Enhanced scoring report suggests what?

[Everything OR Nothing]

Dear Stacy,
I am going to take GMAT once more on next week ,and I hope I can give you good news from my side :)

I have purchased the extra GMAT prep mock exam pack ie. Exam 3 and 4.

I scored (Q47,V41=720) and (Q49,V38=710) recently.

When I checked enhanced score report,I saw in test number 4,
I had RC score=26 ( first 6/7 RC questions correct (the 5th RC question and sequentially the 11th verbal Question was incorrect),last RC passage 1/3 is correct (ie question number 30,31 wrong).)

SC score=40 ( first 7/7 SC correct but 22nd,24th,25th,33rd,35th questions were SC and were incorrect)

CR score=44 ( sequentially 22nd question and 8th CR question was incorrect ,rest all correct)

Overall=38 in verbal.( i dint do as badly in RC as compared to SC ,still one gave me score 26 and the other gave 40 .While I understand that I might have got more harder problems in SC)

I need your kind advice whether in real GMAT I should be focussed on answering initial question from each area correctly.
I mean should I give more focus on initial 5( roughly) questions of each type.

Same is the case in Quant section .
If that is so, I have to keep track of what type of questions I am guessing and what type I am doing confidently .Say if My guessing is happening in one type (eg. RC/SC/CR) then The score cant get better even if i perform well overall.
I guess GMAT is trying to give good score to people who are equally good in all areas of questions.

Please suggest a good strategy specially in verbal section,so that I do not lose 2-3 points just because of my wrong understanding of Enhanced score report.

[StaceyKoprince]

Yes, the scoring is based on the difficulty level of the questions. So, because of the way your scoring trajectory worked out on the test, it looks like you got some harder SCs wrong but some easier RCs wrong.

Note that the placement of the questions doesn't matter (you reported the first X out of 7 correct - but earlier placement does not matter).

You also say that you "didn't do as badly in RC" - what are you basing that on? The number incorrect? First, that isn't really how the test is scored. Second, note that there are typically more SC questions than RC, so even if it were, you'd have to account for that proportionality, not just the raw number of incorrect.

Ah, okay, I just got to this:

I mean should I give more focus on initial 5( roughly) questions of each type.

No. This will not actually do anything to help your score. Answer the questions that you can answer and guess on the ones that you can't, while managing your overall timing and mental energy.

Here's what you want to take away from the score report. You are great at CR and SC. On the real test, make sure that you do not force yourself to rush on those question types because you have messed up your timing earlier in the section. If you have to guess quickly on anything to make up timing, make it an RC question. (But, ideally, you'd manage your time well from the beginning - which means identifying very hard questions when you see them, and guessing / moving on to other questions without using up too much time or mental energy.)

Note that, even though you are great at CR and SC, they can still give you some CR/SC problems that are too hard for you. Don't be too stubborn on those; do your best within a reasonable timeframe, then pick something and move on.

Did you do the essay and IR sections as well on those tests? If so, then you look like you're in great shape for the real test! (FYI: Skipping the earlier sections can result in an artificially inflated Q and/or V score because you wouldn't have been as mentally tired as you will be on the real test, when you have to do all 4 sections.)

[Everything OR Nothing]

Thanks alot dear Stacey.
Manhattan GMAT is the only forum based on which I have prepared .

Special thanks to Ron and You.

Yes, I have taken full test in ideal exam condition.
To be frank in verbal I have seen 2-3 questions (not more than that) that I have seen previously.

Somehow, I can't resist the temptation of not Guessing CR or SC questions after already investing 30 seconds ( In fact I can answer most of 600-700 level CRs correctly in around 2.5 or 2.6 Minutes not less than that. I could never improve on that) .So I end up guessing last RC's fact based and inference based type questions(blind guesses)
Even in an average level RC having 3 questions, I take on an average 8.5 minutes to 10 .5 minutes (Which is bad and I could never improve timing).yes in SC, I can answer most of them in 1.5 minutes(still few takes 2.3-2.4 minutes)
I will try my best to apply your advice.I have been reading the timing related and last 14 days related posts that you have posted .

Hoping for the best.I know If I can improve my timing issues I can do much better.My normal pattern in verbal is always like this:
when there is 30 minute left I am at 23 or 24th question..So I have to recover times from the Last RC .I tried following ideal pace that you suggested in your timing related blog. I observed I ended up doing few silly mistakes as I felt like hurrying after seeing a tentatively hard SC or CR (which were actually not that hard,and I could have solved in 2-2.5 minutes).This strategy marred my score more.So I started giving on an average 2 minutes to first 24 Questions. Do not know whether I am still correct :(

Also, in Quant I struggled 1 yr to go from 49 level to 50-51.I could never achieve that.Went through basics,went through your and ron's every GMAT prep Question explanations,Still....
I know I am somewhere wrong which i could never figure out.

Anyways I am feeling positive this time than before .Before my earlier attempt in GMAt, I never scored beyond 630 in GMATPREP test.

Thanks a ton again.

[StaceyKoprince]

Ah, okay. What did you do when you saw those repeated questions? Did you get them right even if you might have gotten them wrong if they'd been new? Did you answer them more quickly than you would have if you hadn't seen them before?

If so, then your score may be artificially inflated, even if it was only 2 or 3 questions. If you took less time, that would give you more time for other questions, so the impact might actually go across 5 or 6 questions instead of just 2 or 3.

I think one big part of your struggle is that you haven't yet fully changed your mindset from "this is a school test" to "this is a business test."

The goal is actually NOT to get everything right. The goal is to show that you know how to run a business - and whoever heard of a good business person who doesn't know how to choose between various opportunities and when to cut their losses? :)

You're going into this test with certain limited resources: time and mental energy. You can't do it all (nobody can!), so figure out how best to spend the time and energy that you do have.

Bailing on the questions that are hardest for you is a good example of this - so, yes, keep doing this. But telling me that you can get a certain SC right, it's just that it takes 2.5 minutes...no, that's old-school-thinking. That's like you saying, "Oh, sure minor client of ours, we can produce that widget for you. It'll cost us twice as much as usual, but we won't charge you any more for it." I don't think so!

Stop trying to get those "few" that take way too much time. The goal is actually to get those wrong faster, so that you aren't going into questions 23+ with only 30 minutes left!!

Note: the scoring does not weight the earlier questions more heavily. In fact, given what you've told me, it's likely that you could already score higher on the test if you just stopped doing this with your timing. Bail faster on the hardest questions throughout. It does not matter whether you could get them right if you spent more time - that's not the point of the test!

Have I convinced you yet? Read this every day from now until you take the test:
http://tinyurl.com/executivereasoning

Seriously: every single day. :)

[Everything OR Nothing]

Haah...Stacey,thank you for your extremely logical and wise advices.I flunked in GMAT Today :(

AWA=5.0
IR=7
Quant=50
Verbal=28 !!!
Overall=650

With a heavy heart I am writing.

This time experience was great until I clicked the next button to see the Horrible verbal score :(. That is the beauty of GMAT.


I was religiously following Your Timing related blog and all other masterpieces written by you.
I have been preparing for verbal section for 4 damn years now.
Initial 3 years ,I wasted my energy in irrelevant materials ( whatever I could get from the net and other successful friends of mine ,I used to read read and test myself by answering)Finally,I came across one friend of mine who told me about Manhattan GMATprep official material's explanations and who told me about taking notes.
I have followed each explanation in your site.Last October,I enrolled myself in One online program , called egmat too.They gave guarantee of at-least 4 point improvement or money back..And I am not getting back my money as I improved exactly 4 points .LOL :D
I made notes of every single explanation in your forums and made a note on SC (almost 500+ concepts and explanations ) and have gone through those concepts and questions several times.manhattan sc n cr guides and advanced quant n IR guide i completed too. I also made logs of wrong official questions (GMATprep test 1,2,3,4 ,OG 10/11/12/13/14,verbal review 2,and other questions found on your forums) after reviewing my concepts ,I tried those SC/CR questions in timed conditions and I answered mostly correct ( in SC about 90 % were correct and I knew the concept tested ,and In CR about 85% were correct and I knew the concept when I saw those questions second time even after months)

I applied my SC knowledge while reading mails or writing mails in my job.It felt amazing to see how majority of the people do mistakes.While writing these few lines I have not reviewed;I know if i review I can see the mistakes.
I thought I am ready.I purchased fresh OG Tests 3 and 4 last year immediately after my second attempt.I took the test 3 ,and I got 650 ( q=49,v=29) .Exactly after one year from when I took test 3, I took test 4 this year ( I got 720 : Q=47,V=41).
I thought I am damn ready.
I took test 1,2 once again. Got 710(q 49,v 38 and 700 (q 49 and v 35)--In these naturally My scores were inflated as I remembered few answers and I did invest lesser time in those while answering.

With full confidence I took the test today.Special in SC and CR I was so sure of doing great.
In verbal section unlike my previous attempt, I dint feel fatigued at all.My stamina and confidence were intact till the end (In fact I was waiting to see 720++ score :( ,While coming back home I opened the unofficial score to check once more whether I misread 750 as 650 .I m not kidding :)

Well,In Quant ,by question number 17, 18 I started getting tough DS questions .Buckled by my natural urge(which I have to tame or I will be tamed forever),I invested 2 minutes and 3 minutes in 2 consecutive tough questions with absolute no know hows of what to do and ended up guessing.I could afford to do that as i was 4 minute ahead.Then came few more tough ones ,which were above my level.I did few and guessed 2 more among next 8-9( in these 2 also i spent 1.5 minutes in each).Then I was running negative on time by 33rd question and I had to rush on because of which I could not give enough time to 36th question.Whatever,I got 50 .happy about that although I was expecting worse today.(i was thinking what if 47 or 46..then I am gone)

.Initial verbal SC question puzzled me .I took 2 minutes, and I think I answered correctly. In CR, I was confident answering the questions.(Just to save time ,I ANSWERED few CR as fast as I can as I was confident about the right answer...This I did as I got sure shot hunch of wrong answers just reading initial 4-5 words of wrong choices(irrelevant things) and I saw correct answer dazzling brightly out there.I hope I did not do the mistake of not reading Full sentences of choices of those sure shot wrong ones.
In SC I was not seeing sure shot splits in quite a few,also I had in mind to be faster in SC(although I could close down to 2 options very fast).In few I was bemused among 3 or 4.This did not happen in all though.I answered few with 100% confidence .All RCs were easy.In
last Rc I made educated guess in 2 ot of 3.Overall I was getting easier RC passages and questions (that is the caveat,I guess I did initial RC wrong ).
Unlike all my GMATPREP tests,I did not have to rush through towards the end(MOST IMPORTANT MISTAKE I DID WAS THAT THERE WAS NOT A SINGLE QUESTION IN WHICH I APPLIED 0 SECOND INVESTMENT STRATEGY,In fact If I see my error logs there is no clear weakness,Its so damn mixed,Evertime it keeps changing. Well 40th question was a moderate CR ...some cats and dogs and burglary related.I answered that too and 41st was a SC , which was testing " in a long list of items finding out complex parallel elements .Overall I clicked next button expecting 700 plus this time .
And I could not understand 28 .I was flabbergasted.My first feeling seeing the score was that GMAT is not for me - I am incapable.

I know this not the end of my life and career but I had only thought of this road without seeing left or right in my last 5 years(peak of my youth),I sacrificed other possible ways of earning money via different career options .I have been stuck with the only idea of getting a great MBA education.
Still at this point I do not understand how people get 40 plus in verbal.You said getting just 60% questions right one can get a good score.How ?....I still do not know.What if what GMAT algo thinks easy are tough for me and what GMAT algo thinks tough are not that tough for me.If this is true,do I need to build up from basic concepts again ?!I thought I have prepared and built enough concepts, specially in sc.At this point I do not know what to do next.I want to keep trying until a day comes when I crack the 40 Plus formula in verbal.By that day i might not be eligible for B schools .But I want to try.But I do not know how to judge myself whether I am ready or not.I have over prepared for a test in which several of my peers rocked with 750 in mere 3 months by following what I have been following.Is the game called GMAT verbal really not for me?I should quit or there is always a way that guys like me also get 38 plus someday.Can a human with average reasoning and English language ability be trained to score 40.?Or it is simply not possible for cases like me. :(:(
Sorry for wrong written English .I still dream to be a GMAT teacher and score 750 plus again and again.I do believe I can but how and when.May be I am trying for GMAT as make or break thing in my life.I want to goto the exam hall someday with nearby level of confidence that you guys go.ie nothing can pull me down 40 in verbal:) .What is the mantra.How to prepare?I want to be one among you.Is it possible?
.Should I stick to GMAT dream(my heart says yes,I will be one among you one day :)) or move ahead quitting it.

[StaceyKoprince]

You did not flunk the GMAT! I know you didn't get the score you wanted, but you did raise your score, and your score on 3 out of the 4 sections is great!

What you described for CR (answering quickly because you were "sure" after reading just a few words of a choice) is a classic set-up for careless mistakes, unfortunately. If you don't read each choice carefully / completely, expect to fall into traps. (Sometimes you will be right...but sometimes you will be walking directly into a trap.)

You still lifted your verbal score from last time, but it's possible that you cost yourself some points via the above kind of thing. If that's the case, then it's possible that you could lift your score by preparing for the test again and making sure that you don't take the test in a way that increases your opportunities for careless mistakes. It's also possible that you have just about reached your peak scoring level; it's tough to tell for sure.

(By the way, in case you do decide to study further: you said that, on the quant section, you could "afford" to take 2-3 minutes on a couple of questions that you had no idea how to do, because you had some extra time. That was not a good decision. You have a limited amount of mental energy to spend on this test, and it doesn't "refresh" from section to section, so you're getting more and more tired as the test goes on. The verbal section is last, and the more tired you are, the more careless mistakes you're going to make. If you decide to take the test again, you're going to need to change the "I want to see whether I can get it right!" mindset to the "This is a business test and I have to make the best collective business decisions for the entire 4 hours.")

I also want to add that a 650 score is a solid score for many b-school programs; this score will not prevent you from being able to get an MBA. It's true that a 650 is at the lower end for the very top top b-schools, but there are plenty of great schools out there that aren't looking for a 720. What is your ultimate goal here? If your goal is to get an MBA, then you can get a degree from a very good school and move on with your career.

(Also, you asked whether someone "with average reasoning and English language ability" could hit a score of 40+ on verbal. By definition, that would be tough, since "average" means "around the 50th percentile" and 40+ is the 90th+ percentile. While people can improve in general, it's not super likely that someone with "average" ability is going to rise to 90th+ percentile. If that were the case, then the 90th percentile would no longer be the 90th percentile - too many people would be at that level!)

But back to my last question: what is your ultimate goal?

[Everything OR Nothing]

Dear Stacey,Thank you for your support and help always.
When there is none to get support in this field, I look upto Stacey.May God bless you for your good "KARMA".

Well,my goal is definitely to get into a top B school with (if possible with some scholarship). Currently,I work with an MNC in India .I have 9 years of experience in Product management/project delivery with a leading handset manufacturing company and have worked in 12 different countries in different projects.I am an Bachelor degree holder (with good grades) in engineering from one of the top 20 Engineering schools in India.

As per my survey , successful peers of mine have got Top B school calls only after 710 Plus scores(Specially, in Indian top 2-3 B schools and some of top 20 schools in USA,which I am targeting too) If one does not have minimum 690 and does not have some super extra ordinary achievements ,one has virtually no chance of getting a call.This conclusion is based on my survey in different forums and feedbacks from different people selected in those such places.I might be wrong. A lot of Indian guys with similar experiences and score in 750s are targeting these 2-3 top Indian B schools(I think ,one of the biggest reasons is that tuition fees of any top Indian B schools are much lower (1/4 th) than that of USA B schools ).My goal is definitely to get into a top B school and enhance my understanding of business administration and apply the same successfully in life ,while raising my socio economic status .I know Good businessman switch from one small failure to another small failures rather than stick to a big failure.I want to apply for the few of my targeted B schools only after I get 700 plus because I do not want to narrow my chances by getting rejected there because of my score.So, I feel 700 will be safe and more importantly I still feel I will give up from very near to success if I give up now.

In my case, I am confident that on any given day I will not score below 75th percentile in Quant : the reason behind the confidence is that I know I will not do mistakes in the quant questions that appear as low or mid level initially.To answer Low and Mid level questions in quant I take less amount of time too .I have analysed that ,reason behind this confidence is that I know basics of topics tested clearly.

I want to know can my basics be refined in verbal just as it is in Quant. Is there any preparation after which I achieve a level of confidence in which Low and Mid level verbal questions are indeed 100% solvable for me .I am a guy who has not read novels in his life.But I have read fair amount of non fictions.Although GMAT is a reasoning test,it tests my reasons based on certain tools such as basics of grammar, basics of reading ,basics of English language( I still feel I am good with basics,but i have realised what if I am not 100% clear with basics).


The other day I was talking to an Indian friend, who improved his score from 600 to 750 in his 3rd attempt simply by making notes after reading each Official Problem's explanation by Manhattan instructors in your forums.I have seen his notes. Surprisingly,the problem where he used to stuck is 90% same with the ones I am stuck ( of course,majority of the problems in which i am stuck in practice falls in tough category).I started taking notes and started applying the concepts learned and practiced all offcial materials.Frankly speaking,I still feel I have improved alot in SC ( but on test day my confident gets marred seeing initial "EASY" SC questions,You are right SC has evoluted to be more meaning based).RC I could never improve marginally (weakest area, If I rush through I do mistakes.Sometimes stuck between 2 strong contenders( In RC even after investing 8/9 minutes in each I normally make one or 2 mistakes in each, lowering the RC score to 40th percentile at the cost of nearly 30 crucial minutes of investment.(This is one big hole in my verbal section that i could never improve and GMAT is hitting me hard right on this spot).I have read alot,how to read,how to answerbut may be I am unable to apply the same.

So overall, I want to know is it possible that no matter how much smartly and optimally I take the test I might never get a 700 plus ? You are Guru in this field and must have seen cases like me.So I will stop this dream if this is so.(I am saying I will quit this dream,but my inner feeling will never let me quit.I know .I guess I have taken the saying " You never fail ,you just give up from very near to your goal" too seriously in my life :):)

One great thing of my struggle is that ,I have started developing the hobby of writing analysis and reasons as you guys do .Although I am not eligible to do so,such analytical writing has started attracting me more than any work in this world ever has .I need to get a great verbal score once and every time even after I get into a B school(without a 700),so that I can officially write answers to students some day.It will keep me active and enthused in my whole life.The only reason I could stuck to GMAT preparation off an on is the beauty of the explanations in Manhattan forum.They soothes my mind and heart like some drugs of Logic and reasons.

Kindly let me know 2 things:

1.Suggest me an approach right from now, in which I have maximum chance of improving verbal score in next 2 months so that I get at least a 700 and get into a B school of my dream.
(I do not know how many attempts are looked as untouchable by B schools. Do they hate more than 5 attempts even though one is improving his score?)

2. What to do,If I want to build myself to a level after which I can go to test hall with same confidence with which many of you go :)( I want to teach and write answers someday in my life as you do.For that I need the great official score .I am ready to start again.I am ready to study more and learn more and change strategy: anything needed.

What I know right now is I need to change my current approach and improve . I also know when input is same, output will be same.So,can kindly suggest the changes needed please.
Also let me know if it is impossible for some people such as I ( Though I will definitely not be able to believe that till my death)

[StaceyKoprince]

If one does not have minimum 690 and does not have some super extra ordinary achievements ,one has virtually no chance of getting a call.

Okay, you've got a little research to do. I want you to go on to the websites of at least 5 of the top 20 schools you mentioned. Look up not the average score but the score range of the people they admit. Tell me what that range is. (Hint: the bottom of the range is not 690.)

With a 650, you are in the admitted range already for a number of these schools. Yes, you're at the lower end of that range for the very top schools, but there are plenty of other great schools for which you are decently in range.

That doesn't mean that you shouldn't go for more. It's just to put this all in perspective: you're already in an okay position, and the GMAT is only one part of a large application.

Next, yes, you can raise your verbal level by concentrating on the lower-level questions - and this is smart, since by definition it's easier to learn to get the lower-level ones than the higher-level ones! And it's more worth your while as long as you are still making mistakes on lower-level questions.

So. Which kinds of lower level verbal questions do you always or usually get right, which ones do you usually get wrong, and which ones are more middle-of-the-road? If you can dig into testing and OG data to figure out (a) what you're missing, and (b) why you're missing it, then you can learn how to avoid making those mistakes in future.

This is going to take some work of course. And I would suggest enlisting the help of your friend who you mentioned had the same kinds of problems that you did. Ask him to explain to you what he noticed and how he changed his thinking on things that are giving you trouble. Don't ask him just to explain the right answer to you (you can read the explanation for that). Ask him to explain how he overcame his mistakes or tendencies to pick the wrong ones, how he changed his thinking on very specific problems. Tell him you'll buy him dinner when he helps you study. :)

Also, use the forums to explain things yourself and see what kind of reaction you get. When someone doesn't understand something you said, try again to see if you can explain better.

So dig in there to the little tiny details and start trying to figure this out. And as you do start to figure it out, you'll know you're getting better, and that will lift your confidence.

You asked me whether it is possible that you'll never reach 700. Anything is possible - it's also possible that you will reach it. Some people won't get there. I don't know whether you will or not - but if you're not ready to give up, then don't give up.

[Everything OR Nothing]

Dear Stacy ,thanks from bottom of my heart.

[StaceyKoprince]

you're welcome!