GMAT - 690 - Q 48 V 36

[Hobbes]

I took my GMAT yesterday after 2 months of preparation. Time Management on Quant was not as good as expected. I spent more than 2 min per question on the first few questions, which ate up into my time for the remaining questions. And I went into verbal with the feeling that my Quant was bad. And my verbal was not good.

My practice test scores (took 8 CATS and 3 Paper tests)

Kaplan 1 - 610
Kaplan 2 - 640
Kaplan 3 - 640
Kaplan 4 - 590

Princeton 1 - 660
Princeton 2 - 610
Princeton 3 - 680
Princeton 4 - 720

Powerprep 1 - 760 (after doing 30% of OG)
Powerprep 2 - 770 (with OG completed - 2 days befor acual GMAT)

I think I became anxious during the test. I am planning a retake. in June. Any advice would be greatly appreciated on how I can work on verbal. I was able to handle verbal in Kaplan verbal workbook, and OG reasonably well.

[ursula]

690 is certainly a respectable score, but looking at your Powerprep scores I think you have the potential to score in the mid 700s, even allowing for some test day jitters.

I think you just got overanxious. Looking at your quant score of 48, you actually did quite a bit better on that section than you probably thought while you were taking the test. Maybe your quant was a few points lower than during your PowerPrep, but you would certainly have been able to get an overall score of 7xx if you had not gone into the verbal thinking you had already blown it.

From your Powerprep scores I would guess that your verbal must usually be better than 36, so I really think it was nerves, not lack of preparation. I'm sure you'll be able to come closer to your Powerprep scores on your second run. You certainly have the potential to get a great score, so just think of this first attempt as a practice run and learning experience, and don't get down on yourself. Good luck!

[Hobbes]

Ursula

Thanks for the encouragement. I was really disappointed yesterday, but my decision was clear. I knew I had to retake the test as I know I can do better.

I was browsing these forums this morning, and I read your post where you said :

I cannot overstress the importance of confidence, and remaining calm. The absolute worst thing you can do is to panic during the test. I have
analyzed a lot of the forum posts from people who did less well than they
had expected, and the most common cause is a psychological meltdown during or after the Quant section.


THAT WAS Exactly what ahppened to me!!!!

And your note gave me some confidence. Thanks....I am now looking forward to the 50 point jump for my next attempt. It was test day jitters, and the feeling that I had screwed up quant that really made me lose focus on my verbal.

Really good to hear about your 760. Good stuff!

Thanks again...

[ursula]

Hi Hobbes,
Glad to hear you're getting a handle on what happened. I would be very surprised if you didn't see a jump around 50 points on your next run!

Next time around the testing environment will be familiar, and you'll just need to keep in mind that you've already been through it once, and actually did a lot better on the quant than you had thought. Also, don't forget that 25% of the questions are experimental, so you'll never know whether those questions you were having difficulty with actually didn't count anyway.

By the way, if I were you I would try to reschedule as soon as possible (April), instead of waiting until June. You're still in the GMAT mindset and won't have to start studying all over again. And your prep scores really indicate that you were well enough prepared, and it was just nerves.

[Hobbes]

Hi Ursula

Thanks. I am visiting the US next week to see some of the BSchools. I live in Asia and my tickets are all booked. So the earliest I can look at taking the test again is after I am back - April end?

I will be applying only later this year - for entry in Fall 2005.

But, reading your post and one by Erkki - who scored 690 on the first and jumped to 730/740 on the 2nd attempt - has got my confidence level back to normal.

Appreciate your advice. Good luck

[erkki]

I actually jumped to a 750

Good luck with your re-test. I'm sure you'll improve.