GMAT Online 730 (Q49/V40)

Hi all,

I have been a silent viewer on this website and thought that should put up my post of my experience with online GMAT and GMAT strategy in general. This might be a bit haphazard, so please bear with me.

I started studying for my GMAT in April'20 from OG 2019. I mindlessly solved questions in both verbal and quant sections and felt prepared. Post that, I realised that a lot of my SC questions were guesswork and I really did not know the right strategy behind. My friend suggested me to leverage Manhattan Prep SC and CR book (that he had loaned to me) to help build understanding of the topic. Post that, I formally started studying in June (April and May - I did not devote much time to studying due to excessive work and sickness). Post putting in efforts in June with Manhattan books and revisiting OG questions, I took my first GMAT official mock on 28th June (710 - Q49 V36). Post taking that attempt, I realised I still needed to work on my SC given it was weak. Further, realised that overall accuracy was also lower than it should be. Here, I should just pause and mention that whatever my score/improvement is, it is because of GMATClub. I DID NOT purchase any online course/test series for my GMAT but just leveraged the 700+ level questions across topics from GMATClub and official mocks. GMATClub helped me practice diverse questions, at zero cost, and helped me improve accuracy. The explanations on this website are so much better than any other OA from any other book - they really explain in the way that students will get.

Now, took my second official mock on July 31 - 700 with Q49 V35. Really realised still need to practice SC more and then accessed some online material! By this time, I had taken my date for online GMAT on 25th August as I knew I would be ready by then
Third official mock - Aug 16 - 740 with Q50 and V39! I was beyond happy with the improvement in verbal.
Fourth official mock - Aug 20 - 720 with Q50 and V39 - Okay the same sectional but a lower score
Fifth official mock - Aug 22 - 720 with Q50 and V38 - Okay, still 720.
Sixth official mock - Aug 23 - 720 with Q49 and V39 - Realizing that my score has plateaued, I just focused on improving my accuracy between 20th - 24th (Did questions of 700+ level everyday across sections)

Forward to GMAT exam - 25th Aug at 3pm.
Prepared the room, logged in on time at 2:45. Did the check-in procedure (super easy) and waited for the proctor. The proctor tried to launch the test but it did not work! I really freaked out as it was just a white screen that did not load. They suggested to force restart and try again - I removed my laptop from battery saver mode - and it worked!

Paper was fairly similar to GMAT mocks, both verbal and quant sections. Finished both the sections with ample time left. Just make sure you do not even mumble during the exam, I was stopped twice for it with a serious warning the second time. (Also, you do not want them to irrirtate you as a chat window opens where they type and tell you to not talk - which takes up 25% of your screen size).

Got my final score - at 2am IST on 28/08 - 730 (Q49/V40). Really happy that it moved beyond 720 - but felt like I did a better performance in Quant and could get a Q50. Nonetheless, this was my GMAT experience and I have GMATClub to thank for it!