I just Beat The GMAT!

Just took the GMAT this morning and got a 550 (31Q, 29%) (35V,73%).

I walked in and worked through the AWA just fine. Then took a quick break started the Quant. The first question through me off as I kept coming up with an answer that wasn't one of the choices. Then the second question was something I haven't seen before so I reread it about 5 times and just ended up guessing. Then panic set in and nothing made sense anymore, like everything was in a foreign language. By about question 12 I knew the test was a disaster. I was so depressed and demoralized and just wanted to cancel right then and leave. I felt like all this time studying was a complete waste and should just forget out bschool. But I forced myself to at least finish the section and I just ended up guessing on most and maybe got a few extremely easy ones right.

Then I took my break and finally convinced myself that since I don't struggle as much with verbal I should at least just finish the test. Verbal went ok but I was so depressed that I knew I didn't do as well as I could have. When I finished I was going to cancel my score but I just figured if B-school wasn't in my future then I might as well see what I got.

I took the GMAT a few years ago and the exact same thing happen. I started the quant got tripped up on a few earlier questions, anxiety went out of control and my mind went blank. I'm not sure if this is something I can fix or I should just accept that I can't do well on the GMAT.

I know that I know the content. I've studied for 6 freaking months! And I really know the content well enough to get a good score. My most recent practice tests were 610, 700, 630 and 710. For some reason, when I take the quant on the real test, my anxiety gets out of control and I panic, causing my mind to go blank and it's all down hill from there.

I don't know if I should bother studying anymore since it's not the lack of knowledge that's holding me back but rather my stupid brain. I could have gotten a 550 six months ago. I feel like maybe I should cut my losses and just accept defeat and move on but that would solidify my feeling of being a complete loser. I can take a review class, study more, etc. but I'm afraid that I'm just going to go to the test, panic and bomb it anyway...so what's the point.

Anyhow, thank you for reading this silly post but I had to vent for a bit. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

hey

dont worry...this happens. i had same feelings when i got 650 in first attempt...but no use of crying...prepare for some more time and try again...all the best!

PS. you can check my post. i posted it yesterday. You will see that our stories match!

Dude,

Stop being hard on yourself. Your nerves simply got in the way. Retake the GMAT. Good thing is that you now know what to expect. Focus on relaxing and thinking straight and you'll get a good score

sorry to hear about your experience. it sounds like you have the knowledge already, but need a boost in confidence. if i were you, i'd retake it asap (i think you have to wait 30 days to retake it again). study sparingly in the next few weeks, but don't let your most recent test experience demoralize you. work on controlling your anxiety. this works differently with everyone so it's hard to recommend how exactly to accomplish this; maybe get a massage the day of your retake, or listen to soothing music; or go to the gym, or do some personal meditation.

i'm pretty sure if you can control your nerves you'll have no issues getting a 650+. the knowledge is there (in your brain), the will is there (in your heart), so just force your body to comply and they will all come together for a great score on your retake!

I scored a 560 in my first attempt to feel the same. I am now scoring around 720. Cheer up. Read through some of the brilliant quotes that people put in their post signatures. They are truly inspiring. One such that I can recall is,
"people never fail - they just give up". Honestly, this was the only quote that kept me going!

"What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger." This quote is so true. Do you really think this is the most adversity you will face in life? Man up and take it again if you want to do better. Success is built off perserverance.

I remember the beautiful quote which says "The race is not over because i havent won yet." the GMAT is all about mental stamina and Good Luck !

Dude!

For the time being, lets not talk about Gmat. Lets talk about attitude.I know you may not be interested to read further but I would like to let you know that I was in the same situation after my first gmat experience and may be we can relate with each other.

Your entire post contains a negative feeling. Get rid of this negative feeling if you ever want to succeed.I am not the next Bill gates to give you a lesson on success but I come from a small city from India, where survival for the next day is a big question mark, forget about Gmat. So the gist is, there are many instances in life when you feel low, but once you let the negative feeling dominate, you will never be able to rise again.

Now coming back to Gmat.I would love to know When you entered the test centre, what was the first feeling which came to your mind? Did you felt that in the previous attempt you scored a poor 550, and now you will definitely have to score more than that? I mean were you more conscious to score more than your previous score?

OR you felt :

Oh! Gmat is such a simple exam, I am definitely gonna crack it?
Note: The second one doesn't include your previous experience.

I hope by now you have got my answer. But wait I am not yet done. I want share my experience with Gmat.
When I first took gmat, I was pretty much concerned to get a score above 700. I was so concerned that I felt under pressure and screwed up my CR's and RC's.

What I learned : To think about scores is important but to be overtly obsessed with 700+ will definitely give you a lot of stress and effect your performance negatively. Once I realised that even though I had the fundamental's clear about RC's and CR's, I was still not prepared for the kind of questions Gmat puts forward(something you went through in Quant). Later on, I started preparing in a different way( I have covered my strategy in another thread about RC/CR tips)

So when you can identify your weakness,it becomes very easy to work on the solution.

You need to introspect, what was the problem with your Quant? Were you clear with fundamentals or you screwed up the questions just because the questions looked strange? Or the speed was a concern(Practice) Each of these problem have a different treatment and you the best person to judge which one fits you.

I am very sorry for such a long post but I found this one closed to my heart,I was in the same situation after my first GMAT experience. And this is one of the reason that even after my GMAT(710) I am still here ,just to help folks like you. I would love hear back from you.

Give yourself a little break and get back to BEAT The GMAT

First of all, thank you to all of you who responded with encouragement, advice and motivating quotes. I really appreciate your thoughts and that you took the time to read my post and respond.

To GMAT740, to your question on how I felt when I walked into the test center. Well on the surface, I was trying to use postive self-talk to boost my confidence but I know deep down inside I was feeling that I was going to start to get stuck on a few questions, began to panic and then bomb the quant section, just like I did a few years ago the first time I took this test. And that is exactly what happen. Self fullfilling prophecy I guess. There were times during my studies when I really felt like I was learning lot and when I got my first 700 that I felt like wow this test isn't so hard, I'm going to do great. Then during the next practice test I got a 610 (due to quant) and then reality set in again I felt like well....maybe I will just crash and burn again! So I do understand that I need to try to forgot about these negative experiences and move but it just easier said then done.

I felt like when I was studying quant I began to memorize the mechanics more than the concepts. So when I got a problem in completely new format, I couldn't quickly figure out how to approach it. Or I just started working out the math without clearly understanding the underlying concepts. So I think that if and when I starting studying again I will do less problem but really try to work with each one a lot more to understand what's being tested and how else can this same question be asked.

Looking forward to hear back from you GMAT740!


Thanks again to everyone!!!

Hello Again,

I completely understand that one cannot forget his/her past negative experience. But tell me a fact, do you really want to let your negative experiences dominate rest of your life?? Certainly NO!

Now everyone has a different approach to get over his/her sad experiences. I would not advice you to copy anyone else's way and try to gratify yourself. You must be aware off your strengths as well as your weakness. Once you identify your weakness, it is so easy to work on them and for strengths, don't loose them at all.

What I figured out from your post is that you get familiarized with the problems rather than the concepts. And this is not good for Quant.

Please go through your High School Texts for Mathematics( I am not sure about other countries but I am sure for India, the High School texts cover most of the fundamentals required)

Get your basics done. Don't jump to solve problems until and unless you are confident about the fundamentals.

For Quant I am not the correct person to guide you since I am pretty much comfortable with quant and so I never worked seriously on the Quant Section.(However, In my first attempt I scored Q50 and second attempt scored Q49. My score fell because of my over-confidence)

But the only strategy I use for Quant is........Break down the problem into simple form and apply fundamental concepts. Even the most complex problems can be tackled with this concept. But it requires a lot of practise.

Hope this Helps

Hey gxj007,

Do accept your defeat and forget about B-schools.
But for one last time take the GMAT to prove to yourself (and no one else) that you knew the content.
(remember you have nothing to lose now)

-Nee

Hi gxj007,

I completetly understand your situation since I was like that before (not for quant, but for verbal). Look at the bright side, you have a pretty solid verbal score (better than mine), you just need to be calm and everything will unfold like it should be.

Best,