Debrief: 780 (Q50, V47)

Hi all, I have been following along at GMATclub for the past few months as I’ve quietly prepped for the GMAT. I sat down for the exam this weekend, got the score I wanted, and celebrated all afternoon (conveniently I timed my GMAT with St. Patrick’s Day weekend, so there were plenty of celebration libations)! With the GMAT behind me, I look forward to actively contributing here to help others get through the GMAT, and to continue to rely on all of you as I work on my own prep for the next phases of applying.

Now a bit on where I started and what I did to prepare, with the hopes that someone here can find something useful.

1. My Background

Undergraduate Degree: Top 20, Engineering
Work Experience: 3.5 years total experience at present, primarily in a manufacturing/engineering environment. Some engineering, mainly supply chain analysis.
MBA hopes and dreams: Looking at an Operations/Production Management concentration. Interested in Operations management or Operations consulting.

2. My Starting Point (false start in January 2013, then the real start in January 2015)

I first took a practice GMAT in 2013 using GMATPrep software. I scored a 740 after briefly reading the test format but otherwise going in cold. I considered preparing to take the exam that year so that I would have the score if/when I ever decided to apply to programs, but other priorities took over.

Fall of 2014 comes around, still no moves on the GMAT, but I started to think that an MBA was going to be the right path after all. I came across a wonderful program, specifically for women, called “Forte MBALaunch,” that creates a structured approach for preparing for the GMAT and preparing all other elements in the MBA application. I received notification that I was accepted to the MBALaunch Program in December for a January program start, so I set January 1, 2015 as my personal start date for GMAT prep.

3. My Strategy – My schedule, resources, methods for maintaining sanity

I like schedules, I like planning, and I like practicing/doing drills. Comes with the territory of being in operations and with playing sports. So those traits very much guided my study methods. Here’s what I did.

End Goal:

1. I set a goal score of 750. I wanted my GMAT to be the strongest element in my application, since my work experience may be viewed as being a bit soft. My initial scores indicated that target was very possible, so my focus was about becoming consistent and really understanding the types of questions I might see.
2. I set a date of March 28. I booked my exam way earlier (almost 3 months) than is necessary from a date availability standpoint, but I wanted to have a specific timeline to work toward. You’ll note if you check this posting’s date that I ended up revising that timeline…

Schedule: I took the giant ‘ol chalkboard in my apartment and mapped out my routine

(Had to erase my mapping of the Evolution of the Rock Supergroup to do this. Sad.).

MONDAYS: (OFF) Research Schools
TUESDAYS: Live GMAT Prep Webinar (through Forte, but usually provided by Veritas, Target Test Prep, or Manhattan GMAT), Reading Comp, Yoga
WEDNESDAYS: DS and Sentence Correction, E-mail/Catch up with References, GYM
THURSDAYS: PS and CR, Run
FRIDAYS: Recorded GMAT Prep Webinar, GYM
SATURDAYS: Full-length Exam or practice sets, Run
SUNDAYS: Quant Skills review, Yoga

Resources:

I did not purchase any courses because I had a strong score in my diagnostic, however I did purchase several books and used many of the free practice exam resources that so many on GMATClub have shared.

1.Books
Kaplan 2013 GMAT Premier – I had this book from a few years back. I read through most of the chapters and practice questions as my first introduction to the GMAT.
OG 2015 – I didn’t buy this until about 3 weeks before my exam. I wanted some extra practice with real questions, particularly for RC. Great resource, but not necessary just because there really are a lot of free questions sources online.
PowerScore Critical Reasoning Bible – A few of my initial tests showed CR to be a weakness. This and a few other posts pointed me to PowerScore. I really liked reading through this one, and I think it also helped me to dissect the argument for the AWA.
(Online) – TargetTest Prep – I used the number properties review and a few other math review chapters to go over concepts, using a limited time trial. Great resources.

2. Exams/Practice Q’s
GMATPrep – I also purchased Question Set 1, to get two additional exams. Scores (from this year):
• 1/18/15 - 740 (49Q, 42V)
• 2/13/15 - 770 (50Q, 46V)
Veritas – I found their exams to be the great prep from a challenge standpoint. The verbal scores definitely come out a bit inflated. Scores:
• 1/24/15 - 790 (49Q, 50V)
• 3/4/15 – 800 (50Q, 51V)
• 3/8/15 – 800 (50Q, 51V)
• 3/12/15 – 8 IR, 50Q (Only did half a test)

GMATClub! – I used the forums to seek out individual questions to practice, sometimes clicking specifically on 700-level tags

Some other strategies

1. I went to cafes/coffee shops over dinner so that I could leave the house to focus on studying. For me, this is like going to the gym. Once I physically go somewhere to accomplish a task, I am much more focused once I am there. I was very committed to bringing my lunch in to work so that my dining expenses didn’t skyrocket by eating out several nights a week.
2. For practice exams, I typically stayed at home, and I actually welcomed having moderate distractions. I wanted my test environment on Test Day to feel more comfortable than anything I prepped with. I had music on in the background, My roommates sometimes played darts outside my bedroom door, lots of things going on.
3. I liked doing 5 question warm-up sessions. Before my work day, during lunch, or right before a practice exam, I did a few quick questions from one of my above resources just to wake the brain up.
4. I didn’t time myself all that much. In the first several practice exams I took, I ran out of time on Quant, and had an excess of time on Verbal. For Quant, as I reviewed number properties and practiced questions more and more, I felt myself getting quicker and didn’t feel a need to track it too intensely. I did the standard time check after 10 questions, making sure I still had 55-60 minutes left.
5. Aside from days where I took full-length exams, I never studied for more than ~1-1.5 hours. Beyond that point, I knew I would become unproductive and exhausted. I have seen posters here take many different approaches on this one, all based on personal schedules, # weeks before test date, etc. For me personally, it was more digestible to study a little bit every day.
6. I saw an interesting tip from someone on the boards here, and used it in my final week (sorry, can’t find the original post): Take multiple sections back-to-back to build up endurance. I did two Veritas practice exams over two days. I did Quant for both exams back-to-back, took the 8 minute break, did one Verbal on day 1, then finished the other verbal on day 2. I don’t know if that exercise helped or not, but it certainly was an interesting strategy.
7. Visualizations. I had coaches when I was an athlete who tried to get me to visualize success on the field (hitting a double, making a diving catch down the right field line…) I was terrible at it. But I decided to try visualing success on the GMAT just for kicks. When I went to the gym, I’d hop on an elliptical for 20 minutes and picture the GMAT screen on the wall in front of me. I played out the different sections in order, making up example questions in my mind and practicing eliminating answers, etc. I’d cap off each test run with myself clicking that final time and seeing my score. I actually got pretty into it. I only almost fell off the elliptical once.
8. Motivations. I get excited when I answer a Data Sufficiency question right or when I realize I can quickly factor a number down to its primes and solve something more quickly, I really do… but sometimes I got stressed or just plain exhausted as I was prepping. My personal motivator to re-start my enthusiasm for the test was to picture myself at one of my target schools – living in a new city, working on project teams, doing site visits at prominent companies, exploring and building a new career. After geeking out on those possibilities for a little while, I always found I was able to get back to studying. For anyone finding it hard to commit to a study schedule, I recommend you think about why you really want an MBA and what it is that can always kick start your efforts.

4. Game Day

• At some point about 3-4 weeks before my planned test date, I became anxious to get the exam done. My impending GMAT was becoming a distraction to my work, and my work was a distraction to my GMAT. I felt ready, my scores were good and getting pretty consistent. I still had some room to improve on Verbal, but the effort that would probably be needed to maybe scratch out one or two extra points on the raw score just didn’t seem worth it. So on Wednesday, March 11, I paid the $50 and moved my test up to Saturday, March 14. That escalated things quickly!
• Two Days before the exam
Did one last partial practice exam (IR + Quant)
This was my first ever IR practice. This was a bit risky, I recognize that. But I trusted that my PS and DS studying would give me all of the preparation I needed.
Went to the gym for a pretty light workout, did one last round of visualizing that killer score.
• Day before the exam
Left work early so that I could have a nice, long evening to relax
Went for a short jog in the afternoon and then just walked the neighborhood listening to my game day pump-up playlist.
My roommate cooked dinner – he researched brain foods and everything, it was adorable. Went to sleep at 10 pm.
Did NOT do any GMAT studying
• Game Day
Made a quick smoothie prepared by the same roommate (seriously, roommate of the year awards are in order for this kid) for breakfast on my way out the door (8 am test)
Packed diluted Gatorade, a string cheese, a banana, and some cashews for fuel during test breaks
Quadruple checked that I had my ID packed.
Listened to my pump up playlist (willing to craft one for anyone who needs some sweet jams) as I drove out to the testing center, about 30 minutes away
Got there over an hour early, with the intent to sit at starbucks and do my 5-question warm up to get the brain going. Of course, Starbucks didn’t open until 8 that day (curse those financial districts on weekends). I did not see that coming… So I had to power walk a mile to go get some caffeine. Walking got the blood pumping at least.
Checked in to the test center 30 minutes before the exam. There were about 8 other people in there already, a handful for GMAT I think.
Test time! I went into attack mode.
--> I did lunges and stretching during my breaks, and had small bites of my snacks.
--> I made a concerted effort to smile from the time I checked in to the time I completed my exam. This is the best piece of advice I got from anyone during my test prep. Just smile! I made notes to myself and drew smiley faces when I completed various parts of the exam, maybe a bit overboard, but as you are I’m sure aware, one can get a bit loopy after a lot of GMAT activity.

And then, well, I received my score – 780. I was thrilled. I half-ran to my car where I had left my phone so that I could share the news with my family and roommates.

This was wordy, but I hope some of you have either the same methods and/or goals as I had, and that some of this is relevant for you. Good luck to anyone prepping for their own GMAT!