4 hrs prep..TOEFL 112 - Debrief

Hello everyone!

I took toefl before taking gmat..My toefl score is 112.
Reading - 30
Writing - 29
Listening - 29
Speaking - 24

I had just 3 weeks of preparation time for gmat. and I had to take toefl between those 3 weeks. I ended up having just the evening before toefl to prepare. To add to it, i was totally unaware about the sections or the type of questions.

Youtube videos are a great source for anyone preparing for toefl. I got to know a lot about the type of questions,
and the way of answering them. Great tips about structuring the essays, speaking in a cogent and coherent manner are given. The numerous listening and speaking examples are enough to get you through toefl.
Please do not take speaking lightly. Practice speaking questions. Ask your friend to judge or you may even record it and learn from from your mistakes.

The exam day:

I got 5 RCs, 20 mins each..they were enough to take the life out of me! I was hoping the RC I wss answering would be the last, but they kept coming up one after the other! The last question of every RC was of 2 pts, while the last question of the last RC was of 3 pts! I preferred to read the passage first, before answering. They were pretty simple. If you are preparing for GMAT, you can breeze through this section!

Then came the listening section. I went too much into noting specific details, which was not that necessay.

Then came the much deserved 10 min break..after almost 140 mins..

Speaking section followed.. Could hear random voices all over the place, but concentrating can make you focus and speak well. Lack of much practice lead to a modest score of 24.

Writing was not that tough. I'd advise to write as much as possible, but don't simply keep beating around the bush.
I wrote much more than the word limit, giving examples and valid points.

Alas, it was over after 4-4.5 hrs! I got out totally exhausted..

My advise: don't panic much about toefl. It's simple stuff. Practice speaking. Watch youtube videos on specific sections. Read tips and debriefs.

All the best!

Cheers
Ateeth