Advice Needed - Long RC Passage at the end of the Verbal section

Question

Hi GMAT Club,

In a couple of my practice tests, I've encountered a situation where I get a long RC passage at the end of the exam which makes up the last 3-4 questions of the section. I've always run out of time in these cases and have had to guess the answers.

While I understand that the test can throw any combination of questions at us, I was wondering if there are any tactical solutions/advice that can help me avoid these situations or manage them if they do happen? Should I be aiming for a certain time buffer ?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance!

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  UserMaple5 . One suggestion I have is to track the number of RC passages you have encountered for each set of 10 questions, knowing that you will see four passages across the test, two of which will likely be lengthier. (Each passage will contain an average of 3-4 questions.) I had a client who simply put a slash mark on his noteboard for each passage so that he could anticipate what the test would throw at him. He told me about one official practice test that by the time he had finished the first ten questions, he had already exhausted two passages, and that knowledge gave him a leg up as he continued.

Of course, if timing in general is a problem, then you should work on increasing your understanding of the different question and answer types so that you can decrease your average time spent per question across the board. SC presents probably the easiest target, given that some questions can be solved in under half a minute—there is less reading involved. If you can average even a minute and a half per SC question, you will be buying yourself about 15 seconds for each question attempted, and that can add up to minutes across the test. I would recommend checking out the Beginners' Guides series by  GMATNinja  or, if you prefer, the YouTube series of Verbal videos by the same. By combining theory, practice, and review, you will grow increasingly confident as improved results follow.

Good luck with your studies.

- Andrew

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

Might be worth finding a time management strategy that works for you.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi UserMaple5,

Many GMATers face pacing issues in the Quant section, the Verbal section or both – so you are not alone. However, it's important to remember that pacing problems do NOT exist on their own - they're the results of OTHER problems. If you frequently have to 'rush' through a block of Verbal questions at the end of that section, then there are likely a number of inefficiencies in how you're handling the overall Verbal section up to that point (and those inefficiencies might actually have nothing to do with RC).

Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, 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? How many hours do you typically study each week?
2) What study materials have you used so far? What “brands” of CATs/mocks have you used?
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

GMATWhizTeam · Answer

Hi UserMaple5,

As GMAT is an adaptive test, you need to be smart enough to take the right decision when you encounter such situations during the test. When you get an RC passage at the end of the exam and if you are not confident about your RC skills, then it makes sense to skip those questions and answer the next questions.

But, if you are confident about your RC skills, then it's better to take time and answer those questions and get them right. This way. the algorithm will serve you difficult questions and your chances of scoring high will increase. At the same time, make sure that you don't run of time at the end. You need to have the buffer time to at least mark the options for the last 2 or 3 questions.

Please go through the recording below to understand the test taking strategy in a better way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9dZN-MHK0I

Hope it helped. If you have any more queries related to the GMAT study strategy, feel free to get in touch using the link below.

Click here to schedule a call

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Advice Needed - Long RC Passage at the end of the Verbal section

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