720 on my first attempt!

Question

Hey guys, its been 2 days since i gave the GMAT for the first time, and I'm happy to share that I scored 720. My split was as follows:
Overall: 720 | AWA 6.0 | IR 6 | Quant 49 | Verbal 40.

Resources used:

Magoosh Premium Course
Official Guide 2016
GMATPrep tests
Manhattan Study guides for Sentence Correction and Number Properties+ MGMAT Tests
GMAT Club tests for Quant
GMATClub Math Book
GMATPrep Question Pack 1

Prep Process/Strategy

As a non-native speaker reading GMAT experiences on the forum, I initially got the feeling that mastering the verbal section of the test was almost unmanageable for any non-native speaker, simply by virtue of being a non-native! As an avid reader throughout my life, I was determined to break this template and ensure I excelled on the verbal section on my first attempt itself! So for every non-native reading this,believe me; the apparently complex verbal section can indeed be mastered!
I started my prep in mid-July using a one-week free trial of the Economist GMAT Tutor. Though I liked the interface and the quality of the course, I felt it was a little too expensive, and I looked for an effective yet affordable alternative. I eventually picked the $99 Magoosh premium course. I am glad I made that decision, because the course was worth every penny, and was an important factor in my success.

The audio-visual lectures were informative, and the question bank was a decent approximation of the questions I saw on test day. The video explanations were concise and eye-opening. I diligently followed their 3 month study schedule for beginners, which helped streamline my studies. I would highly recommend the course to anyone who is looking for a value for money online course.
Firstly , I think an important thing to understand about the GMAT is what it actually tests. A lot of people get stuck up about formulae, grammar rules and methods on their GMAT prep journey. I realised in the first month of my studies that what the GMAT actually tests is HOW you think, rather than how much you know. This important realisation bore fruit on test day as well, when a lot of questions required logic rather than formulae/rules to solve. Further, though there is no substitute for hard work, improving pattern-matching skills and general logical thinking is crucial. On the advice of other test takers on the forum, I maintained an error log throughout my studies. More importantly, I reviewed my mistakes and problem areas on a fortnightly basis, rather than leaving everything for the last week. This regular analysis greatly helped me understand my mistake patterns, and I worked hard to minimise similar errors. One of my college professors had once told me that it is pointless to keep practising without understanding mistakes, because you will simply waste more time making the same mistakes. His words could have not have been more relevant for such an exam, where the test will surely exploit your weak spots in the pressure situation of test day.

Further, I cannot emphasise enough the importance of solving official questions. By all means, start with the OG questions, but ensure you leave enough time to complete the other official materials available. There is simply no substitute for the quality and consistency of these questions, and solving too many third-party questions could harm your score rather than improve it. I realised this fact after working my way through a few Manhattan mock tests. The breakup of my mock tests was as follows:

MGMAT 1: 580 (Q37, V31) ( Taken cold, no prep)
Economist Free test : 620(Q41, V34)
MGMAT 2: 660 ( Q43, V37)
MGMAT 3: 660 ( Q41, V39)
MGMAT 4: 630 (Q 39, V 37)
GMATPrep 1: 710 (Q47, V41)
GMATPrep 2 : 690( Q46, V39)

Feedback on Test & Question Difficulty

The complexity of the quant section on the MGMAT tests, and the verbal section on the Economist test was well above anything I saw on the actual test . Regardless of the knowledge that these are only mock tests and scores don't matter, the crushing feeling of seeing a mid-650 score after sustained effort can be quite demoralising. Hence, I would highly recommend doing these tests with a pinch of salt, and focusing more on official material. After the 630 on MGMAT 4 just 3 weeks before my test, I was genuinely demoralised. At this juncture, I came across OG solutions by dabral, a GMAT Club member who is a master at breaking down official quant questions. His video explanations on OG questions convinced me that his approach was directed more at understanding 'how' to think about a particular question, rather than mechanically applying some complicated rules. I reached out to him, and he suggested buying QuestionPack 1 from mba.com to streamline my prep in the final month. This was an invaluable suggestion, because apart from the GMATPrep tests, the 404 questions bundled with QP1 were almost identical to the style of questions I saw on test day. Further, I would recommend skipping third party tests(unless you need to build stamina which is imperative on a 4 hour test) and spending $49 on Exam Pack 1, something I couldn't do because of lack of time. Further, after finishing the 2 free GMATPrep tests, download the remaining questions from the question pool which are available on the GMAT Club forum. These extra questions are also very similar to what you can expect to see on test day.

Specific takeaways:

AWA: Read and evaluate a few essays on the GC forum, and follow Chinese Burned's template. It is all you will need to get 6.0 on test day.

IR: Solve ONLY official questions, I found MGMAT questions much more complicated than the real thing, while Magoosh had really easy ones. Basically, this section is really new, and it'll take time for other companies to create questions of realistic difficulty. I got 8 in both my GMATPrep tests, but messed up my timing on test day so only got 6 in the actual test.

Quant: Follow Bunuel, dabral,and other math experts on the forum. The insights and methods they use to solve questions is eye-opening, and seeing these solutions every morning will gradually improve your proficiency. Further, the GMAT Club math book is a priceless document outlining strategies for almost all topics covered on the test, and is written by resident math experts from the forum. Study it , and consider solving GMATClub quant tests for further practice. Yes, I know I advised against solving too much third -party material, but the GMATClub quant tests vetted by Bunuel test the exact same concepts required for the exam, but don't require complex calculations. They require attention to detail and out of the box thinking,skills which will serve you well on test day.

Verbal: READ! Like i mentioned at the start of the post, the GMAT verbal can indeed be conquered. But , it is imperative to understand that it doesn't test grammar and vocabulary as much as it tests comprehension and meaning. Reading the Economist magazine throughout my prep ensured I was comfortable handling all the passages which came my way. For people who aren't fond of reading, try reading a couple of articles which interest you, and then venture outward into unfamiliar territory. Reading articles from the Economist greatly helped me with all 3 sections of the verbal, since each article has impeccable sentence structure, logical flow, and understanding the author's view helps break down CR questions on the test. Do not get bogged down trying to learn every rule in the Manhattan SC guide( a great book, but a bit of overkill in terms of the sheer volume of grammar concepts covered). Focus instead on understanding the meaning of sentences.

Final Tips

Ensure you take mock tests as realistically as possible. Do both the AWA and the IR section, and take 6-7 minute breaks. This will automatically train your mind and body to be alert till the very end of the test, without which it is easy to burn out and ruin your verbal score.

I know it has been a long post, but I wanted to ensure I can do my bit to help anybody reading this post. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have!

sumitsinha4u · Answer

First of all congratulation... and thanks for such a nice tips...

Regards:-
Sumit kumar

Shrikunj · Answer

Thank you, and best of luck!

shasadou · Answer

great score! congratulations!

And thank you for one of the most comprehensive and up-to-the point debriefs. great insight!

how many mistakes do you think u did on quant? did you apply strategy to spend extra time on the first 10-11 questions to get them rights?

Shrikunj · Answer

Thank you! 
I was hitting 46-47 on the GMATPrep tests with about 10 incorrect, but realised I was still making at least 2-3 very avoidable errors. So I think the fine tuning I did in the last week of my prep ensured I could eliminate those mistakes.. Was quite sure of at least 28-29 questions on the actual test. Can't be certain, of course.. But I was getting a conclusive answer to the difficult questions, so I guess I got most of those correct. Yes I think I did spend a little extra time on the first 4-5 questions even though they were relatively straightforward.. But I would advise against going along that route for the first 10-12 questions, because by question 6-7 you'll anyway receive genuinely complicated questions.. Which will either take a good 3 minutes to solve, or it would be better to take an educated guess after about a minute to ensure you get other, more simpler questions correct. Check out Bunuel's analysis of the GMATPrep software.. Amazing analysis of these 'What if' scenarios..

shasadou · Answer

Thank u for reply. Btw how many guesses did u do on the quant?

I did read through the what if scenarios. I am really scared to apply them in the real thing though.

One of my recent gmat prep mocks gave me 49 on quant with 17! Incorrect answers. Mostly concentrated at the end

Shrikunj · Answer

Think I had 2-3 Complete guesses, and about 3-4 educated guesses. 
Wow, are you sure you got 49 on a GMATPrep mock with 17 incorrect?! Try solving a few GMATClub quant tests.. Really tricky questions, and the scoring is very accurate. Got 48-49 in the last 3 tests I gave, ended up with 49 on the actual test

GGMU · Answer

Hi  Shrikunj  congratulations on a great score...You are an inspiration especially for non natives like me.

I have kind of same query. My scores are varying in between 600-700 range in Kaplan CAT's and after carefully analysing, I found out that the variation is because of first 10 questions. I mostly get the same number of incorrect answers but the overall score is sometimes as low as 610 or as high as 680. Did you do anything different, apart from giving more time on those questions, in order to ensure that you get most of the first ten questions correct because the difficulty of the questions keep on increasing if you are getting them right....

Thanks in advance.

Shrikunj · Answer

Thank you!
I haven't personally solved a Kaplan CAT, but from what I've read on the forum, they too have difficult tests. So as such if you've been able to hit 680 or so, you should still have a shot at crossing 700!
I think it's really difficult to get the first 10 questions correct in either section. So I what I did do, though, was ensure I got the first 5-6 correct (usually possible, because you'd typically see 700+ questions after question 3-4).. So that way I ensured I was off to a decent start, and then took each question as it came. Its difficult to hit 51 in quant, so I think you can ensure you can touch 49-50 by getting nearly every single 500 & 600 level question correct, and then give the difficult questions your best shot. The algorithm roughly works like this :
Small reward and huge penalty on the easy questions
Big reward and small penalty on the difficult questions
So it's imperative to get 90-95% accuracy on the 500& 600 level questions!
Hope it helps

GGMU · Answer

Thanks for the reply  Shrikunj  ...
Hope I too get a 700+ by applying the technique..

781swami · Answer

Shrikunj you mention " Further, after finishing the 2 free GMATPrep tests, download the remaining questions from the question pool which are available on the GMAT Club forum. These extra questions are also very similar to what you can expect to see on test day."

Where can I find the "remaining questions from the question pool?" Thanks!

Where can I find the "remaining questions from the question pool?" Thanks!

Amidro · Answer

Very nice score! Congrats! What kind of strategy you used hitting CR & reading? Did you cover all the passage or how was it in your case? Here they are, you also can find some more if you search more deeply. gmatprep-ps-question-bank-130073.html gmatprep-ds-question-bank-130069.html and compilation of those: all-gmatprep-questions-quant-verbal-187679.html You can KUDOS me if you think it was helpful.

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720 on my first attempt!

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