I just Beat The GMAT!

Hello everyone,

Gave my GMAT 3 times. I work in a consulting firm and it is very challenging to study alongside work. Crazy hours and hectic travel schedules don't leave even the weekend free for studying. Besides, it's the last thing you want to do after a super tiring week. However, i was very tempted to try and get over with the GMAT as i had 3-4 weeks of beach time (off project) and would only be able to take block leave after 9 months. So i took it twice in quick succession.

My first score (without any study or prep material as nothing was available in bookstores in the Middle East - where i was working on projects) - 640. Only recently has Borders opened a store which carries 11th OG. The additional math and verbal reviews were not available when i went to purchase them.

My second score - after 2 weeks of study (was moving to a different country the first two weeks immediately after GMAT 1) - 670. I was going nowhere with this. I realised i had to take time off for this and give GMAT due respect.

My third score, which was after i took block leave (of 3 weeks) 9 months from the 2nd GMAT - 740.

My learnings:

1. Respect the GMAT. It's not for nothing that top B-schools use it to ascertain a candidate's academic ability, in addition to undergrad GPA. GMAT is a very astutely crafted test which effectively sieves out people who have worked hard and put in time to master concepts from those who take it more casually. There are of course exceptions - i know a few guys who just studied for a week and walked away with a 690. But they're just that - exceptions.

2. Analysing mistakes and problems is more critical than just practicing incessantly. Take the time to understand the problem you faced for each question - was it conceptual, or was it procedural (calculation mistakes, , careless errors, misreading question, marking answer choices you did not intend to mark etc.). Feel proud at each mistake discovery (instead of getting depressed). Make a log of mistakes. The longer the log, the better. You're in the process of eliminating mistakes! If your log is short and your scores low, you have a lot more digging and analysis to do on your performance.

3. Choose Test Prep material carefully. Reading Beatthegmat is your best bet at understanding the pros and cons of each material type. I reiterate that OG is the best for exposure to GMAT problem types. Manhattan is the best for understanding question types and methods for approaching math problems to solve them quickly. Manhattan SC is the best. For CR and RC - i did not quite follow their suggested technique - took me way too much time to draft notes and refer to them while answering questions. More often than not, i did not find it useful in answering questions. However, after a few tests and timed practice sessions, i realised, i read a lot better when i just scribbled (more like diagramming what i am reading) on the pad while reading the question/ passage. I don't even look at what i'm writing. It just slowed down my instinct to rush through and helped me register the material much better. Surprisingly this method fit well with the timing requirements in the verbal section.

4. Plan your practice tests well. Take the GMATprep once initially. Leave the retakes for later. Use the 6 online manhattan tests well. They're probably closest to the official materials. They're generally tougher but helps clear concepts quite a bit. Take each GMATprep test twice or even three times. They have a huge database of questions. There might be a few repeats, but that's ok, you get real GMAT practice. Nothing comes closer. I took my GMATprep tests the last and closer to the real test date to build confidence. The last thing you want is a 640 on some Manhattan or Princeton a few days before your actual exam. It's not useful because their score calculation algorithms are different from the real ones. Confidence helps a lot on the GMAT. My scores on the GMATprep were 700, 720, 740, 750 and 780. The last two exams had a few repeats, but i finished before time - so i knew that the real practice i got was of reasonable quality.

5. Get worried at low scores only if you did not improve, and repeated past mistakes. For example, during Manhattan practice tests i was scoring in the range of 650-690. However, suddenly on Test 4 i got a 630 when i thought i was doing well. After two days of disgust and depression, i got back to the test to understand what happened. I realised, while i answered a lot of tough questions correctly, i screwed up each section towards the end when i was running short of time and missed quite a few sitters due to careless errors. This was unacceptable - but this was a new pattern i discovered about my test-taking approach. Then i came across this post at Beatthegmat (god bless the guy), which gave me the mantra for fixing this timing issue. I jotted down on the pad what the time should be after every 5 questions. Something like this:

M: 5:66, 10:56, 15:46, 20:36, 25:26, 30:16, 35:6
V: 5:67, 10:58, 15:49, 20:40, 25:31, 30:22, 35:13, 40:4

This pushed my score from the 600s to the 700s on practice tests.

6. Don't get emotionally attached to any problem. Until the last week before GMAT 3, i found it extremely difficult to let go of any problem without cracking it. It felt as if i'm accepting defeat. That's not the issue. It's just ONE of the 37/ 41 problems you need to solve. For sure you will not get ALL correct. So it's OK to let some go so that you're the winner overall. Stick to your time limits no matter what. You should be on track every 5 questions.

These were critical to my getting the scores i got. Hope it helps. I am a very bad exam taker - had gotten 1260 for my SAT earlier. This whole experience of diagnosing your errors and progressing inch by inch was very humbling and satisfying. I've sort of overcome my fear of exams. I systematically avoided test-prep companies as i wanted to use this opportunity to learn how to overcome my own problems. I am quite happy - if i can do it, anyone can. Don't stop chasing your dreams.

All the best people.

You did it ... despite all the roadblocks ... Congrats!!

Thank you for taking time to type this patiently .... All the best for your apps

awesome ! congrats !

thanks guys! i had to give back to the forum. hope someone benefits. before this it didn't occur to me that people would be so friendly, helpful and community oriented ("we're all in this together"). i got my score in part cuz of the forum. it rocks!

Fantastic post and congratulations on your score! Thank you for taking the time to provide such insightful comments about the lessons you learned from your GMAT studies.

I wish you all the best with you applications!

We have got the exact same split and percentile !

Congratulations man. Did you really manage to have that super timing according to the grid that you made? Even in the real GMAT test?

Congratulations. Great score

Hi onestepatatime,
Can you please explain your following strategy in detail:

"scribbled (more like diagramming what i am reading) on the pad while reading the question/ passage. I don't even look at what i'm writing. It just slowed down my instinct to rush through and helped me register the material much better. Surprisingly this method fit well with the timing requirements in the verbal section. "...............

Sorry but I didnt get what you mean by "scribbled" here....

I'm bad in RC ...My reading speed is 95WPM...Can you give me some tips and tricks...

Thanks,
Ajay

onestepatatime wrote:thanks guys! i had to give back to the forum. hope someone benefits. before this it didn't occur to me that people would be so friendly, helpful and community oriented ("we're all in this together"). i got my score in part cuz of the forum. it rocks!

Hey man

It is quiet an inspiration to read your wealth of knowledge and emotional pain. It is inspirational. I will purchase many cat test and work hard.

(I almost give up on it before I read your blog today) Many thanks.

Jim

Hey Ajay,

When i'm reading a passage for RC, i tended to read very fast to save time. More often than not i did not 'comprehend' what was being said. That told me that i had to slow down and simultaneously improve my comprehension so i could answer the questions correctly.

So, i tried this -

While reading the passage i summarized what i comprehended on the notepad. I did this without taking my eyes off the computer screen. Essentially, i was only using the writing technique to comprehend what was written in the passage, versus making notes which i refer to while answering questions. I did not look at what i was writing throughout the verbal section.

Sometimes, depending on the passage, i diagrammed the passage to understand the logic and flow of arguments presented. Again, i did not really refer to what wrote while answering the questions.

I realised that the process of writing in itself was good enough for me to comprehend the passage well enough to answer the questions correctly.

What i saw on my notepad after the exam was nothing more than a 2 year old's scribble on blank paper.

Ajay, reading speed is of less importance than comprehension. Do try various techniques to understand how you comprehend best. It is ok to spend some more time reading so long as you comprehend what you are reading. Then answering the questions takes you far less time and your accuracy increases. If it was a short passage i knew i would get about 3 questions. I was comfortable spending 3 mins reading because i knew if i comprehended well i would not take more than 40-50 seconds to answer each question. After sufficient practice you'll get a good feel about what works for you.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes.

ajaypatil_am wrote:Hi onestepatatime,
Can you please explain your following strategy in detail:

"scribbled (more like diagramming what i am reading) on the pad while reading the question/ passage. I don't even look at what i'm writing. It just slowed down my instinct to rush through and helped me register the material much better. Surprisingly this method fit well with the timing requirements in the verbal section. "...............

Sorry but I didnt get what you mean by "scribbled" here....

I'm bad in RC ...My reading speed is 95WPM...Can you give me some tips and tricks...

Thanks,
Ajay

onestepatatime wrote:thanks guys! i had to give back to the forum. hope someone benefits. before this it didn't occur to me that people would be so friendly, helpful and community oriented ("we're all in this together"). i got my score in part cuz of the forum. it rocks!

Hey smalishah84,

Yes. It was critical. I forced myself to follow it. Every time i screwed up on the practice tests was because i was lenient with myself and thought i could make up lost time. Never happened for me. So i had to be strict with myself. And i did it even during the actual exam. There were a few occasions where i was a a minute or two behind, but i made it up in the immediately next time segment. I remember skipping a math question i could not figure out in the first attempt (~40 seconds). That actually did not shake my confidence because (a) i knew i was on top of time after the question (b) it could also be a dummy test question which does not count towards the score (c) next question i get will probably be easier.

Good luck!

smalishah84 wrote:Congratulations man. Did you really manage to have that super timing according to the grid that you made? Even in the real GMAT test?

Jim: Thank you. Don't give up. If i can, anyone can. Manhattan GMAT CAT Exams are very good for practice. Try to get hold of those. They have 6 online CAT exams. And of course, the best things in the world are free - the GMATPrep software. Good luck! Keep the forum posted on your progress!

LSB: Thank you!

Java_ka_jalwa: Quite a coincidence! Good score.. congratulations mate!

Clubtwofour: Thank you so much. I didn't make the HBS R1 750 shortlist. But it's ok. Competition is tough. I'll consider myself lucky if i get in any of the top schools. Whatever happens.. happens for the better, they say. All the best with your preparations as well!