From 555 to 675: High Score Achieved! Thanks to Dustin GMAT, Study Tips and Timeline for Each Subject
GMAT New Format: 555 to 675! Heartfelt Recommendation: Enroll in Dustin’s Finisher Class Now!
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– Preparation Period: 2023/10-2024/3; 2024/6-2024/11
(Originally studied while working, resigned in June 2024 to study full-time)
– Study Materials: OG, OV, PREP1-6, KH Math Lecture Notes, Dustin’s Finisher Online Course Notes, GMAT CLUB (including OG, OV DI Review)
– GMAT Scores:
- First Attempt: 555 (PR49)
- Second Attempt: 615 (PR 77)
- Third Attempt: 675 (PR95) V82 Q85 DI84
▌Foreword
After graduating from university, I first obtained my Australian CPA license. Since the license requires completing all subjects within 6 years and accumulating 3 years of relevant work experience, I joined EY’s Financial Accounting Advisory Services department after obtaining it. Initially, I wanted to prepare for the exam while working, but due to IPO and PCAOB projects at work, I essentially didn’t have much time to study.
I still remember when I first started studying, I was watching KH’s math lessons on videotape at 2 AM, which was incredibly inefficient. My first attempt while working scored 555, which was a terrible score, so I resigned in June to focus entirely on studying.
▌Timeline
March First Attempt 555 (PR49) → October Second Attempt 615 (PR 77) → November Third Attempt 675 (PR95) → December TOEFL 102 → January started preparing application documents → February submitted applications and received offers (Uni of Queensland Master of Commerce Conditional Offer; Uni of Sydney Master of Commerce Unconditional Offer)
▌Subject-Specific Insights
CR
In the Finisher class, Dustin’s teaching method involves breaking down OG into AC & AE for instruction, and he also uses ChatGPT & other supplementary materials. I found Dustin’s teaching approach very helpful for consolidating problem-solving strategies.
The Finisher class divides the preparation process into multiple stages, starting with fundamental training in vocabulary, reading speed, and reading depth, and then gradually progressing to controlling one’s question-solving time.
In my final attempt, I significantly improved my CR score. I believe the greatest help came from being able to discuss directly with the teacher 1-on-1 in the discussion forum to identify my logical errors. Furthermore, Dustin is very patient and can help you pinpoint your blind spots, rather than just scolding you while your exam scores remain poor. Of course, Dustin’s ChatGPT tool (especially the Verbal Distractor) helped me a lot by revealing common trap questions and confusing options in GMAT CR. Also, the discussion forum on GMAT Club helped me a lot.
RC
Actually, my RC score in the third attempt wasn’t very high. I concluded that it was because I didn’t answer according to Dustin’s “locate and refer” method taught in class. Instead, I used a natural reading approach (WPM up to 240), reading the passage until I felt I understood it thoroughly, and then proceeded to choose options.
This approach easily leads to mistakes on high-difficulty questions, especially when options contain many traps. I sincerely advise future test-takers that foundational skills are truly important during preparation; trying to learn advanced techniques without a solid foundation will surely lead to stumbling. I hope you can learn from my experience and avoid wasting your precious time on this inhumane exam.
Q
Since I had been working for a while, suddenly being asked to do high school-level math meant I had forgotten all the formulas. My first attempt at preparation was basically spent recalling formulas and familiarizing myself with the exam content, which is why I scored poorly on the first attempt.
Subsequently, in the Finisher class, Dustin also properly allocated study time for each subject when arranging customized study plans. For example, I was a full-time student, but this didn’t mean I had ample time in a day. Instead, my schedule was packed, so much so that I felt I didn’t have enough time to practice math problems in a day.
Therefore, through multiple subsequent consultations with Dustin, I continuously and dynamically adjusted my time allocation. Subjects that were already stable were maintained and performed consistently (like my RC), while weak subjects received increased training to improve proficiency. This way, test-takers can avoid their biggest nightmare: neglecting one area while focusing on another.
KH’s weekly problem-solving sessions were also very helpful, especially because the Finisher class adopts a small-group format. With the same teaching resources shared among fewer people, the quality of instruction received is definitely better and more efficient. I think the biggest gain was demonstrating my logical thinking process for solving difficult math problems to KH, and having him point out alternative ideas or approaches. This made my math skills incredibly stable, and the final step to aiming for a perfect score was just thoroughly reading the English text of the questions.
In my second attempt, I only got 2 questions wrong. Besides the problems compiled by KH, my main practice materials included a lot of OG and Quant review problems from GMAT CLUB. I didn’t do any geometry problems at all because the new format doesn’t test geometry, and indeed, there were no geometry problems in the actual exam. In my third actual exam, I finished all questions with 10 minutes remaining. Upon checking, I found many mistakes, but I only had 3 chances to change answers. I had so much extra time that I found more errors but couldn’t correct them anymore. My takeaway is that question-solving time should be controlled, and one should check and re-verify carefully. The most important aspect of math problems is not calculation speed, but rather the thoroughness and speed of reading English word problems. For this, I also used official problems from GMATCLUB for reinforcement and training.
DI
All my training was based on official OG, DI Review & Prep questions. MSR: 2 passages (6 questions) daily; TPA: 10 questions; DS: 16 questions; GT: 8 questions. First, complete all easy-difficulty questions, then choose only 705+ difficulty problems. GMATCLUB allows filtering questions by difficulty and source. It’s crucial to control your PACE. My own PACE was about 7 minutes total for MSR sets; approximately 2.15-3 minutes for other question types.
I didn’t finish all questions in this section, but this subject significantly boosted my final exam score. If the first few questions are difficult, you must persevere and not give up easily, otherwise, even with more time later, they will be easy questions, and your score won’t increase. DS questions now have a relatively larger amount of text. Training should also be reinforced with official questions, and your verbal ability must be applied to this section to improve.
▌Consultation and Study Tools
Dustin’s Finisher class will arrange your study plan, evaluating and planning according to each test-taker’s individual situation. Besides solving problems, fundamental skills like vocabulary and reading speed are also trained, which I find very basic and important. Of course, you can use many test-taking strategies to prepare, but when encountering a subject like DI that requires comprehensive understanding, you might easily fail.
The ChatGPT tool also helped me a lot, especially for CR, boosting my accuracy for weaknesses like BF and Assumption to almost 100%. It’s truly a very useful tool, and I’m very grateful for Dustin’s careful guidance and instruction.
I recommend that test-takers make good use of the discussion forum. However, before posting, first look at previous threads to see other test-takers’ problem-solving approaches, and then consider if you are asking questions that are unprepared or too basic, so as not to dampen Dustin’s teaching enthusiasm.
▌Heartfelt Recommendation
Also, before enrolling, check out the articles he’s written on Dustin’s blog; every single one is very useful. Even when I’m showering, I think about how assumption questions are divided into two types: necessary assumptions and sufficient assumptions. Without such fundamental knowledge, trying to score high purely through self-study might mean paying GMAC a lot more money.
