MGMAT Cat vs GmatPrep Cat

Question

So i scored 610 (Q48,V28) first time taking the GMAT (about 4 month ago). At the time i didn't know about CATs and went in there only studying for about 3 weeks (big mistake).

Afterwards I deciding to take this seriously and studied for a week and got 640 (Q48,V30) in my first GmatPrep,

About 2 month later 700(Q46,V40) in gmatPrep 2nd Cat (focused on Verbal only. Strategies and took my time understanding core concepts. Didn't even touch any Quant this time as my scores have been 48).

At this point i am super excited and hit the books harder than ever, went through my error logs and all. Now I started to focus on both Quant and Verbal. Was aiming at Q49-50 and Verbal 40+

3 weeks after that I decided to start using my MGMAT Cats and took the first one. I ended with 580 (Q37,V33) with the lowest score i have ever gotten.
Questions in there seemed unusually difficult. I ran out of time in Quant and barely finished in time in Verbal.

Next weekend just to be sure i reseted the GmatPrep software and took a Cat again (considering some questions i have seen previously but don't remembered their answers by heart) and scored 720 (Q47,V42).

I was planing on registering for Gmat in 4-6 weeks given that I am scoring near 700 in GmatPrep and my goal is 730+, however because of MGMAT I'm not even sure I am any where close to ready.

Can someone explain this? Why is MGMAT so different than GmatPrep? Should i pay more attention to MGMAT CAT results or GmatPrep?

abhimahna · Answer

Hey, Level of MGMAT is on the higher side than the actual exam or GMAT Prep.

The best source to check your performance is GMAT Prep. You can always buy official exams(e.g. Exam Pack 1 and 2.) from official website(mba.com).

HKD1710 · Answer

Hi  nijat12 ,

GMATPrep scores are more reliable. They are in the range of +/- to the real GMAT score. Algorithm of other test prep companies are different from that of GMAC. So you should rely on GMATPrep only.

Quant in MGMAT is tough. Level of verbal is kind of same as GMATPrep. IMO verbal score in MGMAT are little higher than GMATPrep, if you perform similar in both MGMAT and GMATPrep.

But - Your scores on GMAT Prep COULD BE inflated. Though you said you do not remember the answers but say if you read an RC before and if you remember the idea of passage then it does inflate your score a little.

I would suggest you buy EXAM-PACK-1 and EXAM-PACK-2. This will be real investment. you will get four CATS i.e CAT-3,4,5 & 6. As these are GMATPrep and if you consistently score in a particular range then around the same you would be likely to get in the real GMAT, if nothing blunder happens such as not proper sleep or sickness.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi nijat12,

The scoring algorithm on the Official GMAT is far more complex than most people realize. Since that algorithm is proprietary, no GMAT company has an exact match for it, thus CAT scores can vary a bit based on the 'biases' involved in their respective designs. The most realistic CATs available are the 6 from GMAC (the 2 free CATs, and each of the 2 that come with Exam Pack 1 and Exam Pack 2), but the MGMAT CATs are 'close enough' to the real thing that they should give you a reasonably accurate result (assuming that you use your CATs correctly).

The 'accuracy' of a CAT score is also based on how realistically YOU choose to make the CAT-taking process. If you retake a CAT that you've already taken, skip sections, pause the Test, take it at home, take it at a different time of day as when you take your Official GMAT, do anything else that is unrealistic, etc., then your score is likely to be less accurate.

This is all meant to say that you CAN train to score at a high level on the Official GMAT, but you have to make sure that you're training to face the specifics of Test Day.

1) What is your goal score?
2) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
3) What Schools are you planning to apply to?

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

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Hi,

The Quant side of Manhattan GMAT is tough than GMAT prep. Normally if you repeatedly getting Q47 on Manhattan GMAT your probable score on the real one could be Q50

KarishmaB · Answer

Though the score of GMAT Prep would be considered more reliable, it is certainly a bit unusual to see a variation of 140 points.

I would suggest you to try out our free practice test - https://www.gmatclub.com/forum/veritas-prep-resource-links-no-longer-available-399979.html#/free-g ... tice-test/
A 700+ on this would be quite reassuring.
We have designed our practice tests to simulate the official GMAT as closely as possible, both in terms of question quality and how the computer-adaptive algorithm determines your ability level and chooses which questions you see. Our GMAT practice tests draw from a pool of more than 1,400 realistic GMAT questions, each of which is measured on multiple attributes that go far deeper than simply “easy / medium / hard.” Given the adaptive nature of our practice tests, no two test instances will be exactly the same.

nijat12 · Answer

1) 740 is my target score
2) Next year round 1
3) Harvard, MIT, Stanford

I just took MGMAT CAT #2 and got 650 (Q44 V35). I timed only the verbal (had about 3 mins left when i was done). On the Quant i spent an extra 50 mins to finish them all. I took a look at the way MGMAT gives out the difficulty levels of their questions and notice that in quant the first half of the exam is all 700-800 levels no matter if i get them right or wrong. I feel like that gets me mentally tired really quick and towards the end i don't have as much endurance left. Also the Verbal ones seem much tougher than GMAC. Maybe it is good to take MGMAT to improve endurance and take GMAC's exam pack here and there for a more accurate benchmark?

I am also reaching a point where i can focus on an area (like SC or CR) and improve there but in the same time i would notice a reduction in a different area (RC or DS). It constantly feels like trying to fill up 5 different cups with water while every single one of them has a small hole in the bottom. If I focus on one cup the others deplete

I will take a sample veritas one this weekend and compare.

Thank you

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi nijat12,

Considering your score goal - and the type of 'precision' that is required to score at that level - you really need to be more rigorous about how you take your CATs. Retaking a CAT that you've already taken is NOT realistic. Spending an extra 50 minutes on the Quant section of a CAT is NOT realistic. The GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam that you CAN train for, but your description of how you took these two CATs shows that you're not properly training in a realistic way. To put together a plan to hone your GMAT skills to the necessary level, we need accurate data that can only be obtained by taking a CAT (or the Official GMAT) under realistic and test-like conditions... and right now we don't have the data that we need.

I suggest that you study as you see fit for the rest of this week, then take a NEW FULL-LENGTH CAT under realistic conditions - meaning that you should take a CAT that you have NOT taken before, without spending any extra time on any of the sections, in a location that is NOT your home, at the same time of day as your Official GMAT and you must complete ALL sections (including the Essay and IR sections). Once you have that score you should report back and we can discuss how best to proceed.

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

ashwink · Answer

MGMAT CATs are a little harder than the GMATprep CATs but still there shouldn't be this big a difference?

gmathopeful19 · Answer

MGMAT quant or verbal (but that's another topic) aren't realistic. They are great for helping you with test taking strategies such as educated guessing under pressure and looking for the most efficient methods for each type of question. Additionally, their explanations are superb. So they do have a benefit but I think stress people out too much.

To measure your true skill/score take only gmat prep tests. MGMAT is not a good indicator of score

Sent from my iPhone using  GMAT Club Forum mobile app

rohan2345 · Answer

I was in a similar situation during my initial preparations. Do remember that Manhattan GMAT practice tests are a notch tougher than the actual GMAT. Manhattan prep test's Quant section is one of the toughest so please do not get disheartened by your score in them. Here is my full review of the tests.

MGMAT tests are one of the best tests available in the market. They are a notch tougher than the real GMAT which makes it worth practicing with.

Quant- MGMAT quant is one of the toughest quant tests out there. The difficulty level of the questions is much higher than the GMATPREP or even the actual GMAT. I always ran out of time while practicing MGMAT tests which never happened on the GMATPREP tests. Secondly I felt that the quant questions on the MGMAT tests involved intensive calculation. However practicing higher difficulty questions definitely prepares you well for the actual test.

Verbal- I felt the verbal section was a level below the actual GMAT. There were a few SC and CR questions with which I didn’t agree with but overall nice and challenging questions. RC was definitely tough and more often included long passages. Overall a decent practice.

Post test analysis- I loved this part as they give you a nice detailed analysis of your test which helps the test taker evaluate their tests in details and MGMAT has great explanations for all the questions which helps the test taker improve their weak areas.

Scoring Algorithm- I normally scored much lower than my GMAT PREP Tests and even my actual GMAT. My low scores were mainly because of low quant score.

Overall I think the tests are great for practice, however none of the practice test can match up to the GMAT PREP software.

nijat12 · Answer

Hi EMPOWERgmatRichC,

I always take CATs inside our local library quite areas with noise canceling headphones and around the same time as the GMAT tests offered in my area (noon). Only time the CATs weren't completely similar to the original GMAT was when i scored 720 (reset exam from GMATprep) and the 650 MGMAT (when i didn't time the quant section).

This weekend i decided to buy the Exam Pack 1 and take the first test just like all the others, at the library with headphones, did the essay and IR (always get 7 including this one) and scored 650 (Q49 V30).

Reviewing my answer choices for Verbal i realized that in verbal about 5 times i picked the right answer and changed it last second due to some doubt (stupid). From now on I need to figure out a better way to focus on Verbal while maintaining my quant score. I will continue using MGMAT CATs (since i still have 4 left) every weekend as a means to practice and will take GMATprep Exam Pack tests to better gauge my score level.

I still don't understand how i scored 700 then 720 but now am scoring back down to 650. My scores seem to be all over the place.

nahid78 · Answer

MGMAT tests are much tougher than official tests. Your tests' scores indicate that you can score 650+ in the original exam. Good luck pal.

Hero8888 · Answer

My real GMAT score was 630 (q44 v33), and I improved my quant and vebal, and I get 690-700 (with q48 on a worst day) on real GMAT Prep test without repetition. I tried MGMAT a couple of days ago and got 600 (q44, v30). I'm not sure about how adequate is this score. There are several issues with MGMAT CATs:

1. It gave me 800 level RC on the 3rd question. And this is something unreal to expect on GMAT. Your chances to make mistake in first part of the test have increased, and we know that this is crucial to maintain first 10 correct to get high score.
2. Some quant questions are of a length of some CR questions. What I mean is that I spend more than 1 minute to read each question stem.
3. CR questions are the worst part. Sorry guys from MGMAT, but the logic you apply is the way below one used in brilliant CR questions on real GMAT.
4. SC and RC questions look quite GMAT-ish.

MGMAT Cat vs GmatPrep Cat

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