Struggling with Quantitative....

[Arcanelady27]

I am scheduled to take the test January 6th and I am struggling in quantitative. I have 141 on latest practice test. Is it possible to reach a score of 150 before test time? 

 

I reached 151 verbal on my latest practice test. I just need a 150 in each section to be in 40th percentile. 

 

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to improve in the quantitative section?  Please help...I am so desperate! 

Edited December 19, 2013 by Arcanelady27

[DeafAudi]

Funny, I got a similar score on my quantitative last year and am rewriting on January 6. I am also applying to audiology . I will be watching this thread in hopes that someone will have some suggestions. How have you been preparing? I have been using Magoosh and have been focusing almost exclusively on quantitative because I did pretty well on the verbal the first time. I will probably just brush up on my vocabulary. 

[browncow]

Are you familiar with the basic math skills that are needed for the test?

 

If so, do you find that you feel "desperate" during the test? I think that can be a big hindrance, especially if you end up spending time looking for complicated solutions to simple, almost nonmathematical questions.

 

If not, can you post examples of questions that you typically have trouble with?

[Arcanelady27]

an

Funny, I got a similar score on my quantitative last year and am rewriting on January 6. I am also applying to audiology . I will be watching this thread in hopes that someone will have some suggestions. How have you been preparing? I have been using Magoosh and have been focusing almost exclusively on quantitative because I did pretty well on the verbal the first time. I will probably just brush up on my vocabulary. 

I've been doing problems in the Manhattan 5lb book as well as practice tests. I've been prepping on and off for almost two months.

[Arcanelady27]

Are you familiar with the basic math skills that are needed for the test?

 

If so, do you find that you feel "desperate" during the test? I think that can be a big hindrance, especially if you end up spending time looking for complicated solutions to simple, almost nonmathematical questions.

 

If not, can you post examples of questions that you typically have trouble with?

browncow, I stink at Math. Geometry seems word problems seem to be my downfall.  I will look in my books and post examples. Thanks browncow

[NeuroGirl042]

It's important to go over all of the math concepts tested (a common Princeton Review book can help you here). It's also important to realize that the Quantitative Reasoning section is really more 'reasoning' than 'quantitative'. There is a limited amount of actual math you need to know, but the test makers find tricky ways to trip you up. Try to get yourself accustomed to the way the problems are worded, and you should find that it suddenly becomes a lot easier 

 

Another thing - all questions in the section are worth the same amount of points. Don't let yourself get stuck on a harder question towards the beginning, only to miss some easier ones at the end. A good strategy is to go through all of the problems once and do the ones that you immediately know. Then, go back and answer the rest, giving yourself enough time to complete the more difficult ones you can get and filling in an answer for the ones you are completely unsure about. You won't lose points by answering wrong, so make sure you fill everything in! Also, a little known fact is that you get a few extra 'completion points' for finishing the section. 

 

Additionally, how you do on the first quantitative section determines the next quantitative section you get. The harder your second section, the better your score has the potential for being. Missing questions in a harder second section doesn't count as much against you, either. 

 

I took a 6 week long saturday course from a previous test maker before taking the exam, and it really helped! I would recommend trying to find someone like that, and even paying for a private 2 hour session in the time you have left. It may be expensive, but paying an extra $150 or so would be worth all of the info, expertise, and confidence you can get out of it! Good luck =)

[Criscy]

Are you familiar with the basic math skills that are needed for the test?

If so, do you find that you feel "desperate" during the test? I think that can be a big hindrance, especially if you end up spending time looking for complicated solutions to simple, almost nonmathematical questions.

If not, can you post examples of questions that you typically have trouble with?

[Criscy]

That's the problem I have.

I struggle trying to come up with an action plan on how to tackle the problem. Suddenly I find myself going through all the techniques and ways to resolve a problem......

Edited December 20, 2013 by Criscy

[browncow]

Criscy, as NeuroGirl suggested, it's best to go through the problems you can readily solve first. That not only ensures you get points for all the problems you know how to solve, but also gives you some confidence and reassurance and allows you to come back to a problem with fresh eyes. If you get stuck on one way of thinking about a problem that isn't working for you, try working on another problem you have marked and come back to the first one again.

 

Keep in mind that only some of the problems test mechanics, like solving for X or interpreting statistics. The rest (again as NG says) is reasoning. I'll take a stab at an example which I hope will be clearish. Before the ETS comes to get me, it is NOT a test question I saw. It is a completely modified question using the same kind of reasoning as a test question.

 

Let's say you are given a parallelogram, which I will leave you to imagine. In the upper right corner of the parallelogram is a little parallelogram (p) that shares its top and right side with the big parallelogram (P). You are told that the top of p is 1/4 the length of the top of P and, I don't know, the height of p is 1/4 the height of P. The area of P is 80. What is the area of p?

 

A. P and p are similar figures because they have the same proportions and the same angles.

B. The area of a figure depends on two dimensions. It doesn't matter whether you are looking at a triangle with area (1/2)bh or circle with area pi*r^2: it depends on one dimension multiplied by another dimension.

C. So to get the ratio of P to p, you are going to end up with the ratio of one dimension (top of P:top of p) multiplied by the ratio of the second dimension (height of P:height of p).

D. Plug and chug: ratio of each dimension is 4:1, so the area is 16:1, and 80/16 = 5.

 

Alternatively:

If you are so panicked you cannot think of anything mathy, this problem can also be solved simply by drawing your figures proportionally and looking at how many times you can draw the little figure inside of the big one.

 

I don't know if there is any practice book that suggests playing tangrams for the GRE, but not every math solution needs to look "mathy" or follow a prescribed method.

 

I hope this helps. If not, I will lay off and wait for those with questions to post their examples.

[DeafAudi]

I'm trying to follow the Magoosh study guide, and it suggests tackling the problems as I go, regardless of the material covered. But I just end up feeling lost and incredibly frustrated. I have not taken college level math in two years and high school math in 8 years. I was thinking that maybe I should focus on reviewing the basic concepts rather than doing practice problems. What do you think?

[Arcanelady27]

I am having a hard time retaining and understanding the math concepts. I have always struggled with math. Although I took a college alegbra course in 2012 and received at B+, it means nothing at this point.  

[Arcanelady27]

It's important to go over all of the math concepts tested (a common Princeton Review book can help you here). It's also important to realize that the Quantitative Reasoning section is really more 'reasoning' than 'quantitative'. There is a limited amount of actual math you need to know, but the test makers find tricky ways to trip you up. Try to get yourself accustomed to the way the problems are worded, and you should find that it suddenly becomes a lot easier 

 

Another thing - all questions in the section are worth the same amount of points. Don't let yourself get stuck on a harder question towards the beginning, only to miss some easier ones at the end. A good strategy is to go through all of the problems once and do the ones that you immediately know. Then, go back and answer the rest, giving yourself enough time to complete the more difficult ones you can get and filling in an answer for the ones you are completely unsure about. You won't lose points by answering wrong, so make sure you fill everything in! Also, a little known fact is that you get a few extra 'completion points' for finishing the section. 

 

Additionally, how you do on the first quantitative section determines the next quantitative section you get. The harder your second section, the better your score has the potential for being. Missing questions in a harder second section doesn't count as much against you, either. 

 

I took a 6 week long saturday course from a previous test maker before taking the exam, and it really helped! I would recommend trying to find someone like that, and even paying for a private 2 hour session in the time you have left. It may be expensive, but paying an extra $150 or so would be worth all of the info, expertise, and confidence you can get out of it! Good luck =)

Neurogirl, the computerized test does not let you skip around. You must complete one problem before going on to the next. I already went the private tutoring route and it did not help at all. I tried a Kaplan course also and that did not help. Thanks for suggestions though...

[VioletAyame]

Neurogirl, the computerized test does not let you skip around. You must complete one problem before going on to the next. I already went the private tutoring route and it did not help at all. I tried a Kaplan course also and that did not help. Thanks for suggestions though...

 

Have you tried the PowerPrep practice test? You can download it for free on ETS website and it's almost identical to the real test. You cannot skip between sections, but you can absolutely go back and forth between questions in the same section. There is also a review page at the end where they show you the status (answered/unanswered) of all the questions. You can easily get back to the unanswered questions from that page. When I took the test, I also wrote down the number of all the questions whose answers I wasn't sure of and went back and check if I had had time.

[Arcanelady27]

Have you tried the PowerPrep practice test? You can download it for free on ETS website and it's almost identical to the real test. You cannot skip between sections, but you can absolutely go back and forth between questions in the same section. There is also a review page at the end where they show you the status (answered/unanswered) of all the questions. You can easily get back to the unanswered questions from that page. When I took the test, I also wrote down the number of all the questions whose answers I wasn't sure of and went back and check if I had had time.

Thanks Violetyame, I am going to take a Powerprep test next Wednesday.  I am going to try and get some more math studying in before. Does the Powerprep test include a writing section? 

[NeuroGirl042]

Neurogirl, the computerized test does not let you skip around. You must complete one problem before going on to the next. I already went the private tutoring route and it did not help at all. I tried a Kaplan course also and that did not help. Thanks for suggestions though...

 

That's strange... I took it twice over the summer and scored a 163 and 165, respectively. I've taken quite a few practice tests as well, and all allow you to do that. Perhaps you're thinking of the GMAT? That was my strategy both times, and I can assure you that it worked 

[VioletAyame]

Thanks Violetyame, I am going to take a Powerprep test next Wednesday. I am going to try and get some more math studying in before. Does the Powerprep test include a writing section?

I believe so, but of course it can't grade you. It's still good though to practice typing the essays in 30 mins as well as taking the whole test in the time allotted to get used to its duration. It's quite an exhausting test, especially if they throw you an extra experimental section.

[Arcanelady27]

Ok...I finally have some time to post some problems I have issues with... 

 

In the right triangle ABC what is the length of AB 

 

AC= x-1

AB= x+2

CB= x+5   

 

The choices are:   a/9, b/10, c/12, d/3, or e/15

 

 

Another I have issues with is a circle has a radius 5/3  What is its area? 

The choice are a/ square root 5 multiplied by pi divided by 3

                         b/ 5 multiplied by pi divided by 3

                         c/ 25 multiplied by pi divided by 9

                         d/ 10 multiplied by pi divided by 3

                         e/ 100 multiplied by pi divided by 9

 

 

Another problem is What's the slope of a line that passes through the points (-4,5) and (1,2)

a/ -3/5

b/ -1

c/ -5/3

d-7/3

e/ -3

 

 

I really feel there is no hope for me getting at least a 150 in the math  Time is running out

[Calamari2013]

Ok...I finally have some time to post some problems I have issues with... 

 

In the right triangle ABC what is the length of AB 

 

AC= x-1

AB= x+2

CB= x+5   

 

The choices are:   a/9, b/10, c/12, d/3, or e/15

 

 

Another I have issues with is a circle has a radius 5/3  What is its area? 

The choice are a/ square root 5 multiplied by pi divided by 3

                         b/ 5 multiplied by pi divided by 3

                         c/ 25 multiplied by pi divided by 9

                         d/ 10 multiplied by pi divided by 3

                         e/ 100 multiplied by pi divided by 9

 

 

Another problem is What's the slope of a line that passes through the points (-4,5) and (1,2)

a/ -3/5

b/ -1

c/ -5/3

d-7/3

e/ -3

 

 

I really feel there is no hope for me getting at least a 150 in the math  Time is running out

Hi

 

I am not sure whether you are looking for explanations/tips to these problems, nevertheless, here are my tips.

 

a) applying a religiously correct manner of solving this problem will take you ages and time is a luxury on the GRE.

What I would do here is simply look for values that can indicate a 3-4-5 triangle. (you are told that you have a right triangle, right?)

Start with the given choices and test them for this relationship, it turns out that AB = 12 (thus x=10 and plug this value to find the other sides), AC = 9 and BC= 15. They hold the 3-4-5 condition as (12)^2 + (9)^2 = (15)^2.

 

here you just need to know the formula for the area of a circle: pi x radius^2. Plug the given value in and you will get pi x 25/9. That's answer c.

 

c) again here you need the formula for slope: m = y1-y2/x1-x2, I think that this gives -3/5. Answer a.

 

 

Sorry, I do not mean to discourage you but the actual exam may, in my opinion and based on my recent experience, throw at you questions far harder than this. Try to master the formulae before taking the exam; it seems to me that there is a good scope for improvement here. And try to practice a few hours every day, the Manhattan 5Lb book has tonnes of practice questions of varied difficulty. Good luck.

[Arcanelady27]

Hi

 

I am not sure whether you are looking for explanations/tips to these problems, nevertheless, here are my tips.

 

a) applying a religiously correct manner of solving this problem will take you ages and time is a luxury on the GRE.

What I would do here is simply look for values that can indicate a 3-4-5 triangle. (you are told that you have a right triangle, right?)

Start with the given choices and test them for this relationship, it turns out that AB = 12 (thus x=10 and plug this value to find the other sides), AC = 9 and BC= 15. They hold the 3-4-5 condition as (12)^2 + (9)^2 = (15)^2.

 

here you just need to know the formula for the area of a circle: pi x radius^2. Plug the given value in and you will get pi x 25/9. That's answer c.

 

c) again here you need the formula for slope: m = y1-y2/x1-x2, I think that this gives -3/5. Answer a.

 

 

Sorry, I do not mean to discourage you but the actual exam may, in my opinion and based on my recent experience, throw at you questions far harder than this. Try to master the formulae before taking the exam; it seems to me that there is a good scope for improvement here. And try to practice a few hours every day, the Manhattan 5Lb book has tonnes of practice questions of varied difficulty. Good luck.

 

Those problems came from the Manhattan 5lb book of practice problems. I thought the formula for slope was y2-y1/x2-x1

I have been studying a couple hours a day to no avail...

 

[Arcanelady27]

I just took Kaplan test and scored once again 141 quant and 145 verbal...

This is a losing battle...

[Calamari2013]

I just took Kaplan test and scored once again 141 quant and 145 verbal...

This is a losing battle...

correct, the slope formula is y2-y1/x2-x1. but the result is still the same -3/5.

 

do not give up, do you have a threshold for the GRE scores where you are applying? Some universities look at your application holistically and do not care so much about your individual scores. Have you tried enrolling in a GRE prep course? Having a tutor that can guide you during your preparation is important for many people.  Well, it would not work for those under budget constraints.

 

Also have you tried the magoosh services? their charge for the premium service is $99 I think but they've got some really good videos that you can use to learn the concepts. They also have 500+ practice questions for each quant and verbal and each question is accompanied by a video explanation which is mostly clear and simple. It seems they've got a solid record of helping people raise their scores.

[Arcanelady27]

correct, the slope formula is y2-y1/x2-x1. but the result is still the same -3/5.

 

do not give up, do you have a threshold for the GRE scores where you are applying? Some universities look at your application holistically and do not care so much about your individual scores. Have you tried enrolling in a GRE prep course? Having a tutor that can guide you during your preparation is important for many people.  Well, it would not work for those under budget constraints.

 

Also have you tried the magoosh services? their charge for the premium service is $99 I think but they've got some really good videos that you can use to learn the concepts. They also have 500+ practice questions for each quant and verbal and each question is accompanied by a video explanation which is mostly clear and simple. It seems they've got a solid record of helping people raise their scores.

I took Kaplan GRE prep course  and it did not help. I was told I need to be in 40th percentile. I guess that is 150 in each section. I also had a tutor and that did not help. I have heard of Magoosh. I think I'll give that a shot.