{"id":16088,"date":"2018-08-08T14:48:19","date_gmt":"2018-08-08T14:48:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/?p=16088"},"modified":"2019-08-30T17:35:35","modified_gmt":"2019-08-30T17:35:35","slug":"analyze-gmat-practice-tests-part-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gmat\/blog\/analyze-gmat-practice-tests-part-3\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Steps to Analyze Your GMAT Practice Tests (Part 3)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Manhattan<\/p>\n

Are you ready to get even more geeky about your GMAT practice tests?\u00a0\u263a\ufe0f<\/span><\/p>\n

In the first two installments of this series, we talked about:<\/span><\/p>\n

Part 1: Global executive reasoning and timing review<\/span><\/p>\n

Part 2: Per-question timing review<\/span><\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t already, start with part 1 of this series<\/a> and work your way back here.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s continue with a deeper dive into the broad strengths and weaknesses revealed by your GMAT practice tests.<\/span><\/p>\n

Run Your Reports<\/b><\/h4>\n

Note: this article series is based on the metrics that are given in Manhattan Prep GMAT practice tests, but you can extrapolate to other GMAT practice tests that give you similar performance data.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the Manhattan Prep system, navigate to your practice exam area and click on the link \u201cGenerate Assessment Reports.\u201d The first time, run the report based solely on the most recent test that you just did; later, we\u2019ll aggregate data from your last two or three tests.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Assessment Summary<\/b><\/h4>\n

The first report produced is the Assessment Summary; this report provides the percentages correct for the five main Quant and Verbal question types, as well as average timing and difficulty levels. It also gives a summary by overall Quant topic area. Here\u2019s an example; see whether you can spot any problem areas. (You may need to zoom in. That\u2019s a lot of data!)<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Manhattan<\/p>\n

Most people will immediately say \u201cOh, this student is much better at DS than PS.\u201d Why? \u201cBecause the percentage correct is higher for DS.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Actually, that <\/span>may<\/span><\/i> not be an accurate takeaway for this particular set of results. It\u2019s crucial to compare three data points at once: the percentage correct, the time spent, and the difficulty levels.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s true that the DS percentage correct is significantly higher. But look at that timing: the student is spending a lot longer on incorrect DS as well. (Almost a minute longer, on average, than correct DS!) Where does that extra time come from? Incorrect PS is averaging only about 1.5 minutes, so she\u2019s rushing on those.<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, check out those difficulty levels; she\u2019s actually answering much harder PS problems correctly! What\u2019s concerning here is that the average difficulty for correct vs. incorrect PS is almost the same\u2014and that she\u2019s rushing on incorrect PS.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019d tell this student to start looking for careless errors\u2014is that rushing costing her points on PS? And if she is able to answer harder PS correctly, why is the DS difficulty languishing down at a 510 for the correct problems, and why is she spending so much longer on incorrect ones? She may have an issue with the DS process or strategies, or she may be second-guessing herself on DS (or both!). I\u2019d review the overall process and major strategies such as rephrasing and testing cases.<\/span><\/p>\n

Plus, she needs to learn to cut herself off on some of the harder DS problems (that she\u2019s getting wrong anyway!). That average time of 2:39 for incorrect DS needs to come down. She\u2019ll need to investigate how to know that she should cut herself off on any particular problem. For example, if she\u2019s spent 1 minute but doesn\u2019t really understand what the question is asking, that\u2019s a great time to cut yourself off. Or if she\u2019s spent 2 minutes trying some kind of plan\/approach and she\u2019s hitting a wall, that\u2019s not when you want to keep going and try something else. That\u2019s when you cut your losses and move on.<\/span><\/p>\n

These kinds of results should catch your eye:<\/span><\/p>\n