I just Beat The GMAT!

Whew! Finally done. Here’s my story.

I started prep in Feb. 2008, basically just reading about the test format, and learning the types of questions asked. I signed up for a prep class at a local college in March, and started studying for real—at least 90 min. per day. The class was helpful thanks to the great teacher, and the ability to interact with the other students. Plus, it was $400 as compared to the thousands offered elsewhere. From the end of May, when the class let out, to now, I was up to 2-3 hrs. per day. I worked on my weaknesses—SC, and everthing quant with an emphasis on DS. I felt I peaked at just the right time, as any longer, and I’d certainly burn-out.

Books used

Text book from the class. (Written by Cambridge Prep)
OG 11
Princeton Math Workout
Princeton Verbal Workout
Kaplan 800

I also bought the six MGMAT CATs. I recommend them. They’re a bit harder than the real thing, which means that they’re great practice. After taking them, I felt very confident and at ease with the test process. Don’t worry about whether the score correlates well with the real thing (In my opinion, it’s fairly accurate though) just use them for practice. The detailed answers to questions, as well as the breakdown of strengths and weaknesses was a great help.

Here’s my practice scores:

Date Test Score Q V

3/27 Retired Written 550 32 34
5/17 PowerPrep 1 600 36 36
5/26 MGMAT 610 41 33
5/31 MGMAT 720 42 42
6/4 MGMAT 640 42 36
6/8 MGMAT 720 45 44
6/11 MGMAT 720 43 45
6/21 The real deal 710 43 45

I took MGMAT #6 untimed, quant only, and with a calculator and excel so that I would get a lot harder questions to study. I didn't take Powerprep #2 because I was so close to the end, I didn't want false hope from a high score, and I didn't want to be discouraged by a low one. The lack of explanations also meant the I wouldn't learn from my mistakes.

I think my scores rose as I got more comfortable with the material. Verbal improved as my SC skills did, as well as figuring out a way around tough RC passages.

Strategy

I haven’t had a problem with CR, so I spent little time with it. SC was improved just through brute force. I studied the answers to all the material I had, and looked for the grammatical patterns in non GMAT related reading. I downloaded “Spidey’s SC Notes” from this site, and they were a big help, thanks Spidey.

RC improved once I started taking notes on the passage. I wouldn’t write much, and I found myself never referring back to them during the answers, but my hit-rate shot up dramatically. I think just summarizing the points as you go (I wouldn’t write complete sentences, just relevant words or phrases—for example “Comparison of scientific process” -- that would guide me along)

The big day

On a beautiful Saturday morning, I enter a featureless office building located in a featureless office park. The lady at check-in is a bit too cheerful, as I just want to get it going. I do the sign in, picture (such a horrible picture—much to my dismay it greeted me every time returned from break) fingerprint, everything. I fill out the beginning forms, (oops—I checked “Babson College” instead of “Boston College” Oh well, Babson’s a good school too, but that’s going to cost me $20 to send it to BC now. So much for my critical attention to detail. I hope it’s not a sign of things to come…)

I spent the night before doing very little GMAT related. There was no point studying, if I don’t know it now, I never will. I played in my soccer league, and relaxed. The only thing GMAT I did was to develop my AWA template, and I think it was a good idea. The essays fall into predictable patterns, so it’s possible to use a general idea for the structure. Structure might be one of the most important areas graded, so it’s good not to worry about it. Plus, it makes it easier to start well, and I felt great after the first hour. I think it helped my confidence tremendously, as I felt fine throughout the test.

With about four questions to go, my heart was pounding. I knew I was doing well on the verbal section, and I still had ten minutes to go, with four RC passages already done. I felt relieved to know I was home free, but terrified of my score. I finish, and start the ending questionnaire (PLEASE! MY SCORE! JUST GIVE IT TO ME!) and spend as long as three seconds can possibly last watching the screen tell me it was calculating my score.

I’m happy with it. Sure, we all feel we could have done better, but I’m not taking it again. I can attribute the relatively low quant score to the peculiar blend of GMAT math. My undergrad degree is accounting, and I took and aced plenty of finance and calc courses. I’m satisfied, and now I’m spending the next couple of days biking in the Catskills, then starting on essays and applications.

Good luck all!

Thanks also to all at this forum. This site quite likely added 10-20 points to my score, which turned out to be quite beneficial!