Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Nov 2007:30 AM PST
-08:30 AM PST
Learn what truly sets the UC Riverside MBA apart and how it helps in your professional growth
Nov 2211:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Do RC/MSR passages scare you? e-GMAT is conducting a masterclass to help you learn – Learn effective reading strategies Tackle difficult RC & MSR with confidence Excel in timed test environment- Nov 23
11:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Attend this free GMAT Algebra Webinar and learn how to master the most challenging Inequalities and Absolute Value problems with ease. 
Nov 2510:00 AM EST
-11:00 AM EST
Prefer video-based learning? The Target Test Prep OnDemand course is a one-of-a-kind video masterclass featuring 400 hours of lecture-style teaching by Scott Woodbury-Stewart, founder of Target Test Prep and one of the most accomplished GMAT instructors.
24 Mar 2025, 00:17
Kudos
Bookmarks
Congratulations on your fantastic GMAT score of 715! Your structured and strategic approach, logging each mock test scores, focused quant preparation with TTP, clearly paid off. Your story is inspiring, and it’s great to see how you overcame test-day pressure from your first attempt. Wishing you the best for your applications!
nbraswell16
24 Mar 2025, 00:23
Kudos
Bookmarks
Big congratulations! It’s amazing how you consistently kept improving your score with each mock test. TTP seems to have given you that extra push in quant, and it’s great to see your consistency. This score puts you in a strong position—best of luck with your applications!
nbraswell16
24 Mar 2025, 22:59
Kudos
Bookmarks
A Bit of Background
As a non-native English speaker, preparing for the GMAT was never going to be an easy path. I had scored full marks on the English section of Korea’s national college entrance exam, but GMAT English was an entirely different challenge.
I majored in Film Studies and minored in Entrepreneurship during university. Rather than following a traditional path, I spent much of my college years building hands-on experience. I launched an online store, then later opened a small restaurant near a university campus. Those two ventures taught me a lot about business, marketing, and execution—but I knew that if I wanted to grow beyond the limitations of my local experience, I needed to challenge myself further.
That’s when I set my sights on the GMAT and, eventually, an MBA. After closing my restaurant, I began studying full-time.
Preparation
From day one, I found myself overwhelmed. The reading passages were dense and filled with unfamiliar logic and structure. I had always considered myself "good at English," but the GMAT quickly humbled me.
Math was no easier. As a liberal arts major with little formal exposure to quantitative reasoning, I struggled with even the basics. Watching others from engineering or finance backgrounds breeze through questions I found impossible was incredibly discouraging.
After four months of self-study, I took my first official exam in April 2024 and scored a 495. I was devastated. I had poured everything into it, and the emotional and physical toll left me burnt out. I took a break for two months, seriously questioning whether this was a journey worth continuing.
Eventually, I decided to try again—but with a more structured approach. That’s when I found TTP (Target Test Prep). Following their course step by step, I rebuilt my quantitative foundations from scratch. While I was still slower than most, I began to truly understand the logic behind the problems, and my confidence slowly returned.
Materials I Used
Taking and Re-taking the GMAT
I focused intensely on Quant, filling in any remaining gaps, and started working with a private tutor as well. But the biggest surprise came from Verbal. In my final attempt, I scored in the 98th percentile for Verbal—something I hadn’t expected at all.
I think a big reason for that was my change in study strategy. For both Quant and Verbal, I started "teaching" my mistakes—explaining wrong answers out loud as if I were tutoring someone else. I repeated the same problems multiple times, not just to memorize answers but to truly understand the thought process behind them. That method turned out to be incredibly effective.
Key Takeaways
Gratitude
There were moments during this journey when I felt completely lost. In those times, the support I received from the team at TTP—through email responses and study guidance—was incredibly meaningful. To everyone at TTP who took the time to answer my questions and encourage me when I needed it most, thank you. You helped me keep going.
If this journey has taught me anything, it’s that growth doesn’t always look like a straight line. Sometimes progress feels like failure until the very end. And that’s okay. I’m proud of how far I’ve come—not just in score, but in mindset.
As a non-native English speaker, preparing for the GMAT was never going to be an easy path. I had scored full marks on the English section of Korea’s national college entrance exam, but GMAT English was an entirely different challenge.
I majored in Film Studies and minored in Entrepreneurship during university. Rather than following a traditional path, I spent much of my college years building hands-on experience. I launched an online store, then later opened a small restaurant near a university campus. Those two ventures taught me a lot about business, marketing, and execution—but I knew that if I wanted to grow beyond the limitations of my local experience, I needed to challenge myself further.
That’s when I set my sights on the GMAT and, eventually, an MBA. After closing my restaurant, I began studying full-time.
Preparation
From day one, I found myself overwhelmed. The reading passages were dense and filled with unfamiliar logic and structure. I had always considered myself "good at English," but the GMAT quickly humbled me.
Math was no easier. As a liberal arts major with little formal exposure to quantitative reasoning, I struggled with even the basics. Watching others from engineering or finance backgrounds breeze through questions I found impossible was incredibly discouraging.
After four months of self-study, I took my first official exam in April 2024 and scored a 495. I was devastated. I had poured everything into it, and the emotional and physical toll left me burnt out. I took a break for two months, seriously questioning whether this was a journey worth continuing.
Eventually, I decided to try again—but with a more structured approach. That’s when I found TTP (Target Test Prep). Following their course step by step, I rebuilt my quantitative foundations from scratch. While I was still slower than most, I began to truly understand the logic behind the problems, and my confidence slowly returned.
Materials I Used
- TTP (Target Test Prep)
- Private Tutoring
- Official Prep & Official Guide
- GMAT Club Tests & Forum Quizzes
Taking and Re-taking the GMAT
- April 2024 – 495
- August 2024 – 575
- September 2024 – 595
- December 2024 – 595
- February 2025 – 675
I focused intensely on Quant, filling in any remaining gaps, and started working with a private tutor as well. But the biggest surprise came from Verbal. In my final attempt, I scored in the 98th percentile for Verbal—something I hadn’t expected at all.
I think a big reason for that was my change in study strategy. For both Quant and Verbal, I started "teaching" my mistakes—explaining wrong answers out loud as if I were tutoring someone else. I repeated the same problems multiple times, not just to memorize answers but to truly understand the thought process behind them. That method turned out to be incredibly effective.
Key Takeaways
- Mental resilience is everything. I can’t count how many times I wanted to quit. There were days when I couldn’t even open a book. But what helped me was setting a clear timeline—giving myself permission to stop after I had done everything I could. That helped me hold on when it mattered most.
- I wouldn’t recommend full-time studying unless you have a strong financial safety net. It can be isolating, mentally exhausting, and financially draining. If you do go that route, make sure you have emotional and financial support in place.
- The GMAT is not about how much you study, but how well you review. Knowing why you got something wrong, recognizing patterns, and being able to fix your thought process is more important than doing 100 new questions a day.
Gratitude
There were moments during this journey when I felt completely lost. In those times, the support I received from the team at TTP—through email responses and study guidance—was incredibly meaningful. To everyone at TTP who took the time to answer my questions and encourage me when I needed it most, thank you. You helped me keep going.
If this journey has taught me anything, it’s that growth doesn’t always look like a straight line. Sometimes progress feels like failure until the very end. And that’s okay. I’m proud of how far I’ve come—not just in score, but in mindset.
