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Half way through .....need some advice.

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lahoosaher
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Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink] New post   27 Apr 2009, 13:33
Hello All,

I am half way through with my prep and I need some help on which book / material , I should go ahead with now.
I am done with :

OG 11(verbal accuracy - 86% , math accuracy - 94%)
MGMAT SETS (Verbal + Math)
Kaplan 800

I have been writing tests quite regularly and the scores are as follows:
GmatPrep1 (620 / 48 / 23)
Kaplan1 (520 / 32/ 23)
Kaplan2 (540 / 41/ 26)
Kaplan3 (580 / 42/ 29)

I have not taken GmatPrep1 again but I am sure I will score around 680 , since Kaplan was so difficult.
I have 8 more weeks in hand. and following material left in the shelf - untouched.

1.Powerscore CR
2.1000 series
3.PR Verbal workout
4.Kaplan premier prog.
5.GMAT 1995 paper tests - around 6 of them
6.The famous GMAT sets (21-30)
7.IDIOM list - don't know how to go about this one....

Could you guys please advice how I should go about reading the above material and revising the ones already done?
Should I go ahead with 1000 series? But that will eat up some much of my time early in the plan.
Is cramming the only way to master Idioms?
Should I practice GMAT 1995 paper tests / GMAT sets (21-30)? Anyone used these?
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Re: Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink] New post   27 Apr 2009, 13:48
Expert Reply
Your verbal seems to be the weakest point at this time. I would focus there as much as possible and not really jump much back to the Math.
Just mark/copy/print all the questions that you miss and create a binder to review later. Then once a week review the questions. Those that you miss twice - (if possible of course) memorize the question and the correct answer so that you could reproduce it as whatever you have done for prep did not work.

I would not take/waste any practice tests quite yet and would focus on the Verbal part. then start working on putting it all together and taking Verbal section only. After you have that handled, you can take full tests. Then move on to 4-hour tests with AWA.

I see you have a strategy for CR and SC's.
For reading, my best recommendation is reading :shock: and using an approach that works for you. The one I used was from the Kaplan Verbal Workbook - read the passage, stop to paraphrase and understand the author's tone. Finish the passage and then paraphrase the whole thing. Then move on to questions.

About the Idioms - memorizing is the only way. You will need them later in life anyway unless you want to embarrass yourself on a conf call or corporate email.

P.S. You have more than enough test materials.
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lahoosaher
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Re: Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink] New post   27 Apr 2009, 19:40
Thanks a lot for the advice BB.

do you think I should retake OG now or should I solve 1000 ....or maybe some part of 1000 right now and then retake / review OG? Many say that OG should come in the later part of the prep.

I have devised a plan for Idioms .....so in a weeks time , I should be OK with Idioms.
I will prepare the MGMAT - SC Idiom list.

I have a major concentration problem when it comes to Verbal , which is reflected in low score .
Do you think this is because the kaplan tests are so difficult , because I did not have this problem when I took GmatPrep.
I was planning to re-take kaplan verbal section only , repeatatively , until I man it down. I hope thats a better approach.
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Re: Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink] New post   27 Apr 2009, 20:43
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Not sure how to tell you this, but you are doing it wrong :lol:

I don't think you should solve anything. Stop spending time on tests and obscure materials - learn things instead. Why are you even taking tests if you have not gone through all of the theory/strategies? Of course your test scores will be low. There is no discussion.
Yes, you will learn something by taking tests over and over but that will be about 5% of what you would have learned by reading a guidebook.

Study for a few weeks and when you feel you are done with the verbal section, take a test. Then see your performance. Then see which areas you have missed. Then study for a few more weeks and then take test #2. If you are doing things right, you should improve. If there are still noticeable weaknesses, do not get into the solving questions mode - they won't have. You have to go back to the study books. After that, polish off minor things and make sure you know all the intricacies and how to check your answers and not make silly mistakes. Spend a day a week or more with the questions you made mistakes in. Then a week before the test, spend a few days cracking the OG questions. Start practicing full length tests to get your stamina up. Then a few days before the test, take the GMATPrep - that's your final checkpoint (you can do it a bit earlier if you want).

That's it. You need to take 6 tests max. Remember that questions and tests only serve as check-points or markers along the way. If you are lost, they won't help you to get there - that's what the "map" (guidebooks are for)
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lahoosaher
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Re: Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink] New post   28 Apr 2009, 07:13
Thanks BB.

I got your point.
I will review the wrong ones and go back to books to revise the concepts.

I was overwhelmed with the amount of tests / sets / series I have .
I guess , I will take them once I am confident about basics......but anyway I cant afford to be away from those for a long time.....

I will change my study plan accordingly.
Thanks a lot for the help.
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Re: Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink] New post   05 May 2009, 09:09
My suggestion are the following:

1) Brush up your basics as Verbal seems to be a weak point for you. Try to go through the basis as many times as possible.

2) Try to complete the OG questions atleast twice..I know they are a repeat but it helps.

3) Try to give a practise test atleast once every week depending on the time.
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Re: Half way through .....need some advice. [#permalink]
05 May 2009, 09:09

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