Very disappointed with my first exam. 590. What should I do?

Question

I just sat for my first exam And I scored a 590. I was very disappointed by this score because I am targeting a 670.

Practice Test Results 
 
 GMATPrep Test #1 
1st attempt 35Q 28V 530
2nd attempt 46Q 30V . 620

GMATPrep Test #2 
1st attempt 43Q 34V 630
2nd attempt 46Q 39V 690

Gmat prep test 3 47Q 34V 660

GMAT prep test 4 47Q 34V 660

I did not sleep well the night before the test and I was very nervous. But during the test I thought I was doing ok. 
The math portion seemed more difficult than the practice tests, but I thought I was getting a lot right.

What should be my strategy going forward? Should I take practice tests from other companies? I would appreciate any advice for insights.

keats · Answer

What was your breakup? Where did you feel that you faltered? Did you feel any anxiety issues when taking the test?

Sent from my GT-N7100 using  GMAT Club Forum mobile app

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi MarissaP,

To start, what were your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores on this Official GMAT?

I'm sorry to hear that Test Day didn't go as well as planned. When these types of score drops occur, the two likely "causes" involve either something that was unrealistic during practice or something that was surprising (or not accounted for) on Test Day. If you can answer a few questions, then we should be able to figure this out:

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 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) You noted that you had retaken two of your CATs. On your other CATs, had you seen any of the questions BEFORE?

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

MarissaP · Answer

I was so upset at seeing my score I did not take the time to memorize what my breakdown was. My best guess was Q40 V31. (based off what i think my percentiles were and magoosh's grid)

I literally did everything the same. The school that I am targeting does not require essay or IR, they only look at Q and V. I did not do either in any practice exam or on the official. I took all of my practice tests at home except for my last one (660) which I took in an office very similar to the real gmat experience.

I took the gmat at 3:30 pm, honestly I did a lot that day, but nothing very strenuous on the mind. I just tried to keep myself busy to calm nerves. I took all of my practice tests between 8-10 am.

On the CATS that I retook I had seen a few of the questions before, but going through I actually missed some of those, so i do not think it inflated my score terribly. And my Final 2 official practice tests were completely new to me.

I spent the last 15 weeks preparing for this exam, I am prepared to spend another 15. I will appreciate and consider any advice. Thanks!

MarissaP · Answer

What was your breakup? Where did you feel that you faltered? Did you feel any anxiety issues when taking the test?

Yes I did. I felt very nervous all week. And only got 3-4 good hours of sleep the night before. (between my nerves and the baby crying) But when I was taking the test I literally felt like the math questions were harder than what I had practiced in the OG. ( i am able to to just about all of them). The I did have some problems focusing on the verbal section as the print on the screen was much larger than I was used to.

I think I got a Q40, and V31. But I was so upset I didn't take the time to remember, I just had them cancelled and walked out.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi MarissaP,

Test Day is a rather specific 'event' - the details are specific and they matter, so you have to train as best as you can for all of them. The more realistic you can make your CATs, the more likely the score results are to be accurate. The more you deviate, the more "inflated" your scores can become - and that's what happened here. By retaking CATs, taking the CATs at home, taking them at a different time of day (from when you took your Official GMAT), etc., you weren't properly training for the FULL GMAT 'experience.' In addition, the other factors you described (lack of sleep, nervousness) would have likely impacted your performance as well.

Thankfully, this is a relatively easy set of problems to fix. The big question now is "how long will it take you to properly get 'used to' taking the GMAT in a way that matches up with what you'll face on Test Day?" You'll certainly need a new set of practice CATs to work with and you have to put in the necessary time to train your brain (and body) for those same Test Day parameters. You might also need to invest in some new GMAT training materials. You won't necessarily need another 15 weeks to properly prepare; another 1-2 months of consistent, guided study would likely be enough to get you to your score goal.

1) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
2) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
3) How many hours do you think you can consistently study each week going forward?

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

MarissaP · Answer

Rich,

I am finishing up my senior year right now, and I will be applying to BYU whenever I'm ready. BYU requires minimum of two years of working experience, so I will apply now and asked to be considered for 2019, or just apply later. I can consistently study two hours a day going forward, maybe three.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi MarissaP,

Since you're not facing an immediate deadline, you can approach the next phase of your studies in a number of different ways. With your score goal, you don't have to correctly answer any questions that you think are too hard or too weird, but you have to really nail the 'gettable' questions. So, you could continue studying as you have been - with a greater emphasis on the 'reality' of Test Day and minimizing the little mistakes in your work. If you want to be a bit more efficient with your time though, you could invest in some new Course-related materials that place an emphasis on the Tactics, patterns and little 'secrets' of the GMAT (so that you won't have to try to discover them all on your own) and more directly target the areas that you need to improve on.

Based on everything that you’ve described, I think that you would find the EMPOWERgmat Total Score Booster to be quite helpful. Most of our clients complete that Study Plan in well under 2 months, so the time commitment wouldn't be that bad. We have a variety of free resources on our site (www.empowergmat.com), so you can 'test out' the Course before setting up an Account.

If you have any additional questions, then you can feel free to contact me directly.

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

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Very disappointed with my first exam. 590. What should I do?

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