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bschool2014
14 Aug 2011, 15:31
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I took the test yesterday and scored a 720 (Q50, V37). Here is the debrief as I had promised earlier. I'm quitted disappointed with the score, but before I delve into it, I'll give you all a little background along with the run up to the exam.
Background
Non-native speaker, engineering background.
Study Material
MGMAT strategy guides
OG12
Verbal Review
GMATPrep
MGMAT CAT
and of course this forum!!
I started my GMAT prep in early March and I started with Verbal. I focussed mostly on SC initially and later did some preparation for CR and RC. I found CR and RC quite easy as I worked through OG12. If I remember correct, I had over 90% accuracy in both. I continued to work through the MGMAT SC book and the OG12 questions. I wouldn't call this phase of my preparation serious. I was interrupted mostly by work - we have had record attrition this year - and by some stuff going on in my personal life. I didn't study much past mid April. I again started studying seriously from mid June and by mid July I felt was ready to give my first CAT. During this period in June, I focussed on SC and some CR, but also brushed up on my quant. I took the first GMATPrep on July 18 and scored a 750 and at this point I felt I was ready to take the exam over the course of the next 3-4 weeks.
Practice Scores
GMATPrep - 1 750(Q50, V40)
MGMAT-1 750(Q48, V45)
MGMAT-2 710(Q48, V39)
MGMAT-3 750(Q48, V45)
MGMAT-4 780(Q51, V45)
MGMAT-5 780(Q51, V45)
GMATPrep - 2 760(Q49, V45) - Exactly 1 week prior to the test.
All of the above CATs were taken in the last 4 weeks.
Actual test - 720(Q50, V37)
Test Day Experience
I'm a coffee drinker and I usually get my last caffeine fix for the day at around 5:30 pm. I had my last cup at around 2pm and left for the test center. My plan was to get a Starbuck coffee just before the test, but as luck would have it the nearest Starbucks was closed and I couldn't find another coffee shop around. So I decided to go in without the caffeine. I'm not sure if this played a role in my poor concentration in the verbal section.
I started the test at around 5:15 pm and cranked out 2 essays for the AWA. I didn't have any difficulty organizing my thoughts; I think I did pretty well on the essays. I then took a break and splashed some cold water on my face; I also has a chocolate bar, banana and some gatorade. I then divided into the quant section. The quant section was OK, largely in line with GMATPrep - I even had a couple of repeats with different numbers. I also got a couple of hard DS problems; I had to guess on one of them in the interest of time. I was chugging along quite comfortably when I got a string of hard questions. If I remember correct, they started around question 30. I had to guess a hard PS geometry question, but I was able to complete the section on time. I wasn't sure how I did in the quant section - I felt I didn't do well enough and was a little worried about my score. I then took another break - ate some chocolate, a banana and drank some gatorade, peed and got back 3 minutes early for the verbal section.
By the time I was on question #2 on the verbal section, I was glassy eyed. I just couldn't keep my eyes on the screen; Even though my eyes were scanning the text, I was taking very little in. I had to read, re-read and re-read the RC passages and CR arguments to the point where I was happy to see a SC. By the time I reached question # 20 on the verbal section, I wanted the exam to end. I was very tired and felt I had poor concentration. As the score flashed, I couldn't believe what I saw - V37!! Its my lowest verbal score till date and one of my lowest overall scores!
I don't think the questions on the verbal were significantly harder or different from the practice tests. I think they were mostly in line with the practice tests, especially GMATPrep. I really don't know what went wrong. It could be a number of things - stress, excessive practice in the last week leading to a burn out, test timing, scores peaking a week too early, lack of caffeine etc. Nevertheless, I'm bummed and I don't know what I want to do at this point. I fall in the Indian IT category and feel I don't have much in my profile to distinguish myself from the crowd. More importantly though, I feel this score doesn't truly represent my abilities. Not sure if I should retake the test, but even if I do I'm not sure how I should prepare. At this point, I've exhausted all of my prep material - MGMAT, GMATPrep, OG12, verbal review - and have very little material left.
Takeaways
Unfortunately, I don't have much to say here. I've failed my own expectations and I don't think I'm qualified to advice others. If I figured out what exactly went wrong, I may be able to give you a Don'ts list, but I'm not exactly sure what went wrong and what I could have done differently. I can give you my study plan, but then you could end up like me if you followed it.
Nonetheless, this forum has been a rock bed of support and I wish everyone here the very best. Special thanks to whiplash and slingfox for the notes, bunuel for quant strategies, akhileshgupta05, chineseburned for the AWA template and bb for bringing us all together.
Background
Non-native speaker, engineering background.
Study Material
MGMAT strategy guides
OG12
Verbal Review
GMATPrep
MGMAT CAT
and of course this forum!!
I started my GMAT prep in early March and I started with Verbal. I focussed mostly on SC initially and later did some preparation for CR and RC. I found CR and RC quite easy as I worked through OG12. If I remember correct, I had over 90% accuracy in both. I continued to work through the MGMAT SC book and the OG12 questions. I wouldn't call this phase of my preparation serious. I was interrupted mostly by work - we have had record attrition this year - and by some stuff going on in my personal life. I didn't study much past mid April. I again started studying seriously from mid June and by mid July I felt was ready to give my first CAT. During this period in June, I focussed on SC and some CR, but also brushed up on my quant. I took the first GMATPrep on July 18 and scored a 750 and at this point I felt I was ready to take the exam over the course of the next 3-4 weeks.
Practice Scores
GMATPrep - 1 750(Q50, V40)
MGMAT-1 750(Q48, V45)
MGMAT-2 710(Q48, V39)
MGMAT-3 750(Q48, V45)
MGMAT-4 780(Q51, V45)
MGMAT-5 780(Q51, V45)
GMATPrep - 2 760(Q49, V45) - Exactly 1 week prior to the test.
All of the above CATs were taken in the last 4 weeks.
Actual test - 720(Q50, V37)
Test Day Experience
I'm a coffee drinker and I usually get my last caffeine fix for the day at around 5:30 pm. I had my last cup at around 2pm and left for the test center. My plan was to get a Starbuck coffee just before the test, but as luck would have it the nearest Starbucks was closed and I couldn't find another coffee shop around. So I decided to go in without the caffeine. I'm not sure if this played a role in my poor concentration in the verbal section.
I started the test at around 5:15 pm and cranked out 2 essays for the AWA. I didn't have any difficulty organizing my thoughts; I think I did pretty well on the essays. I then took a break and splashed some cold water on my face; I also has a chocolate bar, banana and some gatorade. I then divided into the quant section. The quant section was OK, largely in line with GMATPrep - I even had a couple of repeats with different numbers. I also got a couple of hard DS problems; I had to guess on one of them in the interest of time. I was chugging along quite comfortably when I got a string of hard questions. If I remember correct, they started around question 30. I had to guess a hard PS geometry question, but I was able to complete the section on time. I wasn't sure how I did in the quant section - I felt I didn't do well enough and was a little worried about my score. I then took another break - ate some chocolate, a banana and drank some gatorade, peed and got back 3 minutes early for the verbal section.
By the time I was on question #2 on the verbal section, I was glassy eyed. I just couldn't keep my eyes on the screen; Even though my eyes were scanning the text, I was taking very little in. I had to read, re-read and re-read the RC passages and CR arguments to the point where I was happy to see a SC. By the time I reached question # 20 on the verbal section, I wanted the exam to end. I was very tired and felt I had poor concentration. As the score flashed, I couldn't believe what I saw - V37!! Its my lowest verbal score till date and one of my lowest overall scores!
I don't think the questions on the verbal were significantly harder or different from the practice tests. I think they were mostly in line with the practice tests, especially GMATPrep. I really don't know what went wrong. It could be a number of things - stress, excessive practice in the last week leading to a burn out, test timing, scores peaking a week too early, lack of caffeine etc. Nevertheless, I'm bummed and I don't know what I want to do at this point. I fall in the Indian IT category and feel I don't have much in my profile to distinguish myself from the crowd. More importantly though, I feel this score doesn't truly represent my abilities. Not sure if I should retake the test, but even if I do I'm not sure how I should prepare. At this point, I've exhausted all of my prep material - MGMAT, GMATPrep, OG12, verbal review - and have very little material left.
Takeaways
Unfortunately, I don't have much to say here. I've failed my own expectations and I don't think I'm qualified to advice others. If I figured out what exactly went wrong, I may be able to give you a Don'ts list, but I'm not exactly sure what went wrong and what I could have done differently. I can give you my study plan, but then you could end up like me if you followed it.
Nonetheless, this forum has been a rock bed of support and I wish everyone here the very best. Special thanks to whiplash and slingfox for the notes, bunuel for quant strategies, akhileshgupta05, chineseburned for the AWA template and bb for bringing us all together.
whiplash2411
Joined: 09 Jun 2010
Last visit: 02 Mar 2015
Posts: 1,761
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 210
Status:Three Down.
Concentration: General Management, Nonprofit
Schools: HBS '17 (M) Stanford '17 (A)
14 Aug 2011, 15:55
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Bookmarks
While I see where your disappointment is coming from, a 720 is, by no means a bad score! V 37 is still over the 80th percentile, right? Depending on which rounds you're planning to apply in, you still have the opportunity to retake if you must. But I think this score will definitely fall into the average range of most schools. Good luck!
bschool2014
14 Aug 2011, 15:58
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Thanks whiplash! On all my practice tests, I scored a V45, except for one test in which I scored a V39. What happened yesterday was quite unexpected!
