Hi Everyone,
I want to post my experience of the long and tedious GMAT journey, the mistakes I made and what worked for me that might work for you as well. I will keep it very short and focus on the key points in the journey.
This one is for the ones who have to go through re-attempts to get to their target score. Here goes.
First attempt:
I started preparing for the GMAT in December 2020. And took the GMAT online in July-2021. The result: 640 (V29, Q48). I did some self-prep from Manhattan Guides, Veritas prep videos, and other sources.

Second Attempt:
I signed up with a well-known prep company and attempted the in-person GMAT on Dec-21. The result: 640 (V32, Q47). Clearly, Verbal was the issue.

Third Attempt:
I did some online research and finally decided to go with GMAT Whiz after talking to Piyush. During the call, Piyush and I went through my ESR from the previous attempt and he walked me through the common challenges faced by candidates with a score such as mine. I signed up for the GMAT Whiz Verbal Tutor prep course and started working with Sunita for my Verbal prep in Jan-22. Over the course of the next 3 months, we worked hard to re-wire my GMAT brain and bring me on the right track. The tool and techniques taught during the course coupled with the standardized approach and an adaptive platform were the game-changer. I finally took my 3rd attempt in Apr-22 and scored 710 (V40, Q46). Disclosure: I barely studied for Quant because of my hectic schedule, but I was pretty happy with the Verbal score. (I scored V40 and V41 on official GMAT mock tests).

So what worked for me on the 3rd attempt?
1. The standardized approach to learning, which is a key focus of the GMAT Whiz course. It not only teaches you the right approach but also hard wires you to follow the approach during the time pressure situation of the test.
2. The mentorship. I cannot emphasize enough the contribution of an expert, who does so much to set you in the right direction. I found Sunita’s approach to be very effective and efficient.
In conclusion,
To anyone reading this review and hoping to achieve a great GMAT score, I would recommend going with GMAT Whiz. Self-prep can only take you so far if you are not familiar with the material tested on the GMAT. Working with an expert will be much more efficient and I do not think that any other course offers such great value when it comes to 1-on-1 tutoring.

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The course developed by e - gmat is very useful. It covers all topics in detail in verbal as well as quant. The dashboard and test analysis is also very insightful.
For verbal, it is probably the best online course out there.
The only issue I faced was relatively low number of practice questions and mock tests available with the course. Would appretiate if more verbal practice questions and atleast 10 mocks are provided along with the course.
The counselling service provided by e - gmat is also very insightful. They help you in your preparation and provide daily targets to prepare you for the d-day.

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I started my GMAT prep with TTP, not having used any study material before it. I had given an official practice exam and scored a 700 on it, so my starting point was pretty high, but TTP really helped my sharpen my basics a lot. I am still in college so my quant was mostly up to date, but TTP warned me of all the Quant traps and the ways to avoid them, while honing my skills in topics I had not studied for a long time. The question-bank is huge; it is more than ample for anyone to attain perfection over any sub-topic.

While TTP’s Quant is praised very highly, I am surprised its Verbal section doesn’t get the praise I think it deserves. The Sentence Correction component was a real game-changer for me because SC was probably my weakest area. Granted that you still have to practice a lot of OG questions to really get accustomed to the real Verbal questions, but the basics are what matter the most and TTP is the best at sharpening them. I used the course for just about 2 months (although admittedly I gave a lot of time daily) and then revised, practiced OG questions and gave practice exams for the next 3-4 weeks. That was all I needed to reach my target score.

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After quite a bit of research and several trials of other options, I decided to use Target Test Prep for my Quant prep. It did not disappoint. The structure provided a great path to follow but allowed me the flexibility I needed to focus in on topics I needed to review. The analytics and tracking are phenomenal and allow you to hone in in your weakest area. The free trial is a great way to see if it is right for you. Don't be discouraged by the lengthy first section (properties of numbers) - that baseline is important and subsequent chapters are much shorter.
While I only used Target test Prep for the quant review, I imagine that their verbal offerings are similarly effective. I would highly recommend target test prep.

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My entire strategy depended on TTP and honestly, I couldn't have progressed as rapidly without it. Assessing my progress without the analytical dashboard would have been a chore. The ability to create custom practice tests made it very easy for me to try my weaknesses and focus on what mattered. The quantity and quality of the exercises and solutions are simply outstanding.

Furthermore, the TTP team was extremely responsive to all my questions and supportive throughout the process.

Do yourself a favor and give it a try, you won't regret it.

Prep strategy:
My prep strategy was primarily practice based for Quant and Verbal. The only readings I did were the solutions to the exercises I failed. I didn't really go through any courses other than that.

There are two reasons why I didn't follow the time/stress-tested track laid out by TTP:

Lack of time

Optimizing Efficiency: TTP's waterfall approach, while great for most people, didn't quite resonate with me. I felt like I had a relatively good foundation, both quantitatively and verbally, and I needed a firm adjustment more than a complete overhaul.

The OG practice tests were used sparingly throughout my preparation to assess my overall level of preparation. I systematically reviewed all the mistakes I made on OG using GMAT Club.

After my first official test, I had attempted all of my mock exams and felt that there was too much redundancy for the retake score to have any substance. So I focused on the ttp during the 3 weeks between my first and second.

Quant prep:
My approach with the quant was fairly simple:

(1) Do custom practice test (31 hard/medium questions all chapters) with timer.

(2) Review mistakes

(3) Evaluate weakest chapters (analytical dashboard)

(4) Do 30 hard/medium questions on weakest chapters - no timer, focus on getting it right.

(5) Review mistakes

(6) Return to (1)

To help me assess my progress more quickly, I created a spreadsheet to which I fed my analytics to and which gave me an instant view of my weaknesses. I calculate a score that uses accuracy, quantity, time, and relative importance of chapters to determine my relative readiness for each chapter. Since the score is relative, my weakest chapters are constantly changing.



r/GMAT - My GMAT experience: 610 (V36/Q38) to 760 (Q49/V45) in 70 days with a full-time job and as a non-native speaker.
Progress Assessment Spreadsheet

So, each day I can open my sheet and choose the 3 weakest chapters I need to improve upon. When I'm done for the day, I update my sheet and get a new group of weak points to work on the next day.

From time to time, I take a diagnostic practice test to assess my overall preparedness.

My reasoning was that if I was able to score +85% on the TTP custom practice tests, I should be ready for the real thing.

Over time, my average accuracy on the TTP diagnostic test went from 60% to 90% and my relatively weak points were quite strong.

I attempted a total of about 1200 exercises, which was not even 50% of all TTP’s exercices.

Verbal prep:
With the exception of two outliers (cold and first official), I always scored decently on Verbal (+40). Oddly enough, I barely prepared for it (~20h including OG practice).

I think the main reason is my reading habit. I love to read. A lot of nonfiction books, non-contemporary novels, or undergraduate textbooks and research papers. I also actively annotate most of the books I read.

For anyone who struggles with verbal, I suggest choosing challenging books and actively reading them 2-3 hours a night before falling asleep.

Critical reasoning and reading comprehension problems were a non-issue and most errors were due to fatigue or lack of concentration.

At first, solving sentence corrections was mostly based on intuition and that worked well. But due to the lack of a clear solving process, my results varied from test to test. After my first official test, I focused on the hard and medium TTP questions and I thoroughly reviewed the solution. I think this probably saved me on the second official test.

Most of the verbal studying took place after my first official test.

I attempted 360 out of the 573 questions on TTP.

IR & AW prep:
For IR, no prep other than the OG practice test. If you are good with CR, RC and ok with quant, IR should be a breeze.

For AWA, I read this. Practiced once or twice (~2hrs total). I probably could have gotten a better score with better time management.

Exam day:
Official 1 (660): Quant —> Verbal —> IR —> AWA

I hadn't slept at all in two days and had averaged two to three hours of sleep the week before. Insomnia is a recurring theme in my life for personal reasons.

I had booked for 10:30am and since it was clear I wasn't going to sleep, I decided to go for a run at 6am and then take a cold bath to get some energy. After a quick breakfast and some much needed coffee, I sat down in front of my computer to write.

The proctor was very thorough in checking everything and after 20 minutes I was able to start the exam.

As soon as the quant started, it was pretty obvious to me that I had made a mistake writing the exam. My pattern recognition skills were failing and I had a terrible headache that completely obliterated my time management skills.

The verbal section was worse in nearly every way. I had to reread sentences several times to get the gist of them. Which, as you can imagine, did wonders for my timing (/s). I had to guess for the last 10 questions, which might explain my lacklustre result.

By the end of the verbal exam, I was pretty much convinced I was going to have to retake, so the IR and AWA were more about trying to stay awake than anything else.

Official 2 (760): Verbal —> Quant —> IR —> AWA

This time, things were less hectic. I managed to sleep well all week leading up to the test and got a good three hours of sleep the night prior ( which, given my prev experience, I was very thrilled about).

I also decided to start with the verbal to avoid the attention fatigue of my first exam.

The verbal was more difficult than expected and I remember a series of RC questions that I really struggled with and had to mostly guess (which had never happened before).

The Quant was a breeze. Focusing on the hard and medium TTP questions paid off. Most of the questions seemed accessible. The hard questions were easier than the harder TTP questions. The easy questions were a great confidence boost.

My score on IR & AWA ended up being relatively low but I’m cool with it.

Post exam:
I was placed on administrative review, which I expected considering my score increase.

Overall, I wasn't really worried because I think AR is now standard practice for 700+ scores. I received the official score on April 13, which was 3 weeks after taking.

Ending note:
The GMAT is fairly deterministic and I think 700+ is attainable for most. I had a good baseline both in quant and verbal, but overall, I think the 150 increase is largely achievable with the right methodology and progress assessment.

FOCUS: Most of the mistakes I made towards the end were due to lack of focus. Meditation and sleep (when my brain allows it) helped a lot.

PRACTICE: fail repeatedly until you can succeed consistently. Practice as much as you can and focus on solving difficult problems, no matter how long it takes.

For me, TTP and OG practice are a no-brainer.

Best of luck!

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i purchased the e-gmat online focused course right after my first official gmat mock test. I was expecting for something like 680-690 but ended up in a 620. AFter purchasing the e-gmat, i could actually see what mistakes i was making and what i was missing during my self prep. E-gmat has improved my verbal so much. Also , its quant part, i would say, is so underrated. The content is the so good that it actually enable you to tackle the quant part of the Gmat exam easily.
The only drawback i've seen its student support system, which i felt like is a bit lagging or not taking seriously

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My GMAT journey started almost a year ago. I self-studied using Target Test Prep and exhausted almost all Official Guide materials and all the 6 practice tests. On all my practice tests, I scored between 720-780. In my first GMAT attempt at the test center, I scored a 660 (Q:49, V:31), which was a huge disappointment considering my practice test scores. I decided to re-take a month later, and was disappointed again with an even lower score of 640 (Q:49, V:23).

Given my decent Quant score, I knew I needed to focus more on my Verbal skills and decided to reach out to Charles, who I discovered through his famous Youtube videos and GMATClub posts. After sharing my history and practice test scores, he suggested the variance in my performance might be driven by test anxiety. While he couldn't guarantee a timeline for improvement, he recommended I work with Dana Stepleton to fine-tune my process to manage my test anxiety.

I cannot say enough positive things about my experience working with Dana (especially if you have test anxiety!). She's patient, empathetic, honest, and she knew how exactly to address my concerns in a productive manner as it related to test anxiety. More specifically, in order to address the anxiety, we trained on harder LSAT material, and cranked up the pressure by setting time constraints on practice sets to simulate a pressured test environment as best as possible. She also coached me through my thought process, especially when I started to feel the anxiety creep up on me, and trained me on strategies to refocus my attention on the problem at hand.

Lastly, the level of professionalism and commitment at GMATNinja is commendable - from my very first email to my post-exam debrief outside of our tutoring sessions, Dana and Charles have been incredibly responsive and invested in helping me get to my goal score.

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Spoiler : Just take the subscription !!!

Background:
My first dig at the GMAT exam was an e-gmat mock (sigma-X) where I scored a 600 (Q46, V26).

I moved onto OG, concept books, etc. and could see myself enhancing my knowledge significantly in SC and CR. I saw the improvement in my GMATPrep mock attempts too, wherein I scored ranges between 700 and 740 consistently.

Looking at the mock scores, I was certain that I was empowered with the skills needed to clear the 700-mark. I unfortunately couldn’t cross the barrier in the 1st attempt. Due to my higher mock scores in GMATPrep, I was certain that there was nothing wrong with my preparation methods and perhaps it was a one-off scenario. But, after analyzing the ESR of my 2nd failed attempt and noticing a below average performance across the whole of verbal section, I realized that there definitely were conceptual gaps which I’d needed to cover up.

E-GMAT:
Based on recommendations of my friends, I quickly moved onto e-gmat. The first thing one could notice immediately is how comprehensive the course is. As suggested in the course, I started off with SC -> CR -> RC.

SC modules are definitely the beast in the course. They are elaborately explained using really simple terms such as verb-ing, verb-ed etc. instead of terms such as gerunds, transitive verbs, etc. For somebody who isn’t a grammarian, these usages are alone a massive time saver. Probably the biggest eye opener for me was focusing on the meaning of the sentence and making sure that the sentence made sense rather than just relying on grammar rules to solve the questions. Towards the end of my preparation, I could easily spot the correct answer choice within a couple of seconds and was hardly stuck between two answer choices, simply because of relying on the meaning-based approach. My simplest recommendation to everyone would be not to follow any form of shortcuts to solve SC questions. I have experimented such strategies in my attempts, and found failure for most parts. There is absolutely no point saving time when you can’t get the question right.

The most critical aspect of CR was the art of pre-thinking. Going through the range of answers in the mind is exactly what saves one from selecting the incorrect answer choices. A tough but effective strategy, pre-thinking has been taught exhaustively throughout the CR course. I had reached a stage where I didn’t even need to go through all the options during my final attempt - the moment the correct option came up, I was confident it was the right one! That’s the power of pre-thinking. I also tried out PowerScore CR Bible, although the contents are pretty much in similar lines as in e-gmat’s CR course.

RC course is great for someone trying it out for the 1st time. I had gone through a very similar process of understanding main theme of passage and watching out for the transition/key words (but, however, nevertheless, etc.) to solve the passages effectively during CAT prep. One aspect that I did notice across my attempts (GMAT exam and GMATprep mocks) was that the passages were seldom difficult to comprehend. It’s perhaps the exam pressure at times that might get to us, but one calm and well-paced reading is enough to nail the RC questions that follow the passage. Sufficient practice would enable you to easily identify what the “well-paced” definition might look like for you.

During my 1st GMAT attempt I had scored a Q49 in quants, a score that sounded great since it was just 2 points below the maximum (51). However, only when I looked at the percentile column next to the scorecard, did I realize that it was a 74th percentile, making me feel that I need to up my ante in quants too. I had relied on my CAT material for majority of the preparations for Quants, but used e-GMAT’s quant time and again to fine tune my skills in topics I wasn’t completely comfortable with such as number systems and modulus (algebra). The structure of the course was well laid out wherein I needed to just do the concepts I was not familiar with, and the algorithm did well to identify such areas and helped me speed up my quant prep significantly.

Over time, I kept taking up sectional tests in verbal and quant repeatedly to figure out patterns in my mistakes and took actions to correct them.

The support provided through emails, general queries, etc. was great too. I was once asked to use the error-log for my verbal section and noticed that there were many aspects of analysis which I had missed out on. While I didn’t maintain an error log throughout my preparation, my analysis methodology changed and I could see myself doing more than simply going through the solutions of the questions.

Scholoronium provided me a massive question bank and was more than sufficient in terms of quantity to help solve a variety of quality questions. The most impressive part of scholoronium was its detailed explanation. I had spent a significantly longer duration analyzing my attempts in scholoronium compared to my attempts on any other platform.

I would definitely recommend e-gmat based on my experience.

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Like all the other reviews here mention, this is the only thing you need to succeed in the Quantitative Section of the GMAT exam. I had a solid starting point on my first GMAT practice (39) after not being in a Quantitative Major but was regularly scoring 50-51 on practice exams 2 through 6 at the end and finished with 49 on the real thing (710 total, think test day nerves got me a bit) I didn't utilize their verbal section (I stuck to only official questions for Verbal)

It's a lot of work. Their MO is simple, you have to learn the mechanics, they don't try to teach you tricks and gimmicks but they will teach you every single thing you need to know and how to master it. Hard questions are HARD. Like ... harder than anything you'll see on the GMAT in my opinion.

Highly recommend it, I believe anyone can score at least a 48 on Quant after utilizing this course.

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While preparing for GMAT exam I did a thorough research for a good mock exam set and chose Experts's Global's 15 mock test as my first option as they are the most reasonably priced. To my surprise, not only were the mocks well structured and balanced but also, one key difference was an in depth explanation to each question of the mock highlighting all the major and minor areas of error one can make. This explanation which was also in a video format (helps in quant questions) really helped me identify where I was going wrong. Furthermore, with the mock series they provide additional free material for all the topics that broadly covers all aspects.
I started from getting 580 in my first mock and scored 710-730 in the last few. On exam day, got 750! So, if not sure about the whole study package, one should definitely take the mock series, its worth it.

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