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kap
- Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts
- Posts: 17
- Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 9:48 am
- Thanked: 3 times
- GMAT Score:700
I just took my test yesterday and I'm very pleased with the results. My final score was 700, 90th percentile. This may not be the optimal score for some people who are really reaching for a high 700s. But for those of you who just want to nab that 700 threshold but are struggling, there is still hope!
Here is my progress:
Early Feb- GMATprep #1- 660
Mid Feb- MGMAT #1- 580
Late Feb- Kaplan #1- 660
Mid March- Kaplan #2- 660
Early April- GMATPrep #2- 600
Early April- GMAtPrep #1 (second time)- 640
I took those last two prep exams in the week prior to my exam, one day apart. Naturally I was devasated that my scores were not going up. I was really hoping that the 660 would be my bottom range since I took it at about my half way mark for my intended test date. I was really down on myself and wanting to give up, stressed out beyond belief. But I think the number one thing I did that helped me pull through was I changed my attitude.
I had a lot of support from friends and family who told me that I'd be fine. That almost made me feel worse because it added the pressure that they all expected me to perform at the end of the day, and then what if I didn't? They'd be wrong. They'd realize I'm not actually as smart as they thought I was... not a good feeling. But when push came to shove their confidence in me really helped. I experienced an odd calm as my day approached. Knowing that there wasn't any more cramming or studying I could do. Knowing that the date and time were approaching regardless. In that calm, I gained my confidence back. I believed in the work that I had done to prepare. I told myself that I am smart, I can do this. And at the end of the day, if I don't do well, I can take it again. But really... if I didn't do well, it's because I lost the mental game. I had a fairly solid foundation in the material. It was just about my mentality. Not letting the clock get to me. Not panicing for hard questions. Learning to let go of the questions that I was just stuck on. It's all mental. The last text I sent to my mom was "I'm ready to be done with this. I know my material. I'm ready to play the mental game. I do NOT want to take this test again."
In the weekend leading up to the exam (which was on Tuesday), I opted not to take another practice test. Instead I spent one full day working on my verbal weakness- sentence correction, and another full day working on my quant weakness- data sufficiency- specifically number prop! I felt like taking another exam would burn me out, and I would likely not get a good score and it would really crush what confidence I had left.
The day before the exam I did not look at anything. I consciously tried to not even think about it! I booked a massage for the night before. Best thing I could've done for myself. I went home afterwards completely relaxed and slept like a baby. Best night of sleep I had in the entire week leading up to the exam. Highly recommend that!
The last thing I did was try to harnass my nerves to help me. Instead of letting them distract me, I tried to allow them to force me to focus. During the practice tests I was always more calm, which probably led me to make careless errors. During the actual test, I let my nerves rise to help me focus and make good decisions about my performance. Kind of like turning lemons into lemonade to make use of a cheesey cliche.
At the end of the day have confidence in yourself! If you know the material, it's a mental game. So play it!
Here is my progress:
Early Feb- GMATprep #1- 660
Mid Feb- MGMAT #1- 580
Late Feb- Kaplan #1- 660
Mid March- Kaplan #2- 660
Early April- GMATPrep #2- 600
Early April- GMAtPrep #1 (second time)- 640
I took those last two prep exams in the week prior to my exam, one day apart. Naturally I was devasated that my scores were not going up. I was really hoping that the 660 would be my bottom range since I took it at about my half way mark for my intended test date. I was really down on myself and wanting to give up, stressed out beyond belief. But I think the number one thing I did that helped me pull through was I changed my attitude.
I had a lot of support from friends and family who told me that I'd be fine. That almost made me feel worse because it added the pressure that they all expected me to perform at the end of the day, and then what if I didn't? They'd be wrong. They'd realize I'm not actually as smart as they thought I was... not a good feeling. But when push came to shove their confidence in me really helped. I experienced an odd calm as my day approached. Knowing that there wasn't any more cramming or studying I could do. Knowing that the date and time were approaching regardless. In that calm, I gained my confidence back. I believed in the work that I had done to prepare. I told myself that I am smart, I can do this. And at the end of the day, if I don't do well, I can take it again. But really... if I didn't do well, it's because I lost the mental game. I had a fairly solid foundation in the material. It was just about my mentality. Not letting the clock get to me. Not panicing for hard questions. Learning to let go of the questions that I was just stuck on. It's all mental. The last text I sent to my mom was "I'm ready to be done with this. I know my material. I'm ready to play the mental game. I do NOT want to take this test again."
In the weekend leading up to the exam (which was on Tuesday), I opted not to take another practice test. Instead I spent one full day working on my verbal weakness- sentence correction, and another full day working on my quant weakness- data sufficiency- specifically number prop! I felt like taking another exam would burn me out, and I would likely not get a good score and it would really crush what confidence I had left.
The day before the exam I did not look at anything. I consciously tried to not even think about it! I booked a massage for the night before. Best thing I could've done for myself. I went home afterwards completely relaxed and slept like a baby. Best night of sleep I had in the entire week leading up to the exam. Highly recommend that!
The last thing I did was try to harnass my nerves to help me. Instead of letting them distract me, I tried to allow them to force me to focus. During the practice tests I was always more calm, which probably led me to make careless errors. During the actual test, I let my nerves rise to help me focus and make good decisions about my performance. Kind of like turning lemons into lemonade to make use of a cheesey cliche.
At the end of the day have confidence in yourself! If you know the material, it's a mental game. So play it!
