I just Beat The GMAT!

Well, I finally took the GMAT this morning and, needless to say, I am very, very pleased with the score. I would like to thank everyone on this site for sharing their strategies for success. I'll do my best to break it down, so here goes.

Practice Tests
PR - 640
GMATPrep 1 - 720
GMATPrep 2 - 760 (Q49, V48)
GMATPrep 1 (Retake) - 750 (Q48, V47)
GMATPrep 2 (Retake) - 760 (Q49, V46)

For the Princeton Review, I took that cold, really before I had any experience with the questions. While it's not a representative score, it was a nice wake-up call that I could not just breeze through this. I cannot overstate the importance of the GMATPrep tests, as they were the only practice tests I used. Being familiar with the format and working on pacing is a HUGE part of taking the test. When I started taking the tests, I would have to rush through the last 5 or 6 questions on each section, essentially guessing at all of them. By the time I took the last practice test, I generally had 6 or 7 minutes to complete the last 2 questions. More about that later.

Prep Materials
Princeton Review Online Course ($99)
OG11 ($60)
GMATFocus Diagnostic ($65)

Let me start by saying that the Princeton Review Online Course is worthless and is most likely just a ploy to get you to sign up for their full classroom course, in which case they should give it away for free. Plus, I've heard that they give the practice test away for free. Don't buy it.

OG11, obviously, is invaluable. No other source can match the phrasing or is representative of the types of questions on the test, from what I've seen.

I was a bit skeptical about GMATFocus, but I knew that I needed help in quant. Since it mirrored the format of the test and used actual questions, I bit the bullet and purchased it. It was totally worth it, in my opinion. Over three tests, I improved from 36-46 as an expected range to 46-50. The questions are hard and there is even less time per question than on the GMAT, so it really helps a lot with pacing.

Overall Tips

Which Questions to Study
If you have time, I would do every question in the book. True, the last 50 questions are more representative of what you might see on the test, but there was value in trying the easier questions: I got some of them wrong. Obviously, it was for silly reasons like not reading the question completely or jumping to a trick answer. It reinforced the fact that every question, no matter how easy it seems, deserves your full attention. It scares me when a question is too easy, I always think I'm missing something.

Pacing
This is where the value of taking GMATPrep and GMATFocus comes in. I quickly realized that there are some questions that I just don't do well on. For those, I make a quick, educated guess, then just move on to questions where the extra time will actually help. Taking the practice tests will let you know where your strengths and weaknesses are. Don't be afraid to "skip" a question by making your best guess. It will help you in the end, trust me. For me, I always tried to stay ahead of the 2-minute per question mark. That kept me comfortable and focused.

Verbal
I am very comfortable with verbal questions. I have always enjoyed reading since I was a little kid. Therefore, a lot of the stuff on the GMAT came pretty naturally to me. That being said, I was not always scoring 50 on the verbal section.
Practice, practice, practice. Not just on GMAT questions, but everything. Everything you read, read critically. It will help in CR and RC. For me this is the only way. I know most of the conventions of grammar not because I can recite every single rule, but because I've been reading and writing for several years. So my advice is practice and read as much as you can. Novels, news articles, etc.

So that's really it, I'm glad it's over so I can move on to other parts of the application. I feel confident now that GMAT will not be an issue with applying to my chosen schools. At best it will be something that adds weight to my application and puts me into consideration for scholarships. At the very least, it cannot be held against me.

I know I didn't cover everything here, just what I felt was most important. If you have any specific questions, I will try to answer them as best as possible.

Congratulations! Best of luck with your apps.

Thanks...I definitely took your advice about visiting the test center the day before (I was fortunate enough to be within wlaking distance) and cutting out alcohol in the days leading up to the test. Which means I've earned a few tonight -- at least that's the way I see it.

WOW! Ass Kicking score! Congrats man. Thanks for the debrief.

great score... all the best!!!!

Congratulations, Great score!

ptgbeauregard wrote: It was totally worth it, in my opinion. Over three tests, I improved from 36-46 as an expected range to 46-50. The questions are hard and there is even less time per question than on the GMAT, so it really helps a lot with pacing.

Hi ptgbeauregard,
I just wanted to know what study material you used to fill the gaps that you identified using diagnostic tests. Let's say if you identified that number properties are your weakness, then where did you study the number properties basics.

Regards,
Sanjay

I just wanted to know what study material you used to fill the gaps that you identified using diagnostic tests. Let's say if you identified that number properties are your weakness, then where did you study the number properties basics.

Well, to be honest, the GMATFocus helped me more by illustrating what I wasn't good at. For instance, combinations/permutations gave me fits. I guessed on those and moved on to other ones.

I guess my point is that it's different when you are not timing yourself -- spend enough time on any question and you have a good chance of getting it right. GMATFocus gives you a break down of how much time you spent on each question. So let's stick with C/P and say that I spent 220 seconds on that type of question and got it right. A Pyrrhic victory. I now had less time to spend on other questions, saw how much time went off the clock, panicked, etc.

So for me, the real benefit was that it reinforced my test-taking strategy. I definitely improved in a few areas by reading and understanding the explanation, but the bigger benefit was learning how to take the test.

But if you are looking for something to help study, I would get anything from a reputable source that breaks questions down by subsets.

Lastly, keep in mind that I got a 49 on Q -- there are a lot of people who have done better, they may be better advisors on this one. However, it was my improvement in Q that got me to the higher score.

Hi ptgbeauregard,

Congrats on scoring such a wonderful figure!

Plz help me in deciding how should I start for the exam. What I have finalised is to initially start with OG11 and then to go further on subject basis.

Would request you to add something useful based on your experience which can help me.

Best regards.

mbawwnnab wrote:Hi ptgbeauregard,

Congrats on scoring such a wonderful figure!

Plz help me in deciding how should I start for the exam. What I have finalised is to initially start with OG11 and then to go further on subject basis.

Would request you to add something useful based on your experience which can help me.

Best regards.

First of all, thanks for the congrats. OG11 is a GREAT way to start (and finish). I didn't use much else besides that, but I cannot overstate the value of familiarizing yourself with the questions. For instance, you will see a lot of DS questions that go something like this: there are 300 people, 150 ate cheese, 100 drank wine, how many did not drink wine or cheese? They will, of course, change the variables, but it's essentially the same question over and over.

I would also recommend taking a practice test early on. It won't be representative of your final score (provided you practice), but it will give you an introduction to the test, stress the importance of pacing, and give you something to work up from. Starting at 640, then getting the 720, then the 750 really made me realize my hard work was paying off and my confidence soared.

Lastly, after you are done with all the OG questions for quant, I would move on to GMATFocus. The questions are hard, there's not enough time, and it really makes you realize which type of questions you should just guess on.

Hope that helps!