I just Beat The GMAT!

i didn't beat the gmat, but was beaten by it in the other way!
total480, m42,v16

i've never had such a bad exam experience in my entire 21-year life.

my preparation:

i took a gmat course in Aug last year but didn't have time to continue the prep since i had to attend shool to make sure my GPA was good afterwards.

4 months later, namely Jan. this year(the beginning of my one-year holiday), to push myself a wit bit, i made the decision to take the exam in 30th Mar.

i went through OG12, it took me 3 weeks or so.
then i had my first GMATPrep try, it was 500, disappointedly.

at the beginning of Mar, new term began. i did SC+CR official guide and downloaded other meterials(it's a kind of full version practice, includingAWA+M+V) to improve, meabwhile i had to attend classes.
i did GMATPrep II and scored 560. undoubtedly, it successfully discouraged me, though i could see a slight progress.

there were two weeks left, i was so nervous, wondering whether i could take it; sleepless nights were commonplace

eventually, i was in front of the computer answering questions.

although Math was easier than i expected, my pace and my mind were much slower than i used to do. i was not 100% sure when i clicked the answer. thinking what was wrong with me, i foresee i would fail

verbal was even worse. the sentenses weren't long, but i spent so much in understanding them.
the worst part was, my brain was not able to process the datas i saw though i levished much time!!

when 480 popped out, i was speechless!

i don't think i am a below-average-IQ girl
i don't think i will have a big problem when study in an English speaking country
i think i can manage the courses and perform well in the future
but it seems that i have been denied by the ETS already?

i used to think that it must be an idiot if someone scores around 400, and it turned out to be me!!
i am more desperat than desperate housewife, and psychologically, i think i have a repulsion to gmat now.
i feel scared when i see the gmat books. take-2 is not possible so far.

do i choose the wrong path or am i just not the administration-or-business-type person?
is it possible to enroll in b-shool without a gmat?

hope that you can give suggestions to me

Just as an observation, ETS does not administer the GMAT anymore. They are actually competing with GMAC by marketing the GRE as an alternative to the GMAT!

Don't be discouraged! There's absolutely nothing wrong with your IQ. Your struggles seem to be in verbal: I can tell from your writing that you are a non-native English speaker. You need to improve your general knowledge of the language before moving forward with GMAT-specific preparation.

You have not mentioned any guides for strategy. You can't just go through the OG and hope that practice will fill in the gaps of knowledge that you might have. You need to buy a strategy guide: check out the Manhattan GMAT series or books by Kaplan!

Good luck and don't get beaten down by this!

Remember the following:

1. People who take the GMAT are typically college graduates who aspire to study at a graduate level. Their IQ's on average are well above the mean, as is yours!

2. If English is your second or third language, your low verbal score undoubtedly reflects the fact that you are learning English. Your lack of proficiency probably had a negative impact on your quant score, too.

3. Sleepless nights and anxiety? You need to keep things in perspective: you are 21 years old, so it's hardly the case that you're getting too old to think about doing an MBA. You have plenty of time to perfect your English so that you can read English with ease. Get addicted to reading NYTimes or WSJ or the Economist

kevincanspain wrote:Remember the following:

1. People who take the GMAT are typically college graduates who aspire to study at a graduate level. Their IQ's on average are well above the mean, as is yours!

2. If English is your second or third language, your low verbal score undoubtedly reflects the fact that you are learning English. Your lack of proficiency probably had a negative impact on your quant score, too.

3. Sleepless nights and anxiety? You need to keep things in perspective: you are 21 years old, so it's hardly the case that you're getting too old to think about doing an MBA. You have plenty of time to perfect your English so that you can read English with ease. Get addicted to reading NYTimes or WSJ or the Economist

thank you kevincanspain

First of all, I am a non-native.

And yes, I realize I was too young to take an MBA, without working experience. I want to apply for master in business school actually.

well, I was just a little disappointed when finished the test.
I give myself a break and calm down these days. And now I can see my weaknesses through this experience and am thinking about retaking.

One big problem this that I have few meterials at hand.
If I re-prep my GMAT, what books do you recommend?

I have the OG 12, OG verbal (purple one)
have bought a new OG verbal(blue one)
will buy a Manhattan SC, Kaplan 2010 Premier Live Online, Powerscore CR Bible.
(I have limited access to the 3 guides I mentioned, meaning I have to buy them on line. I can only buy Priceton series and Kaplan ones in my city. Which one is better, compare to MGMAT and Powerscore?)

I think I am comfortable with Math, but struggling in verbal and not good at AWA.
Which books will be good to me, or what else do I need?

I want to be well organized this time. Don't wanna messed up again.

Would you be so kind to give me some suggestions
thanks in advance