I just Beat The GMAT!

Wow 2010 has been so far so good for me. Yep my ambition of pursuing an MBA is soon going to be a reality. The first step in that direction has been my GMAT score.

I am very much thankful to the forum members from whom I learned a lot.

My profile:

10th standard - 90%
12th standard - 93%
BE - Electronics and Communication Engineering - Passed out in 2006 with 78 %
Work experience - 4 years IT experience as a SQL Server DBA.

Awards - Presented with Microsoft Most Valuable professional award for the year 2008 & 2009.
Leadership - User group president for the Chennai SQL Server User group, works closely with Microsoft
Speaking engagement - Regular speaker once every month in User group meeting and Microsoft events in India

To be honest GMAT is not that difficult as it seems to be. Its just our perception that matters . If we can put some sincere efforts for 3 to 6 months we can easily crack the GMAT. This is evident from my own personal experience. So to all those in the 500's don't ever give up.

If NOT NOW then NEVER !!

My battle with GMAT:
It all started in September 2008. Yes I took my GMAT for the 1st time on September 25th 2008. To be honest I was not very much interested in pursuing an MBA at that time as a result I never really prepared. The same was with my 2nd attempt on June 25th 2009.

Following are my scores in the GMAT:

September 25th 2008 - 530 (Q39, V23)
June 25th 2009 - 530 (Q42, V21)
February 08th 2010 - 660 (Q47, V34)

So what made the difference from my earlier attempts ?? ..

#1. I was more serious to pursue my MBA ambition
#2. Worked diligently, almost spent 4 hrs on every weekdays (woke up early in the morning at 6:00 and studied till 9:30am)
#3. Took regular practice test on every weekends and evaluated my progress
#4. MGMAT materials. I really loved their 6 practice CAT exams
#5. Logging all the mistakes I made and understood each of them thoroughly
#6. Beat the GMAT flash cards
#7. Read few articles every day from economist.com to improve my RC speed
#8. CR Bible for GMAT helped me improving my CR
#9. MGMAT sentence correction is the best for improving SC
#10. How to read better and faster by Norman Lewis helps in increasing your RC speed

MGMAT materials:
I really loved the MGMAT CAT exams. The quantitative portion is extremely tough. But it really helps if you prepare for the worst. GMAT math is pretty much easier than MGMAT. I practiced all their CATs in November and did an entire review on each of their assessment reports in December. By the end of december I could feel the difference in Quants and Verbal.

I suggest all of you not to stop the timer during practice test and rather give your best effort. Initially I too did that mistake for a couple of test. But I realized my mistake soon. The MGMAT verbal is pretty par with that of the GMAT exam. In my opinion GMAT prep software and MGMAT are the best ones that resembles GMAT exam. So whatever score you get in these test should be close to that of the real GMAT exam.

CR Bible for GMAT:
It is the best book for improving your CR scores. Initially I had no idea as to how to approach an Inference question, Assumption question and Evaluate the logic type of questions. But CR Bible provides an in depth explanation for each of those topics. I read this book for a couple of months and practiced.

Improving RC:
One of my weak areas was RC. The best way to improving RC is reading economist articles for just 20 minutes a day refer, https://www.economist.com/
You benefit in two ways, one is that you end up improving your RC speed. Secondly, you get to become knowledgeable of the current world events.

How to read better and faster by Norman Lewis is another excellent addition on improving your reading speed. Unfortunately i couldn't finish reading the book as I was completely engrossed in my office work. For the last 1 month i return to home during late hours as a result I could only take a practice test but not revise any topic. When I started this book my reading speed was 175 wpm (words per minute). Over a period of time I manged to increase my speed to 300 wpm. Moreover when it comes to RC we need to skim the passages rather than looking at unnecessary information. That book teaches exactly what needs to be done.

SC for GMAT:
There is nothing better than Manhattan Sentence correction book. It gives clear examples on all the topics covered. I did practice the 1000 SC questions not all but around 500 questions.

Improving Quans:
I practiced almost all the questions from MGMAT CAT exams. MGMAT Quans is really difficult but do not get dejected rather practice and understand how to approach each of the problem. I had MGMAT books for Geometry, Word translations and FDP.

My practice test scores:

Nov 8th 2009 MGMAT CAT 1 - 600 (Q44, V30)
Nov 15th 2009 MGMAT CAT 2 - 620 (Q46, V30)
Nov 27th 2009 MGMAT CAT 3 - 630 (Q44, V32)
Dec 1st 2009 MGMAT CAT 4 - 590 (Q44, V29)
Dec 8th 2009 MGMAT CAT 5 - 650 (Q46, V33)
Dec 14th 2009 MGMAT CAT 6 - 640 (Q48, V31)

MGMAT 2nd attempt practice test scores:
Jan 17th 2010 MGMAT 1 - 620 (Q48 V28)
Jan 22nd 2010 MGMAT 2 - 680 (Q47 V35)
Jan 24th 2010 MGMAT 3 - 660 (Q47 V33)
Jan 31st 2010 MGMAT 4 - 670 (Q46 V35)
Feb 3rd 2010 MGMAT 5 - 680 (Q47 V36)

During Mid week of Jan I took GMAT prep. The scores are as follows:
GMAT prep 1 - 720
GMAT prep2 - 620

During my Verbal exam yesterday, I was quite worried because I didn't get an inference or assumption question till the 19th one. No bold faced questions at all. Nevertheless the scores were good at the end !!.

I am really thankful to my family members who supported me during this exciting journey. With the blessings of God I am now entering the next phase of applying for the universities. Will keep posting more information on this subject as and when I get make progress.

-Deepak
https://deepakrangarajan.blocked/20 ... -done.html

Congrats DeepakR well deserved!

What college you want to go? I mean honestly, you seem like most satisfied man in the world who was aiming for 660??? Here probably, trash the score sheet of 770!

DeepakR wrote:Wow 2010 has been so far so good for me. Yep my ambition of pursuing an MBA is soon going to be a reality. The first step in that direction has been my GMAT score.

I am very much thankful to the forum members from whom I learned a lot.

My profile:

10th standard - 90%
12th standard - 93%
BE - Electronics and Communication Engineering - Passed out in 2006 with 78 %
Work experience - 4 years IT experience as a SQL Server DBA.

Awards - Presented with Microsoft Most Valuable professional award for the year 2008 & 2009.
Leadership - User group president for the Chennai SQL Server User group, works closely with Microsoft
Speaking engagement - Regular speaker once every month in User group meeting and Microsoft events in India

To be honest GMAT is not that difficult as it seems to be. Its just our perception that matters . If we can put some sincere efforts for 3 to 6 months we can easily crack the GMAT. This is evident from my own personal experience. So to all those in the 500's don't ever give up.

If NOT NOW then NEVER !!

My battle with GMAT:
It all started in September 2008. Yes I took my GMAT for the 1st time on September 25th 2008. To be honest I was not very much interested in pursuing an MBA at that time as a result I never really prepared. The same was with my 2nd attempt on June 25th 2009.

Following are my scores in the GMAT:

September 25th 2008 - 530 (Q39, V23)
June 25th 2009 - 530 (Q42, V21)
February 08th 2010 - 660 (Q47, V34)

So what made the difference from my earlier attempts ?? ..

#1. I was more serious to pursue my MBA ambition
#2. Worked diligently, almost spent 4 hrs on every weekdays (woke up early in the morning at 6:00 and studied till 9:30am)
#3. Took regular practice test on every weekends and evaluated my progress
#4. MGMAT materials. I really loved their 6 practice CAT exams
#5. Logging all the mistakes I made and understood each of them thoroughly
#6. Beat the GMAT flash cards
#7. Read few articles every day from economist.com to improve my RC speed
#8. CR Bible for GMAT helped me improving my CR
#9. MGMAT sentence correction is the best for improving SC
#10. How to read better and faster by Norman Lewis helps in increasing your RC speed

MGMAT materials:
I really loved the MGMAT CAT exams. The quantitative portion is extremely tough. But it really helps if you prepare for the worst. GMAT math is pretty much easier than MGMAT. I practiced all their CATs in November and did an entire review on each of their assessment reports in December. By the end of december I could feel the difference in Quants and Verbal.

I suggest all of you not to stop the timer during practice test and rather give your best effort. Initially I too did that mistake for a couple of test. But I realized my mistake soon. The MGMAT verbal is pretty par with that of the GMAT exam. In my opinion GMAT prep software and MGMAT are the best ones that resembles GMAT exam. So whatever score you get in these test should be close to that of the real GMAT exam.

CR Bible for GMAT:
It is the best book for improving your CR scores. Initially I had no idea as to how to approach an Inference question, Assumption question and Evaluate the logic type of questions. But CR Bible provides an in depth explanation for each of those topics. I read this book for a couple of months and practiced.

Improving RC:
One of my weak areas was RC. The best way to improving RC is reading economist articles for just 20 minutes a day refer, https://www.economist.com/
You benefit in two ways, one is that you end up improving your RC speed. Secondly, you get to become knowledgeable of the current world events.

How to read better and faster by Norman Lewis is another excellent addition on improving your reading speed. Unfortunately i couldn't finish reading the book as I was completely engrossed in my office work. For the last 1 month i return to home during late hours as a result I could only take a practice test but not revise any topic. When I started this book my reading speed was 175 wpm (words per minute). Over a period of time I manged to increase my speed to 300 wpm. Moreover when it comes to RC we need to skim the passages rather than looking at unnecessary information. That book teaches exactly what needs to be done.

SC for GMAT:
There is nothing better than Manhattan Sentence correction book. It gives clear examples on all the topics covered. I did practice the 1000 SC questions not all but around 500 questions.

Improving Quans:
I practiced almost all the questions from MGMAT CAT exams. MGMAT Quans is really difficult but do not get dejected rather practice and understand how to approach each of the problem. I had MGMAT books for Geometry, Word translations and FDP.

My practice test scores:

Nov 8th 2009 MGMAT CAT 1 - 600 (Q44, V30)
Nov 15th 2009 MGMAT CAT 2 - 620 (Q46, V30)
Nov 27th 2009 MGMAT CAT 3 - 630 (Q44, V32)
Dec 1st 2009 MGMAT CAT 4 - 590 (Q44, V29)
Dec 8th 2009 MGMAT CAT 5 - 650 (Q46, V33)
Dec 14th 2009 MGMAT CAT 6 - 640 (Q48, V31)

MGMAT 2nd attempt practice test scores:
Jan 17th 2010 MGMAT 1 - 620 (Q48 V28)
Jan 22nd 2010 MGMAT 2 - 680 (Q47 V35)
Jan 24th 2010 MGMAT 3 - 660 (Q47 V33)
Jan 31st 2010 MGMAT 4 - 670 (Q46 V35)
Feb 3rd 2010 MGMAT 5 - 680 (Q47 V36)

During Mid week of Jan I took GMAT prep. The scores are as follows:
GMAT prep 1 - 720
GMAT prep2 - 620

During my Verbal exam yesterday, I was quite worried because I didn't get an inference or assumption question till the 19th one. No bold faced questions at all. Nevertheless the scores were good at the end !!.

I am really thankful to my family members who supported me during this exciting journey. With the blessings of God I am now entering the next phase of applying for the universities. Will keep posting more information on this subject as and when I get make progress.

-Deepak
https://deepakrangarajan.blocked/20 ... -done.html

Amazing stuff Deepak.....kudos for your achievement!

I must say that reaching 660 from 530 is definitely not an easy task as it looks to be........well done brother!

I just want to know, how did you timed your test in the final GMAT?

Did you solve all the quants and verbal questions without guessing a single one? or you lost a bit questions in the last?

I am asking you this because, in case you guessed last 7-8, then there is some luck factor that we need.

getting(4 right out of 8 guessed) and getting(1 right out of 8 guessed) would give you different scores right?

Let me know your thoughts on that.

vivecan2005 wrote:What college you want to go? I mean honestly, you seem like most satisfied man in the world who was aiming for 660??? Here probably, trash the score sheet of 770!

Hey there,

Dont be so pesimistic... Consider the leap from 530 to 660..130 points is not easy game ...

COngrats DeepakR. WIsh u all the best!!

no matter what someones final score was, if they're happy with it, so should everyone else... who knows what their amitions are? we're all here to help each other out!

congrats again

vivecan2005 wrote:What college you want to go? I mean honestly, you seem like most satisfied man in the world who was aiming for 660??? Here probably, trash the score sheet of 770!

Amigo,

What's the point to study like crazy to get a 700+ score when your target school's requirement is let's say 600? The GMAT is not an IQ test and once you are admitted to the B school of your choice... your score becomes somewhat useless! I am sorry to break your bubble my friend, but you will not impress your future boss if you put your GMAT score on your resume, whatever was the score you got.

Salud.

who wants to do the bare minimum to achieve a score that's within range of their target schools? who knows maybe they take into account GMAT scores when thinking about scholarships... why are people being negative?

My school was asking for a 550 min score. I got 600 and feel it was good enough to be admitted. I succeeded and got admitted at that particular school, which is a nice accomplishment to me. Of course I would have loved to get a 700+ score, but life goes on and I decided to learn to play harmonica and workout until I start the MBA in September... oh and spend as much time as possible with the wife and the 2 boys!

Do not do the bare minimum, but do go crazy if you do not get the super high score if your school is not asking for it. Your GMAT score will not turn you into the best manager (or whatever you want to become), but your achievements during that MBA journey will probably make of you a good professional.

How will I become an outstanding professional in the next couple of years? I am planning to learn a fourth language, network as much as I can, go on an exchange abroad with wife and kids and and work on projects that will differentiate me from my peers.

How will my GMAT score be relevant in 5-10 years from now? I do not think it will be as relevant as some of you might think. I think there is much more than the GMAT in the assessment of a candidate.

Cheers my friend.

carllecat

enjoy your MBA! it's well deserved and spending time with your wife and kids is priceless! hope they enjoy going abroad with you...

"What college you want to go? I mean honestly, you seem like most satisfied man in the world who was aiming for 660??? Here probably, trash the score sheet of 770!"

Well, done DeepakR! Your story is inspirational! The negativity displayed above will do no one any good and is certainly something to be checked at the door when entering grad school. We are supposed to support each other in these posts. Some people are never satisfied with a score unless it's 700+, but a 660 is a respectable score. I know plenty of people who have gotten into Top 10 schools with scores less than 700. Best of luck to you!!!

money9111 wrote:carllecat

enjoy your MBA! it's well deserved and spending time with your wife and kids is priceless! hope they enjoy going abroad with you...

Thanks and good luck with your GMAT, I like peeking at your blog... eventhough I do not have to worry about studying anymore.

Cheers!

carllecat thanks for the shout out... i know i haven't updated it in a while but for reasons you'll only know by reading my blog ... there should be some good posts this weekend because I have a lot to catch people up on... i beg you to not lose interest in the site once you start your MBA... we need insight from people!! time to go watch the olympics!!

Congrats Deepak. I am preparing for my second attempt and your story inspires me a lot.