700 (Q49, V36) - Disappointed? Yes, Retake? - Maybe

Note: I went through the retake threads before writing this debrief.

I am planning to retake in a month as I have nothing to lose. Either ways, the following are the practice materials and strategies I followed.

Practice materials:

OG12 - THE guide. Excellent explanations. If you seriously consider giving GMAT, make sure you go through most of the questions in this book. The explanations are really good.

Manhattan SC - Bible for SC. Brilliant book. Irrespective of whether SC is your strength/weakness, you should buy this book.

Practice tests:

MGMAT1 (3 months before exam): 660
MGMAT2: 680
MGMAT3: 690 (Both 2 and 3, approx 1 month before exam)
MGMAT4: 710
MGMAT5: 720
MGMAT6: 730 (5 days before exam)

GMATPrep1 (1 month before exam): 700
GMATPrep2: 730 (3 days before exam)

As you can see, the reason why I am disappointed is because I thought I peaked couple days before the exam.

Verbal has always been my weakness. Going through Manhattan SC and OG helped me a lot.

Plan of Action: I am planning to apply in Round 2. I will start the application process and concentrate on my essays. Will see if I can rectify anything fundamentally wrong in my verbal. My goal is to apply for the top tier schools. Even though I am yet another Indian IT Engineer, I did lot of things outside work (was vice president of an organization in my state, was publicity coordinator of a non-profit organization, trained in classical music - performed on stage in India as well as US, really active in sports at competitive level, etc). I hope to use this background to build a great essay.

I am neither terribly disappointed with my score nor am excited about my score. Good luck on your GMAT!