Scoring question

Question

I have heard two different sides to this argument so i'm just looking for a clear answer. Is it better to score higher in quant or in verbal? More clearly, will one boost your score more than the other? Thanks in advance.

bhatiagp · Answer

Ideally we all eant to score high in both. But a higher verbal score boosts ur score more than a higher quant score.

oustone85 · Answer

I know scoring questions are tricky to answer when it comes to the gmat but, any idea why that is or by how much?

lsuguy7 · Answer

Here is a quote from a previous question that was similar.

It appears as though you are scoring higher in Math but %tile wise that isn't the case. So a 49, 40 looks like a 9 point difference in score but they are both the same %.

I've attached a copy of the scoring from my official report this might help you understand why verbal scores appear to have a larger impact.

oustone85 · Answer

Thanks for the response. That makes a lot more sense when explained that way.

kidderek · Answer

It's not a good idea to compare a 47q with a 47v. However, the fact of the matter is this:

high V + low Q > low V + high Q

It might only be up to 30 pts, but more closely to 10-20 pts. But remember, even more true might be that where you put forth your efforts is more important. If you have 30 hours left to study, do you want to use that to improve verbal even if putting that effort into quant may yield a higher total score?

I scored higher on quant and felt that had I put more effort into verbal, it really wouldn't have helped me much more. On the other hand, I knew that studying quant would definitely help me improve my score b/c I knew that I  could  improve. Just think wisely when allocating your study time.

lsuguy7 · Answer

I agree you are going to have to allocate your time based on what score you want to get and what your current breakdown is. It really is going to be different for every person. The way I decided this was I want atleast a 700 and I want it to be a balanced score with both sections over 80%. So I set a goal of (48q, 38v) anything over that in either category is lagniappe. I use my practice test to make sure I'm meeting both of these goals and change study time based on the outcomes.

jimmylow · Answer

Take a look at my research on GMAT scoring. Between Verbal and Quant, Verbal carries more weight in pulling up your overall score.

https://gmatmalaysia.blogspot.com/2008/0 ... -have.html

Disclaimer: This is just an indication based on analysis done by MGMAT. I don't know the date of this rubric but I know that MGMAT sends their instructors to take the GMAT test each month to get a feel of the difficult of the questions as well as determine at what score is 99th percentile. Their instructors are all 99th percentile achievers (current 760+)

sm332 · Answer

what ... they send their instructors to take the test every month ... talk about being thorough !!! I wouldnt want to have that job though :roll:

jimmylow · Answer

Well, they pay their instructors US$100 per hour . At this rate, don't you want this job? My job only pays equivalent to US$14.36 per hour :lol:

sm332 · Answer

You have a good point, I dont even want to think about converting my pay on an hourly basis .. it will hurt too much ... if this Bschool business doesnt work out maybe I should think abt this as an alternative career!!!

Anonymous · Answer

I personally think the overall score is what matters. People forget on this board that the score is only one piece to the puzzle, we shouldn't dissect that piece too much.

oustone85 · Answer

Personally, im glad that Verbal carries a little more weight. In my opinion, SC is the easiest portion of the test to noticeably improve in. Plus, I think the RC is the simplest part as well.

jimmylow · Answer

While I agree that the overall score matters, what make up this score is the combination of Verbal and Quant scores. If you look at this rubric, you can do well in Quant but it is the Verbal that makes the difference.

bsd_lover · Answer

Actually this is not true. It is common knowledge that ad-coms look at the score breakdowns in the context of your background. For instance if you are a history major, ad-coms will pay attention to you quant score, since they need to be convinced of your ability to handle tough such b-school quant topics as statistics. Similarly if you are an engineer with a verbal score of 20, but Q score of 51, your ability to write reports / essays during the MBA will be severely put to question.

jlola21

I personally think the overall score is what matters. People forget on this board that the score is only one piece to the puzzle, we shouldn't dissect that piece too much.

jimmylow · Answer

Eg. Tuck allows you to report the highest score for AWA, Quant, Verbal and Overall.

Anonymous · Answer

Oh I am sure they do look at the breakdowns, I was just saying I think there is a common theme on this board where people get a little bit obsessive over the score breakdowns. Of course they are important, but hey - if you got a 700+ no adcom would take that as a bad score! Just trying to be positive here people!

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