Difficulty going from 42 -- 47Q

Question

Guys I've been trying to go from a 42Q to a 47Q and hold there. I've done it on and off, but have never been able to religiously get a 47Q. Is this a tough jump to do? I gotta believe it is only a few questions. I've been studying my errors and refining my approach to help get there.

mbagal1 · Answer

Hi

Have you seen this topic?

viewtopic.php?t=40820

Make sure you understand all your concepts, and then start by practicing simple questions under timed conditions. It may be that you have the concepts right but end up making mistakes under the time pressure. So, in your daily practice, always time your questions (example, pick 20 questions and time it to be done in 25/30 minutes). I did this even with the questions in OG. (I scored a 49 on the exam).

jimmyjamesdonkey · Answer

I'm not exactly sure what timing will do...can anyone elaborate on how timed sets help? If I still get them wrong, isn't some other element missing?

mbagal1 · Answer

What has been your method of preparation so far?

If you have analyzed your errors, you probably know whether you made a mistake because you did not understand the concept right, or whether it was because of a silly mistake under time pressure. For the areas where your concepts are not right, concentrate on understanding the basics first (and later start to time questions, when you are comfortable with concepts). For the areas you have made silly errors due to lack of time, you will need to practice under timed conditions to perfect. Does this help?

jimmyjamesdonkey · Answer

My errors typically come from two area:

1) I read the question, but do no retain elements of the question...or there is to much information for me to process at one time. Because of this, I'll miss something and usually make a simply mistake at the end like solving for the wrong variable.

2) I read the question and can categorize into the correct bucket, but do not see the question "trick" to solving. Hence, I ended up spending to much time and guessing.

Any tips to improve these two weaknesses?

jb32 · Answer

Doing timed sets makes you move on after two minutes from a really tough problem. If you time yourself, then you can't spend 5 minutes on one problem, which will kill you on the real test. One key to getting 47+ is moving on when you can't get the right answer in a max of 2.5 minutes. You need to be a master at picking your battles. As Sun Tzu said: "...if they are strong, avoid them...". Pick your battles and only fight the ones where you have an advantage.

mbagal1 · Answer

Here 1. can be categorized as a silly mistake which can be improved with timed practice

2. can be categorized as not understanding concepts. Remember, there are no "tricks". If you understand the concepts clearly, you would be able to solve the question. Put another way, understanding the concepts will ensure you know all the tricks for solving questions testing that concept.

As jb32 mentions, in a timed test, it is important not to spend more than 1 and 1/2 to 2 minutes per question and you should know when to move on.

jimmyjamesdonkey · Answer

Hmm...On my Manhattan GMAT practice tests I get all 300-500 correct. 100% 500-600, 50% 600-700, and 30% 700-800. My pacing is pretty good, so I do not think practicing my "cut and run" technique will improve my score. A previous gmat instructor told me based on this breakdown, I should concentrate on getting more 600-700 concepts down.

barfer · Answer

jimmyjamesdonkey, my advice - don't try to pace your Q, don't hurry and do like you have all time of universe. When you're ready you will start pace by yourself. First focus - to kill each question - eat it, chew it, digest it until it's done. Don't hurry pls!

agold · Answer

Just an FYI that 47Q doesn't break the 80th percentile anymore. You need a 48Q.

mbagal1 · Answer

Personally, I never broke questions down like that. There is no way to know on the real exam which questions are which level. Besides, some of the simplest concepts, depending on the question, could fall in a 700 bracket - or vice versa. What I would do if I were you at this point is to find out which particular concepts you are not clear about, then understanding those thoroughly. Meanwhile, keep practicing questions on the concepts you know really well, till you get 100% of them right all the time under timed conditions. Have you tried the challanges? They are good practice if you have the time - in the short term they can shake your confidence - so I wouldn't advice them if you don't have at least a month to the exam.

Good luck!

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Difficulty going from 42 --> 47Q

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