In his first attempt, Ilia scored a 690 (Q48, V37) but to break the GMAT 700 glass ceiling, he needed to improve his score in both the Quant and Verbal sections. What did he do next? He analyzed his ESR with DJ, an e-GMAT mentor who crafted a hyper-specific improvement plan, which led Ilia to cross GMAT 700 barrier and score a 740 on the GMAT. Moreover, Ilia’s GMAT preparation was backed up by data that helped him focus on his weak areas.
In this article, we take you through his GMAT score improvement journey and how, by strategically crafting a hyper-specific plan, he improved his score from GMAT 690 to 740.
You can watch his video interview below:
This article is in an interview format, where Ilia had a conversation with DJ, an e-GMAT mentor, who helps him cross GMAT 700 barrier.
Congratulations on scoring a 740. How does it feel?
Ilia – Thank you for your support. It was a long one-year journey, and I feel fantastic. Scoring a GMAT 740 is not just some lucky coincidence. It was a result of my hard work.
DJ – I’m happy for you, and I know that you’ve put a lot of time and effort into everything, and scoring a Q50 and V41 is phenomenal for a non-native English speaker.
Take us through your GMAT 740 Journey?
Ilia – I think scoring 690 is easy if you’re working in an English environment or you have done your undergraduate degree in English. Most people will achieve a V37 if they have good reading skills and know basic grammar. However, if they want to break the GMAT 700 glass ceiling, which is very difficult, you require a strategically crafted study plan.
Analyzing ESR to know your weakness
Ilia – It isn’t easy to analyze the ESR yourself, but if somebody like DJ, an e-GMAT mentor, who has watched maybe 1000+ ESR’s is looking at it, they can spot some patterns and the points for improvement. For instance, I thought my reading was good, but DJ pointed that was not the case. I would have missed this point entirely if I hadn’t gotten my ESR analyzed.
There is a lot of value when you analyze ESR, and if somebody can open up this value for you, it’s beneficial.
– Ilia
Here are three key steps you should following while analyzing your ESR.
Planning to take the GMAT? We can give you access to quality online content to prepare. We are the most reviewed GMAT prep company on the GMAT club with more than 2600+ reviews and have delivered 10x 700+ scores than the average GMATClub partner. Why don’t you take a free trial and judge it for yourself? Write to us at acethegmat@e-gmat.com in case of any queries.
GMAT preparation to score 700+
After analyzing the ESR, DJ crafted a hyper-specific improvement plan for Ilia. Ilia focused on improving his Quant and verbal score, which led him to cross GMAT 700 barrier and score a 740 on the GMAT.
AI-driven course to ace the GMAT Quant
DJ – How is the new Quant 2.0 different from the previous version?
Ilia – When I started with the e-GMAT course, it had not yet launched Quant 2.0. At first, I was disappointed because Quant 2.0 had more study files, and I thought I needed to go through each one. For instance, the permutations and combinations in a previous version had five study files, whereas the new version has 20. But there is a catch!
The new Quant 2.0 has a diagnostic test at the beginning to evaluate which study files you can skip and which ones you need to go through. It’s very data-oriented and tells you where to put in your efforts based upon your strengths and weaknesses. Moreover, the course follows a structured process where it takes you through the basics, helps you learn the application of the concepts, and strengthens your ability through quizzes.
Scholaranium 2.0 was helpful for not only practicing the questions but also tracking my progress. Moreover, it shows your ability by each sub-topic (word problems, 3D Geometry, etc.).
– Ilia
Watch this video by Rajat, CEO at e-GMAT, where he walks you through the new Scholaranium 2.0, its key features, how it can turn data into insights like a private tutor, and how it tracks your performance at an atomic level:
From Q48 to Q50
DJ – How did you prepare for GMAT Quant?
Ilia – Scoring a Q48 is easy for some people, but what is difficult is to score a Q50 or Q51. To improve by 1 to 2 points, you need to put in the effort.
I knew that scoring a Q48, it not so competitive – it’s just 67 percentile. So, anything lower than 88 percentile (Q50) is not suitable for the top MBA programs. To achieve that score, I had to get comfortable solving 700+ questions.
To reach Q50, I targeted each Quant sub-section module one by one. The new Quant 2.0 course allows such a targeted approach. While preparing for Quant, what surprised me was that I was not good at Number properties and algebra, the most basic topics that many GMAT aspirants think they know. I thought I knew these topics. But, the data showed by the Quant 2.0 course pointed out differently.
Watch this video to know how can an AI-driven course help you to create a personalized plan and improve your GMAT quant score:
How did Ilia ace GMAT Verbal section?
DJ – Tell us about your GMAT verbal preparation?
Ilia – My target was to get a V41 or V42. I had maintained an error log for GMAT sentence correction and read many Official RC articles. My focus on critical reasoning was very minimum for the second attempt. With the amount of preparation I did, I was confident that I would score above V40. However, I got a V38.
As my last resort, I followed DJ’s advice, an e-GMAT mentor, where he pointed out that I should start with basics and learn the theory first. At first, I was resistant because I had already gone through the theory three to four times before. For instance, DJ recommended I go through the modifiers module again.
DJ’s advice was a blessing in disguise. Going through the concepts again and building my ability in difficult questions helped me to improve my verbal score from V38 to V41. Moreover, strategically reviewing the questions I was doing wrong helped me understand why an answer choice was correct/incorrect.
How did you leverage e-GMAT’s Verbal course?
Ilia – First of all, the e-GMAT’s SC and CR course is very detailed. Even if you have no prior knowledge, the course takes you through the basics and builds your ability. I did a lot of additional stuff like reading books and preparing through other courses, but it’s not necessary. The e-GMAT course and detailed analysis of your mistakes while practicing will be enough to ace the GMAT verbal section.
The e-GMAT course is super interactive. A lot is going on, which keeps you engaged and not bored. The best part about the course is how it is designed. Moreover, going through the course strengthened my foundational knowledge.
– IIia
Planning to take the GMAT? We can give you access to quality online content to prepare. We are the most reviewed GMAT prep company on the GMAT club with more than 2600+ reviews and have delivered 10x 700+ scores than the average GMATClub partner. Why don’t you take a free trial and judge it for yourself? Write to us at acethegmat@e-gmat.com in case of any queries.
