I just took the GMAT and I am very disappointed and shocked from the score I received. Let me first brief you about the my preparations:
Materials used:
-MGMAT guides (quant guides +SC + CR)
-OG 13
-OG 12
-VR2
-QR2
-GMATPREP
-GMAT QP1
-GMAT club tests (only Q & CR sections)
I have been prepping for around three months. My strongest area is the Q, I have continuously score 47+ on all mocks, but I still went through MGMAT guides to make sure that I am familiar with all topics. Although I did my undergrad in the US, I consider myself a non-native since I only learned the language when I was 17.
I must say that my preparations have been somewhat random; that is, I did not have a fixed schedule right from the beginning. However, as I did my mock CATs, I was noticing that my scores were and accuracy were improving repeatedly, so I assume that my preparations were good.
Below are the results of my mock CATs:
-MGMAT1 (January 18): 610 (Q46, V29) (without any preparation or knowledge about the GMAT)
-MGMAT2 (February 28): 680 (Q47, V33)
-GMATPREP1 (May 23): 700 (Q48, V37)
-MGMAT3 (June 6): 660 (Q45, V35)
-MGMAT4 (June 29): 700 (Q47, V39)
-MGMAT5 (July 13): 730 (Q48, V41)
-MGMAT6 (July 20): 760 (Q51, V43)
-MGMAT1A (July 27): 730 (Q47, V43) (a lot of repeated questions)
-VERITAS (August 3): 730 (Q49, V40)
-GMATPREP2 (August 12): 760 (Q50, V42)
-GMATPREP1A Verbal only (August 13): V44 (a lot of repeated questions)
All of the CATs above were attempted in timed conditions with timed breaks, and most of them have been without AWA or IR sections or both. In the final two weeks of preparation, I purchased the GMATPREP QP1 and solved the hard questions of every category in blocks of 10-15 questions. The % of correct answers always above 80% with the exception of few of them.
The score I got in GMATprep2 increased my confidence a lot, especially since I did it with AWA/IR and in exam-like conditions. I really believed that the score I got was in line of my competency, especially since GMATprep is an accurate predictor for most people and the score is in line with the CATs. The day before the exam I bought GMATWrite package, and made sure that I could sore 6 on all of the sections.
TEST DAY Experience:
My test was scheduled at 09:00am. I had a good night of sleep, had a breakfast, and didn't really have any sort of headache. Started my exam with AWA, typed until the 03:00 minute remark and I am confident that it will give me 5+. The IR section was surprisingly easy, I breezed through most of the questions, and finished with about 8 minutes remaining. Took my break, went to the restroom and had a bottle of Redbull. I returned to the the exam 10 seconds late so that freaked me out a little bad and I had a bad start in quant. I think the bad start hurt me so much that all of the questions were surprisingly easy. I finished the quant section with around 17 minutes remaining. Took my break, went to the restroom and had some Gatorade. This time I made sure that I come back with 2 minutes remaining. I had mixed feelings in the verbal section, nevertheless I kept telling myself that this is how I normally feel in the mocks. SC wasn't that bad, RC was a little more difficult, and CR was easy. I probably guessed on 2 or 3 questions. I finished the section with about 15 minutes remaining. Clicked submit, went through the background information, and clicked on report the score. and then I was SHOCKED:
Quantitative: 48
Verbal: 28
Total: 620
Okay, going to the exam I expected to get 49-50 in the quant, so given my bad start I expected that 48. But the verbal score I got shocked me so much that I really don't know what to conclude from it. Is this score a fluke? But it shouldn't be, because it is the official GMAT and I was under a good condition when I took it. Then, were my scores in the mock a fluke? But they are so many so it is hard that they are all inaccurate.
I'm really undecided right now and I don't know what to do. I am probably gonna take a break for a while from the GMAT, but I don't know what/how to study when I return to it. I have exhausted almost all official prep questions. I am planning to apply for class of 2015 (January or September intakes), so I got plenty of time. However, I probably need more than time to get my target score (730+.)![]()
Materials used:
-MGMAT guides (quant guides +SC + CR)
-OG 13
-OG 12
-VR2
-QR2
-GMATPREP
-GMAT QP1
-GMAT club tests (only Q & CR sections)
I have been prepping for around three months. My strongest area is the Q, I have continuously score 47+ on all mocks, but I still went through MGMAT guides to make sure that I am familiar with all topics. Although I did my undergrad in the US, I consider myself a non-native since I only learned the language when I was 17.
I must say that my preparations have been somewhat random; that is, I did not have a fixed schedule right from the beginning. However, as I did my mock CATs, I was noticing that my scores were and accuracy were improving repeatedly, so I assume that my preparations were good.
Below are the results of my mock CATs:
-MGMAT1 (January 18): 610 (Q46, V29) (without any preparation or knowledge about the GMAT)
-MGMAT2 (February 28): 680 (Q47, V33)
-GMATPREP1 (May 23): 700 (Q48, V37)
-MGMAT3 (June 6): 660 (Q45, V35)
-MGMAT4 (June 29): 700 (Q47, V39)
-MGMAT5 (July 13): 730 (Q48, V41)
-MGMAT6 (July 20): 760 (Q51, V43)
-MGMAT1A (July 27): 730 (Q47, V43) (a lot of repeated questions)
-VERITAS (August 3): 730 (Q49, V40)
-GMATPREP2 (August 12): 760 (Q50, V42)
-GMATPREP1A Verbal only (August 13): V44 (a lot of repeated questions)
All of the CATs above were attempted in timed conditions with timed breaks, and most of them have been without AWA or IR sections or both. In the final two weeks of preparation, I purchased the GMATPREP QP1 and solved the hard questions of every category in blocks of 10-15 questions. The % of correct answers always above 80% with the exception of few of them.
The score I got in GMATprep2 increased my confidence a lot, especially since I did it with AWA/IR and in exam-like conditions. I really believed that the score I got was in line of my competency, especially since GMATprep is an accurate predictor for most people and the score is in line with the CATs. The day before the exam I bought GMATWrite package, and made sure that I could sore 6 on all of the sections.
TEST DAY Experience:
My test was scheduled at 09:00am. I had a good night of sleep, had a breakfast, and didn't really have any sort of headache. Started my exam with AWA, typed until the 03:00 minute remark and I am confident that it will give me 5+. The IR section was surprisingly easy, I breezed through most of the questions, and finished with about 8 minutes remaining. Took my break, went to the restroom and had a bottle of Redbull. I returned to the the exam 10 seconds late so that freaked me out a little bad and I had a bad start in quant. I think the bad start hurt me so much that all of the questions were surprisingly easy. I finished the quant section with around 17 minutes remaining. Took my break, went to the restroom and had some Gatorade. This time I made sure that I come back with 2 minutes remaining. I had mixed feelings in the verbal section, nevertheless I kept telling myself that this is how I normally feel in the mocks. SC wasn't that bad, RC was a little more difficult, and CR was easy. I probably guessed on 2 or 3 questions. I finished the section with about 15 minutes remaining. Clicked submit, went through the background information, and clicked on report the score. and then I was SHOCKED:
Quantitative: 48
Verbal: 28
Total: 620
Okay, going to the exam I expected to get 49-50 in the quant, so given my bad start I expected that 48. But the verbal score I got shocked me so much that I really don't know what to conclude from it. Is this score a fluke? But it shouldn't be, because it is the official GMAT and I was under a good condition when I took it. Then, were my scores in the mock a fluke? But they are so many so it is hard that they are all inaccurate.
I'm really undecided right now and I don't know what to do. I am probably gonna take a break for a while from the GMAT, but I don't know what/how to study when I return to it. I have exhausted almost all official prep questions. I am planning to apply for class of 2015 (January or September intakes), so I got plenty of time. However, I probably need more than time to get my target score (730+.)