I just Beat The GMAT!

I went through the ordeal this morning and I'm glad that it is finally over. First of all, I want to thank all the BTG folks, the regulars, moderators and instructors. Kept me motivated as well as challenged with the increasingly difficult questions on the various forums. Although I officially signed up on BTG just yesterday, I've been reading the forums for quite some time now.

My goal with this post was to give some quick bites to people who are just starting their prep. When you read these, don't think of a guy who just scored 760. Just this past week I thought I could end up below 600 because of some major shortcomings. I think I got lucky in the end, but you want to be prepared for the worst. So here goes:

Time/Timing
I spent about 3-4 months studying. That's what worked for me given a demanding job and how long I could study at a stretch. Two things I wish I had done differently here. I took a break after one month of studying because of work/family stuff. Big mistake because it took me 2-3 months to get back into it. Second mistake: after I had covered most of my materials I took a date that was still a good 6 weeks away just to play it safe. The result: last couple of weeks before the test I felt like my enthusiasm had already peaked and my GMAT tempo was dying down

Materials
I used only OG and Kaplan. I certainly don't recommend that strategy to anyone else. I do think that you should start with the OG, identify your weaknesses and then buy additional materials based on what products give you the most problems in those areas. I spent a lot of time working through Kaplan material but some of my opportunity areas weren't as extensively covered in Kaplan. Of course that doesn't say Kaplan is not good, because ultimately I used most of their strategies (see next section). It just wasn't right for me. So I'd say start with the OG, cover as many problems within it as you can and start identifying weaknesses early on. Another point, don't just think of one section such as DS as a weakness. Once you get comfortable with the sections, dig deeper and identify individual areas (like inequalities, remainder problems, or past perfect tense in SC etc.)

Strategy
After initially trying things out, you have to find out what approach works best for you. Here are some things that worked for me although I took too long to identify them. Some of them might seem pretty trivial but were game-changers for me
- I initially didn't like Kaplan's matrix approach to CR & RC where you draw a matrix and cross out incorrect choices. I thought I'd just waste my time by doing it. After spending weeks trying other things I realized that I was wasting precious time re-reading wordy answer choices in CR and RC. The matrix approach then didn't seem as stupid and it helped me avoid that problem.
- In DS, when I wrote down & separated the solutions for (A alone), (B alone) and (A & B) together by a line, it helped me avoid the common trap of assuming one statement when looking at the other in isolation. Case in point - if something as dumb as writing things down or drawing a line will help your accuracy, it's probably worth the time.

Be Ready for the Freak-Out
This is the last part and my favorite learning. I didn't do this very well today so I invite the experts to weigh in. In as much as I like to see that 'unofficial' 760 now, I didn't believe it when I first saw it. I am not exaggerating this but I stopped and stared at the "Cancel my scores" screen for 25 seconds (the one you see before you see your score). Imagine, that's how bad I thought I had done.

I started out well in AWA. Took a short break and went into Quantitative. That's when terror struck. I spent 4 minutes on the first Quantitative problem and it wasn't even difficult, my nerves just got the better of me. By the end of five questions, I had already taken way too much time, I was feeling totally miserable and it wasn't getting any better. Worse still, I wasn't feeling totally confident about many of my answer choices because my mind was wandering off worrying about what had happened earlier. I ended up finishing the Quantitative section 5 minutes early...can you believe that? I realized that either way I had mismanaged time in the section and that kept haunting me through the Verbal section. Guess what? I finished Verbal 5 minutes early too, feeling the same way about my answers there.

Don't let that happen to you!!! GMAT is as much about the psychological aspect as it is about the Quantitative and Verbal. It is a nightmare of nerves - be prepared for it. You have to be as cool as a quarterback and not let that first interception rattle you. I can only think of two things you can do.

- Master the study material. There's no substitute for the boost in confidence you get when you see a question you've handled before and you know you've nailed it.
- Second, in my opinion, try taking a practice test under a pressure situation. Wait 15 minutes on the first question and try to get the rest of the test done in time. But you have to be serious about it and make it count. Of course, this won't be anything like the real thing but the best you can do to practice for it.

Well, that's all the energy I can muster today. Hope someone benefits a little from my long recital. "Have fun studying/applying"

Congratulations !

Can you let me know what was your practice scores?

Thanks

Greaaaaatttttttttt dude! You made it!! Can you also post your practice tests and details?

Here are my practice test scores. Unfortunately, I found out pretty late in the game that you can't get back to the scores screen on GMATPrep once you've crossed it. In addition, when I started to take my fourth CAT on Kaplan, it wiped out the previous three. So although I remember my overall score and how I did in Quantitative and Verbal, break-outs are rough. Sorry if it doesn't help much

1st CAT - GMATPrep (After 7 weeks of study) - 760 (Q48+, V42+)
2nd CAT - Kaplan (Week 8) - 580 (Q30+, V30+)
3rd CAT - Kaplan (Week 10) - 610 (Verbal improved from before, Quantitative no change)
4th CAT - Kaplan (Week 11) - 640 (Verbal got even better, Quantitative slightly better)
Final CAT - GMATPrep (Week 13 - week before G-Day) - 750 (~Q49, ~V44)

On my final CAT, I had the same issue that I did on the real test. Started out slow in Quantitative but eventually made up for the time. So I wanted to take just the Q portion once more before the actual test for better time management.

Final Quantitative Test - Q part of GMATPrep Test that I took in week 7 (3 days before G-day) - Q48

With GMATPrep, when I took the Q portion of the first test again, at least some of the questions were different from before and the order of the questions had certainly changed. So it's worth taking the GMATPreps again for extra practice.

thank you for good debrief!

I had the same experience when I had taken the GRE some time back. I felt I totally bombed the Quant section and was so frustrated it impacted my Verbal section. Ended up getting 800 on the quant which totally shocked me and not doing as well as expected on the Verbal. Its important not to reflect on your progress till you're done with the exam. The CAT algorithm works in mysterious ways!

Congrats!

Btw, why the drop between the 1st CAT and the rest?
I know Kaplan score are supposed to be lower but Kaplan 580 is still around GMAT 670.
So that's a drop from 760 to 670.

I was stumped by the 580 too. The difference was mainly because of Verbal. I didn't really have a good game plan on the Verbal sections early on. Like for example, getting the scope of the RC passage and rough outline of each passage or the evidence/conclusion/assumption of a CR stimulus.

Now with my first GMATPrep, questions were easy enough that I could manage time even with these serious flaws. But with Kaplan, questions were much tougher and I was thoroughly confused and not managing time very well. Believe it or not but part of my problem with the Kaplan test was also the size of the screen and the font. You can't maximize the screen and I had a hard time reading the stimulus quickly. I never got around this problem with Kaplan but eventually was at least able to work it to a point where it wasn't a weakness.

kekkers wrote:I went through the ordeal this morning and I'm glad that it is finally over. First of all, I want to thank all the BTG folks, the regulars, moderators and instructors. Kept me motivated as well as challenged with the increasingly difficult questions on the various forums. Although I officially signed up on BTG just yesterday, I've been reading the forums for quite some time now.

My goal with this post was to give some quick bites to people who are just starting their prep. When you read these, don't think of a guy who just scored 760. Just this past week I thought I could end up below 600 because of some major shortcomings. I think I got lucky in the end, but you want to be prepared for the worst. So here goes:

Time/Timing
I spent about 3-4 months studying. That's what worked for me given a demanding job and how long I could study at a stretch. Two things I wish I had done differently here. I took a break after one month of studying because of work/family stuff. Big mistake because it took me 2-3 months to get back into it. Second mistake: after I had covered most of my materials I took a date that was still a good 6 weeks away just to play it safe. The result: last couple of weeks before the test I felt like my enthusiasm had already peaked and my GMAT tempo was dying down

Materials
I used only OG and Kaplan. I certainly don't recommend that strategy to anyone else. I do think that you should start with the OG, identify your weaknesses and then buy additional materials based on what products give you the most problems in those areas. I spent a lot of time working through Kaplan material but some of my opportunity areas weren't as extensively covered in Kaplan. Of course that doesn't say Kaplan is not good, because ultimately I used most of their strategies (see next section). It just wasn't right for me. So I'd say start with the OG, cover as many problems within it as you can and start identifying weaknesses early on. Another point, don't just think of one section such as DS as a weakness. Once you get comfortable with the sections, dig deeper and identify individual areas (like inequalities, remainder problems, or past perfect tense in SC etc.)

Strategy
After initially trying things out, you have to find out what approach works best for you. Here are some things that worked for me although I took too long to identify them. Some of them might seem pretty trivial but were game-changers for me
- I initially didn't like Kaplan's matrix approach to CR & RC where you draw a matrix and cross out incorrect choices. I thought I'd just waste my time by doing it. After spending weeks trying other things I realized that I was wasting precious time re-reading wordy answer choices in CR and RC. The matrix approach then didn't seem as stupid and it helped me avoid that problem.
- In DS, when I wrote down & separated the solutions for (A alone), (B alone) and (A & B) together by a line, it helped me avoid the common trap of assuming one statement when looking at the other in isolation. Case in point - if something as dumb as writing things down or drawing a line will help your accuracy, it's probably worth the time.

Be Ready for the Freak-Out
This is the last part and my favorite learning. I didn't do this very well today so I invite the experts to weigh in. In as much as I like to see that 'unofficial' 760 now, I didn't believe it when I first saw it. I am not exaggerating this but I stopped and stared at the "Cancel my scores" screen for 25 seconds (the one you see before you see your score). Imagine, that's how bad I thought I had done.

I started out well in AWA. Took a short break and went into Quantitative. That's when terror struck. I spent 4 minutes on the first Quantitative problem and it wasn't even difficult, my nerves just got the better of me. By the end of five questions, I had already taken way too much time, I was feeling totally miserable and it wasn't getting any better. Worse still, I wasn't feeling totally confident about many of my answer choices because my mind was wandering off worrying about what had happened earlier. I ended up finishing the Quantitative section 5 minutes early...can you believe that? I realized that either way I had mismanaged time in the section and that kept haunting me through the Verbal section. Guess what? I finished Verbal 5 minutes early too, feeling the same way about my answers there.

Don't let that happen to you!!! GMAT is as much about the psychological aspect as it is about the Quantitative and Verbal. It is a nightmare of nerves - be prepared for it. You have to be as cool as a quarterback and not let that first interception rattle you. I can only think of two things you can do.

- Master the study material. There's no substitute for the boost in confidence you get when you see a question you've handled before and you know you've nailed it.
- Second, in my opinion, try taking a practice test under a pressure situation. Wait 15 minutes on the first question and try to get the rest of the test done in time. But you have to be serious about it and make it count. Of course, this won't be anything like the real thing but the best you can do to practice for it.

Well, that's all the energy I can muster today. Hope someone benefits a little from my long recital. "Have fun studying/applying"

Very good!!!!!!!!!Haha...I am from Amsterdam and gonna take GMAT in this June!!! Hope I can get a score as high as yours.

what a fantastic debrief !! Congrats on your score !!!!!!

I choked under pressure.... and advice on starting quant after 10-15 mins is amazing !!!!!!!!!!!!

Hii..Thanks for such a elaborate help...Well I have a question..what did you study on the last 2 days?

kekkers wrote:I went through the ordeal this morning and I'm glad that it is finally over. First of all, I want to thank all the BTG folks, the regulars, moderators and instructors. Kept me motivated as well as challenged with the increasingly difficult questions on the various forums. Although I officially signed up on BTG just yesterday, I've been reading the forums for quite some time now.

My goal with this post was to give some quick bites to people who are just starting their prep. When you read these, don't think of a guy who just scored 760. Just this past week I thought I could end up below 600 because of some major shortcomings. I think I got lucky in the end, but you want to be prepared for the worst. So here goes:

Time/Timing
I spent about 3-4 months studying. That's what worked for me given a demanding job and how long I could study at a stretch. Two things I wish I had done differently here. I took a break after one month of studying because of work/family stuff. Big mistake because it took me 2-3 months to get back into it. Second mistake: after I had covered most of my materials I took a date that was still a good 6 weeks away just to play it safe. The result: last couple of weeks before the test I felt like my enthusiasm had already peaked and my GMAT tempo was dying down

Materials
I used only OG and Kaplan. I certainly don't recommend that strategy to anyone else. I do think that you should start with the OG, identify your weaknesses and then buy additional materials based on what products give you the most problems in those areas. I spent a lot of time working through Kaplan material but some of my opportunity areas weren't as extensively covered in Kaplan. Of course that doesn't say Kaplan is not good, because ultimately I used most of their strategies (see next section). It just wasn't right for me. So I'd say start with the OG, cover as many problems within it as you can and start identifying weaknesses early on. Another point, don't just think of one section such as DS as a weakness. Once you get comfortable with the sections, dig deeper and identify individual areas (like inequalities, remainder problems, or past perfect tense in SC etc.)

Strategy
After initially trying things out, you have to find out what approach works best for you. Here are some things that worked for me although I took too long to identify them. Some of them might seem pretty trivial but were game-changers for me
- I initially didn't like Kaplan's matrix approach to CR & RC where you draw a matrix and cross out incorrect choices. I thought I'd just waste my time by doing it. After spending weeks trying other things I realized that I was wasting precious time re-reading wordy answer choices in CR and RC. The matrix approach then didn't seem as stupid and it helped me avoid that problem.
- In DS, when I wrote down & separated the solutions for (A alone), (B alone) and (A & B) together by a line, it helped me avoid the common trap of assuming one statement when looking at the other in isolation. Case in point - if something as dumb as writing things down or drawing a line will help your accuracy, it's probably worth the time.

Be Ready for the Freak-Out
This is the last part and my favorite learning. I didn't do this very well today so I invite the experts to weigh in. In as much as I like to see that 'unofficial' 760 now, I didn't believe it when I first saw it. I am not exaggerating this but I stopped and stared at the "Cancel my scores" screen for 25 seconds (the one you see before you see your score). Imagine, that's how bad I thought I had done.

I started out well in AWA. Took a short break and went into Quantitative. That's when terror struck. I spent 4 minutes on the first Quantitative problem and it wasn't even difficult, my nerves just got the better of me. By the end of five questions, I had already taken way too much time, I was feeling totally miserable and it wasn't getting any better. Worse still, I wasn't feeling totally confident about many of my answer choices because my mind was wandering off worrying about what had happened earlier. I ended up finishing the Quantitative section 5 minutes early...can you believe that? I realized that either way I had mismanaged time in the section and that kept haunting me through the Verbal section. Guess what? I finished Verbal 5 minutes early too, feeling the same way about my answers there.

Don't let that happen to you!!! GMAT is as much about the psychological aspect as it is about the Quantitative and Verbal. It is a nightmare of nerves - be prepared for it. You have to be as cool as a quarterback and not let that first interception rattle you. I can only think of two things you can do.

- Master the study material. There's no substitute for the boost in confidence you get when you see a question you've handled before and you know you've nailed it.
- Second, in my opinion, try taking a practice test under a pressure situation. Wait 15 minutes on the first question and try to get the rest of the test done in time. But you have to be serious about it and make it count. Of course, this won't be anything like the real thing but the best you can do to practice for it.

Well, that's all the energy I can muster today. Hope someone benefits a little from my long recital. "Have fun studying/applying"

Sorry I hadn't checked the forum in a while. The last couple of days I foused on just doing a few practice questions of each type to keep the pace and remind myself of the thought process in each section. I was spending more time going over my notes than doing problems though. And I was going over problems I had done before.

Very Good score !! all the best for your applications.