CR strategy help!!!

ROI = Return on Investment. This is a financial term that refers to return on investment of money. In this case, it is your return on investment of your personal time. What is going to give you the best return on your investment of time is what I was trying to say . You will learn this one in Bschool for sure!!

Also, just to let you know, I really didn't use much strategy for CR b/c I found that it took me too much time. I'm a native English speaker, and I kind of liked the mental game. I always made sure to note what the question was asking though, and predict what the right answer looked like. Also, sometimes knowing how to knock out wrong answers is even more advantageous then picking out the right ones! 4 wrong = 1 right. I scored in the 90% for verbal, and it was one of my stronger sections. But just remember, with limited time, sometimes its best to go with what is working for you. Continue your practice, and make sure whatever strategy you use gets you there in 2 minutes at most/question. Best of luck, and we look forward to your debeif.

Well, I guess I showed my finance knowledge there. Hope my math and english are better than my finance.

I am a non-native test taker, but am reasonably confident (will know for sure in a month's time) about my verbal skills. I know I am not 95 percentile material, but would back my self to achieve a 90+ with good practice and a lot of coffee.

That said, I have a lot of practice to do. I hope, I can use my time efficiently and get a 20-30 point improvement from my GMATPrep score. What's your thoughts? Is such an improvement possible or am I am aiming too high?

So far all my preparation has been cramming the MGMAT guides and some (1/4th) OG practice. With more higher level OG practice and review of mistakes, I am hoping for a good score (just saying the words "good score" makes me shake these days )

Weak areas:

Quant:
DS - Very uncertain while approaching the question. Practice might make me more confident
Overlapping Sets: Taking a lot of time filling the matrix
Work Rate problems: Sometimes I am tying myself in knots trying to solve these
Percent/Fractions: Might have gotten a little better these days, but was a huge problem when I started

Verbal:
CR, SC: Kind of up and down.

Vijay

A 20-30 point improvement is definitely possible! In fact, that much of an improvement is possible on the same day as you took your test. The GMATprep test, and all GMAT tests are really only accurate to + or - 20 points on test day. There are so many variables. 1 or 2 right or wrong answers could easily make that difference.

So here's the thing, you sound like you know your weaknesses. You have to work VERY hard at these. Lots of practice problems, go over the concepts on ones you miss, and reinforce the concepts you get right, and make sure you know how to solve them to the best of your ability. 35 days is an eternity in GMAT prep days. My WHOLE perparation was only 70 days, and I made my largest strides in my final month. So you are right on track, and just need to work your butt off. Go in on test day knowing you did everything you could to get the score you want. You could definitely increase more than 30 points depending your prep! So go for the gold!

Best, of luck!

Some of my students have found the CR Bible useful, but most of the advice in there is pretty consistent with what you'll already have learned from Manhattan. The best way to improve on CR is to do extensive review of each problem. What are the parts of the argument? What (if any) are the assumptions? Are there one or more predictable things to look for in the answer choices? (For instance, are there obvious holes in the argument that you'd expect to see addressed?) Why is each wrong answer choice wrong? Do you see certain patterns repeating themselves in the wrong answers? What makes the right answer right?

In particular, spend some time comparing the two or three most tempting answers? Since there is only one right answer, the others must actually be wrong in some way. Sometimes it takes some work to see the key difference between two similar choices. Don't just settle for "Oh, I thought it was A, but it's D. I see why D is better." Go back to A and tear it apart!

Again, nothing against the CR Bible, but more reading is probably not the answer. You need to learn from experience, and from careful analysis of your work.

By the way, I know this is the verbal forum, but if DS is an issue, definitely give that some attention. (Have you done the rephrasing drills in our books?) If your DS is well below your PS, that's usually an easy way to pick up some points. First, however, make sure that your DS *is* lower (get some hard numbers from your CATs &/or OG work). Some people just find DS off-putting, even though their accuracy is fine. More comfort is never a bad thing, but you wouldn't want to overemphasize an area where you're not actually underperforming.

Thanks Dmitry,

First of, let me be very clear that the 8 MGMAT guides helped me a LOT. For any GMAT aspirant, the first thing I would suggest is to go ahead and order those guides. That said, of the 8, I found the CR guide the least helpful (at least for me). Hence the dilemma about reading other books and stuff.

I have started reading through the CR Bible (first 2 chapters in one hour) and did find it to be interesting. Now, will the strategies work for me is a whole different question. I will only find out in a few weeks time. Normally, I take about 2 weeks to digest anything that I read and start seeing results.

And about DS, I do know that the biggest problem is my dislike for the problems. My error logs show that my performance is better in PS (my liking for them way!!! better). The only way for me solve any DS questions is with the help of 16oz coffee. No coffee, No DS.

I skipped the DS drill chapters in the MGMAT guides and I guess is not a smart thing to do. I will certainly go back to guides and read through those chapters.

Thanks a lot for the advice on both DS and CR.