Depressed due to DI and Verbal repeated failures

Question

Hi all,

I gave my 5th FE attempt today- once again I managed to not hit my target of 700+

While I got 88 in Q (had a Q90 in the last attempt) I’m just struggling to cross 80 in Verbal and DI. For some reason despite practising questions from the OG, GMAT Club and scoring roughly 85-86 in both these sections in official mocks, I’m struggling to make it work in the actual exam. It’s like when I’m practicing I feel the level of the test is way different than the actual exam. I don’t know if I have it in me to give the exam again, I’ve taken a lot of time and focus off work and my personal life to make this work since last year- unfortunately I’m struggling to break through. Coming from a low GPA and GEM background with target of t20 US B schools- I feel my best score of 665 so far won’t get me to my goal. I’m honestly stuck, frustrated and burnt out at the same time, without knowing where exactly I’m going wrong. Attaching my previous 4 score results in the thread, hoping I can get something meaningful that helps me.

Thanks and I wish you all a good day.

AllisonBell · Answer

Hey,

I'm sorry you're hitting a low point. The GMAT journey can be really grueling, and you’re at one of the toughest points — crossing from the upper 600s to 700+.

First, a quick note —  have you seen yesterday’s news about the new GMAT Superscore ? Starting in August, you’ll be able to get a Superscore on your score reports that combines the highest section scores from all GMAT Focus tests you’ve taken. It’ll be sent to schools along with the score from your strongest single sitting. Even though you’ve already taken these tests, you’ll be able to do this retroactively for all sittings of the GMAT Focus.

Second,  congratulations on a Q90  — wow! While I’m not an admissions expert, I’ll note that that’s certainly something schools will find impressive.

When I look through your score reports, I see that you’ve constantly gotten a Verbal score above 80, and DI seems to be consistently the lowest. First, I’m curious —  what section order are you using?  I ask because Data Insights is very detail-intensive, and sometimes that means it’s helpful to put it first, when your attention is freshest.

For Data Insights: One thing I notice on your score reports is that time management is significantly impacting your score. On each GMAT section, the way the scoring algorithm works,  where you end is what you get.  So even though you’re probably getting some high-difficulty problems correct early on, those strings of wrong answers at the end are really hurting you.

On average, you should  spend about 2 minutes per problem in Data Insights . On these score reports, I see some problems that took 5 - 8 minutes. That’s understandable — some of these problems are really tough and time consuming! But no problem is worth more than 3:30. When you spend eight minutes on a problem, you’re setting yourself up to run out of time. Each time you miss a problem, the GMAT gives you a less difficult problem, so when you get a string of wrong answers, the difficulty drops significantly. And when that happens at the end, you don’t have time to recover and show the GMAT what you can do. So you give the GMAT the impression that you can’t do low difficulty problems, and it gives you a lower score accordingly.

The first thing I’d recommend that you do is  learn and practice a proven strategy for time management on Data Insights,  one that guides you when to move on from a question. I’m a big fan of the Yellow Pad Strategy, outlined here in   Everything You Need to Know About GMAT Time Management  . I see similar, though less extreme, time management issues popping up in your Verbal sections, too, and that article will provide guidance for benchmarks on Verbal as well.

Best of luck! Happy to take follow-up questions!

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

The frustration and burnout you're describing make complete sense, but it doesn't mean you can't get there. In fact, you're stronger than it feels right now. A Q88, with a Q90 last time, is elite. That section is essentially done, so this isn't a case of being broadly underprepared. The whole gap between your best of 665 and your 700+ target now lives in two sections: Verbal and Data Insights.

The clue that matters most is scoring 85 to 86 in Verbal and DI on official mocks but struggling to cross 80 on the real exam. That usually comes down to two things at once. The first is how you've practiced. Working questions from the Official Guide and GMAT Club builds familiarity, but familiarity with specific questions isn't the same as mastery of the underlying reasoning. Your practice accuracy can sit higher than your true skill because recognition is carrying part of it. Test day puts unfamiliar questions in front of you, the recognition doesn't transfer, and the score reflects the gap. That's likely why the exam "feels like a different level." It isn't harder; it's exposing the difference between working a lot of questions and truly mastering the content. The second factor is test-day pressure, which after five attempts would be hard to rule out. Many well-prepared test-takers go blank in the moment, then realize afterward they knew the material. Both can be true at once, and in your case I'd bet they are.

So the fix has two halves. On content, step away from open-ended drilling and rebuild Verbal and DI through systematic, topic-by-topic mastery: isolate one topic, relearn the reasoning, then practice it untimed until accuracy is high and the approach is automatic. For every miss, diagnose the cause (concept gap, misread, careless error, or trap), then redo it from scratch days later. Only then layer timing back in. That depth is what holds up on unfamiliar questions. DI also leans on Quant and Verbal skills, so sharper Verbal tends to lift DI with it. On nerves, practice under realistic conditions, build a couple of simple in-the-moment resets, and drop the need to be perfect on every question.

On whether to sit again, I wouldn't decide that from where you are right now. Pushing into a sixth attempt on empty is how good prep gets wasted. With a lower GPA and an over-represented profile, a stronger score does carry real weight, so the 700+ goal is worth pursuing, but only once you've recovered enough to study well and walk in steady. Take a real, guilt-free break first. Then, when you actually want to return, rebuild Verbal and DI the structured way above and treat the gap as both a depth and a nerves problem.

This article covers exactly why a real score lands below practice scores and how to close it:  Why Was My GMAT Score Lower Than My Practice Test Scores?

SarfrazAP · Answer

First, 665 is a very good score. Especially your quant score, since that is the one that matters most to Bschools. I don't know why you think that will not cut it at the top 20 schools. I have had people with far lower scores get into those schools. If your GPA is really low, you can always use the optional essay to explain that.

About improving your score, I can only provide some pointers if I know what prep you've done so far. However, since you've taken the test 5 times already, you'll be carrying a lot of mental baggage that will all come into play on the actual test day.

I think you are in a much stronger place than you think you are. If I were you, I'd be focusing on my essays and LoRs. If there are specific things you wish to discuss about your profile or GMAT prep, feel free to DM me.

PrepSignals · Answer

First, I’m sorry. After 5 attempts, feeling burnt out is completely understandable. This sounds less like “you don’t have it in you” and more like a test-day translation problem: your official mocks show V/DI 85-86, but the real exam is pulling you below 80.

At this point, I would not just do more OG/GMAT Club questions. You need a reset and diagnosis.

A few thoughts:

- Q88/Q90 means Quant is not the issue. Keep it warm, but don’t spend your best energy there.
- If Verbal and DI drop only on the real exam, look at timing, fatigue, anxiety, and section order.
- Don’t compare practice accuracy to exam score unless practice is fully timed, mixed, and done under fatigue.
- For DI especially, the real exam can feel heavier because you are already mentally loaded. You need strict “quit rules” for dense questions.
- For Verbal, review by reasoning error, not question type: scope shift, extreme wording, missed qualifier, wrong conclusion, outside assumption, etc.

I’d honestly take 10-14 days off first. No hard prep. Then decide whether one final attempt is worth it. If yes, make it a 4-5 week execution plan, not a content plan: timed mixed V/DI sets, full-section stamina, section-order testing, and post-set review of slow correct answers.

For T20 US schools as a GEM with low GPA, 665 may be below ideal, but it is not the whole application. Work impact, essays, recommendations, and school selection matter a lot. A tired 6th attempt without a new diagnosis may not help.

I built a free GMAT planning tool from real debrief patterns that may help compare 665-to-700+ paths and see what changed for people who were stuck: prepsignals.vercel.app

Main advice: pause first, then change the system. More grinding in the same mode will probably just deepen burnout.

Depressed due to DI and Verbal repeated failures

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