MGMAT CAT scoring

by **Guest** Sun Jul 06, 2008 1:29 pm

Hi ,

I've attempted 3 of the 6 MGMAT CATs and have a couple of doubts / comments ...

1) Is your CAT scoring actually representative of the actual thing ? I know its more complicated than just 'no. of incorrect Qs' BUT I got a V45 inspite of 8 errors ????

2) 'Hide Time' - This is one option I can't do without. The clock ticking in the corner always keeps distracting me so I have to keep it hidden. However, in the MGMAT CAT one needs to hide the time after EVERY question. Can this be corrected in any way ?

thanks !

by **StaceyKoprince** Mon Jul 07, 2008 9:05 pm

Yes, that's exactly how it works. You will get lots of questions wrong on this test (nice verbal score, by the way!). Nobody gets all or even almost all of the questions right because, whatever you can do, the test will just pluck something even harder out of the database and throw it at you!

As you surmised, it's more complicated than just "no. of incorrect Qs" - and, in fact, the algorithm is so complex / different from "regular" tests that number correct / incorrect is not even the main factor in determining your score! The difficulty level of the questions is the main factor. Think of this test as trying to find your 50/50 level - the level below which you tend to get things wrong and above which you tend to get things right. That's how it finds your score, not by percentage correct. So most people get around half of the questions wrong. (This 50/50 thing gets skewed at the very high and low ends though - you're at the high end, which is why you got so few questions wrong!)

I didn't realize that the "hide time" thing turned itself back on for every question - that is annoying. I'll email tech support to see if that was a glitch or what - if that's really how it works, I'll suggest they fix that. Thanks!

by **Guest** Fri Jul 11, 2008 3:08 pm

Wrote my 4'th MGMAT CAT today ...

1) I guess the 'Hide Time' will still take some time to be fixed ... or is it just happening with my account ?

2) I felt the level of CAT 4 was definitely easier than all other 3 CATs - especially the CRs. I got a V45 again but this time just with 4 errors...

One doubt I'm now having .. are the CATs gradually decreasing in 'toughness' as one progresses from CAT 1 to CAT 6 ...

One reason is that I have not seen anyone score high on first 2 CATS going by the posts so far ....

by **mdinerstein** Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:20 pm

Hi Guest,

I'll be sure to forward your issues with the "Hide Time" module over to the tech department.

As for the the CAT exams, it is my understanding that we may have a smaller number of advanced verbal questions relative to the general CAT pool, meaning that you would get easier questions as you progressed. However, perhaps Stacey might have some input on the issue.

Best,

Michael Dinerstein
Marketing and Student Services Associate
michael@manhattangmat.com
212-721-7400
800-576-4628

by **StaceyKoprince** Tue Jul 15, 2008 12:52 am

Yeah, you've been scoring at the very top of the verbal range for at least a couple of tests - which means your tests are always choosing from the same pool of questions. (Most people have a lot more to go for improvement, and so they move on to new pools of questions as they do.)

Usually, if someone is scoring at the top of the range from the beginning, they'll begin to exhaust the question pool around CAT 5. I can't know for sure without looking at your test 4 - but a part of it might have been simply that you got a lot of things you're good at. Difficulty levels aren't based on your strengths and weaknesses but those of the population as a whole, and serendipity definitely plays a part on this test (that's part of the reason why the standard deviation is so high).