My Background:After completing my BTech in 2021,I started working in a leading Analytics company. Despite being a fresher, I possessed aninnate understanding of how to navigate and cultivate relationships with overseas clients and colleagues within the organization. Additionally, I had an inherent grasp of effective task delegation and responsibility management. However, I sensed that there is more to my career than being just a developer, leading me to consider pursuing an MBA. Recognizing that an MBA could provide me with a broader perspective and a diversified skill set, I started my GMAT preparation journey initially without much guidance.
Work and prep Balance:I am a full-time employee and I have set high expectations in my project. Consequently, I have taken up a lot of responsibilities that require me to work on an average of 10 hours a day, and occasionally even more.
Now, My First challenge wasn’t the “how” aspect of my preparation but the “when” aspect. Recognizing that I was too tired to study late at night after my demanding work, I opted to wake up at 5 in the morning and dedicate three hours of focused study time until 8, just before starting my work at 9. This allowed me to utilize the early morning hours when I felt refreshed and energized, enabling me to make the most out of my study sessions while still maintaining a balance with my work commitments.
Thus, One problem solved.When it came to preparing for the exam, as a self-paced learner, I dedicated numerous hours to research and practice. However, one challenge I encountered was the lack of a proper structure or plan in my approach. But it was too late.
After countless hours of preparation using the free resources available on the internet, I proceeded to take my GMAT exam, hoping to score 700+.
The night before the exam, I had a dream where I achieved a remarkable score of 750.
However, the disheartenment settled in when I saw 670 on the screen. My Learnings from the attempt:Being an analytical person, I sought to identify the reasons behind my low score. It quickly became apparent that two key areas were lacking:
• Concept Basics: I realized that my understanding of fundamental concepts in the tested areas was insufficient. This impacted my ability to
effectively tackle the exam questions and compromised my performance.
• Implementation of the Plan: Additionally, I acknowledged that I failed to execute my preparation plan effectively. The lack of a structured
approach and proper time management negatively affected my performance on the exam.
Now, Having the zeal to prepare independently is important so does having a right mentor, if not more.The important thing I learned from the above experience is that
Practice doesn't make one perfect.
It’s the “RIGHT PRACTICE THAT MAKES YOU PERFECT”. Wrong approach to solve Verbal questions.
• Sentence correction:
To solve Verbal questions, I would begin by reading the question and immediately jump into the answer choices, searching for grammatical errors
that would allow me to eliminate certain options. This approach not only consumes a significant amount of time but also leads to inaccurate or
misleading results. At times, one may encounter multiple grammatically correct answer choices, and following the above approach may raise
doubts about the quality of GMAC's question integrity
. But, the quality of its questions is airtight.
• Critical Reasoning:
While I love problem-solving and critical/logical reasoning, I had noticed that when I attempt questions under time constraints, I tend to heavily
rely on the answer choices to guide my response, rather than thoroughly analyzing the question itself. Although this approach may provide some
assistance, it often leads to time consumption and the risk of losing focus on the specific conclusion/premise at hand.
• Reading Comprehension:
RC passages can pose challenges, especially when they are lengthy or cover unfamiliar topics, not to mention the difficulty of the questions. In the
past, I used to approach RCs by simply skimming through the passage as if I were reading a novel. While this approach may work on occasion, I
soon realized that it was not effective in fully comprehending the paragraphs and answering the questions accurately.
I would attempt to read all the paragraphs in one go, but this strategy often led to difficulties in understanding the content and struggled while
attempting the questions. Additionally, I found myself spending a significant amount of time searching for the relevant portion in the passage,
leaving little time to answer the questions themselves.
When I state that the mentioned approaches are incorrect, I want to clarify that it is solely my subjective opinion based on my own experiences. While these methods may work for some individuals, I personally recommend avoiding such approaches.
These difficulties prompted me to actively look for a suitable mentor.
Right Mentor:I am sure there are many reputable firms or mentors to help you with your preparation. Upon receiving a recommendation from a friend, I decided to go with
e-GMAT. My primary focus was on improving my VERBAL score since I was already confident in the QUANT section. To my surprise, the
e-GMAT course proved to be a game-changer. However, I soon realized that my perception of knowing everything verbally was far from accurate. The course provided by
e-GMAT opened my eyes to a whole new level of understanding and strategies, challenging me to improve and refine my verbal skills.
Dhruv, a strategy expert at
e-GMAT, also helped me in providing valuable insights during the final phase of my preparation. He identified my areas of improvement within specific subsections and devised a tailored plan that yielded exceptional results. For instance, I had identified gaps in my understanding of concepts such as modifiers in Sentence Correction and assumptions in Critical Reasoning. With his strategic plan, I was able to effectively address these areas of weakness through targeted practice and the judicious utilization of relevant questions.
At last, I finally gave my other attempt on 1st March 2023 and scored 730 (Q50, V39).
Why e-GMAT worked for me:Here are the aspects of the course that helped me solidify my concepts and refined my approach in solving questions.
Verbal:Sentence Correction (SC)-
The course introduced me to concepts and their practical application in ways that I had never considered before. The meaning-based
approach, and techniques really helped me solve medium to hard questions in under 90secs. Previously, I had the habit of reading the question
and immediately jumping to the answer choices, hoping to identify any grammatical errors that would allow me to eliminate certain options. But,
I learned how to approach a question in a right way.
Critical Reasoning(CR)- As mentioned previously, I had the tendency to read the question and quickly scan through the answer choices, often finding it difficult to
comprehend how those options could be relevant or correct in the given context of the question. But the PRETHINKING process
taught in the course not only helped me solve hard questions with ease but also developed my problem-solving skills.
Reading comprehension (RC)- The strategies mentioned surely helped me speed up my reading and comprehension skills. I learned how important it is to stop, consume the
information in one paragraph and proceed to the other. However, I also acknowledge that this section's performance ultimately depends
on the abilities of the test taker.
Of course, Regularly reading news articles, journals, and novels can increase one’s reading and comprehension ability.
Quizzes:The concept of cementing played a huge role while developing my ability. Reviewing the solutions to both correct and incorrect questions helped me to solidify the concepts.
I would like to thank Shraddha, Abhishek, Harshavardhan, Srishti, Stacey, and Kanupriya for responding to all my posts and clarifying my doubts.
QUANT:PACE AI, an impressive algorithm that identifies areas of strength and allows us to focus more on other sections. has significantly saved me valuable preparation time by efficiently directing my attention to the areas that require more focus.
Scholaranium 2.0:The data insights from the scholaranium were very helpful as I was able to identify the specific topics where my accuracy was poor and areas where I was spending excessive time. This information allowed me to tailor my preparation and focus on those areas that required more attention and practice.
Last mile push-While there is no doubt about the Verbal course has played a significant role in improving my Verbal abilities, I would also attribute my improvement (from V28 to V39) to LMP. I followed the plan given to me, and attempted test readiness quizzes and two Sigma-X Mocks, scoring 740, and 730 respectively. as the score I achieved in my official GMAT exam matched exactly with the score I had obtained in my Sigma Mocks.
I would like to thank Dhruv for prepping my plan, conducting 1-on-1 sessions, and giving me valuable insights.
Suggestions and tips: • Practice the questions only after you solidify your basics.
• In GMAT, quality surpasses quantity. It's more beneficial to practice a few high-quality questions per topic using the correct approach, rather
than randomly solving many low-quality questions.
• Try to Practise/attempt Sectional/Mock exams when you are in right state of mind. Choose your preferred time of the day as resuming the
practice after a long day of work can be overwhelming.
• Maintain notes and error logs. If you come across a new topic/phrase/technique note it down. if you commit a mistake in a question, write
down the reasons behind the error and strategies to avoid it in the future.
• Whenever you attempt a question, ensure you got the question right for the right reasons.Try to analyze the incorrect answer choices as to
identify why they are so(Of course only during your practice
) .This will provide you some valuable insights.
• Attempt mocks regularly to track your progress.
My final suggestion to all the aspiring test takers who are struggling to balance their work life
and preparation and are unsure about how to approach their GMAT preparation, is to stay
determined, be patient, and commit to preparing the right way, even if it seems difficult or
time-consuming.
Remember, hard work and persistence will ultimately pay off, and your preparation journey
will be a rewarding experience.
All the best
!
31 May 2023, 05:17
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