No improvement in scores!

[GMAT85]

I took the GMAT exam last year in june and got a score of 500 but my target score is a 700 or above. In the first 2 CATS that I have taken, I received 510 and 520, respectively. I want to register for the exam for Aug 2nd because I think that it will put pressure on me and make me study better. Should I wait till I start seeing improvement in my CAT scores before I register for the official test or should I go ahead and register this week? I am not sure why my scores are so stagnant? I am not able to do well in the practice exams? How should I best prepare for it?
Thanks in advance!

[Guest]

from my perspective, it is better to sign up for the exam this way you'll pressure yourself to be ready by the time the exam date approaches. I did the same thing, and just had my test this past saturday May 17th. I got a mediocre 590 and my practice test scores ranged from 580-650. However, I am satisfied with this as this should be enough to get me into my desired MBA program. Although this will not be my strongest piece of my application I rely on my work experience to be my strongest one.

From my experience today I can tell you that the best way to improve is to practice and review your mistakes and then practice more. Important is to to also practice on timing so practiced timing yourself.

Good Luck.

[rfernandez]

If having a target date of August 2 will light a fire under you, then go ahead and do so. It could be a good motivator, and you will still have plenty of time between now and then to focus on your areas of weakness.

Your goal is 700 and your practice CAT scores are only in the 500s... so it's imperative that you carefully review these exams to see where you need to put in the extra work. Pore over every detail, strive for mastery of each question on these exams, and then create a plan of action that is customized to your strengths and weaknesses. Once you feel that you have addressed all of these areas (usually 2 to 3 weeks of consistent, focused study) you'll be positioned to take another practice exam and then see where you are then.

By the way, if by the end of July you're not feeling ready to go, you can postpone the exam for a fee (I think it's $50.) So you always have that out if you need it. But if you are strategic with your studying between now and then, you will be ready to roll on August 2nd. Good luck and update us on how things are going.

[GMAT85]

Thanks to both of you for your suggestions and advices! I recently took the 3rd CAT exam and got a 580 (41Q, 30V). I have noticed that if I focus more on Quant as compared to Verbal a couple of days before I take the practice exam then my Quant score goes up and Verbal suffers and vice versa. It seems impossible to balance studying for both Quant and Verbal. I used to be pretty good at Sentence correction before but this time I got equal number of rights and wrongs. I can somewhat handle Reading Comprehension but Critical Reasoning kills me. Any suggestions in CR?

[StaceyKoprince]

Don't just look at right/wrong to determine whether you're good at something. I recently told a student (after looking at one of this tests) that he was good at SC and he said - how can that be? I only got 50% right! I pointed out to him that the difficult levels were 710 to 750. 50% right at 700+ levels is the very definition of good on this test!

Re: your question about CR... it's tough to answer such a general question in a forum post. How to get better at all of CR in general? Follow the entire 9-week curriculum! :)

Please feel free to ask questions about your more specific weaknesses in CR. Also, you can post CR problems in the relevant folders (MGMAT CAT, GMATPrep, etc) and ask for help.

[GMAT85]

Where can I post OG Verbal questions on CR? I just want to make sure whether we are allowed to ask ques on OG probs in the forums?

[StaceyKoprince]

You can't, unfortunately. GMAC has asserted its copyright for all OG questions and doesn't permit them to be posted on the web.

We do have the old archives up from before they asserted the copyright, so you can do a search to see if the question has already been addressed in the past - just search for a few unusual words from the problem. If not, and if you're in one of our classes, sign up for your 1/2 hour of office hours and ask your tutor!

[GMAT85]

Thanks for the suggestion! My MGMAT class sessions ended on May 20th. So I don't have access to tutoring service.

[GMAT85]

I have gone through Critical Reasoning strategy guide once but I still have a lot of problems with CR questions especially Weakness and Bold Statements type questions. I can handle assumptions question pretty well. So I have been doing CR from OG 11th Ed. and Verbal but I haven't improved much. Should I do the CR strategy guide once more or continue doing OG and Verbal CR probs ? Please advice!

[StaceyKoprince]

Do worry about the weaken type, as it is frequent. Don't worry about the boldface statement type, as that is not very frequent. First review two things: the weaken lesson (you still have access to tapes of the classes, so you can watch online - Weaken is from class 8) and the weaken chapter in the strategy guide. Next watch the strategy lesson from class 2 (how to study) - that should come toward the end of the tape. Finally, start going back through official problems and analyze the problems as you're taught during the lessons you reviewed.

Unfortunately, you can't post OG problems here, so also do some problems from the strat guide and go back and look at old weaken problems from past CATs. You can ask about those here.

[GMAT85]

Thanks Stacey! Sorry, I just realized that I wrote weakness instead of weaken but I am glad you got what I meant :)

[StaceyKoprince]

no problem! :)

[GMAT85]

I am scheduled to take the GMAT on Aug 2nd but I don't feel prepared yet. I am not sure whether to reschedule my exam for Aug 18th or 30th? I missed out on 2 weeks of studying because of a tragedy in my family. However going over Class 2 and 8 labs, as suggested by Stacey, has helped me with CR weakening ques. Those CR strategies are really good! Thanks for your advice Stacey! I have not been able to take another practice exam since May 1st.

I am a little concerned because my MGMAT access is expiring on Aug 20th. I could review my notes and retake GMAT prep exams several times between 20th and 29th if I decide to take GMAT on Aug 30th.

Breaking the 700 barrier is very important for me because I want to get into the top notch B-schools. I was a Biochem major and graduated with a 3.5 GPA.

Please help! :(

[mdinerstein]

Hi GMAT85,

I'm a representative from the Student Services Department who wanted to hop in on this thread and let you know that we would be glad to provide you with a free 180 day extension to your materials should you need it. With that said, I think it is a good idea to go into the test feeling prepared - if you do not feel ready, then it could affect your performance, even if you are fully proficient!

With that said, it's also important to set deadlines and to simply take the test. If you do not do well, you can always re-take it at no penalty to your application. Additionally, if you do not perform well, you can get set up with a ManhattanGMAT Instructor who will provide you with a free Post-Exam Assessment to help guide your studying for the next round. Personally, I would keep the test date, study hard for the next few weeks, and then just get the test over with. However, if you feel like it would be beneficial to postpone the exam for two weeks, then do it, but then stick to that date.

Hope this helps!

Best,

Michael Dinerstein
Marketing and Student Services Associate
michael@manhattangmat.com
212-721-7400
800-576-4627

[GMAT85]

Thanks Mike! I really appreciate that you will let me extend my MGMAT access for free. I will probably postpone my exam date for 2 weeks. :)