So, I've been lurking on this board for quite some time while considering B-School and studying for the GMAT. So in the spirit of community, I thought I'd share my story in case it helps someone.
My prep: I took the Princeton Review course (i get a discount through my company), and did most of the homework and every practice test as scheduled. I studied for about an hour every night, although that dropped off at the end because I started to feel like I wasn't getting much out of it or improving. It was like the ones that were too hard I was just never going to get, so it was better to just skip them. I think this strategy actually worked well for me on the test, because I learned how to recognize "whammy's" in under a minute, which gave me time to get the ones that I could do.
I knew Math was my weakness, so I usually did one or two 30 minute math drills of 10 questions each (cutting my time-limit down to 25, then 20 minutes to practice my pacing at different parts of the test). I would then review my answers and write down what my mistake was on each incorrect problem. Then I finished with a 15- or 20-minute verbal drill, since I've always done well on that portion of standardized tests.
Here are my practice test scores:
Week 1: PR1: 620 (35m, 41v)
Week 4: PR2: 630 (37m, 40v)
Week 5: GMATPrep1: 740 (46m, 45v)
Week 6: PR3: 700 (47m, 40v)
Week 7: PR4: 680 (43m, 41v)
Week 8: PR5: 660 (39m, 43v)
I took the test last weekend (week 9). I went in feeling confident and about 60% sure I'd hit a 700, which was my goal. After making my way through the AWA, I took my break and was getting nervous for the Math, my weak point as I said. I was feeling pretty good about it, and it seemed just like the math on my practice tests (I was so glad I had done an exponent problem to warm up that morning, I had like 8 of them and they always trip me up!). I messed up my pacing a little at the end, and had to guess on the last 3 problems, which I hadn't had to do since my second practice test. That rattled me a bit, but I tried to shake it off during the break by thinking about the verbal section and reviewing idioms in my head. I went in for the verbal portion, and tried by best to take my time and concentrate, as the only problem I usually have there is rushing though. I finished with about 15 minutes to spare, normal for me.
Results: 770- 99% (49m- 88%, 47v-99%)
That was an awesome feeling to see that score. None of my practice tests went this well, and people on this board say PR tests are too easy. I will have to strongly disagree, I thought they were pretty indicative of the real thing question-wise, and probably scored me too harshly. (good motivator, though!)
Now what, I don't know. I have a great GPA and GMAT score, but I don't know if my work experience will be enough to get me in to a top school. I'm not planning to apply until 2010, so I have some time to figure it out.
Thanks so much to everyone for your help on these boards and for reading my story!
My prep: I took the Princeton Review course (i get a discount through my company), and did most of the homework and every practice test as scheduled. I studied for about an hour every night, although that dropped off at the end because I started to feel like I wasn't getting much out of it or improving. It was like the ones that were too hard I was just never going to get, so it was better to just skip them. I think this strategy actually worked well for me on the test, because I learned how to recognize "whammy's" in under a minute, which gave me time to get the ones that I could do.
I knew Math was my weakness, so I usually did one or two 30 minute math drills of 10 questions each (cutting my time-limit down to 25, then 20 minutes to practice my pacing at different parts of the test). I would then review my answers and write down what my mistake was on each incorrect problem. Then I finished with a 15- or 20-minute verbal drill, since I've always done well on that portion of standardized tests.
Here are my practice test scores:
Week 1: PR1: 620 (35m, 41v)
Week 4: PR2: 630 (37m, 40v)
Week 5: GMATPrep1: 740 (46m, 45v)
Week 6: PR3: 700 (47m, 40v)
Week 7: PR4: 680 (43m, 41v)
Week 8: PR5: 660 (39m, 43v)
I took the test last weekend (week 9). I went in feeling confident and about 60% sure I'd hit a 700, which was my goal. After making my way through the AWA, I took my break and was getting nervous for the Math, my weak point as I said. I was feeling pretty good about it, and it seemed just like the math on my practice tests (I was so glad I had done an exponent problem to warm up that morning, I had like 8 of them and they always trip me up!). I messed up my pacing a little at the end, and had to guess on the last 3 problems, which I hadn't had to do since my second practice test. That rattled me a bit, but I tried to shake it off during the break by thinking about the verbal section and reviewing idioms in my head. I went in for the verbal portion, and tried by best to take my time and concentrate, as the only problem I usually have there is rushing though. I finished with about 15 minutes to spare, normal for me.
Results: 770- 99% (49m- 88%, 47v-99%)
That was an awesome feeling to see that score. None of my practice tests went this well, and people on this board say PR tests are too easy. I will have to strongly disagree, I thought they were pretty indicative of the real thing question-wise, and probably scored me too harshly. (good motivator, though!)
Now what, I don't know. I have a great GPA and GMAT score, but I don't know if my work experience will be enough to get me in to a top school. I'm not planning to apply until 2010, so I have some time to figure it out.
Thanks so much to everyone for your help on these boards and for reading my story!
