From 540 to 770: My Journey to An Elite Score with No Prep Courses

From 540 to 770 for under $150 of used or free study material.
Background: I started off wandering. I’m active duty military and I kept telling myself I would get around to the GMAT, but never did. I didn’t have the time or the money for the expensive prep courses, so I decided to buy used books and use online resources. I purchased a used set of GMAT Official Guide 2019 books and started relentlessly attacking practice problems with no clear direction. My first practice exam I ever took was a 540. Every now and then I would crack open a used book and then life would get busy. I’d go days and even weeks in between study sessions.

I finally signed up to take the test in Virginia Beach because I would be there for work for a few months. I dedicated the next two months to non-stop practice problems and GMAT club threads. BAM, then COVID hit. We were evacuated back to Spain (I live there currently) and the GMAT Online Exam opened up. I started to study more seriously (ish) and decided to be one of the first to take the GMAT Online exam. I spent the next 6 weeks cranking out practice problems and watching the occasional YouTube video.

I took the test in May. The experience was okay, but I was annoyed with typing out all my math problems. Before the physical whiteboard, you had to use the online whiteboard for Quant. I got my first score back: 690. It was a descent score and I was mildly impressed. I was shooting for a 700-720 so I was only off by a few digits. The only alarming part of my score was my Quant: I normally score Q49 or Q50, but I scored Q45. I blamed it on the online whiteboard.

I was going to move on with life until I received an email from GMAC. Due to all the complaints about the lack of physical whiteboards, I was offered a retest. Why not? I decided to buckle down, develop a rigid study plan and stick to it. I created a two-month study plan with clear goals and metrics. I wish I started off studying this way.

Please learn from my mistakes so you can spend the least amount of time possible to get the most elite score. I regret the first three months of studying for the GMAT. The steps below outline the path that I should have taken the first time around.

Step 1: Map out a study plan. You need 2-3 solid months of studying. Any more you will lose focus; any less you will cram. Backtrack 3 months from your desired test date. Book an Online Exam because this will motivate you to stick to a plan. You have free changes until 24 hours before the exam so there is nothing to lose. Study 2-3 hours per workday and 4-5 hours per weekend day. My goal was 20-30 hours of study per week. Any more than this and you'll burnout.
Start here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0DmKSiHkjU

Step 2: Online practice exam. Start with a free online exam on the link below. Save your mba.com Official Practice Exams for later. Get a score and see where you stand currently. Use this as your benchmark to track progress. My first practice exam I ever took was a 540.
https://gmatclub.com/forum/18-online-fr ... 57862.html

Step 3: Identify knowledge gaps. If you're missing a lot of the certain questions then document them. Write down the categories and tally how many of each category you missed on the practice exam or practice problems. You may uncover an alarming trend. For example, I realized I was atrocious at purpose/assumption questions on Reading Comprehension and inequalities and probability on Quantitative.

Step 4: Start with the books. Before you dive straight into practice questions, review ever major topic of the GMAT. Manhattan Prep is the gold standard. I purchased a used full set of Manhattan Prep 5th edition for ~ $50 USD.
Quant: Use Bunuel Quant Book: https://gmatclub.com/forum/gmat-math-bo ... 30609.html
Methodically go through the practice books. Don't jump right into doing countless problems. You'll just wander and not build a strong foundation. The .pdf notes for the Manhattan Prep series is attached.

Step 5: Online Resources. I found YouTube videos to be extraordinarily beneficial. Interactive videos kept me more engaged than reading.
[b]GMATNinja is a godsend.[/b] I watched every Verbal video he has to offer. My 99th percentile Verbal score is owed almost entirely to his incredible videos.
[you-tube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhN_KU1bSKU&t=3s[/you-tube]
GMAT Club is the best online resource. Bunuel is the GMAT club resident math expert. Start with his All You Need for Quant post:
https://gmatclub.com/forum/all-you-need ... 40445.html

Step 6: Six weeks to a month out from the exam, start taking one practice online GMAT every week. You should be seeing upward progress as you continue your studies. Save the mba.com Practice Exams for the month before the real exam. These will give you the best indicator before test day. If you burn though Exams 1 & 2 then I recommend you purchase Exams 3 & 4. It is totally worth the $50. Try to hit 6-8 practice tests before the real deal.
Practice GMAT Official Guide Practice problems in sets of 10 and eventually 20. Try to work on timing during this phase. I luckily never had to focus on timing, but GMAT Club has a lot of great strategies if timing is an issue.
https://gmatclub.com/forum/timing-strat ... 80176.html

Step 7: One month out you should be target specific weak areas and relentlessly attack those areas. Start doing sets of 10 questions 4-6 weeks out. Push to 20 questions per set 2-4 weeks out with an accuracy of 80-100% per set. If you have the GMAT Official Guide Online, practice working the questions online. Use the online whiteboard for verbal if you plan to take the GMAT Online Exam.
NOTE: YouTube videos (GMAT Ninja in particular) helped me a ton here on my gaps.

Step 8: One week out, cruise to the finish line. Review your notes from the Manhattan Prep series. Use the attached PowerPoint .pdf provided above to scan through the notes. Do sets of 20 questions on Verbal and 20 questions on quant. You should be hitting 85-95% every time you do these sets.

Step 9: Test day. Take the test in the exact same environment you've been studying. Same chair, same desk, same morning routine, same time of day you usually take the practice tests. There are so many psychological studies that prove the benefits of this.

Step 10: Treat yourself. You deserve it for all your hard work. For me it all came together when I saw my online exam score: 770 (Q50, V45)

Resources:
$35 - USED GMAT Official Guide 2019
$50 - USED Manhattan Prep Full Set 5th edition
$50 - Exams 3 & 4
$0 – GMAT Ninja Videos on YouTube
$0 – GMAT Club Practice Questions
$0 – Bunuel all you need to know about Quant: https://gmatclub.com/forum/all-you-need ... 40445.html
$0 - GMATNinja Ultimate SC Guide for Beginners: https://gmatclub.com/forum/ultimate-sc- ... 44623.html
$0 - Ultimate SC Flashcards: https://gmatclub.com/forum/the-ultimate ... 95381.html
$0 - Ultimate Quant Flashcards: https://gmatclub.com/forum/my-comprehen ... 09836.html

$135 TOTAL for study material.


Shoutouts:
GMATNinja – Charles, you saved my life on Verbal. I owe you a beer or several if I ever see you in the Miami area. Cheers! I’ve seen you do live streams with success stories before. If it helps your cause, I’d be happy to do the same.
Bunuel – You are the most fascinating and elusive GMAT contributor. Thanks for contributing so much with such little personal gain. You are a true giver to the community.