Retaking the GMAT after a horrible 430 Score

[herman2210]

I recently took the GMAT test I have the horrible score of 430 29Q 20V. It was a mess, I study during 3 months, I took several practice test scoring between 470,500,530,490.
Im not sure but I think I was burn out, because I spent 3 month full study. My job is very demanding, so I studied mostly of time very early in the morning, after hard days of working.
In the real test I had problems with timing in the Quant section, I realize that I had 20 minutes left and I almost finish the whole section, only 4 question left.
In the Verbal section I dont get it, I though I did it well. All passages in the reading section were easy for me and I was familiar with the topic. The timing was good too, 2 min for question.
Anyway, the B-School I want to apply requieres an 650 score in average. So Im planning to retake the exam in six month and apply the next year.

What shoud be strategy?? What do you recommend me?

[StaceyKoprince]

I'm sorry you're having a tough time with the test. Just so you know for next time, most of the time people do score in about the same range as they're scoring on practice tests unless they have significant problems on test day (such as going way too slowly or way too quickly) and/or unless they didn't take the practice tests under official conditions (eg, skipping the essays, taking longer breaks than allowed, etc.).

I'm pointing that out because you said your goal score is 650, but you took the real test with practice scores in the 500 range - so you already should have been expecting not to reach your goal score. (And, when that's the case, you just shouldn't take the real test.)

You're a couple of hundred points from your goal, which generally means putting together a comprehensive study plan, in terms of both what to study and HOW to study. This article can help you do that:
http://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/index ... -the-gmat/

After you've looked at that (and at some of the other articles linked in the above article), come up with a general plan and then come back here and tell us what it is - we'll help to advise you. If you do that, also tell us some detail on your strengths and weaknesses (there's an article linked in the above article that will help you to analyze your strengths and weaknesses).

Also, FYI - the exam is changing in June. They're dropping one of the essays (analysis of an issue) and adding a new multiple choice section called Integrated Reasoning. So you're going to have to prepare for this new section, but you'll only have to write 1 essay instead of 2.

[herman2210]

Thank you, Stacey. I have looked the articles you recommend me and I come up with my general plan.

Score Goal: 650
Test Day: Between the 2nd or 3rd week of August.
Starting the study: April
Study time: Daily between 4am -7am and 6pm-8pm(the only free time I have), Satudays Between 1-6pm Sundays 8-12pm and 1-5pm

April: Im planning to take the TOEFL test the first week of May, so Ill spend most of the time preparing for the TOEFL, but I will review the math content of the Manhattan GMAT text as well as the Sentence Correction book.

May: Full GMAT study.
Week1-2 Focus in Data Suffiency and Reading comprehension questions.
Week 3-4 Focus in Problem solving and Critical Reasoning
June
Week 1-2 Focus in Integrated Reasoning and Sentence correction type of questions. 1st Full practice test
Week 3-4OG 12th/13th OG Quant and Verbal focus in 300-500 questions. 2nd Full Practice test
July
Week 1-2OG 12th/13th OG Quant and Verbal focus in 500-600 questions. 3rd Full Practice test
Week 3-4
OG 12th/13th OG Quant and Verbal focus in 600-700 questions. 4th Full Practice test
August
Week 1-2 Vacation of my job!! I will study all day for the GMAT.
OG 12th/13th OG Quant and Verbal focus in 700-800 questions. 5th and 6th Full Practice test
Week 3 Real GMAT Test

Weakeness:Timing :( Sentence correction(Im not native english speaker), Reading Comprehension(Inference and Specific questions), Math content(equations, percents, 500-700 type of questions)
Strenghts: Critical reasoning questions, General Data Suffiency 300-500 questions, Math content(geometry, number properties)

Well that my general plan.I will appreciate your comments and recomendations a lot!! And please be honest, if this plan sucks, please tell me!!

[StaceyKoprince]

Lots of good things. I'll only comment on what I would change. :)

Early on, don't both taking a practice test more often than about once a month. You want to make significant progress before you take a test, both because it takes several days to both take and review an exam (thereby using up a lot of study time) and because taking a test does not actually make you better. It just tells you how far you've progressed since the last test.

Your plan seems to imply that you will spend 6 weeks studying only content and then you will start doing OG questions? Not a great split. Learn some content, do some lighter practice questions (like the ones at the ends of the chapters in our strategy guides), make flashcards, quiz yourself, try some OG questions, review and analyze, then repeat all over again with a new content area. While doing this, you are studying both accuracy and efficiency - content and process

and

timing.

Periodically, do sets of mixed OG questions - everything I learned in the past 5 days, then everything I learned in the past 10 days, past 15 days etc (basically, the potential pool keeps getting larger as you study more, so that you're seeing a random mix of questions - like you will on Real Test day).

Time management: http://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/index ... anagement/

Also, have you considered taking a class? Given the amount you need to review, you may benefit from the structure of a class and from access to a teacher when you have questions.