{"id":28545,"date":"2023-01-13T10:00:30","date_gmt":"2023-01-13T15:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/?p=28545"},"modified":"2023-01-13T18:37:10","modified_gmt":"2023-01-13T23:37:10","slug":"avoiding-getting-multiple-gmat-questions-wrong-in-a-row","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/avoiding-getting-multiple-gmat-questions-wrong-in-a-row\/","title":{"rendered":"Avoiding Getting Multiple GMAT Questions Wrong in a Row"},"content":{"rendered":"

With regard to the GMAT, raw intellectual horsepower helps, but it is not everything.\u00a0<\/em>Manhattan Prep<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u2019s\u00a0<\/em>Stacey Koprince<\/em><\/strong><\/a> teaches you how to perform at your best on test day by using some common sense.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cHow do I make sure I don\u2019t get more than two, three, or four questions wrong in a row?\u201d<\/p>\n

Students ask this all the time\u2014they have heard that GMAT scoring penalizes us for getting a lot of questions wrong in a row.<\/p>\n

This is true, to some extent. The GMAT test writers prioritize steady performance over the length of the entire test, so they have built safeguards into the algorithm to ensure that if, for example, we spend too much time early on, we will get penalized for running out of time at the end.<\/p>\n

So\u2026 how do I avoid getting multiple questions wrong in a row?<\/strong><\/p>\n

People will say something like, \u201cI am pretty sure I got the last two wrong\u2014I just outright guessed on the last one. Now, how do I make sure I get the next one right?\u201d<\/p>\n

You cannot. You can\u00a0never<\/em>\u00a0\u201cmake sure\u201d that you get any particular question right. If you could\u2026 well, then you would not need any help, right? Nobody on the planet, not even the best test takers, can guarantee that they are going to answer any particular question correctly.<\/p>\n

What do I do when I know I have just gotten a couple of questions wrong?<\/strong><\/p>\n

You are going to hate my answer: you ignore it. Do not even think about it in the first place.<\/p>\n

You likely hate that answer because you feel that you have no control\u2014and you are right. We cannot control this at all. That is why we should not waste a single second thinking about it. Try the question in front of you for some reasonable amount of time. If you just cannot do it in the expected time frame, find a way to make a guess and move on.<\/p>\n

Spending more time (more than the rough average) does not actually increase the chances that you will get something right!<\/p>\n

But then, how do I get better?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Expect<\/em>\u00a0that you are not going to be able to answer everything.<\/p>\n

Know how to make an\u00a0educated guess<\/em>\u00a0wherever possible.<\/p>\n

Acknowledge<\/em>\u00a0when a problem just is not going your way, and, when needed, make a random guess without wasting a single second longer.<\/p>\n

Change your response<\/em>\u00a0to the thought \u201cI have to get this one right.\u201d Have you already read this article:\u00a0But I studied this \u2013 I should know how to do it!<\/strong><\/a>? If so, then you will remember that we talk about changing your response to the \u201cbut!\u201d feeling. (If not, go read the article right now.)<\/p>\n

The same thing applies here. When you find yourself thinking, \u201cOh, I need to get this one right!,\u201d change your reaction. Instead of spending extra time and stressing yourself out, tell yourself, \u201cI cannot guarantee anything. If I can do this one in regular time, great. If not, I will guess without\u00a0losing<\/em>\u00a0time on it and move on.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With regard to the GMAT, raw intellectual horsepower helps, but it is not everything.\u00a0Manhattan Prep\u2019s\u00a0Stacey Koprince teaches you how to perform at your best on test day by using some common sense. \u201cHow do I make sure I don\u2019t get more than two, three, or four questions wrong in a row?\u201d Students ask this all … Read More  <\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[125],"tags":[104,192,175],"class_list":["post-28545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gmat","tag-gmat","tag-gmat-scoring","tag-manhattan-prep"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAvoiding Getting Multiple GMAT Questions Wrong in a Row<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"\u201cHow do I make sure I don\u2019t get more than two, three, or four GMAT questions wrong in a row?\u201d Students ask this all the time.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/avoiding-getting-multiple-gmat-questions-wrong-in-a-row\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Avoiding Getting Multiple GMAT Questions Wrong in a Row\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cHow do I make sure I don\u2019t get more than two, three, or four GMAT questions wrong in a row?\u201d Students ask this all the time.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/avoiding-getting-multiple-gmat-questions-wrong-in-a-row\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"mbaMission - 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