Following up on the last post, I DID take the GMAT today, and have my results back.
Initial score: 660.
That puts me in the 81st percentile overall. Not bad, but not nearly as good as I had hoped. I’m annoyed with myself because I should have done better. I basically went on a bloody rampage across the verbal section, but the quantitative/math part was unkind to me.
Verbal score put me in the 99th percentile of test takers. Quantitative score put me in the 35th percentile. Ouch.
I clearly should have practiced that part a lot more. For one thing, I took too long finishing. Ran out of time with five or six questions not answered, which is a really big hit to the score when you only have forty-ish questions in the first place, and unanswered questions hurt worse than wrong answers. That’s not even being bad at math, that’s just terrible test-taking strategy. It’s been too long since I’ve played the game, and it’s showing.
As mentioned, the verbal section was no problem. It was actually suspiciously easy, enough to worry me towards the end. I finished the verbal section with half an hour left on the clock, and it never seemed tough. But that sort of thing has always been up my alley.
We’ll see how it affects my application. I sort of wish I’d elected to not submit the scores and take the test again, but that way lies madness. I’d have to let the application date slip to the third round, which seems like a mistake, and I’d lose all my momentum in general, which is deadly to me in particular. Once you settle on a plan, you have to commit to it. I’ve committed, and I’m not going to start chasing my tail now.