GMAT improvement?

ar010490:

I got an 760 on the actual exam (took it about a year out of college). Scored 650 without study on the practice test from GMAT prep, though unlike you my score was heavily skewed towards math. I basically rushed through the six Manhattan books, brushed up on the few math tricks/geometry that I haven't done since high school. Depending on your math background, this might or might not be easy for you to learn. I was an intended double major in math until senior year, so I learned how to solve some of the slightly more complicated problems (basic number theory, etc) without using tricks, which I felt make it easier. GMATClub's challenge problems were very helpful here.

Now, the good thing for you is that a high verbal can easily help your score get to 700. Since like around 43/44 (forgot exact cutoff) is like the 99% percentile. For myself, I also went through the Manhattan books, but I didn't study sentence correction because I knew I was absolutely garbage at grammar. Instead, I focused on getting the reading comprehension and critical reasoning perfect, going over practice problems in detail and really learning how to pick up on the type of question that the GMAT is asking. Again, did a lot of practice problems on GMATClub, focusing on the advanced questions.

I studied for about 12 weeks, but it was more a study 2 days take a day or two off rather than a very strict study schedule. By the last two weeks, I knew that I had the material down but the timing off, because my untimed practice tests were all nearly perfect. To practice timing, I went through the Manhattan CATs basically as fast as possible (guessed after 1:30 for every question if I couldn't find the exactly solution. I did all six exams (second time doing all of them) in the last week, scoring from 710 to 740 on all of them (47-48 Quant, 44-45 Verbal roughly). Took the second official gmat practice test two days before exam, got 740.

I ended up finishing early on both section on the final exam, though the general recommended strategy is to take all your time I think. I thought Manhattan's quant was harder and verbal was easier than the actual exam, and my own scores reflect that (50 Q/42 V).

Agreed. ManhattanGMAT math is harder but verbal is easier. GMATClub is an enormous help (especially for studying at work). It's much easier to get high score on verbal - I think because of all the internationals taking the test/too much people focusing on math only during studying. The curves are really f*cked up: 49 on quant is ~81%, but 44 on verbal is like 98% percentile...the internationals scoring perfect (51) on the math section have really messed up the curve. I studied literally 10 times longer for quant than verbal, and I'm a quantative guy in general, but ended up 81% in math and 98% in verbal.

One more thing, the Manhattan GMAT advance math guide (you can torrent it) is AWESOME for the last few weeks of studying, it'll help you get over the hump for math.

i have a ton of LSAT e-material message me if you're interested

notthehospitalER:

Thanks guys, this is awesome info. I am still in college and getting it out of the way before I start work next year so I have the relative luxury of time and will be able to study as much as I need to. Sounds like the Manhattan test prep books and official guides are all I need (and GMAT club will be helpful)?

Have any of you taken the LSAT or know of recommended resources for that? I'm taking that this year too.

Really smart to get it out of the way. I did the same thing (right after graduating) and am so glad that I did. Made the process much easier.

I believe I scored 710 on the official CAT (can't remember if this was before or after studying), and got a 740 on the actual exam (48/44). One thing to note: when I was taking the exam it was much more difficult than the practice test (not sure if this is everyone's experience), and I figured I was going to have to retake. Then I saw what I got and I was surprised I scored that high, given how terrible I thought I was doing! Skipped / guessed on a lot of questions.

If you are a native English speaker and are scoring well on verbal, I would recommend not studying for the verbal portion. I scored very high on my practice tests for verbal, and figured I should study anyway. I did (using MGMAT) and my verbal scores steadily decreased! I was overthinking it.

On another retake the GMAT? thread Betsy Massar (admissions consultant) said adcoms become skeptical after 4 retakes - I think a 3rd is fine and definitely beneficial

I personally don't think MGMAT quant is that great. I highly recommend jeff sackmann's total gmat math book and his 1,000 problems challenge set. In your case you might need the 1,800 problems fundamental set since your quant is so low. No idea what type of b-schools you are targeting, but a top 15 MBA is out of the question unless you crack 45 on quant. For top 5-10, a 48+ is highly recommended.

Also, how is your integrated reasoning score? It's not as important as quant obviously, but a high score there (ideally a perfect 8) could help when adcom assesses your analytical abilities.

Hello lasampdoria,

Given how high the stakes are, I suggest you consider working with a GMAT prep company. Clear Admit produces a free guide covering the various companies so you can choose the firm that most suits your needs: http://www.clearadmit.com/ca-products/guide-to-gmat-preparation-compani…

Best, Graham

Any more tips/recommendations?

Bump.

i took an untimed diagnostic before i opened a book and got a 650. probably would have been closer to 600 if timed. took MGMAT course and did just about all the work each week. i was scoring around 720 on practice tests when i finished course and shortly before my real exam. first real exam, i scored a 690 with verbal well below where i was hitting on prcatice tests. took the exam exactly 31 days later after mainly just studying verbal for those days and scored a 730 (48q,42v). FWIW, verbal is much easier to study/improve if your a US speaker. It will also help your score more than a slight increase in Q due to the International factor. good luck.

Took the GMAT two times.

First time completely cold: 450 (Yeah, I know) Second time after 6 months of Magoosh/GMAT Pill: 780 (q50, v47)

If you're willing to put the effort in, you can score as high as you want.

I suspect your intent is to see that getting better is possible. Well, know that it is but don't take too much comfort in what other people were able to do. I took at practice and score right at 600, which made me not happy, at all. I'm sure I can increase that score substantially and even after a few days I know I would do better because there were things that I just missed the first time through...not to mention I had more than 10 minutes left for each section when I was done...so think about your timing.

Study tips wise...Tradin is right, verbal is easy to increase if you are a native English speaker.

What materials are you using? I've been using the MGMAT and feel they are advanced enough to get me to the 700 level. I haven't used any other types of study materials (Kaplan, Princeton Review, etc.) but I did a good bit of research regarding what materials I was going to go with and saw that many, many, many people felt that the other providers targeted their study materials at the masses that were looking to maybe get a 600. And, if you think about it, it makes sense. You will never be able to answer 700 level questions if the book you are studying out of doesn't have 700 level questions.

The best study 'device' I've used is the OG Archer and test analytics that Manhattan GMAT has. I just go through the problems on my dry erase tablet while the computer times me. I punch in the answer, it records how long it took and whether I got it right. Then it consolidates all of the questions I've done and shows me what I am doing well at and where I need more work. Honestly, your best bet is to find a way to analyze your shortcomings and focus on that. Given I'm crunched for time with round 2 deadlines approaching and my workload picking up in the office, I've had no choice but to get really, really focused on the types of questions I'm struggling with...as opposed to trying to do all 900 or 1,100 or however many questions available in the guides that I have.

Just remember the test is absolutely beatable, it's about total comprehension of the core concepts and execution with regards to timing. That means seeing the question and being so familiar with that type of problem that you can instantly start to solve it, not spend 30 seconds trying one way you think is right only to realize that another way is better, etc.

What was the split (Q/V) for your score?

Regards

Right now I'm using the test materials at gmatclub.com. It was $80 for 3 month access but it's a shitload of very challenging practice questions. I've worked through almost all of the quant problems in the official guide but honestly they're just not challenging enough. I'm at 680 on practice tests from MGMAT. I need to break 700. I really like the format and explanations for the problems on gmatclub.

OP, read the following post

//www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/gmat-preparation.

In addition, if you're a visual learner try the following combination that worked wonders for me:

Magoosh + GMAT Pill. $500 total, but I went from 450 to 780.

At this point, given your decent score, learning and getting better is going to be a function of understanding what mistakes you made, why you made them and how you can avoid them next time.

I've been really focused on spending time on all the question I got wrong, so I can actually understand what I did wrong. There aren't a ton of concepts that are tested on the GMAT, it's more like they are testing your analytical ability to decipher the statement into what the real question actually is...and then answer it. That is why I think getting through a lot of problems can be beneficial, but only if you are really understanding the way you get to the answers.

Take number properties for example. Even plus an odd is always going to be an odd and even plus even is even, etc, etc, etc...which is easy, but it's connecting the dots seeing that "(x-1) minus (x-2)" could be a simple number properties question, not some weird looking equation. This is similar to the number properties for geometry. There are only a few things you need to learn in regards to geometry but there will be 500 level questions about triangles and there will be 700 level questions about triangles...or lines inscribed in a semi-circle, or a piece of a parallelogram. And I think that's were the exposure to a large number of problems comes into play, because you start to quickly see just what they are trying to get at.

How has your split changed from the first practice test until now?

Regards

My advice is to research your plan before you execute it. You will NEVER get better at verbal unless you study and dissect official problems from the GMAC. You can not rely on other sources to get you to a mid 40's verbal score because other sources don't put in the time and effort to accurately replicate official GMAT verbal problems. With 6 available CATs and all of the previous OGs and forum support, you have plenty of resources to help you with verbal.

I have plenty of time before I take it, so I'm going about studying somewhat slowly and trying to be methodical about it. I bought two books: Kaplan GMAT Premier 2013 and Kaplan GMAT 800. I know these aren't the best two books to get, but I think they will do a good job familiarizing me with the test, and if nothing else helping me to identify my areas for improvement. It came with 5 Computer Adaptive Tests, I've only taken the first one though. I got a 640 on it, and a 660 on the pre-test in the book, but it was obviously a paper test and not computer adaptive.

From looking through the threads here I've gotten a pretty good idea of which books I'm going to get to improve on my weaknesses. I think just the Kaplan stuff will be enough for my verbal, but I'll probably end up getting Jeff Sackmann's Total GMAT Math book; lots of people on here posted good things about it.

Seems like everyone's responses are pretty encouraging. Basically seems like there's not much of a hard cap on the score you can get if you're willing to put in the work. I'm in a FLDP for the next 6 months where the hours aren't bad at all (pretty much capped at 60), so I just want to take the GMAT while I have time to study over the next 6 months. Thanks for all the feedback, pretty helpful

Also, I feel like everyone is using a different scoring scale for me. You're talking about scores in the mid 40's - isn't it 37 for Q and 41 for V? Do the scales you're all using include the experimental questions on the test?

you should work more on improving your verbal to get your overall score up. verbal really just takes concentration and knowing the SC rules down pat. check out mgmat SC book for that

for quant, just do as many official guide problems as you can. check out gmatquantum.com for free video solutions.

with your current profile i think lower m7+tuck may be doable (booth may be tough as they seem to prefer higher gmats). top 15 should be a fit.

i havent used veritas but know that mgmat SC is known to be the gold standard

Have you looked at the Manhattan GMAT advanced quant book? From other sources I've read doing my own research (gmatclub.com, beatthegmat.com, etc) most folks have given it a good amount of credit to helping with quant prep. I just started going through it.

Solid first score; I think you just need to do more practice (probably w/ the timing). MGMAT's math section will definitely provide plenty of the top-end problems for you to drill.

You didn't need to give us any background information about your past GMAT performance if you're just looking for GMAT related resources.

Why are you retaking again? Great score, and a 76th percentile math equates to about a 46-47, which is really good.