D Terman,
Good luck on your 4th attempt. I'm about to start studying for my 3rd attempt!

Hi D Terman..
So how was ur 4th?

I finally have peace of mind! 640 is reflective of my best attempt as I got a disastrous 550 on my 4th attempt. I was relaxed, got 10 hours of solid sleep, had the right amount of proper nutrition and did not stress an ounce and continually told myself that I was taking it for fun.

Surprisingly when I saw my score I started laughing and could not stop smiling as it was finally over. I'm working on my applications right now and I'm confident I will get into one of the 5 schools I'm applying to and will update ya'all when I get to that point.

Thanks everyone for their support and good luck on your journey.

D Terman

Only advice I have is that if you are in my situation and going in for a 4th or 5th try and are not 100% sure that you are going to do better than have your latest scores sent to your school choices so they will not need to know about your failed 4th or 5th attempt.

D-T,

Great post man! Thank you for taking the time to help others. I took the GMAT in October of 2007 and scored a 480. I didn't study at all before I took the test. (in fact I didn't even know the format or anything about it - which was a STUPID move on my part) I was so upset I decided not to apply to B-School. 9 months went by and my (now) fiance told me to go ahead and apply with the 480 and see what happens. I spoke with Admissions on Friday and was told that my score was the only reason I got wait listed. They said another 50 points (530) and I was in for sure. At it turns out this program places a lot of importance on resume, work experience and other factors.

With that said I plan to retake in November and resubmit my scores for the December deadline.

Thanks again for your post. I'm going to follow your advice. Secretly I'm hoping for a 600+ so I can show Admissions it was a fluke.

Daniel

ASUDAN,

I am guessing by your screen name you are applying to ASU. Which platform? I submitted my materials on Friday and will be taking the GMAT on Oct. 11th. Best of luck to you and hopefully we both get in.

which school you are talking about asudan?

I am in the similar situation. I have got 530 in my first attempt and writing GMAT again on 5th october and aiming nothing less than 600 to settle,

Praddy

Hi D Terman

In my view, you have high chances of scoring 700+ as you are good in verbal. The only weak area is Qnt that you can overcome anytime with good pratice; however in opposite cases whose verbal in weak area & qnt is strong area. In such cases improvement come with time only.

All the best,

Awesome Job. Been following this thread and loved to watch your progress. Thanks for sharing your strategies.

Asudan just keep practicing and working problems. Be sure to learn from your mistakes.

Hi All,

Its D-Terman here with my last post. So with my score of 640, I applied to 6 schools -- all in the top 25 and was accepted to my top choice. I won't tell you which school, but it is in the TOP 5 (Per Business Week Ranking). I was waitlisted at another top 10 and a top 15 school.

I visited each and every program I applied to and spent 3 days at my top pick. In addition, to being accepted to a top program I also received a sizable financial aid package.

The moral to my story is that study hard for the GMAT as it is an important piece of your application, BUT RECOGNIZE THAT THE GMAT IS NOT EVERYTHING!

My highest score was nowhere near the average of any of the schools I applied to, but I balanced that with good work experience, extracurricular activities, stellar recommendations, and most importantly... showing how interested I was by visiting and making connections on the ground.

Good luck to everyone!

D Terman

Wow, what an inspirational thread! You are the man. Congratulations and kudos to all your hard work and perseverance!

Reading through this post, I have to say I am very inspired and confident that I too can rise my score. I just took the GMAT this weekend and scored a devastating 410!! I was very shocked but I am revamping my study strategy. So thanks D Terman for showing me it is possible!

I know im a couple of years late, but I just did exactly the same thing. 460 on my first attempt (q21 v33). 9% percentile for the Q. Its a good thing they dont show my face on here coz that is embarrassing. I did the Kaplan course which seemed to be going ok, 500-620 in the CATS, but my god did mess this one up.
Im sure its technique more than anything, with 3 minutes to go I was only on q37, so I had to guess the last 4 q's. Im a bit gutted really.

rkay wrote:I know im a couple of years late, but I just did exactly the same thing. 460 on my first attempt (q21 v33). 9% percentile for the Q. Its a good thing they dont show my face on here coz that is embarrassing. I did the Kaplan course which seemed to be going ok, 500-620 in the CATS, but my god did mess this one up.
Im sure its technique more than anything, with 3 minutes to go I was only on q37, so I had to guess the last 4 q's. Im a bit gutted really.

We are on the same boat....
I just finished my first GMAT this morning and totally bombed with a 430.
Was hoping to apply for this fall, but I'm thinking it's not such a good idea. I think I need to tame the beast that is GMAT.
Maybe take it a little more seriously... I took a practice course for 10 weeks, once a week, 4 months ago and am so mad at myself for not properly studying in between then and now, except for this past weekend.

I think I need to follow what most have been saying here; figure out deadlines, devise a study schedule and attach it.

I'm just worried about a few things...
I've heard that B-Schools look at the history of your scores and average them out....is this true?

Hi All,

It's D Terman here.

My last post was over 8 years ago. Today, I reflected on my journey after talking to a friend currently fighting their own GMAT battle and it inspired me to write this post.

Getting my MBA was one of the best things I've done in my life. Not only has it opened many new professional doors , but most of my dearests friends today are from my time in B-school.

So ... What's new. After graduating with an MBA and a 2nd graduate degree in 2012, I joined a prestigious management consulting firm and was just recently promoted to Director. B-school taught me to think in new ways and I use this skill to my advantage each and every day. My professional journey has taken me to all corners of the US as well as abroad. I can say with honesty, that I absolutely love what I do. I work on complex and interesting projects that have lasting impact on my clients and no two days are alike. Also, I have nearly complete autonomy for what I do and how I do it, including how I lead my teams. Because of this, work doesn't feel like work. Most of time, I'm saying to myself "I can't believe they pay me to do this..."

I'm truly happy. I have the financial freedom to enjoy some of the finer things in life and to also provide for my immediate family when times have gotten tough. And, last, but certainly not least I have found the love of my life...

Thus, if you're struggling like I did and are wondering "is this all worth it?" Let me tell you that, YES, it can be. I'm living a life that I never could have imagined before and beating the GMAT was the first step in this amazing journey.

So ... hang in there. Keep on studying. Keep on fighting. And, don't let your dreams just be dreams. Make them your reality.

D Terman

D Terman wrote:Hi All,

Getting my MBA was one of the best things I've done in my life. Not only has it opened many new professional doors , but most of my dearests friends today are from my time in B-school...

Most of time, I'm saying to myself "I can't believe they pay me to do this..."

I'm truly happy. I have the financial freedom to enjoy some of the finer things in life and to also provide for my immediate family when times have gotten tough. And, last, but certainly not least I have found the love of my life...

Thus, if you're struggling like I did and are wondering "is this all worth it?" Let me tell you that, YES, it can be. I'm living a life that I never could have imagined before and beating the GMAT was the first step in this amazing journey.

So ... hang in there. Keep on studying. Keep on fighting. And, don't let your dreams just be dreams. Make them your reality.

D Terman

Truly inspirational, D Terman! Thank you for taking the time for coming back here and digging up your old thread. What an amazing journey you had.

I also scored very low on my first attempt and am now studying to play the game at an elite level. Your whole journey did serve as an inspiration to me.

Just out of curiosity, which school did you end up going to?

All the best!