My Past Experience
My journey with the GMAT is a 3 year (and 3 attempt) ordeal. I started in 2012 taking coaching classes with the local Princeton Review centre. I sat through the classes and the mocks for 3 months- only to end up not taking the GMAT. The problem was that the Princeton mocks actually gave me an inflated score and made me feel the GMAT was super easy. So the moment I took the GMAT Prep mock, I ended up scoring 540! I concluded shortly after that that I wasn't ready for the exam. It would another two years for me to ever hear of the 4 letter exam again.
Come 2014, I decided I was in a better place (time wise and mentally) to start with my GMAT prep again and bury the past experience. I thought self prep would be the way to go so I got the Manhattan guides as well as their mocks along with the standard OG. I diligently kept an error log and followed a 2 month study course I had made. I took my first attempt in July 2014 with an aim to score a 720. But I was in for a nasty surprise when the screen read a 620. Unwilling to concede defeat, I went back to the books- I reread the same strategy guides, did the same mocks and practised the same questions. And that was a mistake. When the second attempt gave me a 640, I was utterly dejected and frustrated. I began wondering if my B School dreams would end before they ever started.
A year later, I mustered the courage to face the GMAT one last time. This time, I looked at various tutors to strengthen and compliment my self prep. I eventually decided on the EMPOWERgmat course since I felt the course structure and video tutorials was what I needed plus it was an economical choice. I diligently followed a 2 month study plan- but this time with a difference.
My Learnings
Since I had taken the GMAT twice earlier, I was at ease with the math and verbal concepts. Nothing against the Princeton Review classes or the Manhattan guides, but while they did strengthen my knowledge base, I don't think I learnt a whole lot about how to tackle the exam. The GMAT is a time bound test, so while you may have all the knowledge in the world, it isn't of any help if you can't solve the problem under the clock.
What I did get from Empower was the right mental and technical tactics to beat the exam as well as constant positive reinforcement that I could beat the exam. The course was structured in a way to help get a good mix of tactics, practice, podcasts, revisions and CATs over a 2 month period and I found their podcasts particularly motivational. The whole course was online so I could complete it any time of the day and monitor my progress as I went along.
By the end of the two months, I was at complete ease with the exam (I had taken about 8 mocks by that time) and things worked like clockwork. I was following a timing strategy, using my the most time effective approaches and plugging any gaps I was finding.
On exam day, the rehearsals had paid off my the screen flashed a 710. Although the score was 10 points short, I was elated.
My Tips
- Whether you choose in-class tutoring/coaching or chose to do it online or just wing it by yourself, remember to structure your course and follow it religiously. It just helps when your following something by a tutor or course rather than making your own plans and then changing them to your comfort. Timelines have to be adhered to and a routine has to be followed.
REVIEW the error log. Most people do make one but you need to re-solve those harder problems you got wrong to make sure you're heading in the right direction.
In 2014, I had subscribed to The Economist because a blog I read had recommended it. Till date, I'm a regular subscribed and I think it certainly helped with the IR, CR, SC and RC. Analytical and long winded articles with complicated sentence structures and graphs put me at ease and increased my concentration when it came to IR and Verbal (It also helped that I naturally liked reading the magazine). Plus I think one could go into B School with a world view and some global knowledge.
Keep the mocks as close to the real thing. My exam was scheduled for 9 AM so I would take the mock at the same time. I ate the same energy bars during the mocks as I did during the real exam. Even drank nearly the same amount of water. You want to keep this as familiar to the real thing as possible.
Pick something that resonates with and motivates you. I found the Empower podcasts inspiring but I found a scene from Rocky 6 to be particularly inspirational during the duration of my prep and actual exam. In the movie (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JAHAFvcr2o), Rocky makes a speech to his son and some of those words stuck. It ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. Cheesy maybe but having taken the GMAT two times earlier, it was essential that I psych myself for the last time I take the exam. I found myself repeating these words during the exam and in between the breaks. It also helped keeping my focus and concentration during the verbal side of the exam and especially towards the end of each section when a bit of fatigue and restlessness starts to set in. The GMAT will through some curve balls at you every now and then- its important give it your best even though you may take some hits along the way. (Also, if Sylvester Stallone could act, I could take this exam!)
