I just Beat The GMAT!

Just finished the test a few hours ago. I'm not one to normally post on message boards, but I thought I'd do a post in order to give people a reason to be optimistic.

Program: I took the GMAT once 5 years ago when I was a junior in college and decided to apply to the HBS 2+2 program. At the time, I wasn't very serious or committed, so ended up studying from a book or two, and then cramming 2 weeks before. I went into the test still uncomfortable with some fundamental problems types (inequalities, number theory) and completely unprepared to do a CAT, as well as other things - like having to write on a plastic pad. The quant section was the worst standardized test experience of my life - I remember feeling like my brain had shut off entirely and I was guessing the full exam. I came out of it with a 710 - something like a 73% Math, 96% Verbal - and feeling like wow, if i ever re-take this i HAVE to do better. I was also shocked b/c I have also tested way better in Math than in Verbal. Anyway, for those who are interested, I actually got an interview with HBS with that score, but didn't get into the program (I think my uncertainty about what I really wanted from my life showed in the interview...which I don't think is unreasonable at 21, but probably not what the Dean of HBS was looking for).

Anyway, this time around, I was determined to do it right, do it once, and get it out of the way. I'm based in NYC so I took the Manhattan GMAT in person class. My first diagnostic practice MGMAT was a 710 with the same breakout as when I took the test 5 years ago. This gave me confidence right away that the MGMAT tests would be good practice.

For my preparation, I basically went with the program - I did all of the HW and Advanced HW, with an emphasis on quant. Near the end of the course, I started scheduling practice tests for myself at the center. I think this was very helpful in preparing myself for what it would feel like to go into an exam room and take the test the real way. After my course ended I had about 3.5 weeks before the test. I basically took 1 test a weekend, and in between did math problems. I focused very little on Verbal except the last few days where I did some reading on SC.

The main reason I wanted to post was b/c the last month has been pretty frustrating for me. Despite studying a fair amount (most weekdays after work and on weekends), I found myself not improving as much on my practice tests and I could not understand why. Here are my practice tests:

MGMAT 1: before taking class: 710 - Q44 V42
MGMAT 2: halfway through the course: 750 - Q48 V45
MGMAT 3: Near end of course: 710 - Q45, V41
MGMAT 4: After course: 710 - Q41, V45

Around this time i started getting extremely worked up and even though I was studying a ton, my performance on math actually started going down. At this point, I forced myself to chill out and actually study less. The day I got that 750, halfway through my course, I had almost no expectations and was looking forward to going out with friends afterwards. So I kept studying, but toned it down. Then with about 2 weeks to go,

GMATPrep: 740 - Q48, V-44

The main issue I found myself having was running out of time near the end and getting like 8/10 of the last questions wrong. I had a free online session with a MGMAT person who told me that I needed to learn to not spend time on really hard questions. He also told me to do just the math sections of my remaining MGMAT tests. For my remaining practice, I forced myself to use the following time structure, which helped me:

60 minutes left - on question 10
40 minutes left - on question 20
20 minutes left - on question 30

I'd say this is a bit extreme, but if you're having a hard time with quant finishing the section and getting questions wrong at the end, consciously force yourself to leave more time.

My remaining practice:

MGMAT just math: Q48
GMATPrep 2: 740 - Q47, V45
MGMAT just math: Q48

Going into the test, I was not super confident, I felt like i never even reached where I wanted to be in practice, that is above 750. Before studying, I was aiming for a 770-780. Given my results and reading on these forums how consistent peoples scores tend to be with GMATPrep (or lower!) I thought for sure I'd only get a 750 on a really good day, and more likely a 720-740.

Today was test day and although I actually woke up with a killer sore throat (and am now completely sick), i was in pretty good condition - i had gotten good sleep all week, keeping my nerves in check, and my brain still felt healthy.

The test:

Essay - went fine - I only practiced this on my full exams

IR - felt really good - this is a section where I have to say MGMAT has really screwed up - their IR sections are impossible and I almost always got less than half right, always getting like a ~4.5 on their scoring. The real section required MUCH MUCH less calculation, with easier numbers. I will be providing feedback on this to MGMAT.

Quant - so shortly after beginning, i'm feeling like the questions are too easy. I was convinced i got like the first 3 wrong, and i never really got to any tough problems, and was way ahead of time. Until about the last 6 or so questions to go, where i spent way too much time on a problem i never ended up concluding correctly and guessed anyway. At this point, i felt a little behind and as a result fell apart a little bit, guessing on probably all or most of the last 4 or 5 problems. Finishing this section up i felt like it could not have gone great, but i just moved on.

Verbal - was actually a bit tougher than what i was used to but i think is probably b/c i was really starting to get sick. At any rate, i just pushed through it.

When i got my score, I literally threw my hands up in the air in the center. I was not expecting my a 760. I think that if i hadn't screwed up the last few math questions, I would have been at a 770, but i'm not complaining b/c i could have easily done worse as well.

The moral of my story, and why i decided to share was to provide some hope. As you'll see, I only scored above a 740 once on all my practice. Throughout the process my family and friends kept telling me to just have faith that putting in the effort would have results. And it did. I would say the most important thing is to feel like you're making progress in understanding the material and the questions you're doing. In my practice I would make lots of mistakes, but near the end of my studying I really tried to focus on: reading the question completely, going fast but not so fast that i mess something silly up, etc. And try to stay calm - last night I watched TV, went for a walk, and went to bed early. Even waking up sick today, I felt like I was in good shape to take the test.

Good luck to everyone still studying!

Congrats on a good score. All the best for your further app process

Hey congrats,thats a great score!!
Did u refer to earlier OG editions?What kind of questions did u encounter during the exam,especially in quant.Which topics u feel one should stress more on in quant?
How many times did u give GMATPREP exam?

Thanks,
Shreeraj

Great going! and nice title

Top-notch! Congrats buddy with the stunning score, particularly striking Verbal-45! Is English your native language? The Verbal is a huge bummer for me, any tips for people on the other side of border?

Great post! Congratulations for your score.
Am giving the gmat next weekend! Its my second attempt as well.
Doing the work! All i need is a little hope.

Congratulations on the great score !

Thank you for all the positive sentiments.

To answer some questions:

-it's hard to remember what kind of questions I encountered as everything was a blur. Nothing out of the ordinary that you wouldn't see in OG. I actually don't remember getting a single permutation/combination problem and if i got probability it must have been simple because i don't remember it. Otherwise, your standard inequality type number theory questions, some very simple geometry where i literally had to calculate areas and subtract, or simple solving for angle x with 2 parallel lines. The one that i stumbled on was a finding an average rates using variables where i just could not get the right answer, i now think i must have read the problem wrong (which is an issue i was having in practice, missing something critical in the problem until i reread it a second time). My last question was a tough one involving factorials and factors that i didn't have enough time to figure out but may have not been able to anyway. But like I said in general, until the end where I got stuck on that one question, I actually thought I must not be doing well because the questions were just too easy. Not sure if things were just going well and I was on a roll, or what...

-The question about Verbal - I was not born in the U.S., moved here when I was very young though, so I do consider English to be basically my native language. I have not historically found Verbal standardized tests to be my sweet spot but I have to say in this circumstance I really did find the Verbal section quite easy and I'm afraid i can't offer good advice to those for whom English is not native, besides "practice." I know that for SC, for me it was not helpful to read grammar rules as much as it was to see examples of what is right and wrong.