I started preparation for the GMAT in early October 2012. I subscribed for a course with Kaplan, and received a starter kit along with online access to Kaplan's quiz banks. When I commenced with preparation in the first week of October, I would enthusiastically read posts on this forum every now and then in the hope that something mentioned somewhere would light that all-important fire in me and set the tone for the rest of my GMAT journey. I seemed to be doing well during the first few weeks after I began, and decided (after reading a post on this website by someone who surpassed what he set out to achieve and seemed the smart, organized, knows-what-he's-doing sort) to set a date for Test Day. Fixing a test day early on during the preparation process meant that I now had a deadline to work towards, and that the scope for procrastination was limited (another pearl of wisdom from this savvy test taker). The aforementioned test day was exactly two months away from the day that I booked my exam. Again, I read somewhere that two months of focused study is ample time to beat the GMAT.
As I said, I began with a Kaplan course and also attended a few classes as well that were part of the package I signed up for. I enjoyed these classes because working on problems in a mini-classroom with a few others made the process of learning an interactive one, and most importantly, a competitive one. I found the Kaplan online question bank extremely useful as it enabled me to create my own tests with questions of varying difficulty levels on the topics I wanted to improve on. Yet I found the content in the Kaplan Premier textbook far too simplistic and decided to find an alternative. I continued with the classes for a few months, and did some independent study at home and at work too. I realized that after a few diagnostic tests, my main weaknesses lay in the Math Section and my strong points in the Verbal Section. This came as surprise to my Tutor because, being an Indian student and having gone through the rigors of the Indian Education System, he was expecting the opposite to happen. As D-Day drew nearer and nearer, I grew more anxious but continued to prepare in a focused manner. I did a few practice tests on the MGMAT website and (though I found the Math Section quite challenging) managed an average score of 640.
In early December, on the eve of test day, I went through the basics of the AWA Section and brushed up on the Integrated Reasoning basics too. I wanted to make sure the whole testing experience went off as smoothly as possible, so I spent a few hours that day reading up on what to do/expect on Test Day. Following the advice of one blogger, I equipped myself with a few Red Bulls and, after a good night's rest, made my way to the test centre. That's when it went from good to bad to nightmarish. The combination of high doses of Taurine and a load of unnecessary stress got the better of me. I spent 5 minutes on the first Math question only to make a guess and move on. The next question caught me by surprise also, and I spent another 4 minutes trying to crack that one. In the end, everything spiraled out of control and this negatively impacted my Verbal Section. I received a score of 570, and headed home to share the depressing news with eagerly awaiting parents that had high expectations of me.
These supportive parents, though clearly disappointed but trying their best to hide their disappointment and think of a plan-B, felt that my score was no reflection of my actual abilities. They felt that a panic attack cost me valuable points and that my mindset wasn't quite right during the exam. After all, the GMAT is as much a mind game as it is an aptitude test. The decision after that was a clear one. I was to re-sit the exam in a months time. While the festive season was bound to come with many distractions and other commitments, I felt that this time would be right to fine tune my skills and most crucially find that right mindset. During this busy period I visited multiple forums and spoke with friends who had done competitive exams of this nature before to understand how to mentally prepare myself for the exam. I met loads of interesting people, and watched loads of motivational TED talks on topics like the importance of body language on performance etc...
I revisited the test center for what I hoped to be last time. I went in more confident than I did last time and gave each question my all. The questions I got stuck in I tried not to think about, and moved on to each new question like it was the first one on a new test. I felt much better doing the Verbal Section, and was looking forward to receiving a far better score than my last time. To my surprise, I only managed a 600, a thirty point improvement from a test that I thought I did disastrously on to a test that I thought was light years better. Also, the scores in my Verbal Section were far better than the scores on my Quant Section, bringing back an old pattern that I tried conscientiously to change.
As a result, my three month GMAT journey didn't end up the way I wanted it to. The colleges I ambitiously shortlisted to apply to prior to my preparations all required GMAT scores of 680+, and consequently were no longer possible to apply to. And now, as miserable and cliched as it sounds, its back to the drawing board for me. I have taken a few days off work to sit down and prioritize my future again. My hopes of being one of those "Knows-What-He's-Doing' contributors on this forum with a healthy 700+ score to boast about are now clearly not going to materialize. Instead I find myself giving a watered-down, almost somber version of what I expected to write.
But in hindsight, I will admit this: the GMAT was definitely a learning experience despite the outcome. I have learnt to aim high, but not too high that one loses sight of what is realistic and achievable. Failure to do so is the root cause of nervousness and stress, the last things (in addition to lots of Red Bull, of course) any test taker would want to bring into a testing center.
A crazy roller-coaster ride, but unlike the usual rides at amusements parks this one started off with a prolonged, seemingly unending stretch of straight road followed by a series of seemingly unending ups and downs that finally came to a halt on an awkward and confusing slope.
As I said, I began with a Kaplan course and also attended a few classes as well that were part of the package I signed up for. I enjoyed these classes because working on problems in a mini-classroom with a few others made the process of learning an interactive one, and most importantly, a competitive one. I found the Kaplan online question bank extremely useful as it enabled me to create my own tests with questions of varying difficulty levels on the topics I wanted to improve on. Yet I found the content in the Kaplan Premier textbook far too simplistic and decided to find an alternative. I continued with the classes for a few months, and did some independent study at home and at work too. I realized that after a few diagnostic tests, my main weaknesses lay in the Math Section and my strong points in the Verbal Section. This came as surprise to my Tutor because, being an Indian student and having gone through the rigors of the Indian Education System, he was expecting the opposite to happen. As D-Day drew nearer and nearer, I grew more anxious but continued to prepare in a focused manner. I did a few practice tests on the MGMAT website and (though I found the Math Section quite challenging) managed an average score of 640.
In early December, on the eve of test day, I went through the basics of the AWA Section and brushed up on the Integrated Reasoning basics too. I wanted to make sure the whole testing experience went off as smoothly as possible, so I spent a few hours that day reading up on what to do/expect on Test Day. Following the advice of one blogger, I equipped myself with a few Red Bulls and, after a good night's rest, made my way to the test centre. That's when it went from good to bad to nightmarish. The combination of high doses of Taurine and a load of unnecessary stress got the better of me. I spent 5 minutes on the first Math question only to make a guess and move on. The next question caught me by surprise also, and I spent another 4 minutes trying to crack that one. In the end, everything spiraled out of control and this negatively impacted my Verbal Section. I received a score of 570, and headed home to share the depressing news with eagerly awaiting parents that had high expectations of me.
These supportive parents, though clearly disappointed but trying their best to hide their disappointment and think of a plan-B, felt that my score was no reflection of my actual abilities. They felt that a panic attack cost me valuable points and that my mindset wasn't quite right during the exam. After all, the GMAT is as much a mind game as it is an aptitude test. The decision after that was a clear one. I was to re-sit the exam in a months time. While the festive season was bound to come with many distractions and other commitments, I felt that this time would be right to fine tune my skills and most crucially find that right mindset. During this busy period I visited multiple forums and spoke with friends who had done competitive exams of this nature before to understand how to mentally prepare myself for the exam. I met loads of interesting people, and watched loads of motivational TED talks on topics like the importance of body language on performance etc...
I revisited the test center for what I hoped to be last time. I went in more confident than I did last time and gave each question my all. The questions I got stuck in I tried not to think about, and moved on to each new question like it was the first one on a new test. I felt much better doing the Verbal Section, and was looking forward to receiving a far better score than my last time. To my surprise, I only managed a 600, a thirty point improvement from a test that I thought I did disastrously on to a test that I thought was light years better. Also, the scores in my Verbal Section were far better than the scores on my Quant Section, bringing back an old pattern that I tried conscientiously to change.
As a result, my three month GMAT journey didn't end up the way I wanted it to. The colleges I ambitiously shortlisted to apply to prior to my preparations all required GMAT scores of 680+, and consequently were no longer possible to apply to. And now, as miserable and cliched as it sounds, its back to the drawing board for me. I have taken a few days off work to sit down and prioritize my future again. My hopes of being one of those "Knows-What-He's-Doing' contributors on this forum with a healthy 700+ score to boast about are now clearly not going to materialize. Instead I find myself giving a watered-down, almost somber version of what I expected to write.
But in hindsight, I will admit this: the GMAT was definitely a learning experience despite the outcome. I have learnt to aim high, but not too high that one loses sight of what is realistic and achievable. Failure to do so is the root cause of nervousness and stress, the last things (in addition to lots of Red Bull, of course) any test taker would want to bring into a testing center.
A crazy roller-coaster ride, but unlike the usual rides at amusements parks this one started off with a prolonged, seemingly unending stretch of straight road followed by a series of seemingly unending ups and downs that finally came to a halt on an awkward and confusing slope.
