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silverparakeet
Joined: 09 Feb 2019
Last visit: 20 Feb 2022
Posts: 21
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 6
Schools: BU Questrom '23 (S)
14 Oct 2019, 23:45
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Hello,
I took the GMAT in March 2019 and got a score of 430 (Q25V19). Yes, pathetic. So I worked extremely hard revising my basics (details below). I took my GMAT yesterday and got a 530 (Q37, V26). Again, pathetic. Ok, technically, thats a 100 point improvement. But still!!!
Please note, I have accommodations for extended time (50% additional) and extended breaks (50% additional).
Goal: I want to go up another 100 points now.
Next GMAT: (Tentative) 1st of December 2019.
Total hours put in so far: 4 hours each study session, 5 days a week for about 3 months now.
I completed some practice GMAT's (6 Tests). The scores were
1st Test: 560 (Q39, V29)
2nd Test: 600 (Q47, V26)
3rd Test: 640 (Q46, V34)
4th Test: 500 (Q34, V25)
5th Test: 450 (Q36, V16)
6th Test: 510 (Q34, V26)
First of all I want to say, I am an extremely hardworking and dedicated person and I will put in the time and the effort needed from my end. I have an interview lined up from a top 10 school but I have been told I need a minimum GMAT score of 650 and I want that so bad. More often than not, I lose out when trying to unravel the question and applying the basic concepts. My fundamentals are quite strong. I wouldn't say it is insanely strong though.
What I am looking for: I am very particular that someone understand my thinking process through the whole set of test questions and understand what it is I am seeing in the question, how I am understanding the question, how I am analyzing the question, what comes to my mind when I read the question and of course how I tackle the question. I am pretty sure thats where you will find my flaw. A 700+ quant question is sometimes a simple geometry concept asking us the area of a rectangle but worded in a weird, complicated way with a strange looking diagram that can intimidate.
What has worked to a point for me is to tell me one standard way of tackling the question. Beyond that, I am simply stuck and to break through, which I know I am very capable of, I just need someone to figure out what the heck I am doing wrong. Quite often, I have narrowed down to the right and wrong answer and often choose the wrong answer. Why? I really am not able to make out and I am starting to get extremely annoyed with myself.
During my preparation this is how I studied:
1. What material did I follow:
Quant:
A. PrepScholar - I did not particularly like the way everything was presented.
B. TargetPrep - It has by far been the most useful digging through my basics. I did it for 3 months and went through chapter by chapter strengthening my basics. My quant score used to hover around 25, now it has jumped quite a bit thanks to them. Yet when it comes to the tougher questions, I am unable to unravel their wordy, twisty, sneaky questions and I allow gmat to beat me.
C. Kaplan - daily one of their questions comes via email and I try it out.
Verbal:
A. Magoosh - Did every single one of their 600-700+ questions. Most of them I did twice ( maybe all).
B. VeritasPrep - Most useful!! Been through every video by Brian on youtube and noted several points.
C. Kaplan - daily one of their questions comes via email and I try it out.
2. AWA and IR
No separate material. IR 4-5. Never gone higher than that. Could definitely improve! But ill be honest, I haven't focused much on it.
I skimmed through some real basics of essay writing in one of (shark tank) Shaan Patel's ACT books which got me an AWA score of 5.5/6 from my previous GMAT (where I scored a 430). So I am not too concerned about this. The next score I am yet to receive.
3. Did I complete both the sections?
Yes
I feel like I am hovering around the right answer. Why can't I just zero in on the right answer? So frustrating! There is something I am doing wrong and I want help identifying it. Please let me know what you think.
Thank you.
I took the GMAT in March 2019 and got a score of 430 (Q25V19). Yes, pathetic. So I worked extremely hard revising my basics (details below). I took my GMAT yesterday and got a 530 (Q37, V26). Again, pathetic. Ok, technically, thats a 100 point improvement. But still!!!
Please note, I have accommodations for extended time (50% additional) and extended breaks (50% additional).
Goal: I want to go up another 100 points now.
Next GMAT: (Tentative) 1st of December 2019.
Total hours put in so far: 4 hours each study session, 5 days a week for about 3 months now.
I completed some practice GMAT's (6 Tests). The scores were
1st Test: 560 (Q39, V29)
2nd Test: 600 (Q47, V26)
3rd Test: 640 (Q46, V34)
4th Test: 500 (Q34, V25)
5th Test: 450 (Q36, V16)
6th Test: 510 (Q34, V26)
First of all I want to say, I am an extremely hardworking and dedicated person and I will put in the time and the effort needed from my end. I have an interview lined up from a top 10 school but I have been told I need a minimum GMAT score of 650 and I want that so bad. More often than not, I lose out when trying to unravel the question and applying the basic concepts. My fundamentals are quite strong. I wouldn't say it is insanely strong though.
What I am looking for: I am very particular that someone understand my thinking process through the whole set of test questions and understand what it is I am seeing in the question, how I am understanding the question, how I am analyzing the question, what comes to my mind when I read the question and of course how I tackle the question. I am pretty sure thats where you will find my flaw. A 700+ quant question is sometimes a simple geometry concept asking us the area of a rectangle but worded in a weird, complicated way with a strange looking diagram that can intimidate.
What has worked to a point for me is to tell me one standard way of tackling the question. Beyond that, I am simply stuck and to break through, which I know I am very capable of, I just need someone to figure out what the heck I am doing wrong. Quite often, I have narrowed down to the right and wrong answer and often choose the wrong answer. Why? I really am not able to make out and I am starting to get extremely annoyed with myself.
During my preparation this is how I studied:
1. What material did I follow:
Quant:
A. PrepScholar - I did not particularly like the way everything was presented.
B. TargetPrep - It has by far been the most useful digging through my basics. I did it for 3 months and went through chapter by chapter strengthening my basics. My quant score used to hover around 25, now it has jumped quite a bit thanks to them. Yet when it comes to the tougher questions, I am unable to unravel their wordy, twisty, sneaky questions and I allow gmat to beat me.
C. Kaplan - daily one of their questions comes via email and I try it out.
Verbal:
A. Magoosh - Did every single one of their 600-700+ questions. Most of them I did twice ( maybe all).
B. VeritasPrep - Most useful!! Been through every video by Brian on youtube and noted several points.
C. Kaplan - daily one of their questions comes via email and I try it out.
2. AWA and IR
No separate material. IR 4-5. Never gone higher than that. Could definitely improve! But ill be honest, I haven't focused much on it.
I skimmed through some real basics of essay writing in one of (shark tank) Shaan Patel's ACT books which got me an AWA score of 5.5/6 from my previous GMAT (where I scored a 430). So I am not too concerned about this. The next score I am yet to receive.
3. Did I complete both the sections?
Yes
I feel like I am hovering around the right answer. Why can't I just zero in on the right answer? So frustrating! There is something I am doing wrong and I want help identifying it. Please let me know what you think.
Thank you.
15 Oct 2019, 20:08
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi silverparakeet,
First off, improving from 430 to 530 is no joke, my friend. Nice job!! Also, I’m glad to see that you’ve been using TTP and, furthermore, that you've enjoyed TTP!
Regarding how to move forward, I think it would be a good idea to keep working through the TTP course. I understand that we were able to help you improve from Q25 to Q37; however, if you can keep working through the course, and complete it, in full, there is no reason why you can’t see another 10 point increase in your quant score.
Certainly, if you’d like to discuss your study plan in detail feel free to reach out to me directly.
First off, improving from 430 to 530 is no joke, my friend. Nice job!! Also, I’m glad to see that you’ve been using TTP and, furthermore, that you've enjoyed TTP!
Regarding how to move forward, I think it would be a good idea to keep working through the TTP course. I understand that we were able to help you improve from Q25 to Q37; however, if you can keep working through the course, and complete it, in full, there is no reason why you can’t see another 10 point increase in your quant score.
Certainly, if you’d like to discuss your study plan in detail feel free to reach out to me directly.
15 Oct 2019, 21:04
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi silverparakeet,
To start, raising a 430 to a 530 is a notable achievement; score improvements on the GMAT are rarely 'linear' though, meaning that that next 120+ points will require a different type of effort from what you spent over the last 3 months. The fluctuations in the your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores imply that your note-taking and use of Tactics are inconsistent - and you might be prone to making little mistakes. Thankfully, you do NOT need to correctly answer any of the really hard/weird questions on Test Day to hit a 650+, but you do have to keep the little mistakes to a minimum.
Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on your timeline and your goals:
1) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
2) What are the exact application deadlines that you are facing?
You might also choose to purchase the Enhanced Score Report. While the ESR doesn’t provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong on Test Day (and what you should work on to score higher). If you purchase the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you.
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
To start, raising a 430 to a 530 is a notable achievement; score improvements on the GMAT are rarely 'linear' though, meaning that that next 120+ points will require a different type of effort from what you spent over the last 3 months. The fluctuations in the your Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores imply that your note-taking and use of Tactics are inconsistent - and you might be prone to making little mistakes. Thankfully, you do NOT need to correctly answer any of the really hard/weird questions on Test Day to hit a 650+, but you do have to keep the little mistakes to a minimum.
Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on your timeline and your goals:
1) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
2) What are the exact application deadlines that you are facing?
You might also choose to purchase the Enhanced Score Report. While the ESR doesn’t provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong on Test Day (and what you should work on to score higher). If you purchase the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you.
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
. So Thank you! I remember reading a while ago that you were working on the verbal side. Has that been launched yet? 
