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TheFloridian
GMAT 1: 770 Q49 V48
Posts: 173
24 Aug 2014, 21:44
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hello GMAT Club!
I would like to start off with a big THANK YOU to everyone on these forums who has posted debriefs, tips, and other helpful tidbits. I would not have been able to reach the 99th percentile without YOUR help!
My Background
I graduated from the University of Florida two years ago with an undergraduate degree in business/marketing. Since then, I've been working as a Marketing Analyst for one of the largest construction contractors in the US.
My Next Steps
I decided to pursue an MBA because I admire the qualities I see in my colleagues who have MBAs. Although I know I can't assume causation
, I think an MBA is the best way to unlock my potential to be a leader in business. I would like to gain a few additional years of work experience before returning to school; I plan to apply in Fall of 2015 and matriculate in Fall of 2016. My ultimate goal is to lead the Marketing department of a for-profit business whose mission goes deeper than the bottom line. I prefer to work in the Southeastern US after graduation.
Target Schools Northwestern, Virginia, Duke, UNC, Florida, Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech
Practice Exam Scores
6/15 - Kaplan 1 - 690 (49Q, 41V)
6/29 - Kaplan 2 - 720 (50Q, 42V)
7/14 - Kaplan 3 - 740 (51Q, 39V)
7/26 - MGMAT 1 - 700 (46Q, 39V)
7/27 - MGMAT 2 - 700 (46Q, 40V)
7/31 - MGMAT 3 - 710 (48Q, 39V)
8/09 - MGMAT 4 - 720 (44Q, 45V)
8/10 - GMATPrep 1 - 770 (50Q, 44V)
8/13 - MGMAT 5 - 740 (47Q, 45V)
8/16 - GMATPrep 2 - 770 (49Q, 47V)
8/23 - Actual GMAT - 770 (49Q, 48V)
The Beginning
In April, I decided I was going to take the GMAT. I skimmed Amazon for an hour, looking for the best GMAT preparation materials. The most- and best-rated book was the Kaplan guide, so I bought it. I slowly worked through the book and finished it almost two months later; I was not in a hurry because I knew I had at least an entire year until I needed to take the exam. However, when I told my Top-10-MBA-program-grad coworker about my laid back plan, he strongly suggested that I schedule a date, lock in to my studies, and get the test out of the way. I took his advice and set a date exactly ten weeks out: August 23rd.
Setting a Score Goal
Historically, I have excelled at taking standardized tests. I scored a 1410 on my SAT (98th percentile) with relatively little preparation. I figured that if I was in the 98th percentile on the SAT, then I should surely set a lower standard percentile-wise for the GMAT. After briefly exploring the GMATClub forums, I decided that 700 was that "magic number"-- 700 was the goal.
Weeks 1 through 5
Having already read the entire Kaplan book, I decided to take my first practice exam. I took the first Kaplan exam and scored a 690. I was thoroughly confused
. Was I really already at 690? How accurate are these tests? I missed a boatload of questions-- how does this even work? I tried to find answers online, but everyone seemed to have a different viewpoint. I brushed the score off as a fluke. I took two more Kaplan exams over the next month and scored a 720 and a 740. I was encouraged by these scores but I was also incredibly skeptical. I couldn't decide whether to adjust my target score higher or not. During these weeks, I studied approximately two hours each night after work and eight hours each weekend.
Weeks 6 through 8
I started reading GMATClub debriefs, and I couldn't get enough. I think I probably read every single 760+ debrief on the site. I learned several important things; for instance, I learned that GMAT Prep exams exist, that Manhattan materials are used by many of the top scorers, and that learning idioms is important. I hopped back on Amazon and snagged the two most-mentioned Manhattan books-- Sentence Correction and Number Properties. I went through both of the books, taking the Manhattan practice exams along the way. My scores were lower (700, 700, 710, 720) than my Kaplan scores. After these Manhattan exams, I became more comfortable with my 700 goal. During these weeks, I studied approximately three hours each night after work and eight hours each weekend.
Weeks 9 and 10
My plan for the final two weekends was to take the GMAT Prep exams and tie up any loose ends. I planned to take my first GMAT Prep exam with simulated test day conditions (i.e. starting at 8am Saturday morning, no pausing, sitting at a desk instead of on the couch). However, due to missing a connecting flight on a business trip, I was not able to make it home in time. I ended up taking the exam on Sunday afternoon. I scored a 770. I was ecstatic and not skeptical at all because I knew this exam had deadly precision. The next Saturday, I took the second exam, this time with simulated test day conditions. I again scored a 770. At this point, I felt very confident. I wanted to make my target score 760-- the minimum needed to cross into the 99th percentile. However, I didn't want to be disappointed with my score-- so I set the bar at 740.
Exam Day
I woke up around 5:30am. I ate some cereal and drank my daily cup of coffee. I drove a little over an hour to get to my exam location. During the drive, I recited notes to myself e.g. "the sum of the unique factors of a perfect square is always odd!" or "the word 'which' must always follow either a preposition or a comma!". I arrived at the testing center around 7:20am. I waited for about 30-40 minutes in the waiting room until my name was called. They took my photo, and I ended up with this weird half-smile picture because they didn't give me any kind of countdown. The lady escorted me to my cubicle and I started cranking. The essay and the IR section were a blur (I got an 8 on IR). When I finished the IR section, I took a break. I ate half a banana, drank some water, used the restroom, and returned for Quant. Quant started off just dandy. Towards the middle I had to guess on a couple of questions. Towards the end, I started to get really pinched for time. I had to answer the final three questions at blazing fast speed. As I was about to click "submit" on the final question, I realized there was an important factor I hadn't taken into account. I quickly changed my answer choice, clicked submit, but then before I could click "yes" to confirm my answer choice, time ran out! I'm still not sure if this answer counted or not (I'm assuming it did not). At this point in the exam, I was visibly frustrated. I just missed an important question by less than a quarter of a second. "That probably dropped my overall score by 10 points" I thought to myself dramatically. While I had always taken breaks between sections during practice exams, this time I was just too frustrated. I wanted to finish the exam and leave (in hindsight I am realizing how risky continuing without a break was!). I began the final section of the exam-- Verbal. Starting from the very first question, everything seemed clearer than ever before. It was as if my frustration from messing up the final Quant question had completely jacked up my adrenaline levels. I felt as if time was moving in slow motion. Every question seemed like it was low-tier difficulty. I spotted keywords and patterns in reading comprehension passages with more clarity than I ever had before. I finished the Verbal section with ease. I clicked through to my score. I was so excited when I saw my score-- 770!! While I was slightly disappointed in my Quant score, I felt very proud of my Verbal score. I also felt as though missing that final question in Quant ended up making Verbal easier for me somehow.
Study Material Breakdown
- Kaplan - Good high level introduction to the GMAT; I definitely learned a lot from this book. However, it doesn't get into enough detail, specifically in Sentence Correction and Quant.
- Manhattan Sentence Correction - Fantastic. Gets into the nitty gritty of every last detail you need to know about idioms, irregular verbs, and more. This book definitely helped me achieve my 48 verbal score (99th percentile).
- Manhattan Number Properties - Very helpful book for mastering prime factorization and combinatorics.
- GMATClub Math Book - Priceless. Incredibly helpful to memorize the principles in this book.
- YouTube - If you need a refresher on something you haven't seen since high school-- check out YouTube. You can usually find a college lecture on the subject.
Practice Exam Reviews
-Kaplan: The quant section is similar to the actual GMAT. Some of the verbal questions can be weird-- don't get too caught up on the questions that don't make sense.
-Manhattan: The quant section is much harder than the actual GMAT. I'm not sure if that helped me or not. The verbal questions are mostly good, but can also be weird at times.
-GMAT Prep: I was surprised just how accurate the GMAT Prep test was. I scored 770s on both of my GMAT Prep exams, and a 770 on the actual GMAT as well.
Three Easiest Ways to Unlock Your Full Potential
1. Read as many top-score debriefs as you can. Follow their advice on which materials to use.
2. Set a goal for practice question volume (e.g. 200/week) and stick to it. Re-work every question you miss until you get it right.
3. Take as many full-length exams as you can with realistic test day conditions.
Again, thank you everyone. I hope that this debrief will be helpful to some of you out there, just as many of your debriefs were invaluable to me.
God Bless!!
I would like to start off with a big THANK YOU to everyone on these forums who has posted debriefs, tips, and other helpful tidbits. I would not have been able to reach the 99th percentile without YOUR help!
My Background
I graduated from the University of Florida two years ago with an undergraduate degree in business/marketing. Since then, I've been working as a Marketing Analyst for one of the largest construction contractors in the US.
My Next Steps
I decided to pursue an MBA because I admire the qualities I see in my colleagues who have MBAs. Although I know I can't assume causation
, I think an MBA is the best way to unlock my potential to be a leader in business. I would like to gain a few additional years of work experience before returning to school; I plan to apply in Fall of 2015 and matriculate in Fall of 2016. My ultimate goal is to lead the Marketing department of a for-profit business whose mission goes deeper than the bottom line. I prefer to work in the Southeastern US after graduation.Target Schools Northwestern, Virginia, Duke, UNC, Florida, Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech
Practice Exam Scores
6/15 - Kaplan 1 - 690 (49Q, 41V)
6/29 - Kaplan 2 - 720 (50Q, 42V)
7/14 - Kaplan 3 - 740 (51Q, 39V)
7/26 - MGMAT 1 - 700 (46Q, 39V)
7/27 - MGMAT 2 - 700 (46Q, 40V)
7/31 - MGMAT 3 - 710 (48Q, 39V)
8/09 - MGMAT 4 - 720 (44Q, 45V)
8/10 - GMATPrep 1 - 770 (50Q, 44V)
8/13 - MGMAT 5 - 740 (47Q, 45V)
8/16 - GMATPrep 2 - 770 (49Q, 47V)
8/23 - Actual GMAT - 770 (49Q, 48V)
The Beginning
In April, I decided I was going to take the GMAT. I skimmed Amazon for an hour, looking for the best GMAT preparation materials. The most- and best-rated book was the Kaplan guide, so I bought it. I slowly worked through the book and finished it almost two months later; I was not in a hurry because I knew I had at least an entire year until I needed to take the exam. However, when I told my Top-10-MBA-program-grad coworker about my laid back plan, he strongly suggested that I schedule a date, lock in to my studies, and get the test out of the way. I took his advice and set a date exactly ten weeks out: August 23rd.
Setting a Score Goal
Historically, I have excelled at taking standardized tests. I scored a 1410 on my SAT (98th percentile) with relatively little preparation. I figured that if I was in the 98th percentile on the SAT, then I should surely set a lower standard percentile-wise for the GMAT. After briefly exploring the GMATClub forums, I decided that 700 was that "magic number"-- 700 was the goal.
Weeks 1 through 5
Having already read the entire Kaplan book, I decided to take my first practice exam. I took the first Kaplan exam and scored a 690. I was thoroughly confused
. Was I really already at 690? How accurate are these tests? I missed a boatload of questions-- how does this even work? I tried to find answers online, but everyone seemed to have a different viewpoint. I brushed the score off as a fluke. I took two more Kaplan exams over the next month and scored a 720 and a 740. I was encouraged by these scores but I was also incredibly skeptical. I couldn't decide whether to adjust my target score higher or not. During these weeks, I studied approximately two hours each night after work and eight hours each weekend.Weeks 6 through 8
I started reading GMATClub debriefs, and I couldn't get enough. I think I probably read every single 760+ debrief on the site. I learned several important things; for instance, I learned that GMAT Prep exams exist, that Manhattan materials are used by many of the top scorers, and that learning idioms is important. I hopped back on Amazon and snagged the two most-mentioned Manhattan books-- Sentence Correction and Number Properties. I went through both of the books, taking the Manhattan practice exams along the way. My scores were lower (700, 700, 710, 720) than my Kaplan scores. After these Manhattan exams, I became more comfortable with my 700 goal. During these weeks, I studied approximately three hours each night after work and eight hours each weekend.
Weeks 9 and 10
My plan for the final two weekends was to take the GMAT Prep exams and tie up any loose ends. I planned to take my first GMAT Prep exam with simulated test day conditions (i.e. starting at 8am Saturday morning, no pausing, sitting at a desk instead of on the couch). However, due to missing a connecting flight on a business trip, I was not able to make it home in time. I ended up taking the exam on Sunday afternoon. I scored a 770. I was ecstatic and not skeptical at all because I knew this exam had deadly precision. The next Saturday, I took the second exam, this time with simulated test day conditions. I again scored a 770. At this point, I felt very confident. I wanted to make my target score 760-- the minimum needed to cross into the 99th percentile. However, I didn't want to be disappointed with my score-- so I set the bar at 740.
Exam Day
I woke up around 5:30am. I ate some cereal and drank my daily cup of coffee. I drove a little over an hour to get to my exam location. During the drive, I recited notes to myself e.g. "the sum of the unique factors of a perfect square is always odd!" or "the word 'which' must always follow either a preposition or a comma!". I arrived at the testing center around 7:20am. I waited for about 30-40 minutes in the waiting room until my name was called. They took my photo, and I ended up with this weird half-smile picture because they didn't give me any kind of countdown. The lady escorted me to my cubicle and I started cranking. The essay and the IR section were a blur (I got an 8 on IR). When I finished the IR section, I took a break. I ate half a banana, drank some water, used the restroom, and returned for Quant. Quant started off just dandy. Towards the middle I had to guess on a couple of questions. Towards the end, I started to get really pinched for time. I had to answer the final three questions at blazing fast speed. As I was about to click "submit" on the final question, I realized there was an important factor I hadn't taken into account. I quickly changed my answer choice, clicked submit, but then before I could click "yes" to confirm my answer choice, time ran out! I'm still not sure if this answer counted or not (I'm assuming it did not). At this point in the exam, I was visibly frustrated. I just missed an important question by less than a quarter of a second. "That probably dropped my overall score by 10 points" I thought to myself dramatically. While I had always taken breaks between sections during practice exams, this time I was just too frustrated. I wanted to finish the exam and leave (in hindsight I am realizing how risky continuing without a break was!). I began the final section of the exam-- Verbal. Starting from the very first question, everything seemed clearer than ever before. It was as if my frustration from messing up the final Quant question had completely jacked up my adrenaline levels. I felt as if time was moving in slow motion. Every question seemed like it was low-tier difficulty. I spotted keywords and patterns in reading comprehension passages with more clarity than I ever had before. I finished the Verbal section with ease. I clicked through to my score. I was so excited when I saw my score-- 770!! While I was slightly disappointed in my Quant score, I felt very proud of my Verbal score. I also felt as though missing that final question in Quant ended up making Verbal easier for me somehow.
Study Material Breakdown
- Kaplan - Good high level introduction to the GMAT; I definitely learned a lot from this book. However, it doesn't get into enough detail, specifically in Sentence Correction and Quant.
- Manhattan Sentence Correction - Fantastic. Gets into the nitty gritty of every last detail you need to know about idioms, irregular verbs, and more. This book definitely helped me achieve my 48 verbal score (99th percentile).
- Manhattan Number Properties - Very helpful book for mastering prime factorization and combinatorics.
- GMATClub Math Book - Priceless. Incredibly helpful to memorize the principles in this book.
- YouTube - If you need a refresher on something you haven't seen since high school-- check out YouTube. You can usually find a college lecture on the subject.
Practice Exam Reviews
-Kaplan: The quant section is similar to the actual GMAT. Some of the verbal questions can be weird-- don't get too caught up on the questions that don't make sense.
-Manhattan: The quant section is much harder than the actual GMAT. I'm not sure if that helped me or not. The verbal questions are mostly good, but can also be weird at times.
-GMAT Prep: I was surprised just how accurate the GMAT Prep test was. I scored 770s on both of my GMAT Prep exams, and a 770 on the actual GMAT as well.
Three Easiest Ways to Unlock Your Full Potential
1. Read as many top-score debriefs as you can. Follow their advice on which materials to use.
2. Set a goal for practice question volume (e.g. 200/week) and stick to it. Re-work every question you miss until you get it right.
3. Take as many full-length exams as you can with realistic test day conditions.
Again, thank you everyone. I hope that this debrief will be helpful to some of you out there, just as many of your debriefs were invaluable to me.
God Bless!!
02 Sep 2014, 20:18
Kudos
Bookmarks
Very inspiring piece. Which book did you refer for rest of the Verbal section?
TheFloridian
03 Sep 2014, 18:09
Kudos
Bookmarks
Thanks pairakesh10. Aside from the Kaplan materials, I did not use materials for RC and CR. I found that for those two sections, the most helpful practice strategy is to simply do a lot of practice questions and then review the answers to see why each question was missed. Since there are no formulas or idioms to memorize for these sections, repetitive practice is the only strategy that worked for me.
I did, however, read lots of Popular Science articles during my studies. I tried to read at least one article per day. I tried to find the most confusing articles possible that had lots of large, unfamiliar words; when I read them I would ask myself after each sentence-- "Why is this sentence here?"
I hope that answer helps!
I did, however, read lots of Popular Science articles during my studies. I tried to read at least one article per day. I tried to find the most confusing articles possible that had lots of large, unfamiliar words; when I read them I would ask myself after each sentence-- "Why is this sentence here?"
I hope that answer helps!
