This year I wanted to improve my score, so I decided to give GMAT once again. I signed up for E-gmat course and completed it in 3 months. Afterwards, i did all the 3 OG's latest edition and gave official mocks. I was scoring 720-760 in the official mocks.

I appeared for the GMAT few days ago and scored 10 points lower than my last attempt. ( 700 Q48 V38).

I'd highly appreciate all types of feedback and suggestions.

June 2021 GMAT attempt

Fast forward 6 months.

I again gave gmat and scored 720 ( Q50 V38).

What i did in last 6 months?

RC:
Solved 20 LSAT RC sets ( Accuracy: approx 80 % and Time: less than 2 mins/question)

CR:
Practiced all the CRs of OG 13 & verbal review 2nd edition as i already solved the latest edition OGs in my previous attempt
100 Legendary CR questions that i found on gmat club
5 Lsat CR sets (Accuracy: approx 80 % and Time: less than 2 mins/question)

SC:
Solved all the comprehensive SC questions (approx 650 questions) shared by Souvik on this link.https://gmatclub.com/forum/the-most-com ... 40372.html
100 legendary SC questions
OG 13 & verbal review 2nd edition

Quant:

Solved all 26 Gmat club test
Scored 51 in 3 tests
Scored 50 in 1 test
Scored 49 in 4 tests
Remaining tests less than 49

Even after putting in so much effort in last 6 months I haven't been able to improve my verbal score. I have attached the latest ESR as well. I know that I performed poorly in CR this time, but i did get some tricky CR questions in this attempt.

Experts I really need help. I really want to increase my verbal score. Any help is highly appreciated.

bb , GMATNinja TargetTestPrep

MartyTargetTestPrep
EMPOWERgmatRichC

Attachments

ahsan ashfaq_397971702_ESR- June 21 attempt.pdf [496.36 KiB]
Downloaded 139 times

File comment: ESR
ahsan ashfaq_384728634_ESR.pdf [480.27 KiB]
Downloaded 212 times

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi ahsanashfaq28,

It's pretty clear that verbal and more specifically SC is driving down your GMAT score. Would you say that, in general, SC is one of your weaker topics?

ahsanashfaq28 · Answer

Hi Scott,

Yes, SC is my weakest link in the verbal portion. But I was doing way better than this in the mocks and OG's.

GMATWhizTeam · Answer

Hi ahsanashfaq28,

It's quite possible that you might have lost touch in the gap of two years. Fortunately, your score didn't drop much. It's just that you have to polish a few things.

Looking at your ESR, it's the verbal part that you have to focus on. On a good day, I'm sure you can take your quant score to a 49. So, in verbal, you are mostly struggling with SC. So, I would suggest you to tweak your approach a little while solving SC questions. Do not approach SC questions from grammar stand-point.  SC questions test your ability to convey the right meaning without any ambiguity . You might have often come across answer choices which are grammatically correct and convey a logical meaning but are indeed incorrect. So, it's important to understand the intended meaning of the original sentence, identify errors and then eliminate answer choices which either are grammatically incorrect or do not convey the intended meaning.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SGA8bwFNJM

So, I would suggest you to learn the right methodology and then move to practicing questions.  Spend enough time on analyzing solutions of the questions you solved because the process will help you narrow down the gaps in your approach if any.  If you wish to analyze your ESR more deeply or wish to know how to strategize your prep, I would suggest you get in touch over a call using the below link.

Click here to schedule a call

ahsanashfaq28 · Answer

Hi GMAT Whiz,

Thank you for the suggestions. I have also scheduled a call to discuss in detail.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi ahsanashfaq28,

First off, your initial 710/Q49 is an outstanding Score, so you can comfortably apply to any Business Schools that interest you. As such, another retest is probably not 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. Those Experts should be able to answer your Admissions questions and help define the specific areas of your profile that could use some improvement. There's a Forum full of those Experts here:

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

If you are certain that you want to retest (and again - it's probably not necessary), before we discuss the data in your ESR, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

Studies:
1) How many hours do you typically study each week?
2) What study materials did you use for your 1st attempt?
3) Over the last 3 months 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

CAMANISHPARMAR · Answer

Improvement area --> SC

You took more time on the first 50% questions than you did for the questions in the 2nd half; especially for the last quartile the average time you spent per question is 30 seconds lesser than for the questions in the first half. Practice more SC questions and improve your timing. Also, try to get a Q49+.

GMATWhizTeam · Answer

Great!! Looking forward

ahsanashfaq28 · Answer

Hi Rich,

Thanks for your encouraging remarks. Means a lot especially after the below average performance in the second attempt.

I discussed with some of the admission consultants and all of them suggested me to improve my Gmat score by at least 20 points because I belong to the overrepresented applicant pool (Male Engineer from subcontinent)

1. Hours studied: 8-12 hrs/week
2. For the first attempt, I joined one of the GMAT coaching center here in Pakistan.
3. First I completed e-gmat course in the first 3 months, then I solved OG's and mocks.
mock 1 4th Oct 720 (Q50 V38)
mock 2 7th Oct 740 (Q50 V41)
mock 3 28th Oct 760 (Q50 V42)
mock 4 30th Oct 740 (Q50 V 40)
mock 5 2nd Nov 710 (Q49 V 38)
mock 6 6th Nov 710 (Q49 V37)

4. I am aiming for 740
5. Targeting top 15 US B-schools

Regards,
Ahsan

ahsanashfaq28 · Answer

Hi Sott,

In mocks, my accuracy level was approx. 70% in SC. But according to ESR, my accuracy level was 50% on the exam day.

Yes, SC is the weakest portion in Verbal.

Regards,
Ahsan

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Ahsan,

I've sent you a PM with an analysis of your ESR and some additional questions.

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

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Understood. Here is a perfect article for you then:

GMAT Sentence Correction: 8 Essential Tips

ahsanashfaq28 · Answer

GMATNinja  Would really like to have your inputs on my ESR?

AliTariqPrepVista · Answer

SC it is. Do you have any process/protocol in place? Try reading the Sentence for the intended meaning of the author. For a lot of questions, you can get the answer really fast. For instance, have a look at this SC: https://gmatclub.com/forum/?href=-prep-s ... 93932.html If you read it for the meaning, you can very easily identify that and is not the right tool for contrast( as I mentioned there). It is a tool of parallelism( a parallel marker). Reading an SC for meaning can save time and you identify meaning errors really fast.

ESR Analysis - GMAT 710 to 700 to 720 - Experts please help

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