760 (Q50 V42 IR8) - I beat the GMAT

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760 (Q50 V42 IR8) - I beat the GMAT

by asimsim2 » Mon Oct 27, 2014 7:09 am
Hi all,

After about two and a half month of preparation, finally I've finished my GMAT experience...
Just came back from the test center, after my first try. Final score: 760 (Q50, V42, IR8).
I wanted to share some tips because this forum and the community helped me so much...

Study Method:
"¢ I am a self study so I did it by myself. I was working while I studied so I had about 2-3 hours on weekdays and 6-7 hours a day on the weekends.
"¢ Started out with some CATs to see where I stand. Obviously as I am not a native English speaker Verbal was really tough and the quant was not so bad (I am an engineering student). So I decided I'll put my emphasis on the verbal section.
"¢ First 2 weeks - only going on concepts, with really little actual problem solving except for the examples in the books.
"¢ After 2 weeks I did a CAT whenever I had enough time for it (complete CAT, with IR and AWA). If I didn't have time for a full CAT I just solved questions from the OG, 10 at a time, by topic.
"¢ CATS - I believe in doing many many CATS. For me this was the most important thing. If you make a proper review after each CAT you learn a lot, and timing is not an issue, as you have an "inner timer" and you really feel when you need to let go of a question. All in all I did 19 CATs.
"¢ IR and AWA - no need to study for these. Solving enough CATs will make you ready.
"¢ SC was the hardest part for me. Another problem was the timing in the verbal. I got the SC improved through Aristotle SC and the timing by solving many RC passages (usually reading the passages took most of my time in the verbal), improving my speed.

Study Material:
"¢ Started with Princeton Review. Decent material, but it won't get you above the 650 level. I advise to use it mainly on the beginning of the studying (1-2 first weeks) just to get things started... later I didn't use it and found it unnecessary.
"¢ Veritas Prep books were amazing. Helped me a lot. The material is written clearly and in an interesting way. No doubt these books helped me the most in improving my capabilities.
"¢ Aristotle SC Grail - I had real difficulties in SC. This book made almost everything clear. A must if you are having troubles with SC (like I did).
"¢ Official guide - you can't do it without it... the closest material to the real thing. I advise you to do the entire questions in the official guide, verbal guide and quant guide.


CAT review:
"¢ Veritas Prep CATs - really close to the real thing, both in scores and in difficulty. The interface and reports are extremely good. Definitely recommend it.
"¢ Manhattan CATs - a lot harder from the real thing, especially on the quant. Verbal sometimes had weird questions. Reports are not as good as Veritas' reports, and the scoring is sometimes weird (latest questions in the test count a lot more than previous ones). However, doing such hard tests and reviewing them (don't pay attention so much to the score) really pushed me to the edge and made the real test seem easier.
"¢ GMAT Prep CATs - the closest to the real thing.
"¢ I am adding here a complete test scores of all my CATs. You can see my improvement and the fact that Manhattan CATs score a lot lower. Also notice that in my final GMAT Prep CAT I scored exactly the same as the real thing...

Test tips:
"¢ I found it really helpful to go fast on the start of each section. The problems are usually medium level the first 2-3 and quite easy to answer. Having extra time really makes you calm and confident and changes your whole perspective. Be confident. Don't double check each answer 5 times.
"¢ You can make mistakes and still get a great score. After 2.5 minutes just take a guess if you are not ahead of time. Usually if it will take you more time you will pay for it later when there is a question that you can solve but don't have the time for.
"¢ Try to be interested as much as you can in the RC. It really helps understanding the text. When I was interested in the RC I scored significantly higher.
"¢ On the verbal section always search for incorrect answers. It is a lot easier...
"¢ Stay calm. Forget about the last question and focus on the current one.

That's it... If i can do it anyone can!! hope it helps!
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by arushi2103 » Tue Oct 28, 2014 1:02 am
Amazing !! As you mentioned you are not a native speaker but still your verbal is outstanding.

I want to learn from you how you mastered verbal.

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by asimsim2 » Tue Oct 28, 2014 3:57 am
Well, arush . I'll try to give some tips on the verbal. Hope it will help:

1. RC - usually the questions are not that hard. But with the timing being such an issue you make foolish mistakes. Try get used to reading fast and be interested in what you read. Force yourself to learn something new while you read. I also summed up each paragraph to help me get the passage as a whole. Another thing is getting used to the test typical questions and know what to anticipate. Practice a lot of passages and questions. And read a lot in English with a dictionary by your side. It will make you faster.

2. SC - read and solve the entire Aristotle SC. Than just forget that it is a verbal question. It is a problem like a quant problem and you have different clues to find the incorrect answer choices. Focus mainly on the start and end of the underline part, you'll be able to cancel a lot of answer choices without reading the whole thing. And the most important thing is to try to understand the meaning of the sentence and if someone can misinterpret it. If so, it is a wrong answer. And you don't need to know any grammar rules for that...

3. CR - I had least troubles in this area. You just need to think logically. I also almost didn't use material for this area. What helped me the most was quickly disregarding out of scope answers.

4. General tips: read a lot and practice a lot. Review your answers. So.etimes I took it slow without time limit in practice in order to better understand the concepts.

Good luck!! :)

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by Ab_laststand » Tue Oct 28, 2014 10:23 pm
Congrats! That is great score.

Are you in India? If yes, where did you find Veritas Prep books?