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False hopes -> Panic -> Regroup -> WIN! 490-720

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False hopes -> Panic -> Regroup -> WIN! 490-720

by AmandaAHopping » Tue Mar 11, 2014 5:33 pm
I'm on vacation, I just beat the GMAT, and I can't begin to tell you how awesome it feels. For those who are still prepping, and suffering those frustrating setbacks, just wait. It's worth it. Actually beating this test feels unbelievable. BUT, my journey getting here was rocky.

I took my free Kaplan diagnostic and got a 490, which the nice presenter said was 30 points above the average starting score. That said, Chicago Booth is my dream school. I knew that there was work to do because I knew I needed to break 700 to have a chance, but at least it was nice to know that I was at the very least a little bit ahead of the curve.

I went to Amazon and ordered the GMAT official guide 13th edition, the GMAT Quant Official book, and a few of the Manhattan GMAT guides in areas I knew were weak (I felt like I had completely forgotten math, and I knew SC needed some work too). I actually got to the point where I felt comfortable with algebra. Anapurna conquered? Not quite. I purchased the Manhattan GMAT 5 practice CATs, and got as high as 630.

I took my first official GMAT late November and holy cow I got owned--540. I don't know if it was nerves, or maybe there was something different about Manhattan's CATs? But I was devastated. I actually had a moment of weakness--I even rethought the idea of getting an MBA altogether.

But after I shook off all of that sappy garbage, I came back with an unbreakable vengeance. Given that I already had a foundation I signed up for Economist Tutor's 7 day free trial and Empower GMAT Score Booster for $99 so between the two I was able to regroup for not that much money.

Now, here is the thing that totally blew my mind: my problem wasn't that my math or RC wasn't good enough, it was learning that not every question matters and how to get past the common wrong answers. That was a revolution to me. I just really didn't know how to take the test itself. Also, learning how to treat DS correctly helped a lot.

On verbal, I was able to gain some of those stubborn points on SC too, especially by knowing how to use the idioms, and the answers against the question.

Let me just tell you, when I saw that score on the screen, 720, I felt like the Hulk. All the disappointment made victory even sweeter.

Thank you Beat the GMAT, Empower GMAT and the Economist GMAT Tutor for helping me get over the top!
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by [email protected] » Tue Mar 11, 2014 10:10 pm
Hi AmandaAHopping,

Congratulations on your 720 - that score will absolutely put you in the running for Booth (and pretty much any other US Business School that you might be considering). After studying, you've probably come to realize that each of the "steps" in the process of getting into Business School is predictable, so you just have to make sure that you've committed the necessary time, energy and resources to the task.

Booth is a remarkably competitive program, so you should make sure to put in the necessary effort on all of the other parts of the application. If you're interested in working with an Admissions Expert on your application, then there are a few that I can recommend. Feel free to email me if you have any questions in that regard. Congrats again on your success.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Last edited by [email protected] on Wed Mar 12, 2014 12:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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by dtse86 » Wed Mar 12, 2014 7:11 am
Now, here is the thing that totally blew my mind: my problem wasn't that my math or RC wasn't good enough, it was learning that not every question matters and how to get past the common wrong answers. That was a revolution to me. I just really didn't know how to take the test itself. Also, learning how to treat DS correctly helped a lot.
Hi AmandaAHopping,

You mentioned a strategy that I am struggling to master. Can you elaborate a little more about how you decided to guess on a question and move on during the test? And do you have any helpful DS strategies? I am having trouble with DS problems as well and end up spending a lot of time testing various numbers (positive/negative/fractions) before coming up with an answer.
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by AmandaAHopping » Thu Mar 13, 2014 1:03 pm
Hi dtse86,

With the GMAT, knowing how to guess is clutch. I didn't realize just how much so until Empower broke down how to do it. That said, there's a whole art to it, so you're going to want to invest some serious time to get really good at it (and they apply to both Quant and Verbal by the way). In the Empower course, there are a bunch of techniques, and most can be used multiple times per GMAT. Knowing this stiff helped me fix my early pacing problems and started boosting my scores as soon as I started applying them.

You asked about DS strategies, and you mentioned testing different values. I think I know what you mean. It sounds like you need to find a system that works for you, and know that system cold. You can't just rely on one technique though. Testing numbers is just one of the ways to approach DS questions. Depending on the question, I would use different techniques. Sometimes I tested numbers, sometimes I used patterns, and sometimes I did the math. Between the Economist trial and Empower they showed me the system of how to approach DS questions, and that's what worked for me.

Amanda
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by KylieAquino87 » Tue Mar 18, 2014 9:23 pm
Congrats on your GMAT success! I myself am in a similar boat: strong natural verbal skills, but have avoided most math like the Plague since high school. Would you be able to share some specific quant strategies that helped you break 700 on test day? I've been preparing for a few months, and have re-learned most of the math required, and I'll be spedning the next few months of mastering the strategies and learning to avoid the odious careless mistake. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!
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by KristenH88 » Tue Mar 18, 2014 9:52 pm
Amanda, what was your timeline, how long did all this take (you mentioned November..). I am taking the test soon but may definitely need to re-take for your score. Before apps are due (a ONLY few months)
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by Nadia222 » Wed Mar 19, 2014 12:48 am
Amanda,

Congrats on your score. I am currently in the Empower GMAT course and it amazing. I Lao took a Manhattan GMAT course for $1100 and TNT course did nothing for me. It's great to see these success stories because my starting GMAT diagnostic was 490 took the exam for the first time and bombed it. Now I'm targeting a 700 score for this upcoming application season.
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by almap333 » Wed Mar 19, 2014 7:10 pm
Amanda congrats on such a fantastic score! Booth is my top choice as well. I am a UChicago alum but I know that doesn't help much and I have to shoot for a 700+ on the GMAT due to the competitive nature of the program. About how many months did you prep for the GMAT? I am currently going through the Manhattan GMAT guides and doing practice problems from the official guide. Do you like the supplemental study tools you used? What prep material do you feel was the most helpful in attaining that 700?
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by AmandaAHopping » Mon Mar 24, 2014 9:12 am
Kylie,

The 1st stage of the Empower course was particularly helpful for me turn the corner on GMAT quant. Those tactics, including those on Data Sufficiency will help lift you up the rest of your studies. If you're in it already, then you'll see what I mean. I also really wasn't too confident going into the prep process, but don't worry, you'll find your footing. Just don't be scared by this stuff.

Kristen,

I started in late-September just using the guides, and the free practice tests, and I thought I was all set. As I said in the post, it really sucked to see a score on the screen that was so far from what I wanted. So I feel like I probably wasted those two months, and then honestly, the holidays kind of wrecked my momentum, but I got back into the rhythm in January, and all in it was about a little over 3 months doing things the smart way.

Nadia,

It goes without saying I totally agree with you. With the Empower course, use it all and take it all way. I have a feeling that soon you'll be writing your own "I just beat the GMAT" post.

Almap,

I don't really think there's one magic combination, but I can tell you what worked for me. The books were helpful, but there's no way I could have done it with just books alone. I had to use a combination of books and online courses to get my 720.

Get your dream score you guys! See you on the other side.

Amanda
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by Kayotoprotocol » Fri Mar 28, 2014 1:04 am
Dear Amanda,

I wrote my GMAT yesterday and scored 520.It has brought my spirit down and now i wonder if i can ever pass it. This is my first time writing it. My verbal was 21 and quant 40 . can you please advice on what strategies i can use to get to the 700 mark..
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by AmandaAHopping » Fri Apr 04, 2014 4:27 pm
Hi Kayotoprotocol,

There's really no shortcut. I prepped. I didn't wing it. To beat RC I used tools such as the RC ladder, and +,-,= that made RC easier and ultimately beneficial to my GMAT score. My advice is to do the same so that you can approach every GMAT question with a system.

Amanda
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by Majid Bin Sawad » Sun May 04, 2014 9:38 am
Hi Amanda,

Thank you for your post. it helped me a lot since your story remind me of myself except I have not done the real exam yet. My exam is in two days. I did the Kaplan diagnostic test and I got 490. It was very devastated for me because I have been studying for over 5 months from several study guides but yet no luck. I have done 4 prep exams and my scores were between 460-490. If you have any other advice for me beside the Empower Gmat which I am going to buy if I did pass the test ( I still have little hope). Please share with us.

Regards,
Majid
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by MBAGRL » Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:31 pm
Dear Amanda,
Your story is really inspiring to me. I've been on (what I think) is a similar GMAT path to the one you took. Last week I cracked 650 for the first time (680!) on a practice CAT test. I've been using the same GMAT materials that you used and I was hoping that I could compare notes with you about the questions that you said didn't matter. I dumped a couple of specific questions during the test and my score jumped 40 points! I was wondering if there are any other questions I should dump or if there's anything else that I should be doing differently?
Thanks,

Florence
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by [email protected] » Fri Jun 27, 2014 1:05 am
Hi Florence,

Regardless of whether you hear from AmandaAHopping or not, you can feel free to email me with any questions that you have. Since you're using the EMPOWERgmat Course, you can reach out to me or any of the team.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
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by AmandaAHopping » Thu Jul 03, 2014 8:30 am
Hi Florence,

That's terrific news about how your score is increasing. I know how good that feels to break through and really start scoring at a high level. Keep doing what you're doing and I bet that you can score even higher. Send me a PM with your email address and we can go over what you've been doing during your studies.

Amanda
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