3rd Attempt at GMAT - What should I do?

Question

Hi All,

I just took my 2nd GMAT this past weekend and was really disappointed at the result. My first GMAT was in April and I got a 580 (Q:45 V:25). After that, I realized that I really needed to work on my verbal, so I enrolled in a Manhattan Prep course. Throughout the course, I felt that I learned a lot in terms of content, strategies, and timing. I felt pretty confident going into the test since I took 4 practice tests during and after the class, scoring 500, 630, 640, and 650 (done the Monday prior to the exam). The last score of 650 (Q:42 V:37). For some reason, when I got to the exam's verbal portion, I just blanked out and had a lot of trouble during RC and CR (couldn't think of assumptions and evaluation methods) and had a hard time eliminating answers. This was fairly easy for me during my practice exams. I ended up getting a 610 (Q:41 V:34) I have another exam scheduled in 2 weeks and plan to review all my material thoroughly in those 2 weeks. Does anyone know if I even have a shot at the schools I'm applying to with these scores? (Schools are listed in my profile). I'm afraid of having to take the exam more times even after the 3rd try. I am now planning to apply to schools during round 2 since it looks like I'll have to focus on the GMAT a bit longer.

Also, does anyone know if it's okay to apply to schools past round 2 for any schools with 5 rounds? (3 of the 5 schools I'm applying to have 4 or 5 rounds). Is the rule to just apply prior to the last round?

Thanks everyone in advance for the help!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi dtn528,

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as planned. Based on how you described the Verbal section on the Official GMAT, I have a few questions about how you took your CATs:

1) Did you take the ENTIRE CAT each time (including the Essay and IR sections)?
2) Did you take them at home?
3) Did you take them at the same time of day as your Official GMAT?
4) Did you ever do ANYTHING during your CATs that you couldn't do on Test Day (pause the CAT, skip sections, take longer breaks, etc.)?
5) Did you ever take a CAT more than once? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?

Beyond those questions, what is your actual score goal?

Since you've defined your general application timeline and you've named the Schools that you plan to apply to, you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile. There's a Forum full of them here:

ask-admission-consultants-124/

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

dtn528 · Answer

Hi Rich,

1) I took the full CAT starting from the 2nd one, so i did 3 full CATS. I didn't take any GMATPrep CATs though, just the MGMAT ones.
2) I took all 3/4 in a quiet house. The last one (highest score) surprisingly, I took while my roommates were being loud, and I had to use earplugs, but ended up getting 650.
3) Of the 4 tests, I took 2 around the same time as the actual GMAT. 2 of them, I took after work, around 6-7 PM (my actual GMAT was scheduled at 8 AM). The other 2 I took around 7 AM in the morning, so it was close to the actual time.
4) I followed everything according to test day. I took slightly shorter breaks during my practice exams though.
5) I took the 1st 2 MGMAT tests prior to my first GMAT and had them reset when I started my course, so the 1st 2 were retakes, although the gap between was large (April and July), so I didn't recognize any questions. The last 2 (my highest 2 scores) were new tests.

My GMAT score was 610 (Q: 41 V:34)

Thanks for the help!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi dtn528,

GMAC has publicly stated that the Official Score that you earn on Test Day is within +/- 30 points of actual ability. Assuming a similar 'swing' in how your CATs function, your score results show that you essentially performed the same each time (+/- a few points). By extension, your current ability level is in the low-600s.

Based on the information that you've provided, you took your CATs in a rather inconsistent fashion. As a result, you were NOT properly training to face the Official GMAT - so you were not ready to score at a much higher level on Test Day. Test Day is a rather specific 'event' - the details are specific and they matter, so you have to train as best as you can for all of them. The more realistic you can make your CATs, the more likely the score results are to be accurate. By skipping sections, taking the CATs at home, taking them at different times of day, etc., you weren't properly training for the FULL GMAT 'experience.'

Thankfully, this is a relatively easy set of problems to fix. First and foremost though, you have to define your goal:

1) What is your overall score goal?

The answer to that question will impact how much additional work you have to do. You'll certainly need a new set of practice CATs to work with and you have to put in the necessary time to train your brain (and body) for the Test conditions that you'll face again. You might also need to invest in some new GMAT training materials.

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

dtn528 · Answer

Thanks again Rich.

I think a part of the low score I got could also be attributed to food poisoning or eating something bad the night before. I didn't get good sleep since I woke up around 3 times throughout the night. I was also a bit sick going into the test. Could those also be factors as to why I didn't do as well as I would've liked?

My overall goal would be 700+, but I am okay with getting in the high 600s (670 and up). I still have 2 MGMAT CATs that I haven't taken yet as well as the 2 GMATPrep free CATs.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi dtn528,

Yes, both illness and a poor night's sleep could have significantly impacted your performance (especially later on in the Test when fatigue starts to set in). That's some rather significant information that you didn't include in your original post. Is there anything else noteworthy about the last few days before your GMAT or about Test Day itself?

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

dtn528 · Answer

That's pretty much it. I took the 2 days prior to the test off from work. One that was scheduled and the 2nd due to being sick. I thought I could use the day before to relax before the test, but ended up with the 2 days. I did get some review/studying in because of it though. I studied 3-4 hours the day before the test.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi dtn528,

With a 610/Q41/V34, you have the potential to pick up some serious points in BOTH the Quant and Verbal sections. If your score goal truly is 670+, then you could conceivably pick up those points in 2 weeks, but you'd have a much better chance if you had a month (or more) to continue studying. However, if you're actually really keyed into getting a 700 (meaning that even if you got a 670, you would choose to retest), then taking the GMAT in 2 weeks would not be a good idea (you'd just end up having to pay to retake the GMAT again later on). This is all meant to say that I think that you should pay to push back your Test Date.

Since you were able to score relatively close to your score goal during your studies, you might just need to continue on with your study routine. When reviewing a CAT, one of the things to define is WHY you got questions wrong. On your last CAT, how many questions did you get wrong that you COULD/SHOULD have gotten correct? Those little mistakes and missed opportunities represent your missing points. To score at a significantly higher level, you need to eliminate those mistakes from your work.

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

dtn528 · Answer

Thanks Rich! Appreciate all the advice. I think I'll push back the date since I've decided to go for round 2 and beyond for my deadlines. I'll pay more attention to reviewing my CATs to make sure I don't make the same mistakes next time.

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