Brian Galvin is the Director of Academic Programs at Veritas Prep, where he oversees all of the company's GMAT prep courses.
All too often, GMAT students overestimate the importance of "cranking through raw numbers" on the test. Business schools aren't looking for human calculators, but rather problem solvers -- those who can efficiently make good decisions. As such, the quantitative side of the GMAT is skewed toward that kind of thinking, and rewards test-takers who can efficiently and accurately analyze numbers.
Knowing this, Veritas Prep has long encouraged its students to become adept at using fractions to simplify calculations on the exam. More often than not, GMAT problems are much more efficiently solved using fractions than using long division or decimals.
While the GMAT doesn't require you to know unit conversions off the top of your head, consider this example: Imagine you are an American tourist in Europe. You know miles, pounds, and gallons, but aren't too handy with kilometers, kilograms, and liters. You're driving a foreign car and keep seeing distance markers in kilometers, but they're meaningless to you. Yes, you may remember that a kilometer is 0.62 miles, but how fun is it to drive and try to multiply numbers by 0.62 in your head at the same time?
But what if you remembered that 0.62 (which is very close to 0.6) is almost the same as 3/5? Using a fraction like 3/5, instead of a decimal like 0.62 (or even 0.6) would allow you to quickly convert kilometers to miles to help you figure out far it would be to the next gas station, restaurant, or exit. 150 km? Simply divide by 5 and multiply by 3, and you could quickly determine that it was approximately 90 miles.
On the GMAT, just like while driving, you will want to avoid tedious calculations. Using fractions will allow you to make quick calculations and decisions without the wasted time or mental clutter of handwritten calculations.
For more GMAT prep and MBA admissions help, talk to the experts at Veritas Prep.
