{"id":19013,"date":"2019-02-15T17:45:48","date_gmt":"2019-02-15T12:15:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/e-gmat.com\/blogs\/?p=19013"},"modified":"2022-11-18T11:41:03","modified_gmt":"2022-11-18T06:11:03","slug":"gmat-score-improvement-from-a-score-plateau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/e-gmat.com\/blogs\/gmat-score-improvement-from-a-score-plateau\/","title":{"rendered":"GMAT score improvement from a score plateau"},"content":{"rendered":"A <\/span> 8<\/span> min read <\/span><\/span>

\u201cI kept scoring in low 600’s so I decided to postpone the exam for I knew that I was capable of better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI am currently stuck at 630-650\u00a0score\u00a0range.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do feel like I have hit a score plateau\u00a0in Verbal, particularly with CR (specifically with CR Assumption questions)\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve taken 3 GMAT Prep official tests and scored the same on all 3 – any pointers on how to get “unstuck?”<\/p>\n

\u201cI am stuck at a\u00a0score\u00a0plateau\u00a0of 600-620 range in almost all the mocks.\u201d<\/p>\n

These are statements by students who are preparing for the GMAT. Do any of these statements describe your situation? A lot of students spend countless hours in preparation only to see the same score or a score in the same range flash on the computer screen. Does that mean all those hours that you spent were for nothing? In this article, we will answer this question and more –<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. What is a GMAT Score Plateau?<\/li>\n
  2. What causes GMAT Score Plateau?<\/li>\n
  3. GMAT score improvement from a Score Plateau to reach your target score?<\/li>\n
  4. Stuck at a 680 to 700 score! Learn GMAT score improvement strategies?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"improve<\/p>\n

    What is a GMAT Score Plateau?<\/h2>\n

    \"improve<\/p>\n

    Your scores are considered to be plateaued when you are stuck in the same score range despite having spent a considerable amount of time and effort to improve from that score. As in all the examples above most students find that improving till early 600s comes easily but improving from there on becomes difficult for them.<\/p>\n

    But score plateau is not necessarily at a 600 score. You may find that your scores plateau at much lower or higher scores too. Does that mean that you can score only that much in GMAT and it is futile to study for a higher score? The answer is an emphatic NO! Let\u2019s understand what causes Score Plateau and then how to overcome it.<\/p>\n

    What causes a GMAT Score Plateau?<\/h2>\n

    Every competitive exam has a purpose, either elimination or selection. GMAT focuses more on selection than elimination, and as a result, the test is designed to rank the students in the order of their likelihood to do well in the various Business Management programs. The test tries to assess the students on their ability<\/a> to logically solve problems thrown at them.<\/p>\n

    \"improve<\/p>\n

    Therefore, to ace this test, students need to have\/develop the ability to think logically and more from an application perspective than just knowledge perspective. There are certain core abilities that are required to solve the questions asked in GMAT. Being adept at these skills alone can ensure a 50-percentile score on GMAT without any specific training or practice.<\/p>\n

    Students face the problem of Score Plateau because they do not think about these core skills as the foundational steps to acing GMAT. They are more focused on the last step which is to solve the question in a certain amount of time rather than ensuring that the skills required to solve the questions are developed.<\/p>\n

    At a high-level, this is seen in the score trends in Quant and Verbal. Generally, non-natives struggle in Verbal and natives struggle in Quant. This is purely because of the way they have been studying these topics so far. Natives study Verbal in a very structured manner and the core skills to comprehend English and draw inferences or identify the assumptions is developed right from the school days.<\/p>\n

    On the other hand, non-natives have a similar approach to Quant. Because of this influence right from how the topics\/subjects are introduced in school, there is a significant difference in core skills and strengths of these two groups of students which is then reflected in their scores.<\/p>\n

    \n

    If you are planning to take the GMAT, we can help you with a personalized study plan and give you access to quality online content to prepare. Write to us at\u00a0acethegmat@e-gmat.com<\/a>. We are the\u00a0most reviewed GMAT prep company on gmatclub<\/a>\u00a0with more than 1800 reviews (as on Feb 15, 2019). Why don\u2019t you\u00a0take a free trial\u00a0<\/a>and judge it for yourself?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    So, what are these core skills that we have been talking about? Let\u2019s understand this better by taking two examples.<\/p>\n

    Example 1: Let\u2019s understand the core skills required to solve Word Problem questions by solving one question.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Q: Jacob is now 12 years younger than Michael. If 9 years from now, Michael will be twice as old as Jacob, how old will Jacob be in 4 years?<\/em><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. 3 B) 7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 C)15\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 D)21\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 E)25<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      200 students (mostly non-natives) were asked to solve this question. They were later asked to share the approach they used to solve this question, whether it was by making equations or by answer choice substitution or using some formula. Majority of them responded by saying that they solved this question by making equations despite substitution being the faster approach and the reason for that was that this was out of habit. Every time they look at a word problem they start making equations as they read the problem. Their brain is wired to think in that manner, and so they do not spend any time in thinking how to solve such questions.<\/p>\n

      The core abilities required to solve this question using the equations approach are:<\/p>\n