What difficulty questions should I focus on?

Question

Hi all, I'm preparing for my 3rd GMAT attempt and am hoping to approach studying more efficiently this time. I bought an ESR for my latest attempt (580; V37 and Q34) and saw that for both quant and verbal, I was getting mostly medium or medium-high difficulty questions and I missed a lot of low difficulty questions for verbal. I think one of the factors that brought my score down was that I missed easy/medium questions so my score could not improve.

For my last two attempts, I was practicing all types of difficulty questions and struggled on doing hard questions when my foundations weren't strong yet. Should I practice easy/medium questions until I have a good streak and accuracy and then go to harder questions, or should I just practice questions of all difficulty levels?

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

A Q34 may mean there are some fundamentals on Quant that could still be worked on - perhaps also wee which sub-topics are a bit slippery in general (i.e. coordinate geometry). For a V37, consider working on some Solving Approach (SA) learning. Might boost you into the V40+ range.

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi cannolicookie,

Although practicing questions should be a big part of your study plan, based on what you said here, I think that a big part of what is holding you back is that you may be practicing questions prior to learning the topics on which those questions are based. So, if you can take a more balanced approach to your prep where you first learn about a topic and then practice just that topic until you achieve mastery, I think you will find more success with your prep. For some more information, here is a great article:

The Best Way to Study for the GMAT

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi cannolicookie,

Since it's been approximately 3 months since we last discussed your studies, have you done any studying during that time (and if you did, then what materials were you working with?)?

While the ESR doesn’t provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong on Test Day (and what you should work on to score higher). Since you purchased the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you. If you'd rather not post it in the forums, then you can feel free to PM or email it directly to me.

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

Contact Rich at: [email protected]

RetaketheGMAT · Answer

cannolicookie,

You've already invested a lot of time in study. I'd like to help you focus your future efforts so you get 80 to 90% efficiency -- meaning very little of your study time is wasted.

I can guarantee that a big part of your score gap is related to HOW you're approaching quant and verbal questions. Test Taking Skills are usually the culprit when a lot of study isn't yielding good results.

We offer a FREE 90 minute diagnostic TESTING SIMULATION where an expert GMAT Performance coach takes you through a simulated GMAT exam. It's incredibly effective at figuring out your gaps and helping to accelerate your prep to reach your target score on your next attempt.

Let me know if you're interested. There's zero obligation or selling -- only a ton of insights that will clarify your challenges in reaching your target score.

GMATWhizTeam · Answer

Hi cannolicookie,

I see that you are focusing more on practicing questions, than on the process, which is not the right way to prepare for GMAT. GMAT is a test of application of concepts. So, before you start practicing questions, you should be conceptually clear and learn the right methodology. So, instead of directly practicing questions, make sure that you learn the right process to solve questions. Once you do that, you don't have to worry about the difficulty level of the question.

Important Tip  –  Don’t practice tons of questions directly. First focus on learning the right methods for each question. That plays a significant role in getting hard questions correct within 2 mins.

Please let me know a few more details such as your current study strategy, the resources you are using, the number of hours you can study and your target score. This information, along with your ESR, will help me guide you in a better way. You can schedule a call with me using the link below.

Click here to schedule a call

ReedArnoldMPREP · Answer

A 34 quant is comparable to a 28 verbal, so your Q34 V37 score is very lopsided toward verbal. To get a quant 34, either you are missing several low-difficulty questions and your foundations are weak, or you're running out of time at the end (or both).

If it's not timing, I would hit hard the easiest questions you can find until you're getting them basically 100% correct, and in GMAT pacing (perhaps even faster, since these are low difficulty). Making those automatic will have highest impact on your quant score at the moment.

	Target Test Prep - Save up to $599 $400 Discount + $99 Bonus GMAT Club Tests
	e-GMAT: 60% Off on GMAT Focus Get to 735+ from any starting point
	Magoosh increases your score, guaranteed - 15% off ALL Magoosh GMAT plans with code GMATCLUB15 + Free GMAT Club Tests.
	Manhattan Prep: $99 Bonus Score Higher on Your GMAT Exam. Guaranteed.
	Experts' Global - ~~$1720~~ $960 End-to-End GMAT Prep + App Support: 150+ Videos, 2000+ Questions, 15 FLTs +
	GMATWhiz - $299 ~~$499~~ Experience the course through a free trial.
	GMAT Club Tests - Free Included with every course purchase of $149+ View all deals

What difficulty questions should I focus on?

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards