How to reach 650 from 470 !! Really disappointed with scores

Question

I gave my gmat and i secured only 470 (Q40 V 15) after preparing for 2 months !!
I practiced mostly from GMAT club and gave my classes mocks and 2 GMAT PREPS in which i got 450 (Q 33 V16) and 530 (Q44 and V 21) respectively.
I am really disappointed with scores after all hard work and time i put into GMAT please suggest me the way to reach 650.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi amalganatra,

Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores, so it's likely that you just have not put in enough time and effort to have scored higher yet. Since your score goal is 650+, and you never scored higher than 530 on a practice CAT, there's some question as to why you did not push back your Exam. Thankfully, the GMAT is a consistent, predictable Exam, so you CAN train to score at a higher level.

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:

1) What study materials have you used so far?
2) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
3) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
4) Going forward, how many hours do you think you can consistently study each week?

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

fighterboy · Answer

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi amalganatra,

From what you've described, it certainly sounds as though you worked through lots of practice questions - but it's not clear if you were committed to learning and practicing the proper Tactics. Raising a 470 to a 650+ will likely take at least another 3 months of consistent, guided study - and you'll have to make significant improvements to how you handle BOTH the Quant and Verbal sections. You would likely benefit a great deal from investing in a GMAT Course of some type (either Guided Self-Study or instructor-led).

Studying 40-50 hours each week is probably too much studying; by putting in that much work every week, you would likely increase your chances of 'burning out' before Test Day - and that is something that you want to avoid. Since you've shifted your application plans, you have plenty of time to study - which is good. At this point, it's a matter of how you want to proceed. You can certainly study as you choose or you could commit to a more focused, structured Study Plan that emphasizes the exact skills you'll need to develop to hit your Score Goal.

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

egmat · Answer

amalganatra – Given your mock test scores, you actual GMAT score is not a surprise at all. In fact, your performance has been quite consistent. Having said that, I agree with Rich that to improve to 650 or higher, you need to be committed to learning. Just practicing will not get you there.

Here is the success story of a guy who improved from 510 to 710.

https://e-gmat.wistia.com/medias/lb4y2cuiex

Listen to this to learn how his focus on learning enables him to improve. He graduated from ISB some time back and has an enviable career.

-Rajat

How to reach 650 from 470 !! Really disappointed with scores

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