I will start by saying that I thought I didn't stand a chance of ever getting a decent GMAT score. I was an English major in college and although I did really well in all of my coursework, the only quant courses I took were astronomy (got a D) and statistics (got an A thanks to having a decent tutor).
I have been on a non-traditional career path for sure. After college I fought wildfires out west for three years before deciding that I wanted to become a chef. So with no culinary training, I jumped head first into the cooking world where I climbed up the ladder and wound up in a James beard nominated kitchen (not a winner but pretty close). So there I am cooking in an open kitchen watching all these business types night after night enjoying $300 dinners all the while thinking, I would much rather be on the outside looking in than the other way around. So I signed up for a class, Priceton review. It was terrible. The instructor spent the vast majority of the time teaching tricks on how to over come the GMAT, but my problem was that I was sorely lacking on the foundations and fundamentals. When I first sat for the test I was in full on job search mode, studying, and working most nights until 2am. I was under a ton of pressure because my wife was midway through her pregnancy with our first child and I needed a bigger paycheck pronto. The night before the exam someone called out sick and I ended up closing down the kitchen even though I had requested ahead of time to finish early. I worked until 12 and took the test at 8 am. I was destined for failure.
And I did. I don't remember the breakdown, but a 490 is a 490.
In the weeks that followed I kept applying for different non-kitchen jobs while licking my wounds. In this economy trying to convince people to take a chance on you is just a bit of a challenge as I'm sure everyone can imagine. Lightening struck and I was hired on at a small non-profit. The work isn't glamorous but it is perfect for where I'm at right now. With a much clearer head, I began studying again. An hour a day on my lunch breaks. I took a break from heavy studying when the baby came along. And then, once the dust had settled a bit, I hit the books hard.
I bought a handful of the Manhattan books as well as the new OG. I threw out the Princeton review books. Since I was most concerned with getting crushed on the quant side of things, I studied the math hard. I did the quant sections of the OG over and over and over, as fast as I could. It was only in the last two weeks that I started realizing my verbal was way below where it needed to be. On my practice tests I could hit 47 on the quant but my verbal was lingering around 30, which is ironic since I was an honors level English major.
In the last three weeks or so my practice test scores went as follows: 630, 630, 600, 610, 600, 550 (took the test in a noisy library), and 650.
In the last few days, after scoring the 650, my highest ever score, I decided to focus on verbal as well as going over and over and over the ps quant section of OG 13. I took off for the day of the test and arrived an hour and a half early. I drank orange Gatorade since I heard electrolytes help your brain recover after thinking intensely. Instead of an 8 am test like the first attempt, this one was scheduled for 2 pm.
I crushed the awa easily (restate, 1st paragraph, second paragraph, third paragraph, in conclusion paragraph). I felt like I rushed the quant section because as I approached the last ten questions I realized I still had more than ample time. On my break I just told myself, "alright, you obviously just blew the math section, so don't do the same on the verbal." I tried to push really hard on the RC questions because in the past they have slowed me downtown the point of really affecting my ability to get through all 41 questions.
I picked a good time to peak, let me tell you.
I know these boards are full of people trying for that magical 700+ score, and by all means I think that is a good goal to have, and a necessary one for anyone thinking they're going to approach Wharton and Harvard and the like, but that's not me. When I saw that 680 pop up I just about did the Tebow right there in the testing center.
I am hoping to get into the Johns Hopkins flexible part-time MBA program. I can't find any definitive score range on their site, but I think I recall from my conversation with them a year ago that their average is a 650. If Hopkins doesn't let me in there is Loyola or the University of Maryland, which each have decent reputations around these parts.
In closing, I would advise anyone who is approaching this monster test to evaluate where they are at in their lives before jumping in the ring. Gmat prep can be a frustrating roller coaster of emotion and unless you can approach it with a clear head and focus, making gains will be difficult no matter whether your shooting for a 750 or a 600. Also, any score you hit in practice, means that you're capable of hitting it in the real thing. In other words, if you get a 650 or a 700 in practice, that means you're capable of getting that score. It's all a matter of being in the right frame of mind when it comes time to take the test. My game plan going in was, the worst that happens is I screw it up again and I take it over a few months down the road. The world is not going to stop spinning if I don't get the grade I want, nobody is going to die. This mindset took a lot of pressure off me and I felt more relaxed going into the test. Also, since I had practiced the PS section over and over and over as fast as I could, I was accustomed to doing my math at top speed, so I was literally chomping at the bit to for each question on the test.
I suppose I could try it again and shoot for a 700+, but I would rather not risk getting a lower score. And I'm exhausted from studying. I even thought about having a GMAT bonfire, but I think i will try to give my books away, or maybe trade them for a six pack of beer, that's more my speed.
Anyone with any clearer idea on the GMAT range for Hopkins Carey school of biz please let me know.
I have been on a non-traditional career path for sure. After college I fought wildfires out west for three years before deciding that I wanted to become a chef. So with no culinary training, I jumped head first into the cooking world where I climbed up the ladder and wound up in a James beard nominated kitchen (not a winner but pretty close). So there I am cooking in an open kitchen watching all these business types night after night enjoying $300 dinners all the while thinking, I would much rather be on the outside looking in than the other way around. So I signed up for a class, Priceton review. It was terrible. The instructor spent the vast majority of the time teaching tricks on how to over come the GMAT, but my problem was that I was sorely lacking on the foundations and fundamentals. When I first sat for the test I was in full on job search mode, studying, and working most nights until 2am. I was under a ton of pressure because my wife was midway through her pregnancy with our first child and I needed a bigger paycheck pronto. The night before the exam someone called out sick and I ended up closing down the kitchen even though I had requested ahead of time to finish early. I worked until 12 and took the test at 8 am. I was destined for failure.
And I did. I don't remember the breakdown, but a 490 is a 490.
In the weeks that followed I kept applying for different non-kitchen jobs while licking my wounds. In this economy trying to convince people to take a chance on you is just a bit of a challenge as I'm sure everyone can imagine. Lightening struck and I was hired on at a small non-profit. The work isn't glamorous but it is perfect for where I'm at right now. With a much clearer head, I began studying again. An hour a day on my lunch breaks. I took a break from heavy studying when the baby came along. And then, once the dust had settled a bit, I hit the books hard.
I bought a handful of the Manhattan books as well as the new OG. I threw out the Princeton review books. Since I was most concerned with getting crushed on the quant side of things, I studied the math hard. I did the quant sections of the OG over and over and over, as fast as I could. It was only in the last two weeks that I started realizing my verbal was way below where it needed to be. On my practice tests I could hit 47 on the quant but my verbal was lingering around 30, which is ironic since I was an honors level English major.
In the last three weeks or so my practice test scores went as follows: 630, 630, 600, 610, 600, 550 (took the test in a noisy library), and 650.
In the last few days, after scoring the 650, my highest ever score, I decided to focus on verbal as well as going over and over and over the ps quant section of OG 13. I took off for the day of the test and arrived an hour and a half early. I drank orange Gatorade since I heard electrolytes help your brain recover after thinking intensely. Instead of an 8 am test like the first attempt, this one was scheduled for 2 pm.
I crushed the awa easily (restate, 1st paragraph, second paragraph, third paragraph, in conclusion paragraph). I felt like I rushed the quant section because as I approached the last ten questions I realized I still had more than ample time. On my break I just told myself, "alright, you obviously just blew the math section, so don't do the same on the verbal." I tried to push really hard on the RC questions because in the past they have slowed me downtown the point of really affecting my ability to get through all 41 questions.
I picked a good time to peak, let me tell you.
I know these boards are full of people trying for that magical 700+ score, and by all means I think that is a good goal to have, and a necessary one for anyone thinking they're going to approach Wharton and Harvard and the like, but that's not me. When I saw that 680 pop up I just about did the Tebow right there in the testing center.
I am hoping to get into the Johns Hopkins flexible part-time MBA program. I can't find any definitive score range on their site, but I think I recall from my conversation with them a year ago that their average is a 650. If Hopkins doesn't let me in there is Loyola or the University of Maryland, which each have decent reputations around these parts.
In closing, I would advise anyone who is approaching this monster test to evaluate where they are at in their lives before jumping in the ring. Gmat prep can be a frustrating roller coaster of emotion and unless you can approach it with a clear head and focus, making gains will be difficult no matter whether your shooting for a 750 or a 600. Also, any score you hit in practice, means that you're capable of hitting it in the real thing. In other words, if you get a 650 or a 700 in practice, that means you're capable of getting that score. It's all a matter of being in the right frame of mind when it comes time to take the test. My game plan going in was, the worst that happens is I screw it up again and I take it over a few months down the road. The world is not going to stop spinning if I don't get the grade I want, nobody is going to die. This mindset took a lot of pressure off me and I felt more relaxed going into the test. Also, since I had practiced the PS section over and over and over as fast as I could, I was accustomed to doing my math at top speed, so I was literally chomping at the bit to for each question on the test.
I suppose I could try it again and shoot for a 700+, but I would rather not risk getting a lower score. And I'm exhausted from studying. I even thought about having a GMAT bonfire, but I think i will try to give my books away, or maybe trade them for a six pack of beer, that's more my speed.
Anyone with any clearer idea on the GMAT range for Hopkins Carey school of biz please let me know.
Last edited by pbrmoney on Thu Nov 01, 2012 5:46 am, edited 4 times in total.
