How I Scored 750 on the GMAT (Top 3 Best Resources, My Score History, Recommended Study Schedule)

Summary

In this video, Ben shares his personal journey and strategies for acing the GMAT, a crucial part of the NBA application process. He reveals his initial score fluctuations, the importance of focusing intensely before the exam, and the value of perseverance during the test. Ben recommends three key resources: Target Test Prep for quant, YouTube channels Aditya Kumar and GMAT Ninja for verbal, and the Official Guide for practice exams. He also outlines an ideal study schedule, emphasizing the necessity of adapting it to individual needs and concludes with a reminder to practice under exam-like conditions.

Takeaways

• 📈 Ben scored a 750 on the GMAT after a lot of practice, hard work, and research.
• 🔍 He recommends using the official guide practice exams sparingly due to the limited number of unique tests available.
• 📚 Ben's scores fluctuated during his study period, but he advises not to panic as this is common.
• 🍻 A poor initial exam score can be improved by focusing intensely in the weeks leading up to the test, avoiding excessive social activities.
• 🎯 Target Test Prep (TTP) is highly recommended for quant preparation, with a 5-star rating on GMATClub.com.
• 📹 YouTube is an underutilized resource for GMAT prep, with Aditya Kumar for quant and GMAT Ninja for verbal being top choices.
• 📖 The Official Guide (OG) materials are essential for practice, providing questions from the actual GMAT.
• 🗓️ An ideal study schedule includes starting with a non-official practice test, mastering material with TTP, and regularly taking practice exams.
• 🧘‍♂️ Ben suggests focusing intensely in the last two weeks before the exam and doing advanced questions to build stamina.
• ⏰ Practice exams should be taken at the same time of day as the actual GMAT for consistency.
• 💪 Even if the GMAT feels difficult during the test, it's important to push through as the exam is adaptive and designed to challenge.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video?

The main topic of the video is the GMAT exam and tips on how to prepare for it.

What was the speaker's GMAT score?

The speaker's GMAT score was 750.

What are the three resources the speaker recommends for GMAT preparation?

The three resources recommended are Target Test Prep (TTP), YouTube videos by Aditya Kumar for quant and GMAT Ninja for verbal, and the official GMAT guide materials.

Why does the speaker advise against heavy socializing before the exam?

The speaker advises against heavy socializing because it can distract from studying and impact performance on the exam, as was the case when the speaker scored 700 after a week of socializing.

What is the significance of taking a practice test from a non-official source initially?

Taking a practice test from a non-official source initially helps to understand the format and type of questions on the GMAT without using up the limited official practice tests.

How did the speaker improve their GMAT score from 700 to 750?

The speaker improved their score by focusing intensely on studying for two weeks, doing 40 to 60 practice questions a day, and avoiding distractions.

What is the role of Target Test Prep (TTP) in GMAT preparation according to the speaker?

Target Test Prep (TTP) is a resource that breaks down the GMAT into individual topics with lessons and practice sets, helping build confidence and mastery in both quant and verbal sections.

Why does the speaker emphasize the importance of using the official GMAT guide materials?

The official GMAT guide materials are emphasized because they provide previous practice exams with questions that closely resemble those on the actual GMAT.

What does the speaker recommend doing in the last two to three weeks before the GMAT exam?

In the last two to three weeks, the speaker recommends doing 10 to 30 questions each day for each section and focusing on advanced questions to build stamina and familiarity with harder questions.

What additional advice does the speaker give for exam day preparation?

The speaker advises taking practice exams at the same time of day as the scheduled exam and doing light practice or review the day before the exam to stay fresh.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Ben's GMAT Journey Begins

Ben introduces himself and the focus of the video on the GMAT, which he found the most challenging part of the MBA application process. He shares his intent to provide resources and tips for preparing for the GMAT, based on his own experience of scoring 750. He outlines the agenda: sharing his GMAT score history, recommending three key resources, and suggesting an ideal study schedule. He also mentions a discount for his upcoming MBA course and introduces the video sponsor, Target Test Prep.

05:02

📈 Ben's GMAT Score History

Ben details his GMAT score history, emphasizing the fluctuating nature of his practice test scores over three months of study. He advises against taking official practice tests too early due to limited availability. Ben recounts his experience of scoring 700 on his first official exam due to distractions and improved to 750 after two focused weeks of study. He encourages viewers not to panic over score fluctuations and to minimize social activities close to the exam.

10:04

📚 Top GMAT Resources

Ben recommends three main resources for GMAT preparation. First, Target Test Prep (TTP) for its comprehensive breakdown of GMAT topics and high user ratings. Second, YouTube channels by Aditya Kumar for Quant and GMAT Ninja for Verbal, praised for their intuitive teaching styles. Third, the Official Guide (OG) GMAT materials, which include past exam questions. He shares links to these resources and emphasizes their importance in his own study routine.

🗓️ Ideal GMAT Study Schedule

Ben outlines an ideal GMAT study schedule. He suggests starting with a practice test from a non-official source to understand the exam format without pressure. He recommends using TTP and YouTube videos for focused study over two to three months. Ben advises taking official practice exams every one to two weeks after a month of study, saving the last one for just before the exam. He emphasizes doing advanced questions in the final weeks and light review the day before the exam.

💡 Final GMAT Tips and Encouragement

Ben shares final tips for GMAT preparation: schedule practice exams at the same time as the actual exam, use advanced questions to build stamina, and maintain faith in your preparation even if practice scores vary. He encourages viewers to stay focused and highlights the importance of consistency and effort in achieving a high GMAT score. Ben concludes by promoting his upcoming MBA course and Target Test Prep, offering links for early sign-ups and discounts.

Keywords

💡GMAT

The GMAT, or Graduate Management Admission Test, is a standardized exam used for admissions into business schools. It tests quantitative, verbal, and analytical writing skills. In the video, the speaker discusses their preparation for the GMAT, highlighting the challenges and strategies for achieving a high score.

💡Target Test Prep

Target Test Prep (TTP) is a comprehensive GMAT preparation resource that offers detailed lessons and practice problems. The speaker credits TTP for helping them achieve a high GMAT score and recommends it to others, noting its structured approach and effectiveness in covering both quant and verbal sections.

💡Practice Exams

Practice exams are simulated tests that mimic the format and content of the actual GMAT. They are essential for familiarizing oneself with the exam and assessing progress. The speaker emphasizes the importance of taking official GMAT practice exams sparingly and supplementing with other practice tests to conserve the limited number of official exams available.

💡Quant

Quant, or quantitative section, of the GMAT assesses mathematical skills and understanding of basic arithmetic, algebra, and geometry. The speaker mentions using Target Test Prep extensively for quant preparation and watching Aditya Kumar's YouTube videos to improve in this area.

💡Verbal

The verbal section of the GMAT evaluates reading comprehension, critical reasoning, and sentence correction skills. The speaker used GMAT Ninja's YouTube videos for verbal preparation and discusses the importance of mastering verbal concepts to achieve a high overall score.

💡Official Guide

The Official Guide (OG) for GMAT provides practice questions and tests directly from the creators of the GMAT. It is a critical resource for authentic practice. The speaker used the OG extensively, focusing on medium and hard questions to better prepare for the actual exam.

💡Adaptive Test

The GMAT is an adaptive test, meaning the difficulty of questions adjusts based on the test taker's performance. This ensures that the exam accurately measures the test taker's ability level. The speaker explains how the adaptive nature of the test can make it feel challenging but advises persevering through difficult sections.

💡Study Schedule

A study schedule is a planned timeline for preparing for the GMAT, detailing when and how to study different sections. The speaker provides a recommended study schedule, emphasizing the need to focus intensively in the weeks leading up to the exam and balancing practice between quant and verbal sections.

💡YouTube Resources

YouTube resources refer to educational videos available on YouTube that offer GMAT preparation tips and lessons. The speaker specifically recommends Aditya Kumar for quant and GMAT Ninja for verbal, praising their teaching methods and effectiveness in explaining complex problems.

💡Exam Day Strategy

Exam day strategy involves the approach and mindset one should have on the day of the GMAT. The speaker advises against socializing or engaging in distracting activities before the exam and emphasizes the importance of being well-rested and focused. They also suggest doing light practice the day before to keep the material fresh.

Highlights

The speaker scored a 750 on the GMAT after extensive practice and research.

The speaker's GMAT preparation involved a lot of hard work and using specific resources.

The speaker is creating a 'How to Get into MBA' course with a discount for early sign-ups.

Target Test Prep (TTP) is highly recommended for both quant and verbal sections of the GMAT.

The speaker's GMAT scores fluctuated during preparation, which is normal.

Focus intensely and avoid heavy socialization one to two weeks before the GMAT exam.

The GMAT is an adaptive test that becomes harder as you perform better.

Using official GMAT practice exams sparingly is recommended due to their limited availability.

For verbal GMAT preparation, the speaker recommends videos from GMAT Ninja.

The speaker achieved a 750 on the GMAT by focusing intensely for two weeks before the exam.

Watching YouTube videos, such as those from Aditya Kumar, is beneficial for GMAT preparation.

Use the Official Guide (OG) GMAT materials, as they provide actual exam questions.

The speaker’s study schedule includes starting with a practice test and using TTP for quant.

Taking practice exams around the same time as the scheduled real GMAT exam is beneficial.

The speaker currently attends Wharton for their MBA.

Transcripts

what's up everyone it's ben here and

today i'm going to talk about what for

me was the most challenging and kind of

scariest part of the whole nba

application process the gmat now when i

was preparing for the gmat i didn't

really have someone telling me exactly

what kind of resources i should use or

how to exactly to prepare but that's

what i want to do for all of you and i

was eventually able to get a 750 on the

gmat and it took me a lot of practice

hard work and research and i want to

share with you all the best tips that i

was able to kind of compile in order for

you to help get whatever score that

you're reaching for and so jumping into

today's agenda i'll first be sharing my

personal gmat score history i'll then go

over the three resources i recommend

using and lastly i'll recommend an ideal

study schedule two really quick things

before i get started though first i'm

actually creating a how to get into mba

course and i'm offering a huge discount

for people who sign up early feel free

to sign up using my link down in the

description below and second shout out

to our sponsor for today's video target

test prep they're a great resource for

the gmat and i'll go into them a little

bit later in this video all right now

first up let me share with you my

personal gmat score history okay so what

i'm gonna do in this section is show you

guys my score history and provide some

commentary as to what happened and then

also provide some tips as to how you can

improve your process while you're

studying okay so here is my score

history and as you can see it took me

about three months to study for the gmat

starting from early august to early

november one thing you'll notice is that

i didn't take a practice test until i

had studied for a few weeks and i would

recommend this especially if you're

thinking of using one of the official

guide practice exams because there are

only six that you can actually take

before they start reusing questions and

you can take another kind of like

princeton review or manhattan prep kind

of practice guide at the beginning in

order to practice test i mean in order

for you to kind of see what the test is

like i think that's totally fine but i

really use the official guide kind of

practice exams very sparingly because as

i said there's only six that you can

really take you can also see that my

scores fluctuated a lot while i was

studying and if this is happening to you

and you've like been studying a lot and

your score is going down don't panic

because i'm pretty sure this happens to

everyone the last thing kind of worth

mentioning here is that you can see that

my official exam score went from 700 to

750 in a matter of few weeks and to kind

of explain what happened here when i

first took my real exam and got the 700

i had just flown from korea to la and i

had been meeting a bunch of friends the

week before my exam honestly honestly

like going to bars and just having way

too much fun and in retrospect it was

kind of like a bad idea and then i flew

back to korea where i honestly don't

have as many friends i was living with

my parents uh kind of working on a

separate business and also studying for

the gmat and that's where i that's when

i really really like focused was doing

anywhere from like 40 to 60 practice

questions a day and all i did was study

for two weeks up to my exam and i was

able to get a 750. and so kind of moral

of the story there is not to

drink honestly before the exam and also

to just kind of uh really focus your one

to two weeks before the exam and um try

to resist intense like socialization if

you can uh because it'll be worth it for

you to kind of sacrifice one to two

weeks in order for you to really get

that good score one more thing i want to

add actually is that for the last exam

that i did take i actually thought it

was going super poorly because for the

last part of the verbal section i kind

of ran out of time and i had to guess on

the last two questions and so i thought

you know two questions may not sound

like a lot but it's kind of a it can

really impact your score for the gmat

and so i kind of thought that i was

going to have to retake the exam verbal

was the first thing that i took uh and i

took quant after so i had kind of like

the half the exam left i just decided to

take it anyway and i was super surprised

by the score that i got at the end and

so kind of i guess even if the exam is

not going super well as you probably

know if you're studying for the gmat it

is an adaptive test which means that it

gets harder and harder the better you do

and so even if it feels like it's not

going well i do recommend that you just

keep pushing through and finish the exam

and so to summarize i would say there

are three key takeaways from my gmat

studying history the first is to be

prepared for a very up and down

experience with practice exam scores

that's totally normal the second is to

really hunker down and focus for the two

weeks before your exam and kind of

resist socializing too much and third

don't give up on the actual exam itself

if you think it's going poorly because

the test is adaptive and it's meant to

feel like that all right now next up let

me go over the top three resources i

used and recommend for the gmat the

first is target test prep also known as

ttp which is the resource i use to study

for quant and i really can't say enough

good things about this resource what ttp

does is break down the entire gmat into

a list of individual topics for quant

and verbal and each topic comes with

lessons and practice sets that range

from easy to medium to hard so that you

can build your confidence and master

each topic so personally i only used ttp

for quant because at the time their

verbal course was in beta mode and so i

wasn't sure if i wanted to kind of

dedicate my time using it but now it's

been a few years and ttp has really

flushed out its verbal course as well

and so i think ttp is really the one of

the best fundamental kind of courses you

can take in order to really prepare for

the gmat you also don't need to just

take my word for it because gmatclub.com

is one of the best sites for gmat prep

and as you can see here ttp is the only

resource with a 5 out of 5 star rating

and these are all from verified users if

you use my link down in the description

below you can check out ttp for five

days for just one dollar and no strings

attached if the resource is not for you

after you check it out then all you lose

is just one dollar but i would kind of

guess that if you're really just

starting to study for the gmat in

particular this is a great resource and

i really credit target test prep a lot

for helping me get a 750 on my exam the

second resource i have for you i think

flies a bit under the radar and it's

youtube more specifically for quant i

highly highly recommend watching all

videos from aditya kumar and for verbal

all videos from gmat ninja and i'll

leave links to both of these in my

description below i watched a ton of

youtube videos while studying for the

gmat and these two guys are really the

best for each of the sections of the

gmat and they don't cover the entire

exam but for all the topics that they do

cover they're just so good at teaching

in this kind of intuitive way and i

don't have any idea who these guys are i

don't have any kind of contact with them

i just think for you i i really just

guarantee if you watch one of their

videos you're gonna be like oh i get it

these guys are so good at teaching

really complex problems and teaching you

how to think about gmat questions more

intuitively the third must use resource

is the official guide or og gmat

materials and these provide previous

practice exams and these come straight

from the kinds of questions you'll see

on the actual gmat and so this is like a

must use resource that you should use

for your study personally i did all the

questions in the official guide which is

a big book with both verbal and quant i

then did the latter half of the

questions in the og verbal and quant

guides because those are the harder ones

and after using ttp i do recommend doing

og questions because the questions do

vary slightly i then did all of the

medium and hard questions on the gmat

official practice questions and then all

the verbal and half of the quant for

gmat advanced questions now of course

you don't need to do exactly what i did

and the number of questions you actually

do with the og materials will totally

depend on how studying is going for you

and if you need certain help with a

certain section

and so i'll leave links to all of the

materials i used down in the description

you can kind of pick a choose what's

kind of most helpful for you i just

wanted to show you guys what it took for

me to get the score that i wanted on the

gmat all right now last up let me

recommend for you an ideal study

schedule so this schedule is going to be

a bit more of a rough outline of if i

had no idea what the gmat was and i was

just getting started with my studies you

know what would i want to do ideally or

what should i do

for you it's going to totally depend on

your situation how far you are with your

studies and i actually do also recommend

researching other resources asking other

people how they studied because you know

i'm just one person and i think i know

that this schedule would work best for

me hopefully it's helpful for you to

kind of piece together your own puzzle

of how you're going to be studying for

your gmat exam step number one is to

familiarize yourself with the gmat by

taking a practice test from a

non-official source like manhattan prep

or princeton review and the reason i

think that it's a good idea to do this

even though it might some people might

say you want to kind of study for the

gmat before taking your first practice

but i think it's good to just kind of

understand how the test works and you

know don't put too much pressure on

yourself of scoring super well because

you're just trying to understand what

kind of questions pop up so that when

you actually start your studies you can

know like oh okay this is kind of how i

need to study because these are the kind

of questions that are on the exam right

and also kind of like a psychological

thing i think if your like first initial

score

is not super great after you do some

studying your score will jump right so

you can actually feel like you're making

some progress so that could be like a

nice little psychological boost i would

then really start focused on mastering

the material in both verbal and quant

which are the two important sections of

the gmat and i would use ttp and study

for two to three months with it but you

can use your other other materials

whatever really works for you and i

think it does take two ish months

minimum to really give yourself enough

time especially if you're working

simultaneously with number two i would

also watch all the youtube videos that i

recommended earlier with aditya kumar

and gmat ninja and um you can kind of

figure out when to kind of watch these

but i think you know when you're kind of

too tired of studying just

off of a book or like a course and you

want to take you know you want a bit of

change of scenery then i would watch one

of their videos when you're about one

month into studying that's when i would

take the first official og exam and then

afterwards every one to two weeks take

another practice exam and i would save

that last six one

for about a one to two weeks before your

actual exam just because that you want

to save your official one before uh you

take your real one just kind of give you

like a benchmark to understand where you

are right and in between all of that if

you want to take additional um

non-official practice exams you know

definitely go for it i personally only

took the six official ones um that's

kind of just what i did for i don't

exactly know why but if you have access

to those other non-official practice

exams there's no harm in practicing more

in the last two to three weeks before

your exam once you've kind of covered

all the material and have the

fundamentals down and really needs to

just get some practice that's where i

would do 10 to 30 questions each day for

each section so that means 20 to 60

questions a day maybe 20 on the weekdays

if you have work and then 60 on the

weekends for each day on the weekend and

when you have about one week left before

exam what i would really recommend is

doing only advanced questions and this

is really going to make your brain hurt

but i think it really just helps build a

lot of stamina because you're going to

be used to seeing a lot of the harder

questions right and the gmat as you may

know if you've already started studying

starts with the easier questions and

goes towards the harder ones and so if

you're really used to the harder ones

then you know you'll just be able to

cruise through the easier ones and then

the harder ones won't feel as difficult

in a sense or maybe you'll have more

time because you're able to get through

the easy ones quicker um so that's what

i would recommend in addition a week to

a few days before your exam what i would

do is take your last official og

practice exam and that's just to help

you benchmark to see where you're at

don't get too disheartened if you don't

get really the score that you want

because if you saw my score history i

was always kind of aiming for 750 but

for my final practice exam i got a 720

but i was able to get you know a 750 on

my real exam so sometimes um if you're

like really good on game day then maybe

that'll help you or

other times the actual gmat exam can be

a little bit easier than the practice

ones

although there are pretty comparative so

have faith in the work that you've done

and you know just

basically hopefully you crush that

practice exam but i'm just kind of

trying to tell you that it's not the end

of the world if it's not the score that

you want on the day before your exam

what i would do is about five to ten

questions for each section just to make

sure you're keeping yourself fresh with

the material some people say not to

study at all and just rest and if that's

what you want to do of course that's

totally fine i understand that as well

but for me i thought of it as like an

athlete who's training for or getting

prepared for a big game you know you do

some stretches get some um addition like

light exercising and that's what i

personally felt like worked well for me

finally all that's left for you to do is

to take the gmat and crush the exam and

one last kind of tip i do have for you

is as you're doing your practice exams

try to do them around the similar time

frame as when your actual exam is going

to be

normally you're able to schedule your

the gmat

at whatever kind of time is most

comfortable for you right and so if

you're kind of more of a morning morning

person and that's when you have the most

energy then i would take all practice

exams during the morning and then take

the final exam in the morning as well if

you're super super smart or really just

a great test taker then maybe you don't

need to study as much as i did i just

wanted to share with all of you what it

took for me to get a 750 on the gmat and

hopefully these tips were helpful it

took a lot of effort only a few tiers um

but i will say that all the effort and

practice will really be worth it if you

do get the exam score that you want and

so

yeah it's a ton of work but i do think

it's worth it i forgot to mention

earlier on in the video in case you're

new to the channel that i'm currently

attending wharton for my mba and if you

actually want to sign up for my future

how to get into mba course feel free to

sign up using my link in the description

i'm giving huge discounts for people who

sign up early and lastly i wanted to

give another reminder if you're

interested in studying for the gmat

check out target test prep you can try

them out for just one dollar

you'll have 5.5 days to check out the

entire course feel free to check them

out using my link in the description as

well with that said thank you all so

much for watching hope to catch you in

the next video thanks so much and peace

out

[Music]

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