First, thanks to the BeattheGmat forum - a friend recommended this site and I found it incredibly useful.
Here is a rundown of my study plan:
* 8 Week Kaplan Class: I did not find the actual classes to be that helpful in my prep for the GMAT. It gives a good overview of what the exam consists of, however, its not really geared towards the 700+ crowd. It does give you GREAT materials - they include the OG11, a Kaplan coursebook (which you cover in class), a Kaplan CD (which includes more practice questions) and a phenomenal online package (which includes 9 CATs and a plethora of practice questions). It also give you access to take an "Ultimate Practice Exam" - you get to go into your actual testing center and take a Kaplan CAT. For the $1350 price tag - I'm not sure if it is worth it though. I would see if you could purchase just the CATs or online modules.
* Kaplan CATS:
* Diagnostic Exam: 550 (I took this during the first Kaplan class with no studying whatsoever - I was crushed to get that score - 700 was so far away - but I think its pretty normal for the first Kaplan CAT.
* CAT1: 590 (I took about 4 weeks after the start of the Kaplan class with minimal studying outside of the class - I was relieved that I improved but still concerned that I was so far away from 700)
* CAT2: 580 (I took this 2 weeks after CAT1 and was crushed that my score went down!)
* CAT3: 660 (I took this after completing the Kaplan class and some outside studying - WOOHOO! Scored Q50 but was still having issues with verbal - particularly sentence correction)
* CAT4: 620 (Crushed again)
After taking 4 Kaplan CATs, I didn't feel confident as my scoring was somewhat random. A friend then recommended this site and I quickly learned that the Kaplan scoring was not the best indicator of scoring. Everyone recommended the OG11 (which I had only done a handful of problems) and I decided to explore taking the GMATPrep and ManhattanPrep.
GMATPrep1: 680 (Q49) (I was starting to feel better ... inching towards 700)
Manhattan Free Exam: 710 (WOOHOO! My first score over 700)
Manhattan CAT1: 700 (Slight bummed - the math seemed really hard)
Manhattan CAT2: 710 (Q49 - again the math seemed really hard)
OG11: Completed most of the problems in the book and then re-did the ones I missed.
GMATPrep2: I only took the Quant and scored Q49
I took the GMAT yesterday and scored a 690 (Q43, V41), which was lower than I anticipated. I think I did a little better than I thought I would on the Verbal (the sentence correction actually seemed easier than I thought; the RC was a little tricky - I got two of those ridiculous science passages; CR was about what I expected).
I think I started off the Quant section pretty strong and got some very difficult problems midway through the exam. Instead of making a few logical guesses and spending just 2-3 minutes on those problems (like I had been doing on the practice exams), I wasted time trying to solve them and ended up running out of time! I'm absolutely crushed because I've always scored strong in Quant and have a undergrad degree in Computer Engineering from a top school.
My profile:
Female / U.S.
B.S. Computer Engineering (top 3 program): GPA: 3.0
6 years of international work experience in sales, business development, and consulting (technology related)
I would like to apply to several top ten schools where the average on the GMAT is around 710. Should I retake the GMAT? Do schools look at both scores or only the most recent? Also, if for some reason I were to do worse than a 690 - would they count the highest score?
Again, a huge thanks to this forum! I wish I would have discovered it even earlier in my studies as it has been extremely helpful!
Here is a rundown of my study plan:
* 8 Week Kaplan Class: I did not find the actual classes to be that helpful in my prep for the GMAT. It gives a good overview of what the exam consists of, however, its not really geared towards the 700+ crowd. It does give you GREAT materials - they include the OG11, a Kaplan coursebook (which you cover in class), a Kaplan CD (which includes more practice questions) and a phenomenal online package (which includes 9 CATs and a plethora of practice questions). It also give you access to take an "Ultimate Practice Exam" - you get to go into your actual testing center and take a Kaplan CAT. For the $1350 price tag - I'm not sure if it is worth it though. I would see if you could purchase just the CATs or online modules.
* Kaplan CATS:
* Diagnostic Exam: 550 (I took this during the first Kaplan class with no studying whatsoever - I was crushed to get that score - 700 was so far away - but I think its pretty normal for the first Kaplan CAT.
* CAT1: 590 (I took about 4 weeks after the start of the Kaplan class with minimal studying outside of the class - I was relieved that I improved but still concerned that I was so far away from 700)
* CAT2: 580 (I took this 2 weeks after CAT1 and was crushed that my score went down!)
* CAT3: 660 (I took this after completing the Kaplan class and some outside studying - WOOHOO! Scored Q50 but was still having issues with verbal - particularly sentence correction)
* CAT4: 620 (Crushed again)
After taking 4 Kaplan CATs, I didn't feel confident as my scoring was somewhat random. A friend then recommended this site and I quickly learned that the Kaplan scoring was not the best indicator of scoring. Everyone recommended the OG11 (which I had only done a handful of problems) and I decided to explore taking the GMATPrep and ManhattanPrep.
GMATPrep1: 680 (Q49) (I was starting to feel better ... inching towards 700)
Manhattan Free Exam: 710 (WOOHOO! My first score over 700)
Manhattan CAT1: 700 (Slight bummed - the math seemed really hard)
Manhattan CAT2: 710 (Q49 - again the math seemed really hard)
OG11: Completed most of the problems in the book and then re-did the ones I missed.
GMATPrep2: I only took the Quant and scored Q49
I took the GMAT yesterday and scored a 690 (Q43, V41), which was lower than I anticipated. I think I did a little better than I thought I would on the Verbal (the sentence correction actually seemed easier than I thought; the RC was a little tricky - I got two of those ridiculous science passages; CR was about what I expected).
I think I started off the Quant section pretty strong and got some very difficult problems midway through the exam. Instead of making a few logical guesses and spending just 2-3 minutes on those problems (like I had been doing on the practice exams), I wasted time trying to solve them and ended up running out of time! I'm absolutely crushed because I've always scored strong in Quant and have a undergrad degree in Computer Engineering from a top school.
My profile:
Female / U.S.
B.S. Computer Engineering (top 3 program): GPA: 3.0
6 years of international work experience in sales, business development, and consulting (technology related)
I would like to apply to several top ten schools where the average on the GMAT is around 710. Should I retake the GMAT? Do schools look at both scores or only the most recent? Also, if for some reason I were to do worse than a 690 - would they count the highest score?
Again, a huge thanks to this forum! I wish I would have discovered it even earlier in my studies as it has been extremely helpful!
.
