EDIT (July'21): Heading to Wharton ('21-'23) with $$$
Including some pertinent links here:
Link for notes & questions:
https://goo.gl/forms/kF4zVpUaSl10R1p12If you'd like 1-1 help, then please leave me a PM to book a slot! I work with people on a monthly basis with limited slots, so please do book your slot in advance. Alternatively you can DM me on IG with your details @samiyanasim.
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Hey guys,
I am extremely happy to be finally done with the GMAT, and wanted to share my experiences with the forum that has been so helpful in my journey.
Warning: Long post ahead!
Background:
Indian Engineer, Female, 22. Recently joined as at a data analyst at one of the top consulting firms.
Starting Off:
(October 2017) I quit my job and moved back home to take a break for a few months to work on some other engagements. The GMAT was something that had been pending for a while, so I felt there was no better time to tackle the biggest fear I had. Despite being an Indian Engineer(Stereotype!), I was absolutely terrified about Quant. I've had a mental block against Math since school (bad teachers), and have never loved the subject since then. In fact, if you take me by surprise and throw simple arithmetic at me, my brain shuts down and refuses to process any numbers!
So I decided to join classes because I felt classes would help me a bit more disciplined in my approach. Especially considering that I was at home for most of the day, classes helped me get out and have some human interaction. I also needed some help brushing up my basic Quant concepts. I joined the Jamboree Classes in Chennai, Nungambakkam after hearing good things about their Quant classes. The classes were a good Quant refresher, and the materials allowed me to get in some practice. I was getting in 2-3 hours per day (combining Quant + Verbal). I attended classes for about 6 weeks, until the end of November and booked my exam for the 29th of December.
I started writing some Mock tests by the end of November. I occasionally struggled with Quant timing, but was finishing Verbal with 20-30mins to spare. In Quant, I tended to struggle with Data Sufficiency and silly mistakes in PS. In Verbal, I was pretty comfortable with RC's and to some extent CR. However, I really struggled with SC as my English was "colloquial" and more about the "feel" of the sentence. <Tip: It doesn't work that way in the GMAT!> I attended a couple of
EGmat webinars and their meaning based approach to the sentences really helped me turn a corner in my SC preparation. The
EGmat Team was super helpful, and I bought their SC course. I did not have time to finish the entire course (Mid Dec already), but it helped me get some finer points right, such as the usage of "Like" vs "As". Honestly, the Webinar made the majority of the difference. Kudos to the team for having so many free webinars with such great content.
Where it all went wrong:
My GMAT Mock test scores were pretty encouraging as I only scored 750 or above. One would think that I was all set for the exam. Yet, I managed to completely psych myself out for my first attempt. Not being satisfied with the GMAT Mock scores, despite reading tons of reviews about its accuracy, I started trying to find reviews that told me that actual GMAT was a lot harder than the GMAT Prep Mocks. I managed to convince myself that all the scores in the mock tests were mere flukes, and that the actual test would be a lot harder. I was targeting a 750+ score, but at the same time, I framed anything below a 750, as an absolute failure. I had nightmares about scoring a 760 which converted to a 560 in front of my eyes.
My first attempt:
I was extremely anxious and fidgety prior to my first attempt. I was finding it difficult to focus on my preparation without absolutely psyching myself out. In my first attempt, I chose the order of sections as: Quant, Verbal, IR and AWA.
I struggled in the Quant section, especially in the beginning. The timing was a struggle and I often caught myself making a lot of silly mistakes. The verbal section went fine. I scored a 740(Q49,V44).
I know it's a great score, but because I had framed anything below a 750 as an "absolute abject failure" in my head, I was devastated after the exam. I had never scored below a Q50 in the mocks, and felt that the split was quite skewed. It felt as if all my fears about my Quant abilities were well founded. All in all, it was quite upsetting. More here:
https://gmatclub.com/forum/retaking-a-7 ... l#p2004508The Recovery:
Immediately after the exam, I took a holiday and tried to forget all about this disaster. I was torn between writing the GMAT again immediately, or just forgetting about it till I absolutely needed a score. My mum suggested I write it again at the earliest, as she felt I had probably made a ton of silly mistakes in Quant as I was very stressed and anxious. She wasn't very familiar with the GMAT syllabus, but knew me well enough to make the assessment. The ESR I ordered only confirmed what she said (Mom's are always right!). I had a higher accuracy in DS, compared to PS which was completely contrary to all my Mock tests. I spoke to a couple of my mentors and chose to write the exam this weekend (Jan 27 2018, in 15 days), despite the fact that I had started my new job and would not have much time to study.
The Comeback:
This time, I kept myself occupied with my job, but managed to get in an hour a day for a week. I mostly focused on Quant, and tried to answer sets of 37 questions so that I could improve my timing. I still often caught myself spending 5 minutes on a question, refusing to give up on an "easy" question. In the final week, I felt I had made no improvements, and resigned myself to a "wasted GMAT attempt". I considered rescheduling, but it was too late. I still decided to at least try for the sake of the 250$. I would get in an hour or two before office in the morning, before revising the mistakes before I slept in the night. My exam was in the morning, so I wanted to teach my body to be "alert" during that time.
D-Day:
The exam day could not have been more dramatic. I could barely sleep the previous night thanks to nightmares about failing the GMAT again (a Q37 featured in there too). On the morning of the exam, I couldn't find my passport for a good hour, and had almost resigned myself to not writing the exam. However, by some miracle, I found the passport and made it to the center on time. Because my zen had gone for a toss thanks to all these events, my mom suggested I write Verbal first because it would give me a chance to calm myself down and get into "exam mode". I started with Verbal, but my brain was incredibly restless as I had never changed the order of sections before. I would catch myself reading the RC on auto pilot whilst my brain would be trying to remember Quant formulas. I only finished the exam with 1 minute to spare, unlike my usual attempts. The questions seemed harder as well, but I thought it was all in my head as I couldn't focus.
In Quant, I was extremely careful about time, and wrote down the time when I started each question. It took me 2 seconds extra per question, but it allowed me to catch myself before spending 5minutes on a question. I also tried to work neatly, and make tables for DS questions. <Tip: They really help!> I finished the section with a minute to spare as well. All in all, I hadn't done Quant very badly.
I finished IR and AWA in a blur, but somewhere I felt that this time I had flunked Verbal. When the score flashed on the screen, I couldn't believe it. A 780 with 48 in Verbal?! What? A Q50? REDEMPTION!! I was literally shaking when I came out of the exam hall and couldn't believe my score till I held the print out in my hand. I had never expected to score so well.
Key Takeaways:
- Do NOT psych yourself out. I honestly felt my "knowledge" didn't change even a bit between my first attempt and second. It was all about my mental approach to the exam. There is a fine line between doing research and becoming a nervous wreck.
- Be aware of your flaws and choose your order of sections carefully. Yet at the same time, I would advise against trying a new order on D Day.
- Attend classes if you need discipline, but the concepts of the GMAT aren't too hard. I had a small notebook that had all the Quant and SC concepts consolidated that I used for revision (About 70pages), and that's all I frankly needed. The quant section often has a lot tricks and traps that you need to be aware of. <If anyone needs my consolidated study material, please fill in the link below>
- Be calm before the exam and keep all your paperwork and ID ready.
- It's good to set targets but not good to make your goals absolutely binary. 1- celebration; 0- absolute failure.
- Have someone to study with. I often had Skype study sessions with a friend just to help me focus. He would do his work and I would do mine, but having someone around helped me.
- Figure out a timing strategy that works for you, and use tables for DS.
- Speak to someone who has done this before. It helps to discuss your fears and thoughts with someone who has walked this path before. I was lucky enough to have a mentor who was an absolute gem and was always around to try to calm me down.
Well, that's it! I'm happy to share any material you guys want, or help in any other way I can.
Link for notes & questions:
https://goo.gl/forms/kF4zVpUaSl10R1p12EDIT: PS. You'll receive within 24hours as it's an automated process. I don't logon very regularly, so this is the fastest method.
EDIT1:
Since I've received an influx of messages on different platforms, I've decided to keep editing the post to answer some key questions and have included my ESR in the post.
1. Resources used:
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Official Guide, esp. for Verbal. Did it at least thrice.
- Jamboree Classes, esp. for Quant. I also needed classes to help regulate my day since sometimes I can get a bit lazy. If you're one of those extremely self disciplined folks, classes are not a must.
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EGmat - SC. Loved their Webinar. Would highly recommend.
- Official
OG tests - I did all 6 tests. Tried taking a couple of other tests but didn't enjoy the experience.
2. What do I mean by Tables for DS?
Used for Yes/No questions. Put in the constraint in the columns, and the rows are S1, S2 & both. You can indicate whether or not you're able to get a definitive answer for each row. Nothing complex, but just helped me clear my thoughts and not get confused.
3. Time trick for Quant.
Speak about in detail here:
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/ur ... 8809721856
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Updated on: 21 Jul 2021, 13:23
Samiya Nasim_ESR_780.pdf [444.23 KiB] 
