Breaking the 700 Barrier- Thanks to e-GMAT and DJ

My GMAT prep journey has not been a simple journey of progress. It was a lot longer than I had expected it to be. Preparing for verbal was the biggest hurdle for me to achieve a good GMAT score.

In Sep-20, I started preparing for GMAT by solving OG questions (Yes, it was the first big mistake I made). One month after, I took e-GMAT free Sigma-X Mock test to gauge my level and scored 660. I really liked the quality of questions and the free content so decided to subscribe to their course but only purchased their verbal course instead of the entire course (the second big mistake as I didn't get any sigma mock tests with it to gauge my level before attempting GMAT). For the next 2 months, I went through the entire course and attempted most of the Scholoranium questions. Finally, took my GMAT in Jan-21 and scored 680. Disappointed with my performance, I stopped my preparation for a couple of months (the third big mistake).

In May-21, I regained my confidence and started preparing for GMAT again. Now here comes the fourth big mistake which was the biggest among all. I thought that I had already gone through the e-GMAT course so now it’s time for self-study and solving a lot of questions would help me break that 700 barrier. Following this strategy relentlessly for 4 months, I took my GMAT again in Sep-21 only to score a disheartening 660 (V29).

The very next day I emailed the e-GMAT support team and asked for help (the first right thing I did). Now comes the good part of the journey. To my surprise, we exchanged a lot of emails on weekend. DJ asked me for ESR and analyzed it for me. He shared with me a high-level plan.

Since I had already gone through the course, the plan had to be personalized for me. DJ along with verbal experts created one for me. I first went through the new MC course along with the webinars conducted by Payal, which were an eye-opener for me. Following the pausing strategy, my approach to look at complex sentences changed. This helped me in all sections- SC, CR, and RC. We then moved to SC. DJ inculcated in me the meaning-based approach and made sure that I follow it while solving questions. He asked me to look at the incorrect attempted questions, create error logs and solve correct attempted questions by following the meaning-based approach. We followed a similar plan to instill Pre-thinking approach for CR. He also asked me to do Revision-B for all sections to brush up on all concepts. After passing the cementing quizzes, DJ then introduced me to the test readiness stage. I believe this is the most important stage to break that 700 barrier. Scholaranium is a great platform to successfully complete this stage. The different types of quizzes, detailed explanations, xPert suggested strategic review process, and the level of data insights takes the experience to another level. Following the strategic review process, I attempted the Sigma-X mocks one by one. The mocks proved to be quite accurate and similar to the real GMAT exam. After these intense exercises, DJ was convinced that I am ready to take the exam. Finally, he shared with me the tasks for the week before GMAT. I took the exam and finally scored 710.

I believe that it is the real day pressure and anxiety which can affect one’s score by 10-20 points. Nonetheless, I could finally cross that 700 barrier. All thanks to DJ and the entire team for making this possible for me!

I would suggest everyone to follow a methodological approach if you’re not able to improve (instead of solving a lot of questions) and trust the e-GMAT process and diligently follow it. It may not be easy for everyone but eventually, it will lead to success. Also, do not hesitate to get in touch with the team even if the process is not working out for you. The entire team is very supportive. They will help you understand what’s going wrong and will guide you in the right direction. I wish I did not have to learn it the hard way. Do not give up. All the best!