Devastated after a poor 520 in GMAT

Question

V16/Q47

I am totally devastated with my performance in GMAT. 
Is there a way to improve?

getsunny · Answer

Hi rickkkyrich, I can understand the disappointment that you're feeling. However, I think you can take 1 major positive from your 1st attempt - your quant score. This means that you can definitely improve your score by leaps and bounds by improving your verbal score and maintaining/slightly improving your verbal score. Many people have done it, and so can you - just keep the confidence and self-belief up! To start with, I think you should check out the following link that would help you understand the dynamics of a retake: should-i-retake-gmat-thread-retaking-gmat-strategies-83339.html Secondly, develop a study schedule based on the time you have for the retake, the number of hours you can put in everyday, and what your weaknesses are. Be very realistic about this, because an overambitious schedule can demoralize you if it doesn't work. You can create a study schedule by assessing your past mock tests. Try to figure out your weak areas, and then go a level deeper by determing specific topics that you need to work on. For instance, if CR is your weak area, which type of CR questions are you getting wrong. Focus most on Weaken/Strengthen/Assumption type questions as they come most frequently in the GMAT. Similarly, find out your specific weak areas in each section. Thirdly, develop a strategy to tackle each specific weak area. This should be the strategy that you would apply on every question of that type, every single time. This should become second nature to you. This would help you in keeping calm during the exam and going with the flow as and when different question types appear. Finally, stay calm and confident. Looking at your score, I think your verbal score could have suffered due to panic or stress during the exam. It could also be because of timing issues. You should try to assess these factors as well, as they play a major role in determining your performance on the main exam. For getting some motivation, check out the following debrief of someone who went from a 590 to a 770 in 1 month. This should definitely boost your morale

retake-experience-from-590-to-770-in-one-month-159957.html Let me know if I can answer any specific questions that you have. All the best!

GMATPill · Answer

Sorry to hear that. At V16 -- you need some fundamental review --- put extra emphasis on SC first. Because better understanding of sentence structure and meaning will help you to better understand CR and RC passages. You should begin with SC --and really focus on that first. You may benefit from our Verbal course, which does a great job with SC through video learning.

For motivation, you may be interested in this post from another student who was at 490 and jumped to 630 in 25 days: my-gmat-story-490-to-630-in-25-days-175818.html

efrtls · Answer

Perhaps start with the mangattan verbal fundamentals and move onto the SC next. Developing a solid understanding of the english language will help you a lot.

I also believe doing sc first will help you in understanding rc and cr questions more efficiently, helping you increase your verbal mark.

Don't feel too bad about your mark. Your quant score is great!

crashVcrush · Answer

I'll try to answer in 2 parts....first in response to can I improve...buddy believe me, its all in the mind...u just need to shun that load of fear.....my prose below is an effort towards....

2nd...How ?
sc is the easiest to improve.....u have to learn to PARSE ie breaking down every answer choice into the main concepts tested....modifier, parallelism, sv agreement.

go through ron purewals video on mgmat vimeo " thursdays with ron " on each of the above...

then go through his video on " new ways to deal sc"....there u wll learn about parsing

come back and try to parse first 50 og qns...say take modifier...what is the modifier, what is it modifying, where is it placed....then dont solve the qn...only strike off the ones that u think is not modifying properly....thats it n move on...after 50 qns come back n see whether u hvnt struck off the right answer...had u struck off the right answer check the explanation to find what modification u cldnt identify......practise in this way for all sv, parallelism too...this wll strengthen ur fundamentals and believe me when u approach a qn next time, u wll b able to spot the error bang on......trust me, this approach wll do wonders.......

for cr : go through his video...u just hv 2 hv ur common sense...forget everything...try to see whethet u are able to understand what the argument is saying in lay mans words...if yes, without looking at the answrrs write ur own answer atleast 2 for the first 50 og qns.....u wll b amazed to find how atructured ur thought ptocess has become n now u dont seqrch through the maze of 5 choices but the answer just leaps oit infront of u.

for rc : my take, read it well...understand...try to understand the transition words such ad however, thrrefore, inaddition...the first n the last sent of each para gives u some clue...n u wll find they are bind coherently to convey the msg....practise practise practise...n u wll get a hang

dont worry about timing....as ur accuracy increases, fundamentals get strengthened...timing will come..yes, timing is just a fn of time...there are more imp levers to frown upon....

enough of my rambles....

the worst enemy is fear
but, shattering of ur dreams....can u bear?

I dont know, but I fear
try once, the film smeared on the core....can you not tear?

the outcome might not be good...I still fear
may be..but future is far....isn't the present near

I still fear, things might be in a mess
yes, but then you can always redress

I still fear, what if i fail
might be, but then you wll learn, how to sail

I still fear, the magnitude of failure
mmm thats valid...but can you not hear the voices of the Saviour

I still fear, what if I am badly hit
true, you just learnt...you were not a fit

ok ok ok ok....so answer me, Fear, how can I tame?
bro...only remind urself....if u cannot do a thing of ur choice, can u live with shame?

take Fear head on, its a must
And u wll be happy to see, fear biting the dust

just chill bro, u wll surely nail it this time......here, harry moves his magic wand....

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Devastated after a poor 520 in GMAT

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