Astounding 755 in GMAT Focus Edition - Divyansh Agarrwal, 100th Percentile | GMAT Topper

Summary

The video features Divan, who achieved a remarkable GMAT score of 755, sharing his preparation journey. Initially intimidated by long passages and new question types, he overcame his fears through structured study plans and consistent practice. He emphasized the importance of time management and leveraging online resources, particularly for Data Insights and Critical Reasoning sections. Divan also highlighted the motivational impact of personal stories and the importance of confidence and focus during the test. His unique approach and dedication led to his outstanding performance in less than two months of preparation.

Takeaways

• 📚 The speaker initially found the GMAT exam intimidating, especially the verbal section and long passages.
• 🔄 The speaker adopted an unusual order for tackling the GMAT sections, starting with Data Insights, then Quant, and finally Verbal.
• 🌟 The speaker achieved a high score of 755 on the GMAT, which is considered a phenomenal score.
• 📈 The speaker's preparation involved a strict adherence to a study plan provided by the coaching team, focusing on base sessions, live sessions, and mock tests.
• ⏳ The speaker dedicated around 45-50 days for GMAT preparation, prioritizing it and spending 5-6 hours daily on study.
• 📉 The speaker faced challenges with Integrated Reasoning and Critical Reasoning, requiring extensive practice to overcome.
• 💡 The speaker emphasized the importance of having faith in oneself and not getting discouraged by difficult questions.
• 🕒 Time management was crucial, especially in avoiding spending too much time on a single question, which could affect the rest of the test.
• 🔍 The speaker found using the online portal for practice questions to be beneficial, particularly for Data Insights, as it helped with speed and accuracy.
• 📊 The speaker's mock test scores improved from 650-700 to 700-750, indicating progress and effective preparation strategies.
• 🤔 The speaker actively sought doubt clarification and understood the importance of learning from mistakes to improve their approach.

Q & A

What was the speaker's initial feeling towards verbal sections in the GMAT?

The speaker initially found the verbal sections intimidating and would panic when faced with long passages, worrying about how to find answers within them.

How did the speaker approach the GMAT test day?

The speaker started with the DI (Data Insights) section first, then Quant (Quantitative), and finally Verbal, which was an unusual order not commonly recommended by others.

What was the speaker's GMAT score and its significance?

The speaker scored a 755, which is considered a phenomenal score in the GMAT context. Adding the 55 points that were part of a past deal would have exceeded 805, suggesting a near-perfect score.

How long did the speaker prepare for the GMAT?

The speaker prepared for the GMAT in less than two months, around 45-50 days.

What was the speaker's daily routine during the preparation period?

The speaker spent five to six hours daily on GMAT preparation, doing lectures or practicing questions, six days a week, with Sunday being a half-day.

How did the speaker manage time management issues during practice?

The speaker used the last two weeks for mock tests and sectional tests to work on time accuracy, especially to avoid spending too much time on single questions.

What was the speaker's strategy for dealing with difficult questions?

The speaker focused on questions they were confident about and moved ahead without dwelling on difficult ones, trusting that some tough questions were expected to be missed.

How did the speaker utilize the portal for practice?

The speaker used the portal for Data Insights practice, finding it helpful for sorting lists and using the calculator, which would have been difficult with PDFs alone.

What was the speaker's experience with doubt support during preparation?

The speaker found doubt support crucial, especially for Quant and data sufficiency, as it helped understand where their approach went wrong and to improve their process.

How did the speaker's initial mock scores compare to their final GMAT score?

The speaker's initial mock scores were in the range of 650 to 700, and after focused preparation, they improved to achieve a final GMAT score of 755.

What advice does the speaker have for others preparing for the GMAT?

The speaker advises having faith in oneself, focusing on questions one is confident about, and not letting difficult questions demotivate or waste time.

Outlines

00:00

😰 Overcoming Verbal Section Intimidation

The speaker describes their initial fear of the verbal section due to long passages and difficulty in managing time. They share how they used specific strategies to handle sections in an unusual order and emphasize the importance of self-confidence. A notable achievement mentioned is scoring a 755 on the GMAT with only two months of preparation, thanks to a structured study plan and mock tests.

05:02

🧩 Mastering Critical Reasoning and Data Sufficiency

The speaker discusses the challenges faced with critical reasoning (CR) and data sufficiency (DS) questions, highlighting the importance of specific techniques like the negation test. They mention frequent mistakes in quant and DS, which were overcome through practice and understanding traps. The speaker emphasizes the role of the portal and consistent practice in mastering these areas.

10:04

📊 Efficient Preparation for Data Insights and Time Management

The speaker focuses on their preparation for the data insights (DI) section, noting the difficulty of maintaining speed and accuracy. They utilized the portal extensively for practice and improved their time management through mock tests. The speaker also shares their daily routine of studying 5-6 hours, six days a week, and the importance of consistency in achieving a high score.

15:06

🎯 Strategies for GMAT Exam Day Success

The speaker describes their exam day strategy, including an unusual section order of starting with DI, followed by quant, and ending with verbal. They emphasize the importance of being vigilant in the DI section and adjusting to unexpected question types. The speaker highlights the role of mock tests in refining their approach and managing time effectively during the actual exam.

20:08

💡 Motivation and Support in GMAT Preparation

The speaker reflects on their motivation, stemming from a college talk on the GMAT's impact on future opportunities. They highlight the importance of inspirational videos and success stories in maintaining their determination. The speaker also credits the doubt support from the preparation team, which helped them understand and correct their mistakes in quant and data sufficiency.

Keywords

💡Intimidating

Intimidating refers to something that causes fear or nervousness, often due to its difficulty or complexity. In the video's context, the speaker initially found the GMAT's verbal section intimidating because of the length and complexity of the passages. The term is used to illustrate the initial challenge faced by the speaker, which is a common sentiment among test-takers.

💡Sectioning

Sectioning in the context of the GMAT refers to the strategy of choosing the order in which to attempt different sections of the test. The speaker mentions an unusual order of tackling the sections, starting with the Integrated Reasoning (IR) section first, which is not a common approach but worked for them. This highlights the importance of finding a personalized strategy for test-taking.

💡Penalize

To penalize in the context of testing means to impose a negative consequence for a mistake or error. The speaker mentions that the GMAT tends to penalize more for missing easier questions, which underscores the importance of accuracy and not just speed in test-taking.

💡Confidence

Confidence is a belief in one's own abilities or qualities. The video emphasizes the importance of having confidence in oneself to perform well on the GMAT, especially when faced with difficult questions. It is a key psychological factor in overcoming the challenges of the test.

💡Mock Tests

Mock tests are practice exams that simulate the actual test conditions. The speaker used mock tests to improve time management and to familiarize themselves with the test format. They are crucial for preparation as they help identify weak areas and build test-taking stamina.

💡Percentile

Percentile refers to the relative standing of a score in a group. In the script, the speaker's scores are mentioned in terms of percentiles, indicating their performance relative to other test-takers. A percentile close to 100 means that the speaker's score is among the top performers.

💡Data Sufficiency (DS)

Data Sufficiency is a specific type of question in the GMAT Quant section where the test-taker must determine if the given information is enough to solve a problem. The speaker found this section challenging and mentions the importance of practice in overcoming initial difficulties with DS questions.

💡Integrated Reasoning (IR)

Integrated Reasoning is a section of the GMAT that tests a candidate's ability to evaluate and synthesize multiple sources of information. The speaker discusses their strategy and preparation for this section, emphasizing its importance and the need for careful attention due to its complexity.

💡Time Management

Time management is the ability to allocate time effectively to different tasks or sections. The speaker mentions the importance of time management, especially in the Data Insights section, where multi-source reasoning paths can lead to spending too much time on a single question.

💡Doubt Support

Doubt support refers to the assistance provided to clarify misunderstandings or mistakes made during practice. The speaker highlights the importance of doubt support in understanding where they went wrong, especially in Quant and Data Sufficiency, which was crucial for their improvement.

💡Motivation

Motivation is the drive or desire to achieve a goal. The speaker was motivated by a talk given at their college about the importance of the GMAT for future opportunities. This motivation played a key role in their preparation and persistence throughout the challenging journey.

Highlights

The speaker initially found the GMAT intimidating and would panic when faced with long passages.

The speaker mentions an unusual test-taking order, starting with the Integrated Reasoning section first.

The importance of self-belief and not being intimidated by difficult questions is emphasized.

The speaker scored a 755 on the GMAT, which is considered a high score.

The speaker's preparation time was only 2 months, showcasing efficient study strategies.

The speaker strictly followed a study schedule provided by the coaching team.

Mock tests and sectional tests were crucial for timing and accuracy practice.

Verbal was a challenge, but the speaker overcame it through practice and strategy.

The speaker found the Optimal Theory helpful, especially for primary purpose questions.

CR (Critical Reasoning) was new to the speaker but was mastered through specific strategies.

Data Sufficiency questions were initially difficult but improved with practice and doubt clarification.

The speaker utilized the portal for Data Insights practice, finding it beneficial for time management and strategy.

A daily study routine of 5-6 hours, 6 days a week, was maintained for focused preparation.

The speaker's initial mock scores were in the range of 650-700, showing room for improvement.

The speaker found the diagnostic mock on the portal and official mocks helpful for identifying weak areas.

Doubt support from the coaching team was crucial for understanding mistakes and improving.

The speaker's section order on the test day was DI, then Quant, and finally Verbal for strategic reasons.

The speaker faced a tricky non-math DS question but managed to regain focus using test strategies.

Quant section was completed without time issues, and the speaker used remaining time for review.

Verbal section passages were shorter than expected, allowing for time savings and focus on the longer passage.

The speaker suggests starting portal practice earlier for better familiarity with the test format.

Maintaining self-belief and focusing on strengths rather than perceived weaknesses is advised.

Transcripts

for me veral was always something that

seemed very intimidating I I used to get

scared seeing a long passage and then

start off I started sort of panicking

how will I finders in such a long

passage and on the test day I sort of

Stu through the Section sectioning as

first di then important them it's a very

unusual order let me tell you though

I've have never heard G tends to make

things tougher for you and then you

always saying that g will penalize me

more for missing out on easier questions

as compared to missing out on hard I

guess the most important thing is to

have faith in yourself that you'll be

able to do good and even when you're

seeing something difficult don't just

feel that it's something that you don't

do and just move ahead and try to focus

on all those questions that you are

confident of and in the end it might be

that it was one of those tougher

questions that the G expected you to

miss all right so we have Dian with us

and very proudly I'd love to announce

that he scored a 755 which is one of the

most phenomenal scores seen around in

the GMAT Cit overall so if I actually

add 55 to it which used to be the deal

that okay any score that you get you add

55 this will exceed 805 by that logic so

he has scored in the previous version in

near perfect 800 or even more than that

which is not even possible but that's

what and uh he took only 2 months of

preparation time so this is another

thing and when we look at the score

report also you can actually see the

session that we are disc discussing Data

Insights verbal Quant so every

percentile is very close to 100 so i'

really want him to tell so thean I'll

stop the screen and I will invite you to

start your camera hey hi Divan so first

of all congratulations since yesterday

it has been fantastic your mail was

received uh probably in the afternoon

sometime around 12 uh probably 1 and

we've all been exceptionally happy with

the performance so just take us through

your journey you said you in a way

started in May sometime preparing and

then in not even mid July we can say so

it's not even half of July and you got

the score so how did you plan the entire

preparation what were your weak areas

and how did you go about the whole thing

right from the beginning till the end

just give me a chronological order of

your

preparation so uh I I had that that uh

you guys share this has the schedule of

everything starting from the pre from

the pre course work the base sessions

and the live sessions so I tried to

follow it as strictly as as as possible

and I I sort of didn't have any other

commitments in this past one and a half

mons 45 50 days so I I put GM as as my

priority and just followed that step by

step so starting with the with the CR

Basics the KC Basics the sessions and

then going on to each of the live

sessions with the the pre-work then the

session then the postwork so it was it

was all just doing it

pretty sticking to sticking to the plan

provided by the top person team and then

I kep the last I sort of tried to give

the last two weeks just for mock tests

and sectional test so that I can work

more on my time

accy because it's very easy to get gu

with a question and then spend 10 15

minutes on it and then you realiz I just

have five minutes for the last five

questions or 10 questions so that was

really important uh to so that was

something that I really had to work on

right especially in topics like Data

Insights where you get a multisource

reing pth and then it becomes very easy

for you to just spend 10 minutes on it

right so I the last two weeks just to

rush it up so okay uh what were your

challenge areas let's say you said

verbal first you did as for the plan was

there any challenge with verbal with the

way you used to approach let's say

passage or a CR question versus with the

way we explained it I mean was there a

difference in the thought process here

yeah pretty much a lot so for me verbal

was something that seemed very

intimidating and uh so I I used to get

scared seeing a long passage and then

start of I started sort of panicking how

will I find

the chers in such a long passage but the

the way you taught it in the session

and by practicing it slowly slowly I got

the confidence to read the entire

passage and then figure out what parts

what parts to look for for relevant

relevant question and then the Optive

Theory it really help especially in

primary primary purpose questions right

coming to CR CR was sort of a very new

thing for me like these of questions we

haven't really done in past School exams

or or anything so it was a it was a new

thing and uh the the sort of tests that

that we T from the we

the negation test how to pick out

strength withness all those sort of help

me build a mindset that how to approach

us your see question what keywords you

look at and basically how you it so

that you feel more comfortable looking

at it and then you can get to the right

right all right just did you make those

kind similar mistakes and did you fall

for traps in Quant and Di as well I mean

DS particularly did that happen or you

feel that that was pretty basic for you

I mean initially I'm asking did you make

those trap based mistakes in Quant and

data sufficiency indeed data sufficiency

definitely like I I have often found

myself

just thinking how did I miss this or

there are so many TRS in GMAT that you

feel contion is very straightforward but

when you check your answers you find out

that it was wrong right those sort of

things just sort of come with practice I

had to send a lot of mails regarding

doubts and all get to understand what I

was missing in a question once you do

enough number of questions you start of

you start getting to move the TRS that

if this is what they're trying to say

this might something I have to look

after again go with the

same and uh how did you prepare for data

insight as you said speed was a

challenge particularly in MSR kind of

questions so initially did the portal

come in handy again and again you had to

do a I believe you did a lot of practice

in there so just

trying all Data Insights was through the

portal only on the the th Marathon

sectional tests topic byse

test I try to try to I try to do as much

Resource as possible and uh also the

portal also sort of makes it easier for

you to solve those questions this would

have been very difficult to look at in

the form of PDF or something like that

right right right so the port really

helped me get Knack of things like

sorting the lists and chosing the

calculator whereever needed so all those

stuff really put me put me better in the

exam right and as you said you worked

only for one one and a half oh sorry

around less than two months around 45 50

days what was your routine like because

you said you put yourself completely in

this situation so what did you do every

day and how about consistency did that

help as well like did you have this as a

mission that I have to crack it soon

like that yeah definitely so I sort of

have my joining coming up coming up in a

few weeks and I was like I have to have

I need to get a scho before I start my

job because once I get get into it it

might be very difficult I just had that

sort of thing in my mind so right now I

I spend more or less five to six hours

daily uh either going through the

lectures or doing some sort of questions

and just try to do it at least six days

a week maybe Sunday was a day I sort of

took half day my

stud and what could have pulled your

score down what was the initial thing

that was just not improving and it took

a lot of effort and time eventually to

fix it using maybe the material using

maybe the PDF practice using maybe the

portal practice whatever yeah

so I'd say integrated reasoning and CR

questions those through needed a lot of

practice and even on the day of the test

I was pretty scar that I'll miss

something here and there in in the di di

question so were you extra careful or

what how did you really go about that

because this happens a lot if you're

being too carefully lose out on time so

how did he manage that then so that sort

of that is what uh the B test and

section test help me to P to be careful

yet to be in a Time

manner so you stri that balance

eventually right if you practice so much

really good and uh tell me what were

initial mock scores like and how did you

use the portal how did you use the

official marks in which order like did

you do the official marks first did you

do the portal Mar did you keep a mix and

what were initial scores like and how

did you improve further yeah so uh I

first that typ diagnostic Mo on the

portrait then the then one of the

official mock list and then I saved the

second one for the

last because I've heard that it's sort

of on the easier side and that will help

me gain confidence before the right

actual Pap and the test so between these

two between these two marks I gave the

marks available on the top 1% portal and

my score was in the range of 650 to 700

in the top 1% total and around 700 750

in the in the two okay

professional and uh what were the

challenges let's say on our portal which

what brought your score down is it just

the difficulty which obviously is a

little higher definitely we have

maintained that but what was the other

reason probably like time management or

would you say some areas you did not

know very well Mastery or what would you

say so each of the mocks sort helped me

find out which area I need to focus on

so so whenever I I gave a mock I didn't

spend the test of day working on which

part I lost most of my marks on be it

due to time time mismanagement or some

concept in CR or in so the mo sort of

help me build up on the on the separate

Concepts and that is how I was able to

deflect the final score in the in the

official Mark as well as the also you

wrote particularly about the doubt

support so

I mean I also remember having seen a lot

of your Mals in the past when your final

mail came that okay this is the same

person who got the score all right so

how was that support uh from the

teammates of and uh like whatever it is

yeah so I I feel that it was probably

the most important one of the most

important things for me especially in

questions from Quant and data

sufficiency because I I wasn't da uh I I

I always try to look at what I did wrong

where did where did

my Approach go wrong and for that I

needed someone to just help

me understand the the process a bit

better and that's why I I did like even

even while solving the PDFs or the mods

I used to just send questions and be

like this is what I thought and it's not

matching up to my uh my thought thought

thought process if you could please help

me out where I went from right and

especially in topics like NC and and and

all that you I remember seeing a lot of

mails from you that okay I understand

the solution but what is wrong in my

answer my Approach I think this used to

be a standard template of asking a lot

of emails like that yes yes so you you

were fine with the solution you said

that solution makes sense to me but I'm

not able to understand why I'm going

wrong right this

time all right so you did get scores I

mean eventually probably got the high

score on your actual exam maybe is that

right all right so let's come to that

and what was the section order first of

all and uh like how was it section by

section Quant your score is perfect 90

so it seems that you may not have made

any mistake or maybe maximum one mistake

in there but just describe the order of

sections and did you find anything

unusual how did you find the pacing on

the exam and so on please just describe

it fully yeah I sort of stroke to the

section sectioning as first di then qu

and then F okay in sort of my last 56

box also because I di needed maximum of

my like I I had to be most Vigilant

there and you sort of get a bit

complient as the test go on so I wanted

to be as fresh as possible for the DI

section and then do the Quant and get

done with all the tougher parts so that

I can just focus on the screen and read

read properly okay that is how I planned

my

mhm it's a very unusual order let me

tell you though I mean I've never heard

this would be anybody's order in in

general but Okay carry on please yeah so

and and on the test day I started with

with di first and I felt that I was

doing pretty good I was also doing it in

proper time but then then I remember

getting a non-math DS question and that

just took me a bit off track did you do

the practice that that we had provided

by the way for nonm DS yeah I did do but

uh I just never felt that it'll

be it was a bit a bit trickier than what

I thought okay okay yeah it was more on

CR lines as compared to anything to what

problem and uh so then I I did try to

gather myself back and after a after

spending 2 2 and half minutes I was like

I remember someone saying

one of the sessions that GMAT tends to

make things tougher for you and then you

always saying that GMAT will always

penalize me more for missing out on

easier easier questions as compared to

missing out on hard on right that this

might be a hard one let just move

forward on the remaining n

questions so and then uh so that's how

my di went qu was pretty anything else

unusual on the DI section except for

that one question anything not most of

it was similar to the questions we have

on the right the question that you're

talking about also I think CR question

type data sufficiency we have had and we

have a full-fledged test also and we

have Incorporated in some of the content

already so anyway that's great and uh

yeah about the Quant section anything

unusual in there did you finish in time

just yeah qu was prettyful for I felt

the questions were relatively easier as

compared to the as compared to the box

we have I did it in around 35 40 minutes

the remaining 5 5 minutes to just go

through the questions once to make sure

I haven't done any sort of calculation

mistake right and then verbal to it it

was pretty good like the I didn't face

the time the time problem and the

passages were I got four car passages

and three of them were slightly shorter

than what we have in the MS right so

that really helped me because I was

planning my according to the mo so it it

helped me save on time right the less

number of paragraphs and eventually I

had time to spend on the longer passage

that one passage that I got right so it

all sort of H Me overall overall

anything unusual on the entire test that

you would say that that threw you off

that this sort of a question or this

sort of concept I've never seen before

anything not really most of it all of it

was sort of covered in in the mo

lectures nothing that

unusually all right and you also talked

about the motivation aspect uh in the

email and the fact that I came to your

college and then that's how you got

introduced to the GMAT so tell me how

does that help I mean does that really

put you back on track some days when

you're slacking what was the motivation

actually because yeah so I I had heard

of this GMAT in the past couple of years

but when I started looking the moment I

started looking seriously was when you

came to our college and gave a talk on

how it can help us shape our future

right and that is when I sort of started

having this feeling that I need to cck

this right and then the the sort of

motivation like I I went through a lot

of your videos with the past quers you

talk about their Journeys and some days

you don't perform very well on a

particular and you sort of feel that I

might be not well enough to do it but

when you listen to those stories that

it's fine to uh it's fine to get a good

score in a couple of months you just

need to have have faith in faith in

yourself and it's most important to have

good mood a good environment on the

final of the of e exam so those videos

really help me to keep on going and uh

keep on trying to improve my school even

if I sort of got disheartened by a

couple of months okay and uh did you for

reading comprehension particularly do

the initial awareness videos or the

remaining no the world videos just give

that as well if that helped as well

because uh I want to be very sure that

you know what is the component that

really helped you quite a lot so just if

you did I don't know about that bit so

just ask so I went through the initial

awareness video I couldn't do all the

the yeah you took a very short time

frame definitely but I did spend most of

my time doing reading comprehensions the

the passages on the Cari guide the to

800 level questions and that was what

really really helped me get a knack of

doing such such questions right right

any special tip you will have for people

uh in general now that you've seen your

preparation you're on the other side

that I should have done this but I

didn't or I did this and this was the

best thing so dos and don'ts of sorts

please tell

yes I start I'll first start it's

something I felt I didn't do really so I

sort of started using the portal a

little later than when I should have

started using so the portal DA has a lot

of lot of content and it will always

help you to do more questions in a Time

manner that is something I probably felt

I could have done a bit sooner yeah and

apart from that I say that I guess the

most important thing is to have faith in

faith in yourself that you'll be able to

do both yeah and even when you're seeing

something difficult don't just feel that

uh it's something that you don't know

and that you just bring down your SPO

just move ahead and try to focus on all

those all those questions that you are

confident of and in the end it might be

that it was it was one of those tougher

questions that the Gat expected you to

miss right oh that's a good approach I

think mentally I think it it's peaceful

in this sense that if you really really

adopt this principle all right so all

the very best and thanks for the time

today and apart from that I'm not sure

whether you're looking for admissions

this year or next year so talk to my

teammate auri I think he will be able to

guide you personally on how we can

really help you with this journey as

well in case you decide to go forward I

mean a lot of students from your college

have already helped so I'm sure you know

about them and uh let's really make one

more addition to that illustrous list

already right right right thank you all

right yeah thank you bye-bye by by