A 6 min read

It took Advait five attempts to score a 760 on the GMAT. For the first two attempts, what Advait’s GMAT preparation lacked was seriousness, whereas, for the next two attempts, he genuinely made efforts to cross that 700-mark. However, it was not until he spoke with an e-GMAT mentor, who pointed out his weakness and gave data-oriented feedback, which finally helped Advait score a Q50 and V41.

In this article, Advait talks about strategies that helped him jump from a 680 in the fourth attempt to a 760 in the final one. You can jump to the relevant section by clicking on the link below:

Prefer watching the video debrief instead? Here is the video interview of Advait:

Why the e-GMAT Course?

Advait: Having given the previous attempts, and after doing enough research, I knew that verbal was my weakness. My research gave me a clear answer that the e-GMAT Course was the one for me to increase my verbal scores. So that is one of the primary reasons why I purchased the e-GMAT Course.

How did the meaning-based approach help in GMAT SC?

Advait: In my previous attempts, I had thought of SC as grammar. However, it is a lot more than just grammar. That is when e-GMAT’s meaning-based approach helped a lot. It helped me realize that I could eliminate three options through grammar but will still be left with two options, which are grammatical, right. This is where the meaning-based approach will help you choose the right answer.

What changed while preparing for the CR section?

Advait: Before e-GMAT, I did not have any set approach in place for my CR prep. But through e-GMAT, I got introduced to the Pre-thinking process, which helped a lot. It was a bit tricky to understand the approach and took a lot of effort, but once I got used to pre-thinking, my CR scores improved.

Advait had done a commendable job in the Critical reasoning section of the e-GMAT course. He scored a 99% in concept quizzes and 88% in practice quizzes. It took him longer to prep for the CR section because he knew he had to perfect some aspects to achieve his targeted score.

Advait: Until I was comfortable with the CR score that I want, I would probably retake that module. So that is something that motivated me to keep doing a particular module again and again.

Power of Data and E-GMAT’s Mentor feedback

After scoring a 680 on the fourth attempt, Advait reached out to our strategy team member Nava to gain insights on his preparation.

Advait: After scoring a 680 on the GMAT, I was completely shocked. I was scoring in mocks. But when it came to taking the official exam, there was something wrong. So, I reached out to Nava, and I shared my ESR reports.

He came back with a detailed analysis regarding where exactly am I going wrong? He analyzed the data from my ESR report, e-GMAT portal, and Scholaranium. He pointed out areas, not just in verbal, but in Quant as well. Even though my Quant score was decent, he pointed out that I started slow and was getting too cautious while attempting a question.

For the Verbal section, he pointed out that my RC was weak, which I inherently knew, but that got validated through data presented by Nava. Thus, I knew that for my next attempt, I need to focus on the RC section.

Learn how to score a Q50+ and above V40 on the GMAT.

GMAT 760 in 6 Weeks after scoring a 680

One key thing that Advait realized in his third and fourth attempts was that he is taking a lot of pressure and attaching too much importance to GMAT. So, for his fifth attempt, he eased off a bit. He started resuming things, like picking up new hobbies, and just went along with things.

Learn how to tackle GMAT Anxiety.

Advait: I think it was vital for me to take out the pressure by not worrying too much about the exam. Also, I took the GMAT online for my fifth attempt, which allowed me to take the GMAT in a familiar setting and environment. So, I took the exam without any stress.

I was also having pacing issues for the previous attempts. However, there was no break between the Quant and Verbal sections for the online exam, so I channeled my brain into winding up the exam early, which helped.

Advait: I was spending about one or two hours a day preparing for the GMAT. I knew my weakness and was spending 75% of the time on the RC section. I learned that humanities and history passages are where I lose marks in RC, so I started practicing those. I used to do 3-4 RC passages per day for the last six weeks.

Post-GMAT Plans

Advait wants to get into product management and targeting colleges like Kellogg School of Management, Tuck School of Business, and UC Berkeley Haas in the United States. Other business schools that he is targeting outside the US are INSEAD, LBS, and Cambridge.

Take a look at top business schools in 2021 in the USA, Canada, UK, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, and India.

Scope for Project Management roles post MBA from Europe vs. the USA

Here is a conversation between Rajat, CEO at e-GMAT, and Advait regarding which business schools to target. Rajat also highlights the scope for a product management role in the USA vs. Europe.

Rajat: Getting a product management role in Europe is a bit of a challenge. You will probably get product management roles in and around Berlin, Frankfurt, and London. One of the significant challenges of working in Europe is that you might have to travel during the week. The cost of living in these cities is expensive, and thus people generally stay outside the city.

But the good thing is if you get into LBS or Cambridge, which I think you should, then there are jobs locally. As compared to Berlin and Frankfurt, the cost of living in London is expensive.

Advait: All three cities sound good to live in, and I might end up learning German too.

Rajat: Yes. That is true. In my opinion, apply to both the places – the United States and Europe. The fact that more and more people are working remotely now allows you to do so if you plan to go to Europe. In the United States, traveling to work is not that bad.

If you eventually want to come back to India, in my opinion, the USA and Indian culture are quite similar. However, European culture is a bit different.

Why consider USA over Europe?

Rajat: There are three considerations:

1. You make way more money in the US than in Europe
2. The work culture is very similar to India
3. In my opinion, the entrepreneurial culture in the US is a lot more liberating than in Europe. Europe is still slightly more hierarchical. It even has a colonial aspect to it.

Advait: Having a more liberal entrepreneurship culture is essential because I want to explore my entrepreneurship capabilities from a long-term perspective. I do not know when and how, but that is something I would want to do, mainly because my dad also started something independently.

Rajat: Another aspect that you need to consider while choosing between the USA and Europe is the scope of scholarship. US schools give away more scholarships than European schools. Take a look at the List of MBA Scholarships for Indian and International Students.

Advait: True. I guess another factor to consider is the one-year vs. two-year MBA program. Most of the colleges in Europe focus on a one-year MBA program. If you are switching careers, a two-year MBA will offer you more opportunities to explore than a one-year MBA.

Rajat: Yes. There is no wrong choice. I think there is one which is better than the other, given what you want to do. For example, if you want a peaceful life where there is a lot more security, Europe will come up. Why? Because job security is a lot higher over there. The government will take care of you no matter who you are. But then if you want to have the freedom to chart your course, United States will give you that much more opportunities.