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TheMistryMan · 2003 October 21st, 01:29 AM

Another silent lurker here coming out of the woodwork...

Of course, I would first like to extend my gratitude to all of you who make this site such an invaluable resource (cheers Erin!). The tips/practice ?'s/moral support really are a boon. I also found the posts from kuriang, hellogmat, alixjung, and happyking to be especially useful -- thx guys!

Well, at least it's finally over... I was gunning for 730+, but I'll accept that I reached the magic 700 number and just focus on my apps now. I know that for an Indian applicant (although I was born and raised in the U.S., so this should help a bit) my scores are on the lower side at the top 10, but I'm hoping that my awesome work experience (helped startup a cool tech company: www.phatnoise.com -- do you listen to MP3s? check it out!) will give me the needed boost.

Anyway, here was my experience:

Quant was a bit weird & definitely tougher... Problems were similar in overall nature to Official Guide, but somehow different enough (more time consuming?) to make me overanalyze, double-check, and generally panic and run out of time before the last 4 questions. I'm not sure if my lackluster performance here should be attributed to test day jitters or to actual difficulty. I was able to finish both PowerPrep Quant sections w/ at least 2 minutes remaining and scored 48 on both, so perhaps the quant section is indeed getting harder (well, at least for those of us who aren't as smart as hellogmat). From what I remember, I had 1 easy combination & 1 easy probability problem, but what really screwed me up were the few tough number property problems (e.g. greatest prime of an exponential, D.S. inequality).

Verbal was very similar to the Official Guide -- I actually found it a bit easier than the PowerPrep tests (ran out of time on last question during both V tests) and was able to finish in time. I was also so flustered from not finishing the Quant section that it affected my Verbal performance (I was constantly thinking I should just quit since I was going to cancel the test anyway), but I still managed to finish the verbal (and hence my decision not to cancel). The reading comprehension's and SC's were straightforward, but the critical reasoning's were definitely the most different from Official Guide (although still not too difficult). I didn't have a single boldfaced question either.

When I was finally done, I decided to check out my score. After not finishing the Q section, I was leaning towards canceling it, but finishing the verbal section convinced me to just go for it -- what the hell. When I saw the 700, I was a bit relieved, although not jubilant. I still managed to crack a smile because I was done and I knew I wouldn't take the test again since I at least hit the 700 plateau.

Here's my general advice: Make sure you're doing problems very quickly (you'll probably slow down a bit on the test). But also remember that if you are a high scorer, Verbal will probably affect your score more. And most importantly, DO NOT LOSE YOUR COOL!!! I did, and it probably cost me 20 points or so. Attitude is key.

Well, that's it. THANK YOU AND GOOD LUCK!

**Erin** · 2003 October 21st, 02:17 AM

Brilliant post! Congrats on your great score!

What I hope others will look at in your post--that you thought to cancel, but thought better of it. I think too many people cancel, just because they lack confidence.

GMAT is about ability, yes, but if you go through enough posts, you'll realize that your state of mind is key.

Again, congrats, and thanks for posting!

thaiva · 2003 October 23rd, 01:59 AM

Hey,

As Erin said Congrat's on your great score!!! and good luck with the applications...

Your post will be of great reference to us all,

Take care good luck,

Tim

2003 October 21st, 02:17 AM	#2 (permalink)
Erin Did it. Forum Admin Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: USA Posts: 8,716	Brilliant post! Congrats on your great score! What I hope others will look at in your post--that you thought to cancel, but thought better of it. I think too many people cancel, just because they lack confidence. GMAT is about ability, yes, but if you go through enough posts, you'll realize that your state of mind is key. Again, congrats, and thanks for posting! _ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _ ☼ It's BACK! Sentence Correction ☼ 98 fans on Facebook. 902 to go!

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2003 October 21st, 01:29 AM	#1 (permalink)
TheMistryMan I JUST got here. Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 1	Another silent lurker here coming out of the woodwork... Of course, I would first like to extend my gratitude to all of you who make this site such an invaluable resource (cheers Erin!). The tips/practice ?'s/moral support really are a boon. I also found the posts from kuriang, hellogmat, alixjung, and happyking to be especially useful -- thx guys! Well, at least it's finally over... I was gunning for 730+, but I'll accept that I reached the magic 700 number and just focus on my apps now. I know that for an Indian applicant (although I was born and raised in the U.S., so this should help a bit) my scores are on the lower side at the top 10, but I'm hoping that my awesome work experience (helped startup a cool tech company: www.phatnoise.com -- do you listen to MP3s? check it out!) will give me the needed boost. Anyway, here was my experience: Quant was a bit weird & definitely tougher... Problems were similar in overall nature to Official Guide, but somehow different enough (more time consuming?) to make me overanalyze, double-check, and generally panic and run out of time before the last 4 questions. I'm not sure if my lackluster performance here should be attributed to test day jitters or to actual difficulty. I was able to finish both PowerPrep Quant sections w/ at least 2 minutes remaining and scored 48 on both, so perhaps the quant section is indeed getting harder (well, at least for those of us who aren't as smart as hellogmat). From what I remember, I had 1 easy combination & 1 easy probability problem, but what really screwed me up were the few tough number property problems (e.g. greatest prime of an exponential, D.S. inequality). Verbal was very similar to the Official Guide -- I actually found it a bit easier than the PowerPrep tests (ran out of time on last question during both V tests) and was able to finish in time. I was also so flustered from not finishing the Quant section that it affected my Verbal performance (I was constantly thinking I should just quit since I was going to cancel the test anyway), but I still managed to finish the verbal (and hence my decision not to cancel). The reading comprehension's and SC's were straightforward, but the critical reasoning's were definitely the most different from Official Guide (although still not too difficult). I didn't have a single boldfaced question either. When I was finally done, I decided to check out my score. After not finishing the Q section, I was leaning towards canceling it, but finishing the verbal section convinced me to just go for it -- what the hell. When I saw the 700, I was a bit relieved, although not jubilant. I still managed to crack a smile because I was done and I knew I wouldn't take the test again since I at least hit the 700 plateau. Here's my general advice: Make sure you're doing problems very quickly (you'll probably slow down a bit on the test). But also remember that if you are a high scorer, Verbal will probably affect your score more. And most importantly, DO NOT LOSE YOUR COOL!!! I did, and it probably cost me 20 points or so. Attitude is key. Well, that's it. THANK YOU AND GOOD LUCK!

2003 October 23rd, 01:59 AM	#3 (permalink)
thaiva TM Guru-in-Training Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: New Zealand Posts: 761	Hey, As Erin said Congrat's on your great score!!! and good luck with the applications... Your post will be of great reference to us all, Take care good luck, Tim

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