Thanks for the encouragement Paul, I've really enjoyed reading your posts throughout this forum...
Here's a break down of the problems,
AWA,
Usual stuff, as long as you can make up some type of arugment I think you're okay. I found that it helps to not type right away but to outline your argument with a few bullet point on paper, then you can start typing away and not get writer's block.
Quant,
Started out pretty easy then got hit with a counting problem, one that's similar to what I've seen before, (hint: handshakes), I couldn't get my head around it and lost focus. Got a few sequence problems, a few geometry problem (less than I thought), lots of word problems that take time to read and understand what they are asking for. I didn't get any probability and combination problems (which I was well prepared for) probably because I missed a couple questions earlier on. All in all, the concepts tested were fairly standard, but ETS would group several concepts into one problem, so you'd have decipher the steps, and attack accordingly. Timing was also a concern for me, On practice tests, I was able to finish the quant section with 10+ min left, even on the Kaplan ones, so I didn't worry as much about timing on the real thing. This was mistake as I found myself wasting 8 minutes on a problem and when I completed the problem the time had already run down so I had to hurry thought the last few.
Verbal,
During the test I actually didn't think the verbal was any more difficult than
OG, I even thought the SC were easier, I was able eliminate wrong choices pretty easily and come up with one answer, but now I think the SC's were probably trickier than they appear, leading you to a wrong choice while the right one is hidden in some unusual sentence structure that causes you to eliminate that choice. I got hit with back to back RC's, the first one was Q4 it was a 45 liner then followed by another 45 liner. The RC's weren't too bad, 4 in all, the last one a 80 liner around Q32, and CR's (unusually my strong point) were a bit more challenging than the
OG but I was able to pick an answer pretty easily. I got a bold face and had to really focus, but looking back I probably didn't get that one right.
In conclusion, I think the GMAT definitely tests your ability to handle stress, and it's good to get the first one out of the way so I know what the expect. I plan on going back and reviewing some of the mid-level quant concepts and problems, I think I started to focus too much on the harder stuff like probablility/cominations etc towards the end,... and lost track of the more basic concepts. Does anyone have recommendation on how to approach a second test and when to take it? Thanks.