GMAT Scores Continue to Rise

GMAT Scores Continue to Rise GMAT MBA Admissions Blog This summer at mba.com, the GMAC released new raw scores to percentile guidance based on nearly 800,000 tests administered from 2014-2017. In the newly released time-period, the average overall score out of 800 has risen by more than 4 points to slightly above 556 from just below 552 for the previous period of 2013-2015. Interestingly, this increase can be almost entirely attributed to improvements in the Quantitative section. For the reporting period ending in 2015, the average GMAT Quantitative raw score was 38.91. In this newly reported data, that score has risen by almost a full ½ point to 39.4. Concurrently, the GMAT Verbal average score improved, too, but only at a factor of about one-tenth that of the quantitative improvement â€" from 26.8 to 26.86. As for the lower priority sections that do not count toward the 800 score, the Integrated Reasoning average held steady across reporting periods at 4.23 and the Analytical Writing Assessment average score improved slightly to 4.44. What Do These Percentiles Mean? Obviously, primarily it means that in aggregate prospective MBA students are much more proficient at the quantitative skills the GMAT purports to test than they are at the tested verbal skills. However, for the individual test taker there are several important ramifications: Prioritize Quant to Start: Since the average MBA candidate does so much better on the quantitative section, and the exam is graded on a curve, it’s critically important to focus on Quantitative instruction and practice while aiming to break the 50 percent mark. Verbal Presents an Opportunity: Conversely, because the average GMAT student fares comparatively poorly on the verbal section, improvements on this section can separate a savvy MBA candidate from the applicant pack. Focus on Verbal for 700+: Because fully 40% of all GMAT test takers get a 46+ raw score on the Quantitative section, and anything above a 51 is exceedingly rare in either section, candidates seeking above a 700 must cultivate additional high-end points by improving performance on Sentence Corrections, Critical Reasoning, and Reading Comprehension. Use Your Percentile Score to Study Successfully The GMATPrep software conveniently breaks practice scores down by section. As this score summary clearly shows, not all GMAT 90th percentiles are created equal. No matter what your current score is, remember that raw scores above 51 in the Quantitative section and above 46 in the Verbal are almost statistically impossible due to the adaptive nature of the exam. For this student, that means there is likely only 1 more realistic point of improvement available in the Quant section, but as many as 5-6 points that could still be mined in the Verbal section. The key to GMAT improvement is not only taking as many practice exams as possible, but also using the data from those results to inform how to most effectively allocate your preparation time moving forward. Of course, there are some excellent online GMAT prep options which help you hone in on your weaker areas to more effectively allocate your time. For example, examPal has a system that analyzes the questions you are missing to identify patterns, and then helps you understand how to start approaching the questions differently. Maybe, in time, GMAT students will even focus on the Verbal section enough that we start to see those raw scores even out a bit! About the Author: Stefan Maisnier is the Director of Online Tutoring at MyGuru, and sometimes contemplates the lagging Verbal scores of business school applicants while gazing wistfully at his own Masters of Science in Journalism from Northwestern University.

How LOI English Helped a Tajikistan Woman Buy a Cow

How LOI English Helped a Tajikistan Woman Buy a Cow LOI English made a small loan that helped Hilola buy cattle.Most of us probably think of loans as a way to help us buy big expensive things like houses, cars or (in the United States at least) an education. But could small loans be a way of helping people around the world improve their lives, their families lives and their communities?Kiva thinks so.  Kiva  is a nonprofit that allows you to fund microloans, loans for small amounts of money, to people around the world. The microloans can be used to pay for school supplies, help someone start a business, pay for new appliances to improve their quality of life, or to buy cattle, as  in the case of Hilola, the Tajikistani woman who we chose to loan money to.If everything works well, Hilola will buy her cattle, start her business, and by the end of 2014, pay back her loan. Then Kiva will return the money we loaned, and we can loan it again if we like.Watch the video below to learn more about how Kiva works.Comprehension Questions. Write y our answers in comments and we will respond:1. Where do they live?2. Together they ____ a small family business.3. Pedro ____ __ have two cows4. How did one of the cows die?5. Pedro now has just _________ enough money to feed his family.6. How much more coffee can Pedro grow with a tractor?7. Once you ______ your money _______.8. And ___ simple __ that you helped a family half way around the world and it didn’t cost you a ______.You may have noticed that the narrator in the video says used to several times. He uses it with one specific meaning, but there are three different common meanings for used to in English. The video below will help you with each of them. After the video, try the exercises.Used to video:Used to exercise. Write your answers in comments and we will respond:1. I ________ work in a bank but I left and got a new job as a floral arranger.2. Since we had the baby I ______ not getting enough sleep.3. Hows the new job? _______ it yet?4. You _______ smoke! When did yo u start?5. The noise was deafening but the driver _______ it.