Yes, I am done. Unofficial score:
Quantitative: 47 (81 percentile)
Verbal: 41 (93 percentile)
Total: 710 (94 percentile)
I am a Norwegian who is currently learning Mandarin in Beijing. I hold 2 masters degrees, and am now contemplating a DBA in Strategy. However, I'm pretty busy, have only had time to study for the GMAT over the last 3-4 weeks, the first few weeks only on Friday evenings and Saturdays (maybe 10 hours pr week). The week before the test I also studied on the Monday, Friday and Saturday. I was worried sick all along. Took the Sunday before the test off, went to the center, which was closed, but at least I saw where it was so didn't have to worry about finding the place on test day.
Background & material
- Did the GMAT 5 years ago, got 600. Back then I only used the 9th
OG.
- Did all exercises in the 10th ed and some chapters of Kaplan 2004 1.5 years ago.
- This spring I did one Princeton test and a couple of chapters in the Princeton book. Princeton was a waste of money. If you're aiming for 550-600 up from 200-450 it might be of help.
- 3-4 weeks before the test I started preparing 'more seriously', I worked myself through the Kaplan 800 book once. It's pretty hard, but I like that it's more serious and analytically oriented than most of the other kindergarden-books. Did not open the
OG this time, would have liked to but just didnt have time for it.
Practise test results:
Princeton 1: 670 Q43 V40 (spring 05 - saved the screenshot)
Kaplan Diagnostic: 650 (2 weeks before the test)
Kaplan 1: 550 Q33 V31 (1 week before the test)
Kaplan 2: 570 Q31 V36 (1 week before the test)
Powerprep 1: 680 Q46 V38 (1 week before the test)
Kaplan 3: 560 Q32 V35 (5 days before the test)
Kaplan 4: 550 Q32 V33 (3 days before the test)
Princeton 2: 640 Q34 V44 (3 days before the test)
One thing I am surprised by is my inconsistency, sometimes my quant is decent, sometimes it's bad. Sometimes my verbal is decent, sometimes it's bad. I don't believe I have any particularly strong weaknesses or strengths. Sometimes I score very well on CR, sometimes I score very well on SC. I usually never get all right on RC. Maybe DS can be said to be a weakness, I just mix everything up, all the criterions. I also have a kind of brain that is fully capable of making the following kind of calculation: 5+6=56, or get stuck on i.e. 42:7=?. But to make up for that, I'm getting pretty good at factoring and reducing fractions
My strategy:
- Study with the hardest questions. Understand why you fail. Remember the correct/smartest methodology. Try to find more than one methodology to solve each question. Do the questions that you got wrong again in the following week.
- After each test, go through all the exercises again, this time with no time-limit. Should take alot less time anyway. The purpose is to see whether there are better method of solving the q's one got right, to understand why one got some wrong and how best to solve these. It's also smart to perfect ones techniques for guessing (improving ones' odds).
- Check out the center before taking the test.
- On the test day: take the breaks.
- Use POE, esp on CR and SC. If helpful, plug in on PS Qs.
I think it's possible to get 750+, but also think that for the apps there are other things that are more important than the GMAT score. 710 is sufficient, even for the top tier unis.
(Feel free to ask questions, I will answer as best I can)