-
trademan41
- Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Mon May 21, 2012 6:29 pm
I've been a bit of a fly on the wall on these forums but have officially taken the GMAT and felt inclined to share my story in an attempt to inspire others still going through the process.
So here's how the journey went: I started studying in late January and really wanted to give this my all. While I do feel inclined to further my education, I also saw this as a second chance at a few things - a second chance at the "SATs for adults" aka the GMAT and a second chance at college in general.
So in January I took a Kaplan practice test, and boy was I surprised at my less than stellar performance! In fact, I finished only about half of the quantitative section before running out of time (and I'm an engineer no less!) and did not finish the verbal either, receiving a 550 on my first go around. Needless to say, I needed to make many improvements to get to my goal of 700+.
So I searched the web and found quite a few valuable resources (like this site) and reviews. I tried to mirror Ursula (https://www.urch.com/forums/just-finishe ... #post41054) and the founder, Eric (https://www.beatthegmat.com/720-96th-per ... t-t13.html). I found much value in the answer sheets Ursula mentioned, so I printed out many answer sheets with columns for my answers and also if I felt unsure/slow with a problem, along with a column noting if I got the question wrong or not. Unlike some on this forum, I really only focused on the ones that I had marked unsure/slow or got wrong, however this proved an invaluable way to learn and best strengthen my weaknesses.
The books I initially bought were Kaplan's GMAT Premiere 2012 because it offered 5 full practice CATs and I also scooped up Kaplan's GMAT 800. After going through the entire math refresher in the Kaplan GMAT premier book, I began looking at test taking strategy. I did find the methods outlined (picking numbers, back solving, etc.) to be particularly helpful and I also liked how Kaplan mentioned strategic guessing, which was useful when pressed for time. Ultimately my approach was to break each section's time and questions into thirds as a guide for my pacing, and when I found I was under a time crunch I could strategically guess on a problem or two to catch up. Please note that it is not wise to do this on consecutive problems! I did a lot of research on how the gmat is scored (a great article I found was this one: https://www.manhattangmat.com/articles/s ... lation.cfm) and again, due to the adaptive nature of the test decided it best not to guess on a string of questions in a row even to catch up.
After reading through these forums I decided to get the official guide 12th edition (now there's even a 13th edition). This book is ESSENTIAL to prepare you for the test, as you get a good understanding of how the questions will be written on the GMAT since these are actual retired questions. While I found several Kaplan questions somewhat confusing, the OG questions were much less so. I went through the last half of all the questions in the OG for practice, as these are the tougher questions. I'd also like to note that the OG diagnostic test is actually quite challenging so you should check these questions out as well. Basically I got back up to speed on the math concepts I hadn't used in a while and really focused on the quantitative section first, as I found this the most interesting. I also found out that the verbal section, due to international students who don't speak English as their first language, is actually the section that, if done well, will better bolster your score (here's a great article on how doing better in one section vs. another actually affects your score: https://www.manhattangmat.com/articles/break-700.cfm ).
At first I found it really tough to study for extended periods, especially after an exhausting work day. When studying in my apartment a phenomenon kept happening where I'd begin studying and, 5 minutes later, would be watching a youtube video or surfing the web! I found that the best way to prevent this was to remove the distractions. I began planning days after work that I would go to a local library and study. This helped immensely. For people looking to take this test still, I recommend catering to your strengths. I kept getting distracted so I found a place where I was incredibly productive and took advantage of it. The same holds true for motivating yourself. If you find one section of the test less interesting than another (for me it was the verbal), begin each study session with a section you enjoy and then get into the less liked areas. This should motivate you to at least get the study materials opened up, and then it's easier to have an overall productive session.
Other things that helped me: I made a game plan from the beginning of my studying to the end. At first I broke down what goals I wanted to achieve by week, but later I found it quite helpful to break this into actual days. I built a few days of "cushion" into each week to handle days where something unexpected came up, such as working late or just being so exhausted that studying would not work. This really helped me, as I just focused on finishing the study tasks one day at a time and knew that my schedule had all the preparation built into it.
As for overall planning, I decided to do most of the "tougher" (as many have mentioned) Kaplan tests and then moved to the official tests to really get a better sense of what to expect. I listed my scores below, and pretty much took one each weekend leading up to the test.
Something I found pretty interesting occurred towards the end of my studying, when I had a bit of a eureka moment where all of a sudden I realized I pretty much understood the quantitative section of the test. People have often mentioned that the tougher questions test the same material but focus on more subtleties and I felt like this was the case as well, where the "Eureka" moment got me to "connect the (subtle) dots."
It was at that point, with a couple of weeks left, that I decided to devote the rest of my time to the verbal portion, as that would really give me the most bang for my buck. At the time I had taken GMAT prep test 1, and my quant score was 48, so I didn't feel any need to get that higher, yet my verbal score was 35 (combined for a 680). This is when the GMAT 800 book came in handy, as their verbal problems are quite tough. The week before the test I really crammed and tried to learn the verbal section as best I could. I then took my final GMAT prep test and got a disappointing 660. My verbal had remained unchanged from the week and my quant score actually dropped to 47. At this point I reviewed the problems I was getting wrong and also became aware of a pretty important aspect of the test: the verbal doesn't adapt quite as quickly as the quant section! At least this is what someone said, and I felt it was somewhat true. This was also when I realized that to get the harder verbal questions at all I would have to get ALL three (SC, CR, and RC) types of questions right - you can't simply be strong in 2 out of 3 of the areas and expect to receive the 700+ questions. It was about this time (the days before the test) after reviewing what questions I was getting wrong that the verbal section also kind of "clicked" for me as well, and I felt I gained a deeper level of understanding. Basically, I came to the conclusion that at the 700 level you're not being tested on new material, but rather you're getting questions with more subtleties in them. For instance, a sentence correction question may have two grammatically correct choices, but which one conveys the meaning of the original sentence the best? It was this last "aha" moment that I feel really solidified my results.
Two days prior to G-day, I was still cramming, and I knew that I could not do the same the day before. I went over mostly verbal problems and a few tough quant ones to make sure I could stay in the 48-47 range. The day before G-day I took it pretty easy. I went through a few more questions I needed to finish then put the notes aside for good. I did a little shopping, and just chilled overall, knowing I'd need the energy the following day. I also prepared my snack food for the exam (I opted for dried bananas and strawberries, pretzels, and a vitamin water energy). As I was really buckling down and cramming the last 2 weeks, this restful day before the actual exam ironically felt like the test was already over.
Come test day, I went in with a clear head (side note, I am NOT a morning person, and there actually are test centers that allow afternoon testing sessions. If you are not a morning person either TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AN AFTERNOON SESSIONS! Remember, the test has a bunch of "tricks" up its sleeves, and that extra awareness can really pay off in helping you correct some otherwise foolish mistakes). I arrived early, which was a good thing because I took the last seat and another person who came in after me had to wait for a while. I sat down and went through the whole check-in process. The AWA essay I had gotten and the analysis of an issue were both pretty straightforward, and I actually felt I had written the best content on these two essays as I had on any practice ones. My goal was to write about three flaws in three paragraphs in the AWA essay and support my stance in the analysis of an issue essay with 2 supporting paragraphs and one that mentioned a positive thing for the other side, then still picked that other side apart. This was easier than usual, as I often can only find two solid paragraphs to write.
The quant section on the actual test seemed slightly easier than it had been on prior, practice tests. I typically was pressed for time on former tests, but this one, despite having a 90 second penalty (I took too long eating my pretzels on a break javascript:emoticon(':)') ) felt easier to work through. I recall guessing on one of the last few questions during the exam, but found myself guessing on 2-3 towards the end of the practice ones. All in all I felt I did about as well as I had on prior exams. Also, a key thing was I had actually caught myself making a mistake on about 2 problems that I corrected before answering. This was KEY and probably is what saved me from getting a 47 on the quant. Of the two practice tests I took, the one where I had gotten a 48 I had also corrected two mistakes before answering the questions, while this didn't happen on the test where I got a 47.
The verbal section was where I was really hoping to make an improvement. I felt pretty confident with my math performance (figured I had gotten a 48 based on the two corrections I made) so I knew I had a good chance at a decent score if I could just make something happen with the verbal. During this break (which I kept under 8 minutes) I kept telling myself to remember the subtleties of the questions. I also tried to prepare myself for reading sentences and not math equations, as I usually had a tough time switching gears on practice tests. I went through and made sure I looked for the meaning of phrases, whether it was sentence correction, critical reasoning, or reading comprehension. I kept actively asking myself why the test makers and author were including the text they had written. This actually helped me in a similar manner as the quantitative section, and I found myself correcting a couple of errors. Towards the end I was pressed for time with 3 questions left in 3 minutes. I answered one, strategically guessed the second (quickly got it to a 50/50) and then was able to sit with the final question, a rather short sentence correction one, for about 45 seconds. I filled in the last bubble and clicked next. It wasn't even a question if I wanted to see my scores or not, as I did NOT want to take this 4 hour, $250 beast of a test again lol, so I clicked ok, then looked away from the screen. When I did finally glance at the results, I was speechless when I saw 700 on the screen! I achieved my goal and this was the highest score I had ever gotten on any of the CATs!
Turns out my intuition was right: I got a 48 on the quant again, but this time instead of a 35 on the verbal I had gotten a 38 javascript:emoticon(':D') - guess the last minute studying and that final aha moment really helped in the end. Honestly, right before that point I felt I would have been ok with as low as a 680, since that is the lower end of the 80% range most of the schools I was looking at targeted, however, breaking the 700 barrier was the ultimate goal and it was so much more satisfying to see that round number!
Overall, what I took away from the experience and what I would advise anyone taking this test is the following:
- Read through a math refresher and text of the basic workings of the test in only a couple of weeks, then just get right into the questions because that's how you'll learn.
- Keep a log of questions you got right/wrong and any you were slow/unsure of. This list will prove invaluable when doing your final review. I personally just went over ones I had gotten wrong/was unsure/slow on. I felt that I had done enough different types of questions that even if I was weak in an area where I got a question right, I would've gotten at least a subsequent one wrong and therefore would've had to review the concept anyway.
- If I did everything again, I would probably get the Manhattan study materials. I've heard nothing but great things about their products and it sounds as though they have more of the tough questions needed to really get much beyond the 700 mark. Don't get me wrong Kaplan's GMAT 800 was great for the verbal, but I would like to have looked over the Manhattan GMAT materials too.
- That being said, the Official Guide (whatever the latest edition is) is an absolute must. Kaplan's books were great too for initial studying on slightly harder material. Their CATs are pretty good, but beware, they may not be 100 points lower like they used to (as I got a 640 on my final Kaplan CAT, then a 680 on a practice GMAT)
- You need to get strings of questions right to get the most points, and because you'll be tested on different topics, you'll need to master all of them to get the questions right. This holds especially true for the verbal, where you could be great in 2 disciplines, yet have one hold you back from advancing to the more difficult questions. I do believe what one person posted about the adaptive nature of the verbal being less quick to adapt up/down.
-Get a good night's sleep the night before! I'm normally one for cramming and for college I definitely pulled some all-nighters during finals weeks. This is NOT NOT NOT the time to do this! The questions adapt and constantly push you to your limit - to get as close to your real limit as possible, you'll need as much awareness as you have. Plus the test is long, and you will need stamina to get through the entire thing, keep your concentration levels up, and work quickly. Practice definitely helps here, and be sure to practice with the AWA essays as that's another hour of test work you need to build stamina for on the real exam! When tired I found I would try to take shortcuts on problems, like read only up to where the sentence error was vs. the entire sentence. This made me pick several erroneous choices b/c I was simply too tired to fully work through the problem.
- That's it. Thanks for reading! I hope you found this helpful and inspiring! If I went from 550 to 700 you can too!
- Here are my scores, in the order I took them:
- Kaplan CAT1: 550 (didn't finish)
- Kaplan CAT2: 600
- Powerprep 1 (may have been before CAT 2): 600 - 38Q; 35V
- Kaplan CAT3: 620
- Kaplan CAT4: 640
- Powerprep 2: 620 (worse than the Kaplans arg!!!!)
- Gmat Prep 1: 680 javascript:emoticon(':)') - 48Q; 35V
- Gmat Prep 2: 660 javascript:emoticon(':(') - 47Q; 35V
- Actual Gmat: 700 javascript:emoticon(':D') javascript:emoticon(':D')javascript:emoticon(':D')- 48Q; 38V
Best of luck!!!
Jason
So here's how the journey went: I started studying in late January and really wanted to give this my all. While I do feel inclined to further my education, I also saw this as a second chance at a few things - a second chance at the "SATs for adults" aka the GMAT and a second chance at college in general.
So in January I took a Kaplan practice test, and boy was I surprised at my less than stellar performance! In fact, I finished only about half of the quantitative section before running out of time (and I'm an engineer no less!) and did not finish the verbal either, receiving a 550 on my first go around. Needless to say, I needed to make many improvements to get to my goal of 700+.
So I searched the web and found quite a few valuable resources (like this site) and reviews. I tried to mirror Ursula (https://www.urch.com/forums/just-finishe ... #post41054) and the founder, Eric (https://www.beatthegmat.com/720-96th-per ... t-t13.html). I found much value in the answer sheets Ursula mentioned, so I printed out many answer sheets with columns for my answers and also if I felt unsure/slow with a problem, along with a column noting if I got the question wrong or not. Unlike some on this forum, I really only focused on the ones that I had marked unsure/slow or got wrong, however this proved an invaluable way to learn and best strengthen my weaknesses.
The books I initially bought were Kaplan's GMAT Premiere 2012 because it offered 5 full practice CATs and I also scooped up Kaplan's GMAT 800. After going through the entire math refresher in the Kaplan GMAT premier book, I began looking at test taking strategy. I did find the methods outlined (picking numbers, back solving, etc.) to be particularly helpful and I also liked how Kaplan mentioned strategic guessing, which was useful when pressed for time. Ultimately my approach was to break each section's time and questions into thirds as a guide for my pacing, and when I found I was under a time crunch I could strategically guess on a problem or two to catch up. Please note that it is not wise to do this on consecutive problems! I did a lot of research on how the gmat is scored (a great article I found was this one: https://www.manhattangmat.com/articles/s ... lation.cfm) and again, due to the adaptive nature of the test decided it best not to guess on a string of questions in a row even to catch up.
After reading through these forums I decided to get the official guide 12th edition (now there's even a 13th edition). This book is ESSENTIAL to prepare you for the test, as you get a good understanding of how the questions will be written on the GMAT since these are actual retired questions. While I found several Kaplan questions somewhat confusing, the OG questions were much less so. I went through the last half of all the questions in the OG for practice, as these are the tougher questions. I'd also like to note that the OG diagnostic test is actually quite challenging so you should check these questions out as well. Basically I got back up to speed on the math concepts I hadn't used in a while and really focused on the quantitative section first, as I found this the most interesting. I also found out that the verbal section, due to international students who don't speak English as their first language, is actually the section that, if done well, will better bolster your score (here's a great article on how doing better in one section vs. another actually affects your score: https://www.manhattangmat.com/articles/break-700.cfm ).
At first I found it really tough to study for extended periods, especially after an exhausting work day. When studying in my apartment a phenomenon kept happening where I'd begin studying and, 5 minutes later, would be watching a youtube video or surfing the web! I found that the best way to prevent this was to remove the distractions. I began planning days after work that I would go to a local library and study. This helped immensely. For people looking to take this test still, I recommend catering to your strengths. I kept getting distracted so I found a place where I was incredibly productive and took advantage of it. The same holds true for motivating yourself. If you find one section of the test less interesting than another (for me it was the verbal), begin each study session with a section you enjoy and then get into the less liked areas. This should motivate you to at least get the study materials opened up, and then it's easier to have an overall productive session.
Other things that helped me: I made a game plan from the beginning of my studying to the end. At first I broke down what goals I wanted to achieve by week, but later I found it quite helpful to break this into actual days. I built a few days of "cushion" into each week to handle days where something unexpected came up, such as working late or just being so exhausted that studying would not work. This really helped me, as I just focused on finishing the study tasks one day at a time and knew that my schedule had all the preparation built into it.
As for overall planning, I decided to do most of the "tougher" (as many have mentioned) Kaplan tests and then moved to the official tests to really get a better sense of what to expect. I listed my scores below, and pretty much took one each weekend leading up to the test.
Something I found pretty interesting occurred towards the end of my studying, when I had a bit of a eureka moment where all of a sudden I realized I pretty much understood the quantitative section of the test. People have often mentioned that the tougher questions test the same material but focus on more subtleties and I felt like this was the case as well, where the "Eureka" moment got me to "connect the (subtle) dots."
It was at that point, with a couple of weeks left, that I decided to devote the rest of my time to the verbal portion, as that would really give me the most bang for my buck. At the time I had taken GMAT prep test 1, and my quant score was 48, so I didn't feel any need to get that higher, yet my verbal score was 35 (combined for a 680). This is when the GMAT 800 book came in handy, as their verbal problems are quite tough. The week before the test I really crammed and tried to learn the verbal section as best I could. I then took my final GMAT prep test and got a disappointing 660. My verbal had remained unchanged from the week and my quant score actually dropped to 47. At this point I reviewed the problems I was getting wrong and also became aware of a pretty important aspect of the test: the verbal doesn't adapt quite as quickly as the quant section! At least this is what someone said, and I felt it was somewhat true. This was also when I realized that to get the harder verbal questions at all I would have to get ALL three (SC, CR, and RC) types of questions right - you can't simply be strong in 2 out of 3 of the areas and expect to receive the 700+ questions. It was about this time (the days before the test) after reviewing what questions I was getting wrong that the verbal section also kind of "clicked" for me as well, and I felt I gained a deeper level of understanding. Basically, I came to the conclusion that at the 700 level you're not being tested on new material, but rather you're getting questions with more subtleties in them. For instance, a sentence correction question may have two grammatically correct choices, but which one conveys the meaning of the original sentence the best? It was this last "aha" moment that I feel really solidified my results.
Two days prior to G-day, I was still cramming, and I knew that I could not do the same the day before. I went over mostly verbal problems and a few tough quant ones to make sure I could stay in the 48-47 range. The day before G-day I took it pretty easy. I went through a few more questions I needed to finish then put the notes aside for good. I did a little shopping, and just chilled overall, knowing I'd need the energy the following day. I also prepared my snack food for the exam (I opted for dried bananas and strawberries, pretzels, and a vitamin water energy). As I was really buckling down and cramming the last 2 weeks, this restful day before the actual exam ironically felt like the test was already over.
Come test day, I went in with a clear head (side note, I am NOT a morning person, and there actually are test centers that allow afternoon testing sessions. If you are not a morning person either TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AN AFTERNOON SESSIONS! Remember, the test has a bunch of "tricks" up its sleeves, and that extra awareness can really pay off in helping you correct some otherwise foolish mistakes). I arrived early, which was a good thing because I took the last seat and another person who came in after me had to wait for a while. I sat down and went through the whole check-in process. The AWA essay I had gotten and the analysis of an issue were both pretty straightforward, and I actually felt I had written the best content on these two essays as I had on any practice ones. My goal was to write about three flaws in three paragraphs in the AWA essay and support my stance in the analysis of an issue essay with 2 supporting paragraphs and one that mentioned a positive thing for the other side, then still picked that other side apart. This was easier than usual, as I often can only find two solid paragraphs to write.
The quant section on the actual test seemed slightly easier than it had been on prior, practice tests. I typically was pressed for time on former tests, but this one, despite having a 90 second penalty (I took too long eating my pretzels on a break javascript:emoticon(':)') ) felt easier to work through. I recall guessing on one of the last few questions during the exam, but found myself guessing on 2-3 towards the end of the practice ones. All in all I felt I did about as well as I had on prior exams. Also, a key thing was I had actually caught myself making a mistake on about 2 problems that I corrected before answering. This was KEY and probably is what saved me from getting a 47 on the quant. Of the two practice tests I took, the one where I had gotten a 48 I had also corrected two mistakes before answering the questions, while this didn't happen on the test where I got a 47.
The verbal section was where I was really hoping to make an improvement. I felt pretty confident with my math performance (figured I had gotten a 48 based on the two corrections I made) so I knew I had a good chance at a decent score if I could just make something happen with the verbal. During this break (which I kept under 8 minutes) I kept telling myself to remember the subtleties of the questions. I also tried to prepare myself for reading sentences and not math equations, as I usually had a tough time switching gears on practice tests. I went through and made sure I looked for the meaning of phrases, whether it was sentence correction, critical reasoning, or reading comprehension. I kept actively asking myself why the test makers and author were including the text they had written. This actually helped me in a similar manner as the quantitative section, and I found myself correcting a couple of errors. Towards the end I was pressed for time with 3 questions left in 3 minutes. I answered one, strategically guessed the second (quickly got it to a 50/50) and then was able to sit with the final question, a rather short sentence correction one, for about 45 seconds. I filled in the last bubble and clicked next. It wasn't even a question if I wanted to see my scores or not, as I did NOT want to take this 4 hour, $250 beast of a test again lol, so I clicked ok, then looked away from the screen. When I did finally glance at the results, I was speechless when I saw 700 on the screen! I achieved my goal and this was the highest score I had ever gotten on any of the CATs!
Turns out my intuition was right: I got a 48 on the quant again, but this time instead of a 35 on the verbal I had gotten a 38 javascript:emoticon(':D') - guess the last minute studying and that final aha moment really helped in the end. Honestly, right before that point I felt I would have been ok with as low as a 680, since that is the lower end of the 80% range most of the schools I was looking at targeted, however, breaking the 700 barrier was the ultimate goal and it was so much more satisfying to see that round number!
Overall, what I took away from the experience and what I would advise anyone taking this test is the following:
- Read through a math refresher and text of the basic workings of the test in only a couple of weeks, then just get right into the questions because that's how you'll learn.
- Keep a log of questions you got right/wrong and any you were slow/unsure of. This list will prove invaluable when doing your final review. I personally just went over ones I had gotten wrong/was unsure/slow on. I felt that I had done enough different types of questions that even if I was weak in an area where I got a question right, I would've gotten at least a subsequent one wrong and therefore would've had to review the concept anyway.
- If I did everything again, I would probably get the Manhattan study materials. I've heard nothing but great things about their products and it sounds as though they have more of the tough questions needed to really get much beyond the 700 mark. Don't get me wrong Kaplan's GMAT 800 was great for the verbal, but I would like to have looked over the Manhattan GMAT materials too.
- That being said, the Official Guide (whatever the latest edition is) is an absolute must. Kaplan's books were great too for initial studying on slightly harder material. Their CATs are pretty good, but beware, they may not be 100 points lower like they used to (as I got a 640 on my final Kaplan CAT, then a 680 on a practice GMAT)
- You need to get strings of questions right to get the most points, and because you'll be tested on different topics, you'll need to master all of them to get the questions right. This holds especially true for the verbal, where you could be great in 2 disciplines, yet have one hold you back from advancing to the more difficult questions. I do believe what one person posted about the adaptive nature of the verbal being less quick to adapt up/down.
-Get a good night's sleep the night before! I'm normally one for cramming and for college I definitely pulled some all-nighters during finals weeks. This is NOT NOT NOT the time to do this! The questions adapt and constantly push you to your limit - to get as close to your real limit as possible, you'll need as much awareness as you have. Plus the test is long, and you will need stamina to get through the entire thing, keep your concentration levels up, and work quickly. Practice definitely helps here, and be sure to practice with the AWA essays as that's another hour of test work you need to build stamina for on the real exam! When tired I found I would try to take shortcuts on problems, like read only up to where the sentence error was vs. the entire sentence. This made me pick several erroneous choices b/c I was simply too tired to fully work through the problem.
- That's it. Thanks for reading! I hope you found this helpful and inspiring! If I went from 550 to 700 you can too!
- Here are my scores, in the order I took them:
- Kaplan CAT1: 550 (didn't finish)
- Kaplan CAT2: 600
- Powerprep 1 (may have been before CAT 2): 600 - 38Q; 35V
- Kaplan CAT3: 620
- Kaplan CAT4: 640
- Powerprep 2: 620 (worse than the Kaplans arg!!!!)
- Gmat Prep 1: 680 javascript:emoticon(':)') - 48Q; 35V
- Gmat Prep 2: 660 javascript:emoticon(':(') - 47Q; 35V
- Actual Gmat: 700 javascript:emoticon(':D') javascript:emoticon(':D')javascript:emoticon(':D')- 48Q; 38V
Best of luck!!!
Jason
