Starting GMAT Prep

Obviously, I cannot give you my opinion on which is better - Veritas or MGMAT but I can offer you some useful start up tips on how to best use the Veritas set.

Start with the books - not with the official guide. Don't skip the first few pages immediately after the table of contents. Go through the discussion on the Pyramid - Creating, Applying, Remembering.

Read "How this book is structured" - you don't need to read it every time but if you do it once, you will start with a lot of clarity. Don't skip the 'Think like the testmaker' and 'Skills meet strategy' boxes in the discussions that follow. They focus on higher level skills - creating and applying.

After you complete the theory with examples, drills and skillbuilder exercises, go through the homework problems. They will help reinforce all the concepts discussed in previous pages. If you face problems with particular questions, go back to the theory till you feel confident.

Thereafter, practice questions from the official guides.

Also, it will be good if you can take out two hours every week day - work for an hour on tricky concepts early in the morning; work for an hour on questions late in the evening. Take a day off every week to refresh your mind.

Hi Aayushijain16

If you haven't already, be sure to take a practice exam. It's helpful to understand where you stand now, and it'll be useful in determining how much studying/prepping you should devote to the GMAT.

Ideally 10-17 study hours per week is good goal, but this can easily go up or down based on your availability and how soon your test is coming. Feel free to read our blog for tips on studying with a full time job; we've covered it a number of times: https://econgm.at/GbgPhU.

Jessica

definitely save the official guide questions for practice after you've learned from the lessons and content from either the veritas or mgmat books.

as for your work schedule that's definitely tough since studying for the gmat is such a big time commitment. do you get any down time during the day to study? maybe you can then, otherwise you'll just have to study late and night and on the weekends and sacrifice some sleep or other activities outside of work for a few months...

Hi aayushjain16,

Studying for the GMAT can be a big task - there are a lot of variables and you might find that you have to change your plan at some point (based on how well or how quickly you're improving). If you can answer a few questions, then I'll be happy to advise:

1) What is your score goal?
2) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
3) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
4) Have you thought about which schools you'll be applying to?

Most Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) on their studies; during that time, it's common to spend 10-15 hours per week (or more) on the process. You'll have to put in a lot of effort and learn some new tactics, but since the GMAT is a predictable, standardized Exam, you CAN learn to CRUSH it.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

You have plenty of books! Make sure to mix up sessions of reading/studying from the guides with sessions in which you apply what you've learned by doing OG problems.

There are two additional Official Guides (one for quant and one for verbal), but most people don't really need these. The main Official Guide should be plenty if you are working through it carefully and taking time to review your work and learn from your experience. Good luck!

Hi,

The material you have is sufficient. Make sure you also have access to a large number of practise tests.

We would suggest that you start with a mock test under the guidance of a mentor or an expert coach. This will familiarise you with the test pattern and also help you identify your strong and weak areas. Based on this, you can make a strategy on how you would want to prepare for gmat.

Wish you the best.

www,manyagroup.com