620 to 730!! All thanks to e-GMAT

Hello Reader,
This is my review of e-GMAT. Spoiler alert, this is a positive review ( I know there are already too many positive reviews for e-GMAT, but what to say, they are efficient and effective ). I decided to prepare using e-GMAT after watching a couple of e-GMAT SC videos on YouTube. I took their first mock, which is free, and scored 710. I got excited thinking that I could score really well on the actual test if I prepared well, so I enrolled with e-GMAT for 2 months starting June 22, 2022. I skipped master comprehension and directly went to the SC section. It is really well planned and delivered, with pre and post-quizzes in most sections of every module. The meaning-based approach used by them is amazing. It really makes life easier while attempting SC questions. After completing the SC section, I attempted another mock and scored 650. I was shocked, but nevertheless, I kept on going. I completed half of the CR section and around 10% of the RC section. My scores in the rest of the 3 mocks were 730, 680, and 720. I constantly kept getting better in quant (48, 49, 50, 50, 51). However, my verbal score varied like a cosine curve ( 39, 30, 39, 32, 37 ). I couldn’t understand the reason behind it, so I ignored it. After my subscription ended, I started practising from GMAT club as I wasn’t confident in my verbal ability. I solved around 200 SC questions on GMAT club ( getting most of them wrong but never trying to address the core reason ). I thought that after giving 6 mocks ( 5 e-GMAT, 1 official: 680 ), and practising so many questions, I should be able to handle the actual test easily. I booked the test for September 3rd. A lot of things happened that day, but even if they didn't, I would’ve still scored nowhere near my target (740). I ended up getting 620 (Q49, V26). Disappointed and tired, I couldn’t think of the next step.
The next day, I emailed e-GMAT and asked for help. Rashmi replied after analysing my ESR. She asked me to extend the course and work with her to bridge the conceptual gaps, especially in verbal. Last time I took a lot of things for granted, didn't complete either the CR or the RC section and didn’t do any cementing at all. This time I tried to follow her instruction to the point. I saw considerable improvement across every verbal section. I finally started using the meaning-based approach for SC and pre-thinking for CR questions. Eliminating the wrong options in SC became much easier, and my timing also improved significantly. I scored 720 (Q50, V37) and 740 (Q50, V38) in official mocks 3 and 4 respectively. All of this was possible because Rashmi showed confidence in me right from the beginning of my preparation for the second attempt, gave great feedback and suggestions, and helped me understand all my shortcomings and conceptual gaps. She has been a great mentor and helped me throughout my preparation for the second attempt.
I attempted the GMAT again on October 19th and scored a 730 (Q50, V38).
PS: I hate reading and have read no more than 2 books in my lifetime. Whatever English grammar I know is through daily conversations, Netflix, and Amazon Prime :p . So if I can get V38 then anyone can.
There are certain things that I liked about the course and the eGMAT experience:
(a) It is a well-structured course with quality material.
(b) The verbal section was really helpful in improving my verbal score through the application of the meaning-based approach in SC and the pre-thinking approach in CR.
(c) For SC and CR this is one of the best courses that are available.
(d) Questions on Scholaranium are of great help after learning concepts and applications. For verbal, the variety of questions helps cover most of the patterns observed in the actual test. For quant, the questions on scholaranium are actually tougher than the questions in official mocks or the actual exam, but that helps to get your concepts cemented.
(e) The support team answers all the queries quite quickly (within 12–18 hours), which really helps to move on, and motivates you to ask questions freely on the forum.
(f) Mentorship support during the preparation helped me with a structured approach to preparation as opposed to the haphazard way in which I was doing it
(g) For mocks, I feel that nothing can compare to the official mocks in setting a benchmark for the expected score. Nevertheless, e-GMAT has done a great job of making the mocks as authentic as possible.

Things to learn from my experience :
• Follow a structured approach.
• A meaning-based approach to SC is the only way to GMAT SC.
• Focus more on incorrect questions, spending sufficient time on understanding why you got that question wrong, rather than solving 300 questions. Solve 100 but know the reason behind accepting or rejecting an answer choice.
• Even if you’re decent at quant practice a few questions daily to keep your mind sharp.
• GMAT is not CAT, so do not focus on giving a lot of mocks, rather give 3-4 but analyze them in a detailed manner. ( Trust me, this works )
• Join e-GMAT if you want all of the above in one place.
• If you’re an Indian student, then do not forget to take your passport with you to the exam center.