Revisiting the GMAT

[LaurenD216]

Hi Manhattan Prep!

I took the GMAT in May 2016 and scored a 670 (Verbal: 45/99%, Quant: 36/29%, Writing: 6/88%, IR 6/70%). At the time I was thrilled that the total score was higher than my practice exams and that the verbal score was an accurate representation of my strength in that area. The quant, while disappointing, was no surprise to me. It's never been my strong suit.

Now 2+ years later, I am considering re-taking the exam to raise the quant portion. It's the only weak spot in my application. Do you have a recommended plan of action for me to:
1. Build a better quant foundation and raise that score
2. Brush up on the verbal section and keep that high

I used the GMAT Interact before and loved it, but due to cost constraints, I plan to self-study with the books. Which books do you recommend I re-purchase?

Many thanks.

[StaceyKoprince]

Hello! Do you still have the MPrep books from before? We haven't published new versions in the past 2 years, so you're good with the existing books if you have them. If you still have your Official Guide, you can continue to use that as well.

Also: You may want to ask our Student Services team whether there are any discounts for returning students. I don't know whether there are but it's worth asking!

The big first step is to figure out what your current scoring level is—and your current strengths and weaknesses. Ask our student services team about reactivating your online resources (there is a fee for this, but it will give you access to CATs, GMAT Navigator, and a bunch of other good resources—I don't know the details because it depends on your original program).

Then, take a CAT under 100% official conditions (you'll probably want to choose test order 3, which puts V—your strength—first). And analyze the results. Is your V still 40+? Great. Basically just refresh using your existing materials (if you still have your books). If you don't still have your books and your score has dropped a lot, use your analysis to decide which one(s) you really need to build your skills back up. (Feel free to give me your analysis and ask me what I think. )

Your Q scoring level indicates that you need to start from our Foundations of Math guide. Give yourself a solid 2-3 weeks to work through that book thoroughly and carefully. There are online assessments associated with that book—take them to confirm that you're ready to move up to the "main" strategy guides.

And—if you no longer have any books—you will likely need all 5 quant strategy guides as well as the Official Guide (I would go for OG2018 vs. the just-published OG2019—we haven't updated our study resources for OG19 yet).

Finally, look at this article series:
https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/blog ... our-score/

It will help you to think about how to structure a study plan. When you've got an idea of what you want to do, share your plan here and we'll comment / advise.

[Black5879]

out of curiosity, why would you want to retake the GMAT with a decent score already achieved?

[StaceyKoprince]

670 is indeed a solid score overall, but it is on the lower end for certain schools. Some top schools have average GMAT scores in the 720 to 740 range. If you are shooting for that kind of school, then a 670 score would be a potential negative in the admissions process.