Good score in official Gmat prep test 1

Question

I got a score of 650 in the free official GMAT prep test 1. I have bought the OG and started working, I intend to register for the exam after 1 month, I want to immensely improve my verbal without any paid courses online. Is the GMAT Club grammar book sufficient?

Toffelfabriken · Answer

For learning how to solve GMAT questions quickly and efficiently, there are many resources available, listed here and here. Be advised however that the OG does not teach you how to solve GMAT questions. It is great for later on in your prep when you need official questions to practice on, but your development will likely stagnate relatively quickly if you start off using the OG.

When it comes to verbal, are you aware of which areas are your weakest, be it reading comprehension, critical reasoning or sentence correction?

When it comes to verbal, are you aware of which areas are your weakest, be it reading comprehension, critical reasoning or sentence correction?

Kinshook · Answer

Hi  niceguyvin 
First you need to give a few mock tests to identify your areas of weakness in verbal section and need to refresh your concepts and practice well. 
Manhattan GMAT books & OG may be good books to start with.

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  niceguyvin . First of all, let me congratulate you on a very high entry point on your first official practice test. Provided you have not seen the questions before and took the test under relatively realistic conditions, that is an excellent score. Many people who eventually push into the 700s, especially those who work on a shorter prep schedule, start in the 600s. I agree with what has been written above. No, the in-house grammar book is not enough to get you to where you want to be regarding SC questions. In fact, some of the exercises contain debatable answers in the name of making a particular point, and that can actually prove a hindrance to your understanding and your approach to questions. (I am not saying it is a terrible resource, just that it has flaws; to someone looking at it for guidance, it may prove troublesome in parts.) If you want to pursue the cheapest way to learn Verbal strategy, read the Ultimate Beginners' Guides series by  GMATNinja  (found in the signature of any post by Charles); when you go through OG questions, look them up in the forum and read through the community dialogue, particularly the responses of Experts, and take notes on what could help you improve your own approach; practice official questions by choosing certain tags in the  Question Index  on this site. Do not rush. Take your time to understand how the question is put together so that you can better unravel it or one like it. You will notice a rapid progression at first. Once you hit a plateau, that is the point at which you can seek further guidance, especially after you have more data in hand from another practice test.

To be clear, I am  not  making the above suggestions in lieu of what others have written; rather, I am complementing them by pointing you to other (even cheaper) resources, those that I consider to be top notch.

Good luck with your studies.

- Andrew

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi niceguyvin,

Assuming that you took this practice CAT in a realistic fashion that matches-up with what you will face when you take the Official GMAT, this 650 is a fantastic initial CAT Score (the average score on the Official GMAT hovers around 550 most years). Many GMATers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores though - and while it's not clear how long you have been studying, if you are going to 'limit' your studies to just 1 more month, then there might be a limit to how much you improve.

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) What were the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for this CAT? Is this the only CAT/mock that you've taken so far or were there others?
2) How long have you studied in total? How many hours do you typically study each week?

Goals:
3) What is your overall goal score?
4) 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

niceguyvin · Answer

My score was Q 49 V 29, I had not been preparing for anything, I gave the test before starting my preparation to analyze my weaker section and then make a study plan accordingly. I am a Computer Science undergrad in my final year, I intend to apply for Master in Management(MiM) programs for 2021/22, since I don't have any relevant work experience I hope to make up for it with my GMAT score, so I am targeting 730+. The deadlines for round one of admissions is November 2020 which gives me around 2 months for GMAT and TOEFL as well as preparing my SOP, I haven't started researching about the latter two things, so I don't know how much time they would require.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi niceguyvin,

Statistically-speaking, raising a 650 to the point that you can consistently score 730+ will likely require at least another 1.5 - 2 months of consistent, guided study - although you might need more or less time depending on how you proceed with your studies. Considering the other aspects of your application that will also have to work on over the next several months, I suggest that you do a bit more research into how much time you will likely need to commit to those other areas (so that you can properly plan out an overall study timeline). To be efficient with your studies going forward (for both the GMAT and the TOEFL), you would likely find it beneficial to invest in a prep Course of some type (for each Exam). You might also find it helpful to prepare for the TOEFL first (as many of the skills that you will learn for that Exam will ALSO help you to prepare for the GMAT.

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

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