From 570 to 700 (44Q, 42V) in Four Months

Once I decided in December to take the GMAT I did a little research to determine what course would be best for me. I used the reviews from this site and almost signed up for a $1,500-$2,000 in-person course before I came across Knewton. The on-demand classes, ability to study on my own time, and strong reviews from those that had used the course had me convinced - this was the one.

I took the diagnostic on Christmas (I'm Jewish, what else was there to do?) and scored a 570(35Q, 35V). I was thrilled, because even though it wasn't the score I wanted to end up with, it seemed like a great starting point and a number of people that reviewed the Knewton course went from similar scores on the diagnostic to above 700.

I took my next test almost two months later, a little more than halfway through the course. Excited to see how far I'd come, I was devastated when I saw 590 (32Q, 40V). My quant score had somehow DROPPED after doing math problems for two months compared to the diagnostic when I hadn't done any serious math in five years. After looking at the test I noticed I had messed up a number of easy questions, so I was quick to take my next test and did so only six days later. The result - 600 (37Q, 37V). Better, I thought, but at that point my scheduled test was only a month away. Given it was only March, I decided I was better off rescheduling and giving myself another month.

The next test I took was five weeks later, and again I was eager to see my progress given I had almost completed the course. The result - 590 (36Q, 37V). That was it. I decided I just wasn't as smart as I thought I was and went from shooting for a 700+ to just hoping I could get something in the mid-600s. I probably wasn't going to business school and started thinking about what fake score I would tell my friends if I did poorly enough and didn't want them to know. Something respectable, I thought, but low enough that they wouldn't push me to apply to an MBA program. Those were the thoughts that filled my head.......and it sucked.

I took one more test from Knewton two weeks later, and eight days before the test, and the decline continued, this time 580 (39Q, 32V). It made sense - I had been focusing almost entirely on quant and it hurt my verbal. I figured if I could do my max in quant and verbal at the same time, 39 and 40 respectively, I'd end up with a decent score. Only a week before the test, this was my best case scenario.

I had hesitated to take the official GMAT practice tests because I was constantly on BTG and figured I would recognize a bunch of the questions from the forums and it would inflate my score, but three days before the test I decided it would at least help to see the official format and some actual questions. I ended up only recognizing two quant questions, and only remembered enough to answer one without doing the work. When it was over I just wanted to see my score and get it over with, my demeanor completely changed compared to previous tests when I was excited to see my score. The result - 710 (47Q, 41V). Excuse you? Did I read that correctly? Clearly those two questions I recognized must have really helped my score. Well I checked and I actually got one of them wrong! I didn't do the work correctly. And on top of that, I still was getting questions wrong I should have gotten right. Well, as they say in sports after a big comeback, "it looks like we have a ballgame!"

I analyzed every question on the practice test and took the second one the next day - 700 (41Q, 44V I think). Ok, that's two tests now, and these are supposed to be the most accurate. I felt good. Really good. How could I not after improving a total of 10 points in four months on my Knewton tests?! I took those two tests over and over again to make sure I was seeing every question they had. Based on my max/min quant and verbal scores on the two practice tests I figured I could end up anywhere from 660-740, and if that held up I would take my chances.

The day of the test (this past Tues) I studied for a few hours and took the train downtown. I got there an hour and a half before my 4:15 test time and just sat in the park across the street so I could relax. As I walked into the testing center at 3:45 I tried to stay upbeat and keep my sense of humor. I even tried to joke with the cute girl behind the desk when I went up to sign off that I had read the rules and regulations. "Any questions?", she asked. "So, it looks like cheating is frowned upon?", I replied with a slight grin. "Yes, it is," she stated seriously. Well then.......swing and a miss. I felt like I had just made a bomb joke at an airport.

Before the test started I wrote down a bunch of quant notes on my board. The section where you choose which schools to send your score to is not timed, so I took advantage. Powers, formulas, rules...anything that could help. I breezed through the writing portion and came to the question asking if I wanted a break. Well, I wanted a break, but I didn't want to raise my hand and leave the room, so just sat there, organizing my thoughts. I've beaten the system again, I thought. They can't time my break until I hit yes or no, so I'll just leave that screen up. After taking some time I went ahead and clicked "no", so I could go ahead and start the next section. That's when I was promptly informed that my break had exceeded the limit and 22 seconds would be taken off my math section. WTF?! In reality it's less than a second a question, but my only thought was that I had 22 less seconds to do the last question. Well, we're off to a great start.

That quant section.......holy crap. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING, like the quant questions on the practice GMATs. So much more difficult, right from the start. I felt like I had guessed, albeit educationally, on almost half the questions. Well, I'm not getting that 700, but maybe I can get another 44 on verbal and we can get a respectable score. That section was a little more difficult as well but I felt very confident once I was done. I quickly answered the post-exam questions, eager to get more score. As I clicked the button to see my score and saw the screen hesitate to calculate I put my hands over my eyes. I gathered myself, took them off, and there was a 700 (44Q, 42V). A beautiful, balanced, 700.

Once I left I decided I was going to take it again. Maybe next time I could get a little lucky and get something higher since my max was a 740 if I replicated my best quant and verbal scores. In the end, after doing some research and talking to some people I decided to just stick with my 700. Why risk it? A 700 the first time around is pretty good on it's own, and I should be able to get into a top 15 school with that score, which is really all I care about. And for the first time in four months I can come home from work and not have to study - what a great feeling.

For the last month my studying has been almost entirely through the BTG forums, so thank you to everyone who has posted questions and especially all of the experts who help us see the light. It is so incredibly helpful to not only see the way one person takes on a problem, but to see the way multiple people approach it, as some trains of thought are easier than others depending on the person.

To those of you still studying, good luck. The other side feels amazing. And if you're taking the Knewton course just remember one thing - don't believe the scores!

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