BACKGROUND FOR 1ST ATTEMPT:
This is my 2nd debrief on the GMAT club.
I gave my 2nd GMAT Online attempt today and got a 650(Q47,V33). To be honest, I am disappointed and also embarrassed.
I scored 550(Q33V33) on the first official practice test I took without any prep in middle of June.
I started my GMAT prep with
Magoosh last year and after prepared with them for 3 months, while also studying for my college finals. During that time, I spent 5-6 hours each day on GMAT
I scored 610(Q31, V33) on my first official attempt, which I gave on 23/08/2021. I had bombed the exam because of massive anxiety.
BACKGROUND FOR 2ND ATTEMPT:
I watched the video of Dcummins, and got introduced to
TTP. I had also seen debriefs of people whose score took leaps after preparing with
TTP. So, I decided to start preparing for my second attempt with them.
The time I started preparing with
TTP, I was also struggling with an unstable mental health because of some personal reasons and the test score I had received. In this time I graduated as well, and was searching for a job from September to October. Some people advised me to start a job after giving my second attempt. So, I withdrew my applications and rejected the offers I had recieved.
During this time, I was spending 4 hours in front of a screen studying for GMAT, I think was focused for only about an hour.
The
TTP course is extremely well structured and detailed. For some reason, I got obsessed with the details, and during the initial phase of the study plan, I would try to memorize almost every single line of the chapters. This was a huge waste of time and caused me to feel that I was going no where. I talked to Jeff from
TTP and he helped me through it.
I joined the gym and started reading stoic philosophy, which bought my mental back to balance. After this, I regained my confidence and started studying in a better way. For 3 months from November to January, I started working with a music studios to record an album, and during that time I was spending 3-4 hours a day on GMAT, but with a lot more focus this time.
From February, I got really serious about my GMAT prep. But I still had the problem of obsessing over the details, and I was really moving slowly because of that.
Because I was following the
TTP study plan exactly as it was and moving slowly. The gap between old topics and fresh topics I studied increased.
TTP has review missions laid out strategically, which saved me from completely forgetting the old material.
PRACTICE TEST PHASE
I was finished with the learning phase of
TTP in June 2022. I took the first GMAT official practice attempt again and scored 680. I worked on my weaknesses between each practice test which were spread 5 days apart. But, I should have also focused on my strengths and test taking abilities, which I didn't do as much.
My scores were :
GMAT 1: 680(Q48 V35)
GMAT 2: 730(Q48 V41)
GMAT 3: 730(Q48 V41)
GMAT 4: 710(Q50 V36)
GMAT 5: 680(Q47 V38)
GMAT 6: 680(Q47 V37)
I took all the tests in realistic conditions.
Bad fortune struck, and I got sick 2 weeks before the exam(Between the 5th and 6th practice tests). I thought the drop in practice scores was because of the fatigue I had. I noticed that my mistakes were mostly careless mistakes and failure to notice details.
I talked to Marty from
TTP after every practice exam, and he guided me through each next step. He constantly reminded me that if I stayed focused, I'd rock the test.
A day before the exam, I exerted myself and had a headache throughout the day, so I took a break and just relaxed.
TEST DAY:
On the test day, I hyped myself up with some good music, which greatly reduced my anxiety.
The test went smoothly, and in fact, I was feeling confident that I would get 700+ this time. But at the end the scored 650(Q47 V33), leaving me completely confused as to what went wrong.
I'm starting a month long program at Imperial Business college next week, but I'll also keep studying for my 3rd attempt.