GMAT Debrief----

[Guest]

I started studying for the GMAT about 6 months ago an I'm a regular poster on this forum. I started out with a 610 on my first MGMAT practice exam and scored mostly in the 700's on my practice tests. I got a 740 on MGMAT CAT #5 two days before the test.

Here's how it went:

On Tuesday I took a MGMAT practice test and scored a 740. I felt confident with the material and chopped up every quant problem that came my way and was usually confident with my answers. For RC's, I made notes on the passage. I barely missed any CR and SC questions.

On Wednesday I went to the testing center and checked out the scene. I did some OG review problems, got a great night's sleep.



Thursday (Test day): I woke up around 11am for my 2pm test. I got to the center, checked in and was sat down in my cube.
AWA's: I hadn't practice my AWA's and wasn't really shocked by the topics. The complexity of the Analysis of Argument question was more difficult then I anticipated, but I motored through with no problems. The Analysis of an Issue was super easy and I had no problem putting together a sold 5 paragraph essay.
(FIRST PIECE OF ADVICE: Make sure that you don't spend too much mental energy on the AWA's.)

I took a break, used the restroom, splashed some water on my face, and got ready for game time.
QUANT: The first quant question was unusually difficult. It dealt with proportions and conversions. I was shocked that they started me off with such a tough problem, but I came to an answer and decided to move on. The quant questions I received were really difficult compared to anything I had seen in the past. There were a lot of bacteria multiplying type questions and a lot of word problems incorporated into DS problems. I saw one probability question on #28. I was happy to see that I got this question type, but I only had 15 minutes left to finish the section. I didn't see one geometry problem, my specialty, until question 35 when I got two. I only had about two minutes to finish the last 5 problems and am pretty sure I got 'em right.

I finished the quant section feeling like I did pretty crappy even though the questions were harder then I expected. I took a break and told myself that I'd make up for everything in verbal, which counts more towards my score.

VERBAL started out with a really tough SC question. I got 95% of my OG SC questions correct and couldn't decide between two choices. Don't panic. I chose the shorter one and moved on. I thought the CR's were easy and the RC's were much longer then I had expected. I was on question 25 with about 20 minutes to go when I got a monster RC. I motored through it and had about 18 minutes left to do 20 questions. I was nailing the SC's and doing my best on CR's when my 4th and final RC came up.....a 4 paragraph widow maker! I decided to fish for answers in the passage as fast as I could. I finished all four of those questions and had probably 5 minutes left to do 10 questions. I went through the SC's and think I was able to get some right. I'm not sure what I did with the CR's but it involved trying to select answers that were in the scope.

I finished the exam and really felt like the did poorly in the quant but made for it in the verbal. I was sure that I only missed 2 or 3 SC's and 3-5 CR's because of my last minute guessing........

FINAL SCORE
590
Quant 44 (70th percentile)
Verbal 27 (43rd percentile)

I was shocked and never thought my score would be this low. I'm still numb from the whole experience and am frustrated because I know this doesn't reflect my ability.

So here is my advice:

1) Go through all of your quant problems/material and devise a strategy for each type of problem and know how you will solve it. You can probably come up with 100+ combinations, but come test day, you'll know what to do.

2) Know exactly how to attack RC passages. You will not figure it how to do it on test day. It will not all suddenly click. Study the foundation of SC's and know when certain words are right and wrong. This will help you immediately eliminate 2-3 answer choices on test day and save you time. CR's-I would suggest really getting into the GMAT's logic of what constitutes a correct answer. This line of thinking will really help you cut through the BS.


Lastly,
The GMAT Prep is pretty much the closest thing you'll get to the real test. Don't take it each exam more then once.

I'm sorry that I couldn't post better news. Honestly, I hated reading postings like this and hate being in this category. In all honesty, I think it boils down to luck and whether "the lights are green or red on your test day", as Stacey said. Anyone could easily pick through my test story and say, "Oh, he did X wrong and that's why he got that score." You can easily find other postings that dictate a similar story to mine and see a score of 740.

[Guest]

I am sorry to hear what happened to you. I totally know how you feel. I also went through the same experience and I decided to give the exam another shot. I am schedule to take the test on Monday and I will let you know how it goes. In the mean time, take a few days off and I would encourage you to take the exam again. You probably just had an off day.

Good luck with your decision.

[Guest]

Follow up----

I just got back my AWA scores and received a 6. I never practiced the essays before I took the GMAT and even though I received a 6, I still learned a great lesson from my prep strategy.

Prepping for the GMAT is like prepping for a marathon. You need to do the entire practice tests! I had no idea that the mental energy I used to write the essays would haunt me in the verbal section where I crashed. I equate my situation to training for a marathon and running 20 miles and never actually running the whole distance. I basically died on mile 22 and my score suffered because of it. I had to reread reading comp passages multiple times and was mentally exhausted. You don't feel mentally exhausted because you're so psyched up to be taking the GMAT, but the 11th hour focus that's required just isn't there.

Let this be a lesson to everyone! You will not be able to just "figure it out" on test day. You cannot rely on your adrenaline to carry you through. I've read 100+ recommendations saying how important it is to do full length practice tests and they're all true. Just because you kick ass on practice tests when you skip essays doesn't mean that your success will translate to the real thing. Learn from my mistakes.

[Guest]

Couldn't agree more! Taking the practice tests alongwith the AWA is critical. At the same time, the AWA does sap mental strength so my recommendation would be to "skim" through the AWA in about 20 min each, especially the second one and apply the extra 10 min towards a longer break before the grind.

[what2do]

Your experience sounds eerily similar to mine, I plan on retaking, I'm confident I will do better the next time. Keep your head up, the GMAT isn't the end of the world that some people make it out to be

[Guest]

I'm taking it again this Friday and haven't studied at all since my disaster day. I took one GMAT Prep last week and did both essays and scored a 650. This week I'm brushing up on verbal. More info to come.