I just Beat The GMAT!

I took the GMAT last week and scored a 49Q, 41V. My GMAT journey:

I took the GRE twice in 2012 and received mediocre scores. I'm not naturally gifted at standardized tests, but I'm comfortable with numbers and a good reader/writer. After two years of inactivity, in summer 2014 I decided I was ready to apply to B school in 2015 and that I would take my time and commit as much time as needed to score well on the GMAT (700 rough goal). I took Princeton Review's in-person weekly three-hour GMAT class from June through August 2015. The materials were helpful, and so were the online practice tests. I was very focused in class and outside, and tried to absorb everything I could from the class. My study regimen was 10-14 hours per week, including the weekly class.

-Took a two month break during Sept. and Oct. when, around Labor Day, I moved apartments, got dumped, and had a friend suddenly die all at once.

-Back to work in November. Continued to study Princeton Review material and Official Guide material 10-14 hours a week, very consistently. I was doing practice tests, practice problems, and reviewing notes the whole time. I did all quant questions in the Official Guide (many of them twice), and I did 8 Princeton Review practice tests and 2 Official GMAT practice tests. I studied at least one hour every day, including at least a little math each day. I found studying quant consistently to be very helpful. The Princeton Review material was pretty good, and definitely sufficient for Verbal in my opinion if you are a native English speaker. But it ultimately wasn't enough for Quant. I think the practice tests, particularly in the math section, are not challenging enough, and the material is not thorough. I sat for the GMAT in early February, after 5.5 months of Princeton Review. I walked out of the test after the 5th math question because I knew it was too hard and I was not going to be able to complete the test successfully. I was very upset at this point.

-Went on a two-week winter vacation. I was depressed about failing my first GMAT attempt. But I knew I wasn't going to give up. I returned home, rested and ready to re-tackle the test. I am naturally optimistic and I really had to draw on that optimism at this time. My friend referred me to Target Test Prep at this point. I spoke to Jeffrey Miller, one of the teachers, for about an hour on the phone to re-orient my morale and be introduced to Target Test Prep. The website offers a complete book of GMAT Quant material that is very clearly written, and hundreds upon hundreds of quant questions categorized by difficulty level. I decided that I did not need one-on-one tutoring with the service, because I did not struggle with understanding the math concepts and I felt I could teach myself the material and test-taking skills. Also, I think the website math content is very clearly explained. So, I used Target Test Prep from mid-February to mid-May. I studied 10-14 hours a week consistently. I went through the chapters one by one, reforming my quant foundation. Some material was of course repeated from Princeton Review, but a lot of it wasn't and it made me realize how much quant material Princeton Review glosses over.

-I filled one single-subject notebook with my own notes of the Target Test Prep material. I did a quiz of medium and difficult questions after each chapter. I continued to follow the same regimen of 10-14 hours a week of note-taking and quizzes. I was doing well at this point. Then I took an Official GMAT practice test and scored a 720. At this point I felt ready to try the GMAT again and signed up. I spent the final two weeks reviewing the whole notebook of my notes, doing practice problems to stay fresh, and reviewing flash cards I made. It was hard for me not to be overcome by stress and insecurity, especially after my first failed attempt. But I kept telling myself I knew the material very well, which I did thanks to the time I put in and this test prep service. At this point I was also exercising very regularly to de-stress. On test day, I knew I had the test in the bag after I felt I succeeded with answering the first 5 math questions. I knew I wouldn't be quitting the test early like I did last time. I was able to answer all the quant questions, and my average time was 2:01. I actually did not even sense that the questions were getting harder, because I was so well prepared and because the practice questions I had been doing were a good difficulty level. Ended with a 49Q.

My study recommendations (mostly for quant):
-do Target Test Prep for Quant. The material is really thorough and the questions are a good difficulty level. You can also make unlimited math quizzes with customized difficulty levels.
-As you go through quant material, take notes of what you don't know or would want to review. Take custom quizzes of mostly medium and hard questions after the chapters. Review your notes, maybe by making another set of shorter note pages for each chapter.
-Study consistently, at least an hour a day. Wake up in the mornings before work if you need to.
-Download an arithmetic app and do mental math on the subway/commute.
-Exercise a couple times a week because it helps your memory and stress levels. People who exercise test better.
-Be motivated, be optimistic, and keep working at it, even when you are scoring poorly several months into studying. It turns around if you keep diligently working! It just takes time. I think the key ingredients to success are being motivated, optimistic, and diligent.
-Even if you are historically a mediocre standardized test taker, you can still beat the GMAT

Thank you for posting! This was a very cool story to read - how you refused to give up and as a result ultimately achieved your goal. That in and of itself is a valuable lesson for other people preparing to take the gmat, whether it is their first or their fifth attempt. Your specific recommendations to others are also really helpful.

- doing targeted practice to isolate and work through weak areas(these are available through question packs purchased from gmac.com as well)
- Take notes of problem areas. I recommend keeping an error log, not only of subject difficulty but also of common mistakes that you find yourself making or traps that you are falling for
- Consistency is absolutely key
- Using downtime efficiently through mental math apps like "mathmuncher" and others is a great idea. You need to be able to do mental math accurately and efficiently on this test in order to spend your brainpower and time on more meaningful matters
- Exercise/sleep is so key to maintaining energy levels, and also an optimistic mindset
- Don't give up, stay motivated. Your story speaks for itself.

Thank you for sharing your story!