GMAT vs. GRE Follow Up - Trouble Deciding

[AlinaT739]

Hi Stacey,

Firstly, I wanted to say thank you for the GMAT vs. GRE session. It was very informative!

I took your advice on taking both GMAT and GRE practice tests and I am still having trouble deciding which test would be best for me.

As I mentioned, I took the GMAT practice test twice - The first time I took it (approx. 2 weeks ago) I got a 520. I was a bit worried about whether this was an accurate representation of my ability, because I was not prepared to take a 75 question exam. I initially thought that I could just do a couple of questions to get a 'feel for the exam'. Due to the above, I decided to take it again this weekend. The second time I got a 500 :-/ What was strange about the second time, was that my scores across the exam sections seemed to be much higher than the first time I took the test. However, I may have run out of time for the final 2 questions. See screenshots attached.




I have reviewed the articles you sent through and below is my analysis of both exams.

After reviewing the second report, a large number (19 questions) in the quant section were related to timing issues (either too fast or two slow).
Too fast: 12 questions - 6 correct, 6 incorrect
Too slow: 7 questions - 3 correct, 4 incorrect

For the Verbals section, timing didn't seem to be as much of an issue:
Sentence correction: 7/15 correct - average time for correct = 1.28s, average time for incorrect = 1.14s
Critical Reasoning: 4/14 correct - average time for correct = 2.19s, average time for incorrect = 1.47s
Reading Comprehension: 6/12 correct - average time for correct = 2.06s, average time for incorrect = 2.31s

For the GRE, I got a 154 for Quant (55th percentile) and a 156 for Verbal (72nd percentile). I felt that the math was much simpler but I really disliked the vocab portion of the exam and guessed a lot of those questions.
For Quant timing, 22/40 had timing issues:
Too fast: 18 questions - 8 correct, 10 incorrect
Too slow: 4 questions - 1 correct, 3 incorrect

For Verbal timing, 28/40 had timing issues:
Too fast: 23 questions - 11 correct, 12 incorrect
Too slow: 5 questions - 2 correct, 3 incorrect

Based on the info above and my scores on both CAT tests, in your opinion, which test do you think I would perform better in? One thing to note is that I hope to apply in September and need a 700+ on the GMAT or 165+ on the GRE. Because I have a full-time job, the maximum amount of time I can dedicate to studying is 15hours/week.

[StaceyKoprince]

Hi, Alina, thanks for coming! I'm glad you found the session helpful.

As you learned from your practice test experience, the GMAT is not scored based on any kind of "average" performance over the sections. Rather, it's what we call a "Where you end is what you get" test. This can lead to outcomes that seem really strange when you're used to paper-based school tests—such as seeing a lot of harder questions earlier in the section (so your average difficulty level is high), but then dropping by the end of the section (so your actual score is lower).

That's the kind of thing that you want to practice / be prepared for if you end up taking the GMAT. You can learn how to maximize your performance—it's just different than the kinds of tests that you're used to taking.

It's interesting that you really disliked the vocab, yet you still scored a 156 / 72nd percentile on the verbal GRE. That's a really good starting score!

Your starting score is higher on the GRE than on the GMAT for both Q and V. In general, the timing patterns on the GRE also indicate more of an opportunity. First, it looks like you have many more "too fast" questions on the GRE. Slowing down a bit may improve your performance on at least some of those questions. Also, the ones on which you were too slow were clearly just too hard—you missed most of them. If you guessed faster (literally just got those wrong faster), that again would be more time to spend on the too-fast questions, giving you more of an opportunity to work through the solutions, minimize careless errors due to speed, etc.

My one hesitation is that you said you really disliked the vocab portion of the GRE. You did still get a good overall verbal score, but to get better, you are going to have to study vocab and learn to...well, you don't have to like those questions, but you have to be willing to study / make the most of them.

What do you think about all of the above? If you think you can rally to do a good job with vocab, then I would lean towards the GRE. If you are concerned about your ability to handle the vocab, then we might need to examine the GMAT further.

(And I assume that you have done the research regarding what "your" schools say they want, yes? They don't say that they prefer the GMAT?)

[AlinaT739]

Hi Stacey,

Thanks very much for your reply. Super helpful!

I think based on a number of things you have said, the GRE seems like its the best fit for me.

Firstly, I feel that with the GMAT scoring structure "where you end is what you get", I may feel more test anxiety and I am concerned that this would affect my focus. If I can pace myself appropriately at the beginning of the GRE, I think I would have a good chance at getting into the harder questions tiers.

Secondly, it's great to get your opinion on my test scores. In my opinion, a 10 point climb on the GRE (in each section) seems more realistic than a 200+ point climb on the GMAT, given that I want to apply in September. I also think your observation about the GRE timing patterns is on point. I definitely see a big opportunity to slow down and improve my score.

In regards to vocab, I say that I really disliked that part because I fear that there is no way for me to learn all the possible words in the English language. That being said, if there are techniques on how to intelligently guess an answer when an unknown word comes up, that would definitely make me feel more comfortable. I just don't feel comfortable about going into a test and having to guess a majority of the verbal questions.

Lastly, both schools I am applying to accept the GRE (Harvard and Stanford).

[StaceyKoprince]

Okay, great—I agree that the GRE looks like the best option for you.

We do have vocab flash card sets—500 more "regular" words and 500 more "advanced" words that have shown up on the GRE in the past. They provide definitions, example sentences, and so on. You might find those helpful from two standpoints: (1) They're targeted to the kinds of words that are likely to show up on the test, and (2) The example sentences and anecdotes can help you to remember the words better (vs. just reading a dry dictionary definition). Take a look in our GRE store if you want to read more about the flash cards (and see how much they cost, etc).

Then, yes, there are strategies to use to narrow down based on various things. For example, you might not know a definition but you might have a sense of whether that word is a more positive or negative word (or more neutral), and you may be able to eliminate based on that. We discuss those kinds of strategies in our strategy guide that covers the two vocab question types: Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence.

Let me know how it goes!