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augustus021
Joined: 19 Jan 2023
Last visit: 18 Oct 2024
Posts: 65
Given Kudos: 59
Location: Viet Nam
Schools: Anderson '26 (WL) Yale '26 (A) Columbia CBS'26 (WL) Fuqua '26 (WL) Kellogg '26 (M) Ross '26 (A$$$$) Judge '25 (A) Oxford Said'25 (A$)
GMAT 1: 740 Q51 V39
GPA: 3.3
WE:Project Management (Technology)
Products:
Schools: Anderson '26 (WL) Yale '26 (A) Columbia CBS'26 (WL) Fuqua '26 (WL) Kellogg '26 (M) Ross '26 (A$$$$) Judge '25 (A) Oxford Said'25 (A$)
GMAT 1: 740 Q51 V39
Posts: 65
Updated on: 24 Sep 2023, 10:16
Originally posted by augustus021 on 24 Sep 2023, 03:41.
Last edited by augustus021 on 24 Sep 2023, 10:16, edited 4 times in total.
Last edited by augustus021 on 24 Sep 2023, 10:16, edited 4 times in total.
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Hi everyone, I took my third GMAT attempt a few days ago and got my target score of 740.
It’s the result of an 8-month love-hate relationship with this exam. The duration could have been shorter (3–4 months) if I had known some of the tips and resources I will tell you about in this post.
In this debrief, I will walk you through three parts
A. Summary of my GMAT journey: Never lose hope
B. Pros and Cons of all GMAT resources that I used, including TTP (my love), GMAT club, Manhattan, and GMAT Ninja Videos
C. Study tips: Error logs, time management practice, support system & your preparation mode
A. Summary of my GMAT journey: Never lose hope
Starting point:
Jan 29: Official practice test #1: 600 (Q48/V25)
- I’m a typical Asian I think: decent in quantitative but weak in verbal.
- I choose to self-study because of my very busy working schedule (8 a.m.–9 p.m. daily)
Phase 01: 3.5 months (nearly a waste)
- Completed Manhattan: 3 verbal books (most recommended books for self study) + GMATNinja Quant Youtube Videos
- Completed OG 2020 using the OG 2020 error log from GMATclub
- Very disappointed with the mock test result
Apr 09: Official practice test #2: 620 (Q51/V22)
May 21: Official practice test #3: 590 (Q47/V24)
- I felt so painful, I doubted my Verbal capability. I thought that I could not improve my Verbal score. I questioned myself why after 3 months and no improvement.
- Luckily, after reading some sharings from GMAT club, I understood that GMAT was a journey on which you run on your own and "what fits other people does not necessarily fits you". So I decided to review my study method
- I found that Manhattan materials were not enough for me because there were too few practice questions.
- After researching some popular online courses, I chose TTP because of its good UX/UI and very detailed guidelines for each section.
Phase 02: 2 months
- Studied with TTP for 20–30 hours per week but could only complete the RC and CR sections because it is long. I felt a lot more confident in CR after studying with TTP, I can easily get the logic behind each option while dont need to prethink. My CR score in 3 official test is always around 45-46 (i got this from the ESR summary) with only 2-3 incorrect question s. You can see my verbal score had improved weeak over week every since I started using TTP
- Then, I spent the last month redoing incorrect questions in OG 2020 and completing Verbal Review 2019
May 28: Official practice test #4: 640 (Q48/V29)
Jul 09: Official practice test #5: 680 (Q50/V30)
Jul 15: Official practice test #6: 700 (Q49/V36)
Jul 17: Official Exam 01: 710 (Q50/V35/IR5/AWA5)
- I felt a lot more motivated this time and determined to retake and get a higher score. I checked my ESR. Lnowing that my problem is SC, I spent more time finishing TTP SC course.
Phase 03: 1.5 months
- Completed 50% of TTP SC section (because it’s too long), then reviewed questions in OG 2020 and verbal review 2019
- Completed 5-10 LSAT questions per day
- Did not practice time management then shocked by the official exam result.
Aug 11 - Official practice test #4 (retake): 700 (Q50/V35)
Aug 14: - Official Exam 02: 690 (Q49/V35/IR8/AWA6) - Skip 3-4 questions at the end of each section Quant & Verbal
- At this time, I was very disappointed and started to doubt my capabilities, but luckily, I had my friends and family by my side. I got down to continue to study after 1 week break
Phase 04 - 1 month
- Booked 2 tutoring sessions and found that my error log is not effective for SC and CR (quite surprised)
- Completed the last 50% of TTP SC section, and felt really confident
- Spent time doing the Advanced Review Book and using the new error log. At this stage, I was very confident when my Verbal accuracy was always 70%-80% for every section in this book
- Review Bunuel’s guideline for some quant topics on which I am weak and review GMATNinja youtube series
- Practiced time management seriously
- Got a very fruitful result
Sep 18 - Official Exam 03: 740 (Q51/V39/IR7/AWA6)
B. Pros and Cons of all GMAT resources that I used
1. OG - Must have the questions are most similar to the official exam among all sources.
2. TTP (my love)
- Pros:
---Detailed guidelines with tons of high-quality questions and explanations. Started with fear for Verbal section, I became much more confident after completing TTP Verbal course. I did not study Quant in TTP too much so will not give comment about this section, but heard that people also talk good about it.
--- Clear study roadmap, which shows you what you need to study, to review, and to reflect before the test
---A supportive team, Marty answered every one of my questions in half a day. When my subscription expired 2 weeks before I took my second test, Scott even emailed me to ask how my study progress was and gave me two free weeks to study more, I was deeply grateful
- Cons: It's a long course, if you can study 20-30 hours per week, you will need 4-8 months to complete both TTP Verbal and Quant. So start as early as possible. Besides, I dont really like TTP’s error log, it is not as easy to review question as the one I attach below
- Thank you MartyTargetTestPrep and ScottTargetTestPrep for such a wonderful product. I could have achieved higher score in a shorter time if I had used TTP earlier.
3. GMAT club
- Pros: Very active group with lots of help from expert. Also, when you feel demotivated, come to the sharing sessions and read the posts from last candidates. I do that nearly every week
- Cons: sometimes you need to filter the good replies to follow. Some solutions seems to be made after the author has already known the answer
- Thank you GMATNinja GMATNinjaTwo KarishmaB Bunuel TommyWallach mikemcgarry for your high-quality explanations and support to all GMATclub members
4. Manhattan (think it fits the ones with strong background from beginning, but not me)
- Pros: Good tips, easy to follow guidelines
- Cons: too few questions
5. GMAT ninja YouTube Quantitative series
- Pros: Very useful; the overlapping, min/max, and inequality topic are a big part of my 51 Quant
- Cons: Mainly tips, so if your foundation is weak, dont use
- Thank you Charles GMATNinja for such a wonderful series
C. Study tips
Here are the ones I find the most useful to me
1. Error logs: Create a specific error log for each verbal section. I attach the examples of my CR & SC error logs below, which played a key role to my score improvement from 710-740. Besides, remember to study all options in each question, make sure you uds why they are wrong, and note down to your error log
2. Time management practice
- Watch this video from GMAT Ninja, and you will learn why it’s important to skip questions in the exam. Be very disciplined in terms of timeline.
- One exercise I was recommended by my tutor, and it works: If you are weak in SC, set timing to 30 minutes and do 15 SC questions in a row. Do this exercise every day, and do every mock test on weekends.
3. Have a strong support system and believe in yourself:
- Find a group of friends to motivate each other. It is ideal if you are close to your family or have a girlfriend or boyfriend. Mine are the ones who encouraged me to study every day at 10 pm after getting back from work. I cannot get this score without them
- But apart from supporter, you need to be strong on your own also. I believe many people have told you this, but DONT GIVE UP, and FOCUS ON YOU AND YOUR PROGRESS. you should celebrate every of your progress, even it's a small one.
That's the end of my debrief. Feel free to ask any question. I own you guys a lot in this journey.
It’s the result of an 8-month love-hate relationship with this exam. The duration could have been shorter (3–4 months) if I had known some of the tips and resources I will tell you about in this post.
In this debrief, I will walk you through three parts
A. Summary of my GMAT journey: Never lose hope
B. Pros and Cons of all GMAT resources that I used, including TTP (my love), GMAT club, Manhattan, and GMAT Ninja Videos
C. Study tips: Error logs, time management practice, support system & your preparation mode
A. Summary of my GMAT journey: Never lose hope
Starting point:
Jan 29: Official practice test #1: 600 (Q48/V25)
- I’m a typical Asian I think: decent in quantitative but weak in verbal.
- I choose to self-study because of my very busy working schedule (8 a.m.–9 p.m. daily)
Phase 01: 3.5 months (nearly a waste)
- Completed Manhattan: 3 verbal books (most recommended books for self study) + GMATNinja Quant Youtube Videos
- Completed OG 2020 using the OG 2020 error log from GMATclub
- Very disappointed with the mock test result
Apr 09: Official practice test #2: 620 (Q51/V22)
May 21: Official practice test #3: 590 (Q47/V24)
- I felt so painful, I doubted my Verbal capability. I thought that I could not improve my Verbal score. I questioned myself why after 3 months and no improvement.
- Luckily, after reading some sharings from GMAT club, I understood that GMAT was a journey on which you run on your own and "what fits other people does not necessarily fits you". So I decided to review my study method
- I found that Manhattan materials were not enough for me because there were too few practice questions.
- After researching some popular online courses, I chose TTP because of its good UX/UI and very detailed guidelines for each section.
Phase 02: 2 months
- Studied with TTP for 20–30 hours per week but could only complete the RC and CR sections because it is long. I felt a lot more confident in CR after studying with TTP, I can easily get the logic behind each option while dont need to prethink. My CR score in 3 official test is always around 45-46 (i got this from the ESR summary) with only 2-3 incorrect question s. You can see my verbal score had improved weeak over week every since I started using TTP
- Then, I spent the last month redoing incorrect questions in OG 2020 and completing Verbal Review 2019
May 28: Official practice test #4: 640 (Q48/V29)
Jul 09: Official practice test #5: 680 (Q50/V30)
Jul 15: Official practice test #6: 700 (Q49/V36)
Jul 17: Official Exam 01: 710 (Q50/V35/IR5/AWA5)
- I felt a lot more motivated this time and determined to retake and get a higher score. I checked my ESR. Lnowing that my problem is SC, I spent more time finishing TTP SC course.
Phase 03: 1.5 months
- Completed 50% of TTP SC section (because it’s too long), then reviewed questions in OG 2020 and verbal review 2019
- Completed 5-10 LSAT questions per day
- Did not practice time management then shocked by the official exam result.
Aug 11 - Official practice test #4 (retake): 700 (Q50/V35)
Aug 14: - Official Exam 02: 690 (Q49/V35/IR8/AWA6) - Skip 3-4 questions at the end of each section Quant & Verbal
- At this time, I was very disappointed and started to doubt my capabilities, but luckily, I had my friends and family by my side. I got down to continue to study after 1 week break
Phase 04 - 1 month
- Booked 2 tutoring sessions and found that my error log is not effective for SC and CR (quite surprised)
- Completed the last 50% of TTP SC section, and felt really confident
- Spent time doing the Advanced Review Book and using the new error log. At this stage, I was very confident when my Verbal accuracy was always 70%-80% for every section in this book
- Review Bunuel’s guideline for some quant topics on which I am weak and review GMATNinja youtube series
- Practiced time management seriously
- Got a very fruitful result
Sep 18 - Official Exam 03: 740 (Q51/V39/IR7/AWA6)
B. Pros and Cons of all GMAT resources that I used
1. OG - Must have the questions are most similar to the official exam among all sources.
2. TTP (my love)
- Pros:
---Detailed guidelines with tons of high-quality questions and explanations. Started with fear for Verbal section, I became much more confident after completing TTP Verbal course. I did not study Quant in TTP too much so will not give comment about this section, but heard that people also talk good about it.
--- Clear study roadmap, which shows you what you need to study, to review, and to reflect before the test
---A supportive team, Marty answered every one of my questions in half a day. When my subscription expired 2 weeks before I took my second test, Scott even emailed me to ask how my study progress was and gave me two free weeks to study more, I was deeply grateful
- Cons: It's a long course, if you can study 20-30 hours per week, you will need 4-8 months to complete both TTP Verbal and Quant. So start as early as possible. Besides, I dont really like TTP’s error log, it is not as easy to review question as the one I attach below
- Thank you MartyTargetTestPrep and ScottTargetTestPrep for such a wonderful product. I could have achieved higher score in a shorter time if I had used TTP earlier.
3. GMAT club
- Pros: Very active group with lots of help from expert. Also, when you feel demotivated, come to the sharing sessions and read the posts from last candidates. I do that nearly every week
- Cons: sometimes you need to filter the good replies to follow. Some solutions seems to be made after the author has already known the answer
- Thank you GMATNinja GMATNinjaTwo KarishmaB Bunuel TommyWallach mikemcgarry for your high-quality explanations and support to all GMATclub members
4. Manhattan (think it fits the ones with strong background from beginning, but not me)
- Pros: Good tips, easy to follow guidelines
- Cons: too few questions
5. GMAT ninja YouTube Quantitative series
- Pros: Very useful; the overlapping, min/max, and inequality topic are a big part of my 51 Quant
- Cons: Mainly tips, so if your foundation is weak, dont use
- Thank you Charles GMATNinja for such a wonderful series
C. Study tips
Here are the ones I find the most useful to me
1. Error logs: Create a specific error log for each verbal section. I attach the examples of my CR & SC error logs below, which played a key role to my score improvement from 710-740. Besides, remember to study all options in each question, make sure you uds why they are wrong, and note down to your error log
2. Time management practice
- Watch this video from GMAT Ninja, and you will learn why it’s important to skip questions in the exam. Be very disciplined in terms of timeline.
3. Have a strong support system and believe in yourself:
- Find a group of friends to motivate each other. It is ideal if you are close to your family or have a girlfriend or boyfriend. Mine are the ones who encouraged me to study every day at 10 pm after getting back from work. I cannot get this score without them
- But apart from supporter, you need to be strong on your own also. I believe many people have told you this, but DONT GIVE UP, and FOCUS ON YOU AND YOUR PROGRESS. you should celebrate every of your progress, even it's a small one.
That's the end of my debrief. Feel free to ask any question. I own you guys a lot in this journey.
Attachments
CR eror log example.png [ 371.44 KiB | Viewed 2262 times ]
SC error log example.png [ 384.53 KiB | Viewed 2241 times ]
24 Sep 2023, 08:05
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Gratz on the 740 and all the best going forward. Consider writing a profile-review.
-contact: gmatknight site | gmatclub dm
-contact: gmatknight site | gmatclub dm
28 Sep 2023, 10:35
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Hi augustus021,
Congrats on an awesome GMAT score! The team was so happy to support you during your journey!
Congrats on an awesome GMAT score! The team was so happy to support you during your journey!
