I was never good at quant growing up simply because I neglected it. Now, to get into my dream school, I must achieve a higher score on the quant section. I slowly built my foundation using Khan Academy, PrepSwift, GregMat quizzes, and various other resources. I completed all of them. My foundation is strong, as shown by quiz results where I scored above 85% on every quiz; if I didn’t, I redid and reviewed them. But now, with my exam in eight days, when I take timed practice tests, I make so many mistakes and get very few questions correct. However, under untimed conditions, I get most of the questions correct. What could be the reason for this? I have also done deliberate practice on most of the strategies. What could be the reason behind this disparity? What do you think I should do? I really value your feedback.
Usually if people have a strong foundation but struggle in timed practice, there are two possibilities:
- Your strategies are not very developed. Remember strategies SAVE time.
- Your time management strategy needs work. Have you seen our videos on time management?
Thank you for replying.
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I have practiced strategies deliberately, but what I have noticed is that I mostly try to solve questions in a natural way. This means I try to find solutions to problems intuitively, and I don’t often think about which strategies I should use for each question. Do you think this is the best approach?
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I have seen the time management video and have tried to implement the techniques. However, I’ve noticed a pattern: If I make many errors in the first section of the quant section, the second section seems easier, and I’m able to get 13 or 14 out of 15 correct. But when I encounter hard or medium-level questions, I try to solve them intuitively, which often takes too much time. Consequently, I think I perform better on untimed tests.
- Not to be snarky, but given that you’re struggling with time, do you think that is the best approach?
- See number 1
Got it. Thanks.