Q50, V45, total 770
I have no earthly idea how it happened, lolol. I remember staring in shock at the screen when I saw my score since I hadn't ever gotten that high of a total during my practice tests. Haha, I still wonder if it might have been a glitch in the system....
In any case, BeatTheGMAT helped me a lot during my studying phase (particularly since I could see what other people's experiences were like) so perhaps I can give back too!
The books I used were:
EZ Solutions GMAT Advanced Math (very good since it breaks down all the different types of math questions that could be asked)
OG 11 (although I only got through half of the math section and none of the verbal)
In total, I had perhaps 3 good weeks to prepare.
I took the Kaplan GMAT practice test about 10 days before the actual exam and got a 570 (eeks!).
Then I took the GMATPrep practice test 1 last Thursday and got a 690.
Yesterday (Monday), I had a panic attack (jk) and took the GMATPrep Math section twice. I didn't actually get to sleep until 2am >.<
In between those days, I did some random math problems in between classes at USC.
I think the test environment at the Pasadena (CA) location was very good - I recommend it to any future test takers! It was very quiet and the administrator was very quick in handing me new dry-erase boards.
I haven't seen any posts about the test location procedures, so here they are:
- Check in (although your official time may say 2:00pm or whatever, it really doesn't matter if you are slightly late - they will seat you anyway)
- They'll give you a locker key (you can't take electronics or food into the test room) You can eat your food during breaks! (I found this really helpful since I was starving during the exam! On another note, I found it good to be slightly hungry since it kept me awake!)
- You start! (Everyone will have different start times. In fact, some test takers in the computer room may not even be taking the same test! During my session, a lot of people were taking the NCLEX nursing exam.)
Recommendations:
- Some people say that it's not helpful to study the night before.... That's probably true because I took two 75-minute math practice tests on Monday and I was completely burnt out when I took the math section today (I kept on second-guessing myself - in fact, I took about 5 minutes on the first question! I think my mind was fried)
- It's good to have a sense of timing: When I first took the timed GMATPrep, I ran out of time with about 8 questions to go. By practicing my timing, I was able to finish today with 5 minutes to spare (in the math section)! Thus, when your test date gets nearer, start doing more practice tests.
- GMATPrep: super duper! It simulated the actual test perfectly so that when I took the GMAT today, I felt completely ready. It only works on PCs though (boooo) so I just downloaded it onto a library computer (mwahaha) at my school. You MUST take this! It truly helps.
Sooooo, that's pretty much all that I have for now. I'm still slightly weirded out that I got a 770 (when all my practice tests were low!) but I'm not complaining, lol.
Hope this helps!
I have no earthly idea how it happened, lolol. I remember staring in shock at the screen when I saw my score since I hadn't ever gotten that high of a total during my practice tests. Haha, I still wonder if it might have been a glitch in the system....
In any case, BeatTheGMAT helped me a lot during my studying phase (particularly since I could see what other people's experiences were like) so perhaps I can give back too!
The books I used were:
EZ Solutions GMAT Advanced Math (very good since it breaks down all the different types of math questions that could be asked)
OG 11 (although I only got through half of the math section and none of the verbal)
In total, I had perhaps 3 good weeks to prepare.
I took the Kaplan GMAT practice test about 10 days before the actual exam and got a 570 (eeks!).
Then I took the GMATPrep practice test 1 last Thursday and got a 690.
Yesterday (Monday), I had a panic attack (jk) and took the GMATPrep Math section twice. I didn't actually get to sleep until 2am >.<
In between those days, I did some random math problems in between classes at USC.
I think the test environment at the Pasadena (CA) location was very good - I recommend it to any future test takers! It was very quiet and the administrator was very quick in handing me new dry-erase boards.
I haven't seen any posts about the test location procedures, so here they are:
- Check in (although your official time may say 2:00pm or whatever, it really doesn't matter if you are slightly late - they will seat you anyway)
- They'll give you a locker key (you can't take electronics or food into the test room) You can eat your food during breaks! (I found this really helpful since I was starving during the exam! On another note, I found it good to be slightly hungry since it kept me awake!)
- You start! (Everyone will have different start times. In fact, some test takers in the computer room may not even be taking the same test! During my session, a lot of people were taking the NCLEX nursing exam.)
Recommendations:
- Some people say that it's not helpful to study the night before.... That's probably true because I took two 75-minute math practice tests on Monday and I was completely burnt out when I took the math section today (I kept on second-guessing myself - in fact, I took about 5 minutes on the first question! I think my mind was fried)
- It's good to have a sense of timing: When I first took the timed GMATPrep, I ran out of time with about 8 questions to go. By practicing my timing, I was able to finish today with 5 minutes to spare (in the math section)! Thus, when your test date gets nearer, start doing more practice tests.
- GMATPrep: super duper! It simulated the actual test perfectly so that when I took the GMAT today, I felt completely ready. It only works on PCs though (boooo) so I just downloaded it onto a library computer (mwahaha) at my school. You MUST take this! It truly helps.
Sooooo, that's pretty much all that I have for now. I'm still slightly weirded out that I got a 770 (when all my practice tests were low!) but I'm not complaining, lol.
Hope this helps!
