640 Diagnostic to 740 GMAT! Target Test Prep for quant!

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I just took the GMAT on May 16th, and I scored a 740 (Q47, V45). Here's my GMAT story:

This was my first time taking the GMAT. I took an initial diagnostic test using the GMATPrep software in January and scored a 640. My verbal was strong, but I got a 36 on the quant section. I haven't taken a math class since high school, and I knew I needed to review a lot of content in a relatively short amount of time in order to get my score in the 700-range with a decent quant score.

I started studying independently in February with the Manhattan GMAT strategy guides to review the quant material. In addition, as a participant in the Forté Foundation's MBALaunch program, I watched two webinars a week that were GMAT modules focused on various quant and verbal topics. About a month into studying, I took another practice exam and got a 660. I scored a 42 on the quant. However, I was feeling that while I had covered some ground in learning quant content, I was jumping from one topic to another without a rhyme or reason. I started to feel stressed about the lack of time until my GMAT. It's my first year teaching at a demanding charter school and I generally work 70 hours per week, so I really needed to use my time wisely and study efficiently.

In March I decided to shift my study strategy entirely. I needed more focused practice to learn the content in a more thorough and fluid manner. I got connected with Jeffrey at Target Test Prep through the Forté Foundation. After an initial phone call about his tutoring services and a trial of the Target Test Prep curriculum, I decided to purchase the Target Test Prep online curriculum and began working with Jeffrey one hour per week via WebEx. Each week I tried to cover as much content as possible on my own while still making sure I was understanding the content. The online curriculum allows you to create customized tests, so every couple of weeks I did a timed test with just medium and hard questions that covered the last 3-4 chapters that I had studied. In terms of my study schedule, I put in 1-2 hours each weeknight after lesson planning. I took Friday nights off. I lesson planned intensely for 4-5 hours on Saturdays so that I could study for the GMAT intensely for 4-5 hours on Sundays.

Overall I would say that I averaged 12 hours per week of studying for the quant section using the Target Test Prep curriculum for the two months prior to my test. I took notes on major ideas and equations from each chapter and completed almost all of the example problems in each chapter to make sure I was taking a thorough approach to covering the content. I went through two single subject notebooks. I checked in with Jeffrey about my progress during our weekly tutoring session and he would cover content that I felt like I needed more help on. In particular, his approach to number properties helped me immensely on the actual GMAT quant section because a good chunk of the quant section is based on a strong understanding of number properties. I took another practice test a couple of weeks before the test and scored a 45 on quant. I took the two personal days that I get a year the week before the test and reviewed all of the notes I had taken on the content and reviewed some example problems for topics that I felt that I was weaker at. I didn't do anything GMAT related the day before the test.

Recommendations:
"¢ Develop a study plan that works with your schedule and take practice tests every few weeks to see if you're improving at the rate that you'd like to. If not- do some reflection and make a shift in your approach.
"¢ Pick a time in the week in which you WILL NOT study. Use this to recharge.
"¢ Download the Pocket GMAT app to practice mental math on your commute.
"¢ Get enough sleep so that you have fuel to study before or after work.
"¢ If you're good at setting a schedule to study and sticking to it, then a class isn't necessary. Individual tutoring is more valuable because then you can spend extra time on the content that you most struggle with.
"¢ Curriculum is key. The Target Test Prep quant curriculum was much more thorough and clearly explained than Manhattan in my opinion with A LOT more example problems that looked like actual GMAT problems.
"¢ If possible, schedule your GMAT so that you'll have time to study some more and take it again before you apply. Jeffrey encouraged me to be confident on the day of the exam because I had time to take it again if necessary. Having this in the back of my mind calmed my nerves on test day.
"¢ Take the test at a time when you are most alert. 8 AM on a Saturday may sound dreadful, but I'm usually alert and teaching at that time, so it made the most sense for me to schedule an early morning test.

Best of luck!!

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by Brandon@VeritasPrep » Sun May 31, 2015 6:36 pm
Congratulations on your success! That is a great score. I want to comment on a few things that you did that were awesome and would definitely be helpful for others to emulate. Your idea of a pocket GMAT app to use commute time efficiently is a solid one. There are many mental math apps in particular that I think can be great for lessening one's reliance on written math (a real time sink on this test). The idea of picking a time when you will definitely NOT study is also fantastic (e.g. Friday nights are mine, I will not study or think about the gmat during that time). This kind of approach can avoid burnout and keep you engaged throughout the entire study period. The fact that you took 2 days off prior to the exam, and did nothing the actual day before, is brilliant. I always recommend my students "veg out" the day before their test by watching tv, reading, whatever relaxes them most. And finally, the time of day of your test is very important and can make a huge difference. I think best well early so took my test at 8 am also.

Thanks for posting, and again congratulations!

Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts
Posts: 27
Joined: Fri Nov 01, 2013 10:47 am
Thanked: 12 times
Followed by:5 members

by Brandon@VeritasPrep » Sun May 31, 2015 6:36 pm
Congratulations on your success! That is a great score. I want to comment on a few things that you did that were awesome and would definitely be helpful for others to emulate. Your idea of a pocket GMAT app to use commute time efficiently is a solid one. There are many mental math apps in particular that I think can be great for lessening one's reliance on written math (a real time sink on this test). The idea of picking a time when you will definitely NOT study is also fantastic (e.g. Friday nights are mine, I will not study or think about the gmat during that time). This kind of approach can avoid burnout and keep you engaged throughout the entire study period. The fact that you took 2 days off prior to the exam, and did nothing the actual day before, is brilliant. I always recommend my students "veg out" the day before their test by watching tv, reading, whatever relaxes them most. And finally, the time of day of your test is very important and can make a huge difference. I think best well early so took my test at 8 am also.

Thanks for posting, and again congratulations!