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AnnH
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Another bad gmat experience.. 14 Dec 2005, 11:42
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Hi All,

I am new to this forum. I just took the GMAT for the second time on Monday and am so upset.. I actually went down 10 points! My first score was a pitiful 560 and second a 550 :( And this is after studying for 6 weeks with a math tutor. My verbal is fine - I scored in the 91% but my math is absurdly low. I was planning to apply to second round application deadlines, but now I feel that it's not even worth applying until I get my score up. I think I'm going to take it a third time.. but I'm not sure of the best way to go about getting my math score up. I feel like I have tried everything. I took the Kaplan course and went over the official guide quant workout and the overall OG book. Does anyone have any advice on how I can become a master of GMAT math? Is it even worth taking this a third time? Am I stuck as a '560' scorer? Any advice would be much appreciated!

Thanks!!
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stretchad
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Another bad gmat experience.. 15 Dec 2005, 13:28
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I got a 550 in my last test too, but that is my high score. The quant is what kicked my a$$ as well.

I am studying with the OG 11th edition, and doing problems on this site, also using the error log when I do OG problems. That way I can track what REALLY the problem is. I have no idea if this will work, but in a practice of just the quant section in Kaplan CAT I scored better than I've scored before, but still not that great (I took it in front of the TV, go figure).

Do you have any idea what about the quant section is making things difficult? Is it the timing? Specific types of problems?

When are your deadlines for application?
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comeongmat
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Another bad gmat experience.. 15 Dec 2005, 21:24
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i received 49 on math..but dismal low 20's on verbal.

how did you study for the verbal? i mean i did all the questions on og guide. but see no improvement.

for math....
without a doubt, sleep with OG day and night....
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AnnH
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Another bad gmat experience.. 18 Dec 2005, 10:04
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Thanks. I'll definitely keep working on math problems from the OG. I also bought 2 of the MGMAT books, so hopefully those will help as well!

For the verbal.. which sections are you having trouble with?
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Another bad gmat experience.. 18 Dec 2005, 17:33
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hi annh!
i tend to do ok on a practice test. scoring around 30..but really mess up on a real thing. can 't think clearly on a real exam.
what's wrong with me?

i guess i am having a bit of problem with all the three subverbal sections.
shoot!
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AnnH
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Another bad gmat experience.. 19 Dec 2005, 11:18
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Hmmm, this might sound kind of strange, but I would practice reading off of the computer screen. I think it's a lot tougher to read on a PC as opposed to in a book. Practicing should increase your ability to focus on test day. Another suggestion is to memorize all of the GMAT idioms. That really helped me with sentence correction questions.
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gter
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Another bad gmat experience.. 20 Dec 2005, 17:03
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hi AnnH,

I've just taken GMAT as well, got 580 Q47 V23. This was my second attempt as well from my last 610 Q47 V27. I was really down as well after learning that my socore went down after 2 month of intense prep in Verbal.

My advice for math is work with OG10 and focus specifically in the last 100 questions of both PS and DS sections. They are harder than the earlier ones. Same goes to OG11. I also found the math questions in Diagnostic test of OG11 quite good. Don't need to go for Kaplan math books. OG has well over 300 problems in each math sections and are quite representative.

I have the Manhattan math guide for Word Translation problems. This book is a good buy, since it also include probability, sets and stats. I wasn't sure about this guide in the begining, but after I read so many positive reviews in this fourm I was convinced. It is indeed a good guide.

Also, do you know which areas are you weak in? For me, after I did questions I found inequalities and absolute value problems are tricky. Then I just focused on those, and do other types of math problems once in a while.

How do you prepare for verbal? I've done hundreds of verbal questions and yet seeing any improvements :(

my story is also in
https://www.gmatclub.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=24769
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Another bad gmat experience.. 27 Dec 2005, 19:07
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Well, let's start with some diagnosis.

First, is English your primary language? This is important for how you will need to approach the whole Verbal arena. If English is your primary language, learn to relax and speak naturally in your writing. If English is not your primary language, then English is likely going to be counter-intuitive many times, and this will cause trouble.

Now, there are a lot of things about grammar and reading comprehension which would drive you crazy trying to remember them all, but there are a few basic rules of thumb:

* Generally, simpler is better. If you can't decide between two phrases to complete a sentence, the shorter one (if it still conveys the message) is usually the best choice.

* Essays get to the point fairly quickly. The writer will say most of what he means in the first and last sentences of the first paragraph. So, in reading comprehension, copy down the first and last sentence from the opening paragraph, and when you are in doubt, ask yourself which choice is in line with those statements.

* If a passage makes no sense, take a little more time and read it a bit at a time. Don't try to answer the question unless you are sure you know what is being asked, and what is the best answer.

* Just like the math questions, the earlier questions in Verbal matter more than later ones. Also, people tend to rush a bit, because all those words make people worry they will run out of time before they answer the whole section. You have more time than you may think!
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