Took GMAT today, Scored 760! wowho! : Share GMAT Experience

nickeymickey

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27 Mar 2007, 13:01

Good score!! congrats~!

aurora73

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I was actually surprised by the score [#permalink]

27 Mar 2007, 19:43

Yes, when I say 6~7 hours a week, I did not count the practice test time. So excelgmat, you are right, I cheated! :oops:

For me, the practice test is more like checking on the progress and get familiar with the test time and format. Wasn't really equal to "study" for the test in my mind. If I add on the practice test time, yes, the number probably is more in line about 9~10 hours/week.

I think it would be hard for ANYBODY to achieve a very high score without studying hard for a long time. There is probably a reason why I was able to pull off a high score without going through too long a preparation. I took GRE about 10 years ago and got 2100 (probably equivalent to a 700 in GMAT). So standard test is not new to me. My score then was really bogged down by the verbal section because English is my second language. Math had always been my comfort zone. My math score in GRE was a perfect 800. Now after I have been in english speaking enviornment for 10 years, my english has improved dramatically and thus I was expecting improvement on my verbal section and I did.

The other reason is probably I always perform my best when I am under pressure with time constrain. I saw some people reported that they did worse than their practice tests. My test score is in line with the higher end of my practice scores.

When I started my test, I was kind nervous. So I really took sometime (10~15min) to read through the UNTIMED material. I also sit and relaxed for like 3 minutes doing nothing before I click on NEXT to start the timed section. I took both 10 minutes breaks between sections and went out to relax and refresh.

I was quite happy that my analytical section had two easy-to-write topics. I think I did better than I expected on the AWA but only the score will tell.

The math section is as usual like my practice tests. I got LOTS of data sufficiency problems. I think data sufficiency problems tend to be more difficult and trickier than the problem solving. But after some practice, I basically can solve the data sufficiency problem and actually SEE what trap the test maker is trying to trick you. I think that is why I could do very well in the math section. I finished my math section with 13 seconds to spare and I can feel that I nailed it.

The verbal section is always my weak section. I started with a good speed but somehow I lost ground on the timing in the middle - several problems took me too long to finish. I end up with 10 minutes left for 10 questions and that includes an article. I was panicing. Fortunately I had an easy article so I went through it in record time. I managed to finish 8 of the last 10 questions and guessed on the last two blindly. I was not feeling well on my verbal section (although I did have same situation couple times in my practice tests) so I thought I might end up like 720, 730ish. When the score showed up on screen, I was shocked to see the 760!! And of course, ECSTATIC!! :-D

So by all means, study and study hard. Really focus on your weak area and spend the most time on it. The key is to practice, practice and practice UNTIL you develop a feeling about the test. That is the only way to get a good score.

GMAThopeful

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Congrats [#permalink]

11 Apr 2007, 22:41

Amazing score - All the best for applications process

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15 Apr 2007, 02:21

Congrats man you did it.

Best of luck for future

Javed

Cheers!

AshTheDash

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Re: Took GMAT today, Scored 760! wowho! [#permalink]

18 Apr 2007, 23:56

Dear Aurora,

Fantastic score,
I am about to joina weekend class for GMAt so do you recommend that I dont spend 24K on the class and work on my own?

What about the tricks and tips for maths etc, soemthing that one has lost touch over years of working.

Do reply..

Ash

aurora73 wrote:

First try...760!

Break down: Q51 (99%), V41(93%), Total 760 (99%). I was targeting about 720, 730, so I was thrilled when I saw 760 on the screen!! :-D

Little over two months of study, on and off. Really didn't spent that much time on it. Average less than 6~7 hours/week. Material used:

1. Official Guide 11th Edition
2. Princeton Review, Crack the GMAT
3. Princeton Review, Verbal Work out
4. Princeton Review, Math Work out
5. Kaplan GMAT 800
6. ARCO GMAT-CAT Answers to the real Essay Questions
7. SC Practice booklet (an old book containing a lot of real old GMAT official SC questions)
8. Power Prep
9. GMAT Prep.

The bold ones are the ones that I think most useful. I did not use much of Princeton Review Verbal and Math Work out and only went through the verbal part of Kaplan GMAT 800.

Math Section:

I found math section rather easy. It might be different for other people since I am an engineer. Once I get use to the style and make sure that I don't fall into the trap, the math is a blaze.

Verbal Section:

RC: Nothing special, this is the section that you can improve least in the short time frame so I just leave it as is.

CR:Not much problem. Have to acknowledge that I tried to prepare for LSAT for couple months last year and it must have helped a lot on CR. The LSAT logic question are 10 times more difficult. The CR question here is the simplest type of the logic questions in LSAT. If anyone wants to overkill working on the logic questions, the best book is "LSAT Logic Games Bible" by Power Score.

SC: My weakness from the beginning is just the SC section. Practiced about 20 sections of SC (25 questions each section). After about 10 sections I started to get feelings about the SC question. So the key is to practice, practice and practice!

My last week was dedicated to analytical writting. #9 book in my list is the best source! I got lucky on the test today with the topics that I feel relatively easy to write about.

My Practice Scores:

1. Power Prep 1 : Q51 V40 Total 750
2. Princeton Review CAT1: Q47 V31 Total 640
3. Power Prep 2: Q50 V42 Total 760
4. Princeton Review CAT2: Q51 V41 Total 730
5. GMAT Prep1: Q50 V41 Total 760
6. GMAT Prep 2: Q51 V39 Total 740
7. GMAT Prep 3: Q51 V45 Total 780 (some of the questions are repeat of #5 so this score is not a good indication)

I found the Powerprep and GMAT prep tests are better indicator of the final score. The tests in Princeton Review are just wacky. hhmmm, now look at my score history, I wonder why did I spend so much time preparing the test when my first practice test was so close to my final score?!! This must be the ultimate limit of my capable score! :roll:

Well, I guess at least the whole preparation improved my confidence going into the test.

bmwhype2

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Re: Took GMAT today, Scored 760! wowho! [#permalink]

22 Apr 2007, 22:27

wow. 24k for a GMAT courses....
i didnt even spend 15k for college...

AshTheDash wrote:

Dear Aurora,

Fantastic score,
I am about to joina weekend class for GMAt so do you recommend that I dont spend 24K on the class and work on my own?

What about the tricks and tips for maths etc, soemthing that one has lost touch over years of working.

Do reply..

Ash

aurora73 wrote:

First try...760!

Break down: Q51 (99%), V41(93%), Total 760 (99%). I was targeting about 720, 730, so I was thrilled when I saw 760 on the screen!! :-D

Little over two months of study, on and off. Really didn't spent that much time on it. Average less than 6~7 hours/week. Material used:

1. Official Guide 11th Edition
2. Princeton Review, Crack the GMAT
3. Princeton Review, Verbal Work out
4. Princeton Review, Math Work out
5. Kaplan GMAT 800
6. ARCO GMAT-CAT Answers to the real Essay Questions
7. SC Practice booklet (an old book containing a lot of real old GMAT official SC questions)
8. Power Prep
9. GMAT Prep.

The bold ones are the ones that I think most useful. I did not use much of Princeton Review Verbal and Math Work out and only went through the verbal part of Kaplan GMAT 800.

Math Section:

I found math section rather easy. It might be different for other people since I am an engineer. Once I get use to the style and make sure that I don't fall into the trap, the math is a blaze.

Verbal Section:

RC: Nothing special, this is the section that you can improve least in the short time frame so I just leave it as is.

CR:Not much problem. Have to acknowledge that I tried to prepare for LSAT for couple months last year and it must have helped a lot on CR. The LSAT logic question are 10 times more difficult. The CR question here is the simplest type of the logic questions in LSAT. If anyone wants to overkill working on the logic questions, the best book is "LSAT Logic Games Bible" by Power Score.

SC: My weakness from the beginning is just the SC section. Practiced about 20 sections of SC (25 questions each section). After about 10 sections I started to get feelings about the SC question. So the key is to practice, practice and practice!

My last week was dedicated to analytical writting. #9 book in my list is the best source! I got lucky on the test today with the topics that I feel relatively easy to write about.

My Practice Scores:

1. Power Prep 1 : Q51 V40 Total 750
2. Princeton Review CAT1: Q47 V31 Total 640
3. Power Prep 2: Q50 V42 Total 760
4. Princeton Review CAT2: Q51 V41 Total 730
5. GMAT Prep1: Q50 V41 Total 760
6. GMAT Prep 2: Q51 V39 Total 740
7. GMAT Prep 3: Q51 V45 Total 780 (some of the questions are repeat of #5 so this score is not a good indication)

I found the Powerprep and GMAT prep tests are better indicator of the final score. The tests in Princeton Review are just wacky. hhmmm, now look at my score history, I wonder why did I spend so much time preparing the test when my first practice test was so close to my final score?!! This must be the ultimate limit of my capable score! :roll:

Well, I guess at least the whole preparation improved my confidence going into the test.

nupurgupt

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28 Apr 2007, 01:16

hahahaha
that's 25K in Indian currency
which is equivalent to a little over USD 600

ajaydas

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Re: Took GMAT today, Scored 760! wowho! [#permalink]

29 Apr 2007, 00:05

CONGRATS ! That's an awesome score !
Where did you get the SC practice questions (in sections) from ?

Also how did you prepare for Quant ?

Congrats again !

aurora73 wrote:

First try...760!

Break down: Q51 (99%), V41(93%), Total 760 (99%). I was targeting about 720, 730, so I was thrilled when I saw 760 on the screen!! :-D

Little over two months of study, on and off. Really didn't spent that much time on it. Average less than 6~7 hours/week. Material used:

1. Official Guide 11th Edition
2. Princeton Review, Crack the GMAT
3. Princeton Review, Verbal Work out
4. Princeton Review, Math Work out
5. Kaplan GMAT 800
6. ARCO GMAT-CAT Answers to the real Essay Questions
7. SC Practice booklet (an old book containing a lot of real old GMAT official SC questions)
8. Power Prep
9. GMAT Prep.

The bold ones are the ones that I think most useful. I did not use much of Princeton Review Verbal and Math Work out and only went through the verbal part of Kaplan GMAT 800.

Math Section:

I found math section rather easy. It might be different for other people since I am an engineer. Once I get use to the style and make sure that I don't fall into the trap, the math is a blaze.

Verbal Section:

RC: Nothing special, this is the section that you can improve least in the short time frame so I just leave it as is.

CR:Not much problem. Have to acknowledge that I tried to prepare for LSAT for couple months last year and it must have helped a lot on CR. The LSAT logic question are 10 times more difficult. The CR question here is the simplest type of the logic questions in LSAT. If anyone wants to overkill working on the logic questions, the best book is "LSAT Logic Games Bible" by Power Score.

SC: My weakness from the beginning is just the SC section. Practiced about 20 sections of SC (25 questions each section). After about 10 sections I started to get feelings about the SC question. So the key is to practice, practice and practice!

My last week was dedicated to analytical writting. #9 book in my list is the best source! I got lucky on the test today with the topics that I feel relatively easy to write about.

My Practice Scores:

1. Power Prep 1 : Q51 V40 Total 750
2. Princeton Review CAT1: Q47 V31 Total 640
3. Power Prep 2: Q50 V42 Total 760
4. Princeton Review CAT2: Q51 V41 Total 730
5. GMAT Prep1: Q50 V41 Total 760
6. GMAT Prep 2: Q51 V39 Total 740
7. GMAT Prep 3: Q51 V45 Total 780 (some of the questions are repeat of #5 so this score is not a good indication)

I found the Powerprep and GMAT prep tests are better indicator of the final score. The tests in Princeton Review are just wacky. hhmmm, now look at my score history, I wonder why did I spend so much time preparing the test when my first practice test was so close to my final score?!! This must be the ultimate limit of my capable score! :roll:

Well, I guess at least the whole preparation improved my confidence going into the test.

TNTGMAT

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21 Jul 2007, 20:46

congrats

yogachgolf

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Re: Took GMAT today, Scored 760! wowho! [#permalink]

22 Jul 2007, 11:43

Congrats...What is the difference between Power Prep & GMAT Prep?

snow wolf

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power/gmat [#permalink]

23 Jul 2007, 05:25

power prep is the older test prep version of the GMAT made by ETS.Gmat prep is the current one done by PEARSON VUE.They are both very reliable.But,you should practice with both to have a most balanced feel.

yogachgolf

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Re: power/gmat [#permalink]

23 Jul 2007, 08:55

Thanks SW...do you have the link of the power prep as the older test prep version is not posted on the website now.

snow wolf wrote:

power prep is the older test prep version of the GMAT made by ETS.Gmat prep is the current one done by PEARSON VUE.They are both very reliable.But,you should practice with both to have a most balanced feel.

financeguy

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24 Jul 2007, 16:21

nupurgupt wrote:

hahahaha
that's 25K in Indian currency
which is equivalent to a little over USD 600

If I had an extra USD 600, I would not spend on a tutor but donate to Gmatclub and then stick to this forum.

This forum has every imaginable support and material on GMAT.

Thanks

gmatclubot

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24 Jul 2007, 16:21