I was shooting for a 760+, but I am more than happy with my 750. Breakdown is as follows:
Q50 - 95th percentile
V40- 89th percentile
Total- 750 98th percentile
This time around, I concentrated on doing lots of GMATPreps and Paper Tests (I sometimes work in areas without computer access). I also did all 25 of the Challenges, which I thought were a huuuge help. All of my 5 GMATPreps were 760, 770, or 780. I did start to see a lot of repeats towards the final tests so I attribute my 770/780 to that. Furthermore, all of my paper tests (took 6 in total) ranged from 740 to 790 with most of them in the 750-760 range. I took two
Manhattan GMAT CATs and got a 680 and 720. I also went through the Kaplan 800 books and Manhattan SC guide (again).
Now for test day. I got a solid 9 hours of sleep last night. My exam was scheduled for 1215, but I woke up around 730. Rather than just pace around the house, I ran a whole bunch of errands to keep my mind off the test. I was especially mindful of what I ate too. I had some apples and bananas for my early breakfast and then hashbrows, sausage, and eggs for my main breakfast. I also didn't drink any water after 1130 because nothing kills your concentration more than having to pee. I drove 30 minutes to my test location and arrived 15 minutes early. I emptied my bladder twice to ensure that I did not have to pee. I also had another banana to keep the stomach happy. I got to sit in my own little room, which was awesome! I felt pretty good about the essays, took a break, went to pee twice, and had an apple before I started the quant. I have to admit, I was surprised at how easy the quant was- I only saw one probability question and one combined rate problem. But then again, I didn't get a 51, so I must've made some little mistakes here and there. I finished up the quant with 19 seconds left and took my break I did the same routine- peed twice and had another apple. I normally fly through the verbal, so I made it a point to pace myself. There were a couple tricky SC problems here and there, but I was able to narrow down my answer to two choices every time. The passages weren't that bad and not nearly as long as the ones found in the
Manhattan GMAT CATs. I finished with 9 minutes left and had to review my background questions, which is extremely agonizing when all you want is to see your score. I clicked through the questions and up popped my score- 750!
I know some will question whether all the effort I put in was worth a 30 point increase. To that, I say yes! I didn't have a great GPA so I need all the help I can get with regards to the other aspects of my application. Plus, I'd like to go into consulting and I know the top firms are very mindful of your score. But the number one reason I retook the test is because I may decide to stay in the military for two more years than I originally planned and this gives me the option to do so. To those of you who already scored a 700+ and are thinking about taking it again, I say more power to you. Thanks again to everyone in this community- you all were a big help. Best of luck to everyone.