Learned the concepts, but still have a low score

Question

Hello, everyone! 
 Need an advice from you guys. 
So, as mentioned in the name of the topic, I don't have any problems with concepts, but my score won't grow up. In my last attempt,  I scored 640 (Q46; V31), this score disappointed me a lot, coz before the exam I scored 730 on MGMAT and 710 on GmatPREP.
 I don't know whether it is reasonable to hire a tutor if I'm already familiar with concepts. 
 What should I do? 
Have you faced a similar situation? If you did, how did you overcome it?

EducationAisle · Answer

Hi  13ira23 , as you would know there are  six  official tests available. Did you consistently score 700+ in all/most of them? If yes, then obviously the test day didn't do justice to your abilities. Hence, there is no need for any tutoring/classes.

Basically do some  honest  introspection and you would all the answers:).

13ira23 · Answer

My score range was 680 to 750 on tests (both MGMAT and GmatPrep). That is why I was so surprised to see 640 on the screen. 
Obviously, I screwed up. But now, I'm looking for the way to fix it. If you know how, please, I'm open to any suggestions

EducationAisle · Answer

Few questions:

i) Were you anxious on the day of the exam that could have contributed to your low score?

ii) On the mocks, did you get questions that you had already solved as part of assignments/practice questions? If yes, that could have inflated your scores in mocks

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi 13ira23,

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) How long have you studied?
2) What study materials have you used so far?
3) How have you scored on each of your CATs (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for each)?
4) How many times have you taken the Official GMAT - and how did you score on each?

Goals:
5) What is your goal score?
6) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
7) What Schools are you planning to apply to?

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

adkikani · Answer

Hi  13ira23

See if  this  post helps.

Also getting an ESR will be wise decision to know what happened.

Hope this helps!

13ira23 · Answer

Hello! Thanx for your reply  EMPOWERgmatRichC

1) For almost a year
2) Manhattan books (MGMAT tests); OG; EmpowerGmat (1 month); Some video lessons (with tricks and shortcuts)
3) Last 6 CATs score range was 680 to 750 on tests (both MGMAT and GmatPrep) 
4) First one: 530 (Q48 V22)
 Second one: 640 (Q46 V31)
5) Goal score is 740 (My GPA in American scale is about 3.40, so I need to show that in reality, I don't have any problem with academic part of my application)
6) I planned to apply in the 3-d round this year, but it seems like it's better to apply next year 1-st round
7) - . Their scores averages range from 680 to 720.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi 13ira23,

From your post, it's not clear how you studied for the past year, so I'm hoping that you can provide additional details about your studies and your CATs:

1) How many hours did you study each week? Did you take any "time off" from your studies during the last year?
2) On what dates did you take your 2 Official GMATs?
3) How many CATs did you take?

When 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 when you took 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 take any of these CATs BEFORE? Had you seen any of the questions BEFORE (re: in an online forum or in a practice set)?

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

13ira23 · Answer

EMPOWERgmatRichC 
1) 2-5 hours a day (on weekends I used to have rest from exam)
2) July 2017 and January 2018
3) about 10

1) About 7/10 CATs have been taken with IR and AWA
2) Yes
3) I'm a morning person and I took CATs in the morning. And My last exam started at 9am.
4) It happened a couple of times. Coz u know sometimes the real life can't wait, so I was forced to pause the exam or take a longer break.
5) Not so often. For instance, in my last CAT I scored 740 and there was no question that I have seen.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi 13ira23,

Since you took the GMAT this month, the difference between your Official 640 and this recent 740 implies that either something was unrealistic during practice or something was surprising (or not accounted for) on Test Day. From your prior post, there were some 'red flags' in terms of how you took your CATs. Before we discuss those details though, I have a few additional questions about the lead-up to your recent Official GMAT and Test Day itself:

1) What did you do in the 3 days before your GMAT?
2) How did you sleep the night before your Test?
3) How long was the ride to the Test Center from your home?
4) Were there any distractions at the facility or during the Test?
5) What did you do during the two 8-minute breaks?
6) Did you finish any sections early?
7) Did you have to rush to finish any sections (and guess on questions just to finish on time)?

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

13ira23 · Answer

EMPOWERgmatRichC 
1,2,3,4,5) So the test center is about 1000km from my hometown, so I stayed at my friends' house. I slept well. 3 days before the exam I was preparing only. There were no distractions and during the break I was having a meal. In general, I haven't experienced any problems from this point
6) I finished Quant about 5 minutes earlier. And I felt like questions were too easy. Except for maybe 2 questions that I had to guess coz I had no idea how to solve them.
7) But the Verbal was a real problem for me. With CR I felt confident. But RC and some SC made me feel confused time to time. I guessed some questions in those sections and towards the end I was in rush.

So, what I have to do now?

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi 13ira23,

Based on everything that you've described, there were a number of factors that impacted your performance on Test Day. I've sent you a PM with some notes and suggestions.

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

13ira23 · Answer

If someone else has any advice for me on this topic, please, share your thoughts!

Learned the concepts, but still have a low score

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