What NOT to do on your Second GMAT(Debrief)!!

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It has been a 3 month long journey before my second attempt at the monster today.(GMAT). :D

Last time(Sep 2012) I had a 650(47Q, 32V) and this was with one month of preparation.

This time I was not taking a chance.
I prepared and prepared until I was scoring above 700 in my practice tests.

Books referred to :
KAPLAN Premier
Manhattan Guides(All)
OG 12
OG 13
Kaplan 800
Princeton Review Guide
OG Quant Review
OG Verbal Review

Practice Tests Taken:
1 Manhattan GMAT 44 29 590
2 Manhattan GMAT 43 33 630
3 Crack GMAT 650
4 GMATPrep Exam 1 49 29 620
5 Manhattan GMAT 44 36 660
6 Veritas 44 35 3 650
7 Kaplan GMAT 47 35 680
8 GMATPrep Exam 2 49 34 680
9 Kaplan GMAT 48 35 690
10 Manhattan GMAT 40 35 620
11 Manhattan GMAT 42 34 630
12 Manhattan GMAT 44 37 670
13 Manhattan GMAT 45 37 680
14 GMATPrep Exam 1 49 38 710
15 GMATPrep Exam 2 49 41 740

Well with all this practice and an approximate 180 hours of studying I was not looking at anything less than a 700.
And mind you this studying was in addition to my 12 hour work schedule!!

However fate had a very different plan and here is how!

Entered the Test Center a bit nervous.
Thinking about all my ambitions to go to B-School.
How a good GMAT Score will improve my chances to get into a school of my choice.
Started the essay slowly but picked up pace in the middle and at the end.
Should have formulated my ideas faster and organized them better.
Since I hardly had time to revise well at the end.
Finally had a decent essay, though I was not very satisfied.

Then came Integrated Reasoning.
I reasoned well enough! Got the first 6 correct for sure.
Next 6 a complete disaster due to shortage of time.
I messed up the multiple Tab question as I could hardly read and reason.
Already started to feel the jitters!!
Started wondering how crucial is GMAT in between sections!!

Then came Quant(47).
Got my very first question incorrect.
Mostly because it was a crazy question on percentages, rate time and work.
All combined! I was honestly not expecting to see this sort of a question first up!
That is when the pack of cards started to crumble!
I was panicking thinking... Now what will happen to my dreams!!
Though I recovered during the middle section(10-29) of the test.
However this recovering took too much time!
I had less than 10 minutes for the last 10 questions!
The Blunder of pacing incorrectly!
Guessed last 6 questions! :cry:

Then came verbal(31).
Got the first two questions of medium difficulty
Got an RC on the third question(Taken aback again)!
That too the RC was really long(I almost Slept off :|
Then kept going through questions on a slow to medium pace until I realized something!
I had 18 questions left with only 25 minutes of time!
Things gone horribly wrong!!
Guessed that last 4 haphazardly!

Ended up with a 640(47Q, 31V)

A score 10 points lower than last year.
That too when I prepared three times more!!

Key Learning:
1.Never think GMAT is the ultimate thing in life!
2.Take it like a test and not a matter of life and death!
3.Do not think of the consequences, think about the exam!
4.Pacing is the mantra for success!
5.Emulate test conditions as much as you can(even the snack) at home or wherever that you take the
practice test!
6.Breathe(Just what David Gilmore Said!)
7.Never give up, Never Surrender!

Despite all the disappointment I will take the exam again!
If I want it I will get it!
I hope I will make a post soon with a 700+ score!

Please feel free to add your comments and words of wisdom,
they will surely help me get through this horrible day!!

Don't count the hours!
Make the hours count! B-)

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by adigmat2013 » Wed Aug 07, 2013 3:13 pm
It's very brave of you to post this debrief.

I haven't taken the test yet but I can identify myself doing a few of the same things that you did (I will try not to do them on the G-Day). I took my first practise test (score 510) 3 days ago and I feel completely shattered. This is after studying for 10 days (I know that's not a lot of time but I did complete over 500 quant problems). Actually, while writing this I feel slightly stupid ;). I know a lot of practice is required, especially pacing. Hope you and I can conquer this beast soon! Wishing you luck for your next attempt. Good luck.

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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Thu Aug 08, 2013 6:37 am
gmat.battle.studies wrote: Key Learning:
1.Never think GMAT is the ultimate thing in life!
2.Take it like a test and not a matter of life and death!
3.Do not think of the consequences, think about the exam!
4.Pacing is the mantra for success!
5.Emulate test conditions as much as you can(even the snack) at home or wherever that you take the
practice test!
6.Breathe(Just what David Gilmore Said!)
7.Never give up, Never Surrender!
Hey adigmat2013,

Sorry to hear that you didn't reach your target score.
It sounds like you really just need to work on one thing: time management
Once you've mastered that, a 700+ score is within reach.

If you're interested, we have a free GMAT time management video at https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gener ... es?id=1244

Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
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GMAT Score:640

by thejokermaniac » Tue Aug 13, 2013 9:07 am
Hi gmat.battle.studies,

I finished my second attempt yesterday and got the exact same score. (640 Q47, V31). Although I added 20 points to my first attempt score, it is very difficult to accept 640 as my final score. I say this because my practice test scores were identical to your scores. Also, i felt as if i am reading my test day experience. So I will definitely back your key learning points.

Even though I am tempted to fight this monster for the third and final time, I wonder how will the adcoms look at this part of our application? Will 3 gmat scores in the final score report have a major negative effect on the application?

Please share your thoughts on the above questions.

Also, the experts can share their 2 cents!

Thank you all!