690 to 680 Serious Quant Struggles

Question

First of all, I want to thank all of the helpful folks on this site. I've used it for a long time, but I've never posted until now. I took the GMAT for the second time last Friday, March 18th and was seriously disappointed with the score. I got a 680 (Q42 V41) after getting a 690 (Q42, V42) in December 2015. I ultimately decided to cancel the 680. Since my Q42 in December was the 50th percentile, I felt like I could get some "low hanging fruit" by focusing my efforts on basic quant concepts, but my strategy clearly didn't work.

Between December and March, I exclusively studied quant, using video lessons from Magoosh and the OG / OG Quant review. I also used questions from the Gmat Prep Pack. Prior to my most recent test, my GMAT Prep practice scores were 700 (Q45, V40) and 710 (Q44, V42). The official test quant questions felt much harder than Gmat Prep.

I've never been a natural at quant and I have to say that I don't have a ton of confidence in my quant abilities. Because of this, I worked really hard on the fundamentals. I spent a lot of time on basic concept review and solving OG / OG quant review problems. I learned to solve just about every question in the OG / OG quant review in well under 2 mins (most of them in more than 1 way). I always timed my practice, and I kept a meticulous error log but struggled to find any common mistakes aside from really stupid mistakes (12+6 = 16, or 1/5 of 20 equals 5). I definitely understand the quant concepts, but I really struggle to apply them to new material, especially when it's presented in a tricky way under timed conditions. I really figured that if I could confidently solve all of the OG / Quant review questions, I would be in a good place to improve my score, but on the actual test the questions felt foreign and it seemed like I was guessing more often than not.

Based on my undergrad transcripts and lack of quant related work experience, I have no chance of getting into the schools I want with a Q42. At this point I'm wondering if I've exhausted all of the resources / hit my peak. I would have loved to have hit a Q47 - 48 but after this last experience it seems like I'm light years away from that. Any suggestions are very much appreciated! Normally I would just accept my score and move on but for some reason I'm having trouble letting this go..

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi JAG45,

First off, a 690 is a fantastic score (it's just shy of the 90th percentile overall), so you should apply to any Business Schools that interest you. The Q42 would likely be a 'red flag' at highly competitive Finance Programs, but it likely wouldn't hurt you at any other Program. As such, a retest might not be necessary. This sounds like something of an Admissions issue, so you would likely find it beneficial to speak with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile. There's a Forum full of them here:

ask-admission-consultants-124/

1) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
2) When are you planning to apply?

While I think that you could absolutely improve your Quant Scaled Score, the fact that your two Official GMAT Scores are essentially the same means that you continue to 'see' (and respond to) the GMAT in the same ways as before. This implies that you've likely developed some 'bad habits' that will take time to fix (and replace with new 'good habits'). You seem to understand that you're prone to making silly mistakes and THAT is a big part of your problem. At higher and higher levels, the GMAT becomes really 'sensitive' to little mistakes - with a Q41/Q42, you made a bunch of little mistakes on a variety of gettable questions and you likely missed out on a lot of 'strategy-based' points. The speed with which you could make the necessary adjustments and improve will depend on how flexible you are to learn and practice some new Tactics.

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

JAG45 · Answer

Rich,

Thank you for getting back to me. I appreciate your insight. I am targeting Ross, Fuqua, and Darden. I'd like to apply in the fall for R1. Based on my undergrad transcript (3.2 GPA with a C in calc), and the average Gmat scores for those programs, I assumed that a Q42 just wouldn't cut it. I'll take that up in the admissions forum however, and get their feedback.

Regarding the test, I absolutely felt that I "saw" the exam in the same way both times I took it. Unfortunately, I've been prone to quant mistakes for as long as I can remember and the time pressure really exacerbates those mistakes. It seems like in order to improve, I would have to re-wire my thinking. If I decide on a retake, would you recommend some time away from the material before diving back in? Thanks again for your help!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi JAG45,

You've named some highly competitive Schools, so there's all the more reason to consult with an Admissions Expert about your overall profile and application plans. The 3.2 GPA won't "wow" anyone, but it shouldn't hurt you either. If there's an 'issue' with your undergrad grades, then you could potentially "repair" that issue by taking a college-extension class or two (in Calculus and/or Statistics) before you apply. Getting a high grade in those types of classes would prove that:

1) You DO have the ability to handle that type of thinking.
2) You're rather serious about applying for your MBA (which is why you took, and nailed, the class).

Since you have plenty of time before the Round 1 deadlines, you could conceivably take the GMAT again and score higher. If you choose to do so, then while there's nothing wrong with taking a little time off, you shouldn't wait too long. GMAT skills 'fade' over time, so if all of this material is still fresh in your mind, then a bit more targeted study might be all that you need to make a big improvement.

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

Lazure · Answer

Hi JAG45, I had a very similar struggle to yours. I was not naturally good in maths and I constantly hit the Q42 without being able to move on to a Q48/49 score. I managed to do that, here's my 2 cents about it, I hope it can help, I know how you feel ! To retake or not to retake ? Looking back on my GMAT and application experience, I would definitely advise you to retake : the GMAT is one of the very few elements of the application on which you and you only have control. A score improvement can go a long way to improve your candidacy. Especially for people like you and me who can only display their quantitative abilities through the GMAT. Besides once you stop studying for the GMAT it's almost impossible to get back on the saddle and improve your score (e.g.: if you're waitlisted and you're asked to improve your GMAT score). It is always better to have a good score from the start. would you recommend some time away from the material before diving back in? That being said, it can take A LOT of time to get that Q48. As Rich mentioned I agree that you need to build your maths skills first before working your GMAT maths skills. So yes take some time way from the MGMAT or Veritas Prep guides or whichever material and first make sure your basic maths is rock solid. Know my heart your formulas, roots and exponents, fractions... When you talk about your mistakes, do you know whether there are certain areas where you always make mistakes ? If so, practice with drills, try to eradicate silly mistakes in drills to be less likely to make them in a GMAT question. Once you have done a comprehensive review of maths formulas and practised with drills, by all means dive back in the GMAT materials. It is important to concentrate your study period, tather than span it other several months. I did the latter and it was exhausting and counter-productive ! So I would advise you to try to work hard during a couple weeks, rather than one hour a day during several months.

Other advices: Personally, what helped me to move to a Q48 was to read MGMAT blog posts by Stacey Koprince (she offers great advice regarding your strategy on GMAT questions) and to get a personal tutor for a couple hours. I think that even a 2-hour session can be useful because you come out of it with practical things on which you should work on. It also boosted my confidence which is very important on the GMAT. Another thing that helped me was to work on educated guesses and accept that I won't answer every single questions and I'd be better off guessing on some of them. I listed some techniques on my GMAT story post if it helps. Good luck with everything, I know it is hard but hang in there, it can happen ! :-D

JAG45 · Answer

Lazure,

Thank you very much for your reply. It's great to have your advice, and I agree that practicing non-gmat, fundamental math would boost my accuracy / confidence. My only question is, where can I find this type of material?

I really do think that my problem was spending too much time reviewing GMAT questions, and not enough time building / drilling a rock solid foundation. Even though I felt that I understood the problems after reviewing them, I think I was actually just memorizing and not gaining skills needed to attack new problems.

Thanks!

Lazure · Answer

I used the same maths textbook I had used in high school because they were clear for me. So I would suggest you look for high school maths textbooks and pick the one you prefer working with. Alternatively you can use Gmat Club Maths Book which is also great may be as a second step since there are less detailed explanations than what you would find in a high school textbook but I definitely recommend checking it and see whether it works for you.

For the drills, here's the website I used, which is great:  Maths Aids , it generates random drills on a variety of maths topics. It's good to start your GMAT study time by reciting formulas or doing a few drills as a warm up.

I understand and I had the same problem : I spent too much time making flashcards for each single problem and copying the answer rather than think more of what I should learn and could apply on a new problem. My advice would be to write down not the solution to the individual problem but your take away. So take time to understand the problem but don't write the solution, write your take-away (e.g.: don't forget about similar triangles). 
Also for me it was helpful to do a considerable number of problems because I got to see the variety of questions which exist on the GMAT. This really helped me on the day of the exam because I had seen so many different problems and at some point I started to see a pattern. But as a word of caution I only did this at the very end of my prep when my maths foundations was rock solid and I just needed to go deep into the GMAT techniques.

JAG45 · Answer

Great advice, thanks for your help!

	Manhattan Prep: $99 Bonus Score Higher on Your GMAT Exam. Guaranteed.
	Target Test Prep - Save up to $599 $400 Discount + $99 Bonus GMAT Club Tests
	e-GMAT: 60% Off on GMAT Focus Get to 735+ from any starting point
	Magoosh increases your score, guaranteed - 15% off ALL Magoosh GMAT plans with code GMATCLUB15 + Free GMAT Club Tests.
	Experts' Global - ~~$1720~~ $960 End-to-End GMAT Prep + App Support: 150+ Videos, 2000+ Questions, 15 FLTs +
	GMATWhiz - $299 ~~$499~~ Experience the course through a free trial.
	GMAT Club Tests - Free Included with every course purchase of $149+ View all deals

690 to 680 Serious Quant Struggles

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