score improved in quant fell in verbal:(

[tejal777]

I gave a gmat prep exam and have seen that though the quant score has improved by 4 pts the verbal has decreased dramatically.Clearly,it means that im giving more importance to quants and hence my verbal has taken a hit.My total score is 610 ans somehow im not able to exceed this..i keep getting my score in the range of 580-610.
Now,i have also noticed that SC at which i was pretty good at has not been continuing.My guess is that i had reached a saturation level n' now my sc skills are reducing.My weak pt. though is and always is RC's.
My goal is to give GMAT in 1 mnth.should I be divinding my days equally bet verbal n' quants?Or doa couple RC's everyday n' mix it up?Guys got to reach 700!!feedback highly appreciated!!

[StaceyKoprince]

How have you been studying so far for verbal? What resources have you been using? Your "color" on the forums here indicates that you are using at least some of our products but not our courses - which products are you using (of ours or of anyone else's)? It sounds like you have a hit a plateau in your study and you may need to try a new approach or mindset, but I can't advise you on that until I know what you have been doing so far.

Generally speaking, it is not surprising for a score to decrease in one area if you are spending most of your time studying the other area. It's important to balance your study so that you can "peak" on both sections at once.

When you take your practice tests, do you always do the essays? Never? Sometimes? If you have not always done the essays, then you may have a stamina issue. Many people who have not built up sufficient stamina find that, when they do the essays, their verbal score drops. Could something like this be happening to you? How was your stamina? How did you feel toward the middle and end of the verbal section? Did you have something to eat and drink on the breaks? Did you get up, walk around, and stretch?

How was your timing in the verbal section? Did you generally move steadily through the test, giving appropriate time and attention to each question? (1 to 1.5m for SC, 2m for CR, 2-4m to read a passage, 1m for general RC questions, 1.5 to 2m for specific RC questions) Or did you have to rush at times and possibly make random guesses? If you did have to rush and/or make random guesses, on how many questions would you say you did that? Did you do it on a lot of questions in a row or were the guesses scattered? Alternatively, did you move too quickly and finish with a lot of time (>3min) left over?

Finally, just an FYI - it is very challenging to improve a score by 100 points in 4 weeks. I'm not saying it's impossible or can't be done; some people have done it. But most people will need more time than that. I'm not sure whether you are working against a school deadline or whether this is a personal deadline but you may want to think about what, if anything, you may need to adjust.

[tejal777]

Thnks Stacey for your indepth reply,

How have you been studying so far for verbal? What resources have you been using?

CR:strong area.Done with Og11 and verbal review.Doing Kaplan premier.
RC:WEAK:( Had done randomly from the above mentioned books but clearly its not working so digging into OG11 again.3 passages everyday of varying difficulty.Right approach??
SC:Had done manhattan SC TWICE,Verbal review and OG11.(all in Nov.then i ended up leaving it.Took Gmat up again in feb end)Initially had Vastly improved but now i feel I dont even know the basics.Back to starting pt.So doing Manhattan again n' tackling OG11 topic wise.
So that I dont end up ignoring Quants.,I am taking up the topics I have a mind-block in.So.eg. I did probability from the manhattan series,did the sums of Og and now going through forums to get more practise.
Also,so that I give equal importance to both areas,I have divided up the week equally,.So one day I give more importance to quant and the other day verbal.
Is my strategie okay?Please guide.

If you have not always done the essays, then you may have a stamina issue.

YES stamina is the issue.My other post:
help-if-only-i-could-t6764.html

[tejal777]

did you move too quickly and finish with a lot of time (>3min) left over?

How was your timing in the verbal section?

Stacey,I do not put a lot of emphasis on timing.I have noticed that my performance falls if i give too much attn. to it.i keep the time in mind def. and yes i do finish early.Suppose 3 mins are left and i am left with two ues.Even if i can do it comfortably my heartbeat starts racing and i go "hurry,hurry, hurry"!Not too good a test taker u can see but am working on it.Still timing myself for diff secs will not work for me.eg.Skimming RC's as is usually said to do doesnt work for me.Its just a wastege of time.until or unless I read it carefuully n' understand I am nt able to ans it.The same passage,skimming ill get 1/4 right while understanding will give me 3/4(eg. i wish i was so good in all the RC's!!)

it is very challenging to improve a score by 100 points in 4 weeks

Not in a hurry.Good score is the priority.But tutoring is not an option and im afraid if i give myself more time my prep will go downhill.Can u pls help??

[JonathanSchneider]

Honestly, too many people focus on a specific score they want throughout the whole study process. It's okay to start with a target score in mind. But from there, you need to develop a sense of what you need to get that score, aka identify your specific weaknesses (you'[re starting to do that here, but you could become even more specific). Then you just need to focus on each of those things one at a time, in a quality way. IT won't do any good to sit down and say: "today I need to learn how to get a 700." IT just doesn't happen that way. We make improvements in small chunks of content, a step here, a step there. You have a few weeks to go, which means that you have some time. I recommend that you focus in on one area per day. Remove score expectations form your mind. Just focus on learning in a quality way. Then give it your best. And remember to breathe.

Stamina/anxiety are difficult issues, but we can make improvements here. Ultimately, good test-taking is about keeping yourself alert but not hyperactive. You want to be focused, and a little adrenaline can be good for that, but you don't want to overload, or you'll burn out / start making too many mistakes. This may sound silly, but a little deep breathing and visualization can go a long way. I also advocate good posture, both during study sessions and on the exam. Finally, whenever you see whatever question happens to be your very least favorite (for many people it's RC), take a 5-second break to take a deep breath and stretch, then return to the screen. Those 5 seconds a few times during the test may just help keep you in the game.