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At one point, she believed GMAT wasn’t for her. After scoring 595, self-doubt crept in and she questioned her potential. But instead of quitting, she made the right strategic changes. The result? A remarkable comeback to 695. Check out how Saakshi did it.
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09 Dec 2021, 07:26
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Hi all!
Background:
I've just graduated with a BA in Psychology, Sociology and English Literature and it was only towards the end of my final year that I realised I wanted to go into business. I hadn't studied maths since the 12th grade and was sceptical about my ability to do well in Quant and IR. I had decided to take the GMAT at this point because it was the only break I'd get between college and a job where I would be able to devote all my time to studying without any other distractions. I gave myself till the end of September to write the test, and if need be, a retest.
Starting My Prep
I started studying for the GMAT on the 8th of June, the day after my final college exam. To start my prep, I used the Manhattan Prep guides- the foundations of Verbal/Quant and All The Verbal/Quant. I did every single topic in every book and all the accompanying questions, took notes, and was extremely thorough in my preparation- or so I thought.
The Harsh Truth
At this point, I felt slightly confident in my prep. I had purchased the OG guide 2021 and using the Wiley tool online started to take quizzes online; the results shocked me. I struggled to score even 60% in either quant or verbal. On the first of August, I took a GMATClub Quant test and scored a 42. At this point, I was really worried- I had guessed a ton of questions, I felt incapable of answering many of the questions and I had horrible timing. Worried as to whether the last 2 months had been a complete waste, I decided to take an online course- I realised that I needed help and that solo prep was not getting me as far as I thought it would.
I'd attended a few webinars from different courses and I felt that e-GMAT was the one for me. At the time there was also a discount running, so I purchased their Online 360 course on the 4th of August.
A Speedrun to the End
Determined to keep my self established deadline, I'd created an extremely rigorous study schedule from the 5th of August to the 17th of September, the date for which I had booked my test at the local test centre(I had done so in advance because the test centre in my city is very popular and dates and times were already scarce).
I took my first mock (Sigma X) on the 4th of August and scored a 540(Q33, V32). I was extremely disappointed, but this moment was also a turning point and signified a change in attitude. I no longer felt sorry for myself and instead decided to put all the worries I had had so far- my nontraditional (read: non-engineering) background, my lack of quant background, a ticking clock and the FOMO of watching my peers get jobs or start masters- in the trash can. This was my journey, I made the rules and I chose the path- I was at the steering wheel and it didn't matter where the others were driving to because I knew where I wanted to go.
I had also decided to use this course to essentially start from scratch; spending time to catalogue and ignore what I already knew or reconcile it with a different methodology was something I didn't have time to do. So, slate wiped clean, I started my prep on the eGMAT platform from the 5th of August.
I woke up at 5.30 AM and studied till about 10.30-11 PM every day from Monday to Sunday. I watched almost every single video, took every practice, concept and diagnostic quiz on the platform at took rigorous notes on every topic. I made note of new topics, ways to read and think, question types, and my own thought processes. When I started doing quizzes, I also maintained a detailed error log where I made note of what type of question I got wrong (modifiers, permutations, etc), what type of error I got wrong (concept, process) and also made note of any patterns that emerged. For example, I noticed that I would frequently ignore the case of variable=0 and hence get questions wrong.
Because I was working on a strict timeline I prioritised quality over quantity, doing fewer questions but making sure I did them well; following the process consciously, making note of my errors and reviewing the material as needed. Due to the paucity of time I also had to be very strategic with my time; I noticed that CR was an area that saw the least improvement despite my efforts. So, I did my best to improve my SC and RC, as I didn't have the time to work on improving my CR skills beyond a certain point. The CR section in the eGMAT course was also the part I was least satisfied with, as I had difficulty in following their methodology.
As I was doing the Quant modules, I started to fall behind my schedule and hence had to push my GMAT date to the 27th of September in order to have ample time to do mock tests and their error analysis.
I took 4 mock tests:
1. 730 (Q49, V41)- Official Practice Exam 1
2. 710 (Q49, V38)- Manhattan Prep CAT Exam 1
3. 700 (Q45, V40)- Official Practice Exam 2
4. 760 (Q50, V42)- Official Practice Exam 3
I did all these practice tests at the same time I would do my actual test- 8.00 AM, kept to the actual break timings and familiarised myself with the AWA section. Soon, it was time for my test day. I slept early, avoided last-minute studying, ate a filling breakfast, wore a sweater and comfortable clothes and reached well before the reporting time. Since it was the first slot, things moved very quickly, the staff was very courteous, the centre was clean and the instructions were given clearly. I did the Verbal section first, then Quant, followed by IR and AWA. I made use of the breaks given, drank water and took a moment to centre myself before the next section.
My final score was a 730(Q49, V41, IR8, AWA6)! I scored 96th percentile in RC and 99th percentile in SC.
My top tips:
1. Make Notes- you will not remember that one question or that one topic you were going to revise. Keep a note of different and difficult questions and question types, your methodology of understanding processes, and tips/ processes to understanding questions or topics.
2. Create an error log- do so immediately after a quiz when you remember the experience best and be brutally honest. There is no such thing as a silly mistake and you don't have time to inflate your own ego by lying to yourself about how much you know/ why you did/ didn't do well. If you were feeling ill, if you messed up timing, if you didn't read the whole question, if you made a copy error- write all of it down and learn from your mistakes. Every error has a category and none of them are 'silly'.
3. Emphasis on quality over quantity- doing a bunch of questions and not going over your errors and process is meaningless. You need to be aware of the steps and skills needed, where you went wrong, where you went right, etc, instead of blindly doing a hundred questions hoping to get the next one right.
4. Create a Support System- It's really easy to get lost in your prep and feel like it's the end of the world if you're not hitting your target scores or taking longer than planned. Having people to support and guide you throughout is invaluable. My family and friends were my rock throughout this entire process and I could not have done this without them.
5. Ignore difficulty level of questions while taking a test - One reason why my scores dropped in some mocks was because I would get extremely anxious if I saw a question I perceived as easy. I'd believe that I had made mistakes and that my score would come down. This way, I'd jeopardise the next questions. I started ignoring my own perception of question difficulty and instead focused on doing my best to get questions right, and my performance did improve. I had more mental space to focus on the question at hand instead of worrying about the questions I had already answered and could no longer do anything about.
I hope this debrief was helpful! Feel free to ask for any extra details or if you have any questions.
To know a bit more detail about my experience with the eGMAT course, I've done debriefs on youtube- How did Rida improve from GMAT 540 to 730 in 50 days? and GMAT 730 (Q49, V41) | ~200-point score improvement in 2 months (I am unable to attach the links or my ESR as I haven't made 5 posts yet)
Background:
I've just graduated with a BA in Psychology, Sociology and English Literature and it was only towards the end of my final year that I realised I wanted to go into business. I hadn't studied maths since the 12th grade and was sceptical about my ability to do well in Quant and IR. I had decided to take the GMAT at this point because it was the only break I'd get between college and a job where I would be able to devote all my time to studying without any other distractions. I gave myself till the end of September to write the test, and if need be, a retest.
Starting My Prep
I started studying for the GMAT on the 8th of June, the day after my final college exam. To start my prep, I used the Manhattan Prep guides- the foundations of Verbal/Quant and All The Verbal/Quant. I did every single topic in every book and all the accompanying questions, took notes, and was extremely thorough in my preparation- or so I thought.
The Harsh Truth
At this point, I felt slightly confident in my prep. I had purchased the OG guide 2021 and using the Wiley tool online started to take quizzes online; the results shocked me. I struggled to score even 60% in either quant or verbal. On the first of August, I took a GMATClub Quant test and scored a 42. At this point, I was really worried- I had guessed a ton of questions, I felt incapable of answering many of the questions and I had horrible timing. Worried as to whether the last 2 months had been a complete waste, I decided to take an online course- I realised that I needed help and that solo prep was not getting me as far as I thought it would.
I'd attended a few webinars from different courses and I felt that e-GMAT was the one for me. At the time there was also a discount running, so I purchased their Online 360 course on the 4th of August.
A Speedrun to the End
Determined to keep my self established deadline, I'd created an extremely rigorous study schedule from the 5th of August to the 17th of September, the date for which I had booked my test at the local test centre(I had done so in advance because the test centre in my city is very popular and dates and times were already scarce).
I took my first mock (Sigma X) on the 4th of August and scored a 540(Q33, V32). I was extremely disappointed, but this moment was also a turning point and signified a change in attitude. I no longer felt sorry for myself and instead decided to put all the worries I had had so far- my nontraditional (read: non-engineering) background, my lack of quant background, a ticking clock and the FOMO of watching my peers get jobs or start masters- in the trash can. This was my journey, I made the rules and I chose the path- I was at the steering wheel and it didn't matter where the others were driving to because I knew where I wanted to go.
I had also decided to use this course to essentially start from scratch; spending time to catalogue and ignore what I already knew or reconcile it with a different methodology was something I didn't have time to do. So, slate wiped clean, I started my prep on the eGMAT platform from the 5th of August.
I woke up at 5.30 AM and studied till about 10.30-11 PM every day from Monday to Sunday. I watched almost every single video, took every practice, concept and diagnostic quiz on the platform at took rigorous notes on every topic. I made note of new topics, ways to read and think, question types, and my own thought processes. When I started doing quizzes, I also maintained a detailed error log where I made note of what type of question I got wrong (modifiers, permutations, etc), what type of error I got wrong (concept, process) and also made note of any patterns that emerged. For example, I noticed that I would frequently ignore the case of variable=0 and hence get questions wrong.
Because I was working on a strict timeline I prioritised quality over quantity, doing fewer questions but making sure I did them well; following the process consciously, making note of my errors and reviewing the material as needed. Due to the paucity of time I also had to be very strategic with my time; I noticed that CR was an area that saw the least improvement despite my efforts. So, I did my best to improve my SC and RC, as I didn't have the time to work on improving my CR skills beyond a certain point. The CR section in the eGMAT course was also the part I was least satisfied with, as I had difficulty in following their methodology.
As I was doing the Quant modules, I started to fall behind my schedule and hence had to push my GMAT date to the 27th of September in order to have ample time to do mock tests and their error analysis.
I took 4 mock tests:
1. 730 (Q49, V41)- Official Practice Exam 1
2. 710 (Q49, V38)- Manhattan Prep CAT Exam 1
3. 700 (Q45, V40)- Official Practice Exam 2
4. 760 (Q50, V42)- Official Practice Exam 3
I did all these practice tests at the same time I would do my actual test- 8.00 AM, kept to the actual break timings and familiarised myself with the AWA section. Soon, it was time for my test day. I slept early, avoided last-minute studying, ate a filling breakfast, wore a sweater and comfortable clothes and reached well before the reporting time. Since it was the first slot, things moved very quickly, the staff was very courteous, the centre was clean and the instructions were given clearly. I did the Verbal section first, then Quant, followed by IR and AWA. I made use of the breaks given, drank water and took a moment to centre myself before the next section.
My final score was a 730(Q49, V41, IR8, AWA6)! I scored 96th percentile in RC and 99th percentile in SC.
My top tips:
1. Make Notes- you will not remember that one question or that one topic you were going to revise. Keep a note of different and difficult questions and question types, your methodology of understanding processes, and tips/ processes to understanding questions or topics.
2. Create an error log- do so immediately after a quiz when you remember the experience best and be brutally honest. There is no such thing as a silly mistake and you don't have time to inflate your own ego by lying to yourself about how much you know/ why you did/ didn't do well. If you were feeling ill, if you messed up timing, if you didn't read the whole question, if you made a copy error- write all of it down and learn from your mistakes. Every error has a category and none of them are 'silly'.
3. Emphasis on quality over quantity- doing a bunch of questions and not going over your errors and process is meaningless. You need to be aware of the steps and skills needed, where you went wrong, where you went right, etc, instead of blindly doing a hundred questions hoping to get the next one right.
4. Create a Support System- It's really easy to get lost in your prep and feel like it's the end of the world if you're not hitting your target scores or taking longer than planned. Having people to support and guide you throughout is invaluable. My family and friends were my rock throughout this entire process and I could not have done this without them.
5. Ignore difficulty level of questions while taking a test - One reason why my scores dropped in some mocks was because I would get extremely anxious if I saw a question I perceived as easy. I'd believe that I had made mistakes and that my score would come down. This way, I'd jeopardise the next questions. I started ignoring my own perception of question difficulty and instead focused on doing my best to get questions right, and my performance did improve. I had more mental space to focus on the question at hand instead of worrying about the questions I had already answered and could no longer do anything about.
I hope this debrief was helpful! Feel free to ask for any extra details or if you have any questions.
To know a bit more detail about my experience with the eGMAT course, I've done debriefs on youtube- How did Rida improve from GMAT 540 to 730 in 50 days? and GMAT 730 (Q49, V41) | ~200-point score improvement in 2 months (I am unable to attach the links or my ESR as I haven't made 5 posts yet)
09 Dec 2021, 11:24
Kudos
Bookmarks
Congratulations, Rida. Those sub-section percentiles in Verbal are phenomenal. I am guessing you answered all the RC questions correctly and missed one SC question at most. Like nislam above, I find myself wondering what worked so well for you in your preparation in these two areas specifically. When did you feel as though RC just "clicked" for you? How did you get to that point? (It took a lot of trial and error for me, as well as slowing down, to finally see through the traps that used to catch me.) How about SC? I think your responses would assist not only the community, but others as well. On occasion, I might work with a client who just does not seem to be able to shift from decent to great at either type of question, and your rapid progression may hold a few insights I can share.
- Andrew
- Andrew
