closeEvents & Promotions
| Last visit was: 26 Apr 2024, 14:16 |
It is currently 26 Apr 2024, 14:16 |
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
03:00 PM PDT
-04:00 PM PDT
11:00 AM EDT
-12:00 PM EDT
11:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
01:00 PM EDT
-11:59 PM EDT
12:00 PM EDT
-01:00 PM EDT
11:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
12:00 PM PDT
-01:00 PM PDT
12:00 PM EDT
-01:00 PM EDT
Updated on: 04 Apr 2018, 20:28
| GMAT Bloggers | |
| Username | Blog Name |
| GrantmeAdmission | Grant Me Admission |
| Scofield1521 | GMAT Pro |
| texaswannabecali | Texax Wanna Be Cali |
| Gnpth | GNPTH |
| vpamorim | Road to My MBA |
| Vanessalinares | Get an MBA |
| swetanethra | GMAT & I |
25 Aug 2014, 21:52
| FROM GrantmeAdmission: My Journey to 760 (Part 5) – 710 AGAIN |
*This is part of a series on my journey to get a 760. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, & Part 4 can be found here. Results Despite…
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:52
| FROM GrantmeAdmission: 5 Tips on Getting a 700+ on the GMAT |
So I have taken the GMAT twice and gotten a 710 twice. My splits were (Q49, V38) and (Q47, V41). This blog post is going to…
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:52
| FROM GMAT Pro: Independence Day of India: Facts and Figures |
Yeah!! Today is Independence day of India. Congratulation to all Indians and all who are reading this post. India is celebrating 68th Independence Day today (15th August). A country to love, to respect, to care, to be the first and the … Continue reading →
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:52
| FROM GMAT Pro: MBA Because |
Today, while going around some university webpages, a question came to my mind. Why I am doing this? The question which strikes everyones mind sometime, somewhere. It striked me 2-3 time, so thought of writing it down. I have a … Continue reading →
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:52
| FROM Texas Wanna Be Cali: GMAT Study Schedule Breakdown |
 It’s officially August!! This year man… literally FLYING by! I have decided to share my “Less than a month til the GMAT” prep schedule. Feel free to use what I’m doing as a guide for those of you with test dates coming up or even critique what I have planned and let me know what you think worked and didn’t work for you. I’m a first timer so I’m open to any and all suggestions. I have plenty of practice tests at my disposal and I plan on using them. I have 2 mock exams that I will only practice the verbal section: a) to work on timing, b) assess my weaknesses, c) accomplish both of these without having to sit for the whole exam My weekends will mainly be focused on practicing quant problems and intensely reviewing my trouble areas. The amount of time on weekdays after work just isn’t adequate enough for me to fully invest in correcting my weaknesses, so these next few weekends are critical. The week of August 4th will be devoted to not just practicing a section per day, but also working on my timing. I will be following the Manhattan GMAT’s time management chart, keeping track of whether I: a) got the question right and in the recommended time frame b) got the question right but over time c) got the question wrong but didn’t waste much time doing so d) got the question wrong and spent too much time trying to figure it out. Obviously I’m aiming for mostly A’s and C’s  The week of August 11th I want to use my evenings reviewing strategies for each section. There are numerous sites that offer tips and review strategies so I’m sure I’ll find plenty to occupy me for hours each day. I feel like I started this process so long ago that the little things I made mental notes about or even jotted down, have slipped my mind so this will be a good refresher week. I will start reviewing the Integrated Reasoning and the Essay sections of the test the Saturday before the exam. Thanks to all you for your comments on my previous post asking about when I should start this. Everyday I plan on looking over flashcards whether its at breakfast or while I’m on the stairmaster and doing the GMAT Club Question of the Day, just to keep my brain stimulated. I’ve taken a lot of you guys’ advice and decided to take off the Wednesday before the test (instead of that Friday) to do my last practice test. I am a perfectionist and kind of insane at times, so I know if I took a practice test the day before the exam and didn’t score as high as I would like, I would FREAK OUT. I will still be in study mode on Thursday and Friday but maybe not couped up in the corner of the library like I previously thought. From most debriefs I have read, I get the sense most applicants take this exam at least twice to reach their desired score, sometimes more. The GMAT, and the MBA application process in general really, is such a trial and error experience and sometimes just having done it once before is the greatest advantage you can have because you know what to expect. I’m well aware that if I don’t score as high as I would like, I’m in the majority and still have plenty of time to redeem myself. So if nothing else, this first shot at G-day will be a learning experience nevertheless, and I’m ready… I think. DECODING MY CALENDAR   
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:52
| FROM Texas Wanna Be Cali: The Results are In |
 First of all, I want to thank everyone that took the time to wish me luck on the GMAT today! Pulling That MBA Trigger, Top Dog MBA, Naija MBA Gal, MBA on my Mind, SciMBA, GNPTH, and The MBA Journey. You guys don’t even realize how special all your posts and comments made me feel, y’all rock!! I ended up scoring a 680 today (45Q, 38V). Not quite as high as expected, but my optimism that I can do better the next time around is slightly outweighing my disappointment. Sorry for the football analogy I’m about to make to all of you non football fans, but in taking the GMAT exam day, I felt like a rookie drafted in the 1st round playing in their first regular season NFL game. 1st round because I know that I’m not only qualified to take this exam but also have the ability to achieve a high score, but a rookie, a first timer, nonetheless. No matter how well you know the playbook, how hard you practice in training camp or how great you play during the preseason scrimmage games, there’s nothing like playing in a real game for the very first time, just like being able to regurgitate every quant formula and SC rule, studying every waking moment, and acing the mock exams, is in no comparison to the experience of going against the GMAT itself, decked out in a helmet and pads, running at you full speed when it really counts. My achilles heel was exactly what I knew it would be, what I told myself on the drive to the testing center not to let happen, what ultimately did happen on BOTH sections, I FREAKING RAN OUT OF TIME! *facepalm* I’m a terrible guesser so I’m pretty sure in my mad dash to just finish, I for sure got every single question wrong. As I am determined to apply to programs this Fall and want to submit the strongest profile possible, I plan on retaking the exam within the next 1-2 months to get that 720. I know I have quite the uphill battle, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes. It’s crazy just how much clearer my mind is now that I have taken the exam. Maybe it’s false confidence, but I know what areas I struggled in and how I can improve strategy wise, so hopefully a few more weeks of preparation will get me in the 700 club. As an underrepresented minority, I know a 680 would probably be an adequate score to get me into most of my program choices, but because I’m also a young applicant, I feel like I need a high GMAT score to prove I should be accepted now rather than later. This time today, I thought I would be gearing up for the next step of the application process with maybe only spending Saturdays in the library essay writing, but at least having Sundays of NFL Football to look for to, but as we all know, plans don’t always go accordingly. No worries, Sundays will still be football day, I can’t give that up for anything, but I will definitely have to schedule out a solid plan to juggle a crazy Q4 to meet expectations at work, commitments with my volunteer projects, attending information sessions, GMAT studying, and of course updating this oh so wonderful blog. And for any of you just starting out, I have listed the important things I’ve learned from my GMAT studying thus far. If I’ve even helped one person see things a bit more clearly, I have done well. 1. Timing is key This was probably my biggest mistake, I waited really late in the game to start making sure I could solve most problems in the given time constraint. This will HAVE to be improved. 2. Learn what works for you I absolutely love reading the Share GMAT Experience forum on GMAT Club. I’ve found alot of the tricks and tips that people used to get those top scores very helpful, but make sure you remember that everyone is different, and you must assess your own personal strengths and weaknesses in order to score high as well. Some people are just naturally gifted and need only a few materials for prep, and some people may be weak in a subject that you are not or vice versa. Definitely read advice from others, but never take it as the end all be all. 3. Be prepared to spend This might not apply to everyone, but for me, I know I spent alot of money on not just paying for the exam, but also in all my prep materials, and probably a lack of research of my own fault on what I should be using that led to overbuying. I tend to operate under the assumption that I have an endless supply of money in my bank account, so I never really plan out things before I buy them, I just spend and hope for the best. Now don’t get me wrong, most of the materials I purchased definitely helped me in one way or another, but I probably could’ve gone with less options if I knew what I know now, then. 4. Stay organized Kind of going along with the previous bullet point, I was very disorganized in my studying. What I thought was a good plan, really was just a big mess. I would set a schedule but never follow it, had spreadsheets and notes and scratch work everywhere. The key to staying organized for me was using online question banks. I used Magoosh for a majority of my studying, which I loved because not only did they have video explanations for each problem, but I could also track what questions I missed, how long I took to complete, difficulty level and the subject material it covered all in one place. When the time came to start assessing my weakness, this was a tremendous help. My work in the OG books on the other hand, while I loved how they were accurate representations of what questions on the GMAT would be like, I failed at keeping my error log filled out and organized and never really went back to review the ones I missed. 5. Quality over quantity I’ve been studying since the middle of May for the GMAT. I know so embarrassing. But I probably didn’t really start effectively studying until the middle of July. I mean, I was definitely “studying” for hours in the library before then, but I can honestly say that comparing my productivity from study sessions back then to now, there is a world of difference. Practicing 1000s of problems does not make you any more prepared for the test than practicing 200 problems and using the rest of the time to make sure you understand not only what you’re doing, but also why. 6. Take the GMAT as early as possible Balancing GMAT prep and all the other facets of the MBA application can be extremely overwhelming. I’ve hardly started the next stages, but just thinking about it makes my head hurt 7. I’ve gained some serious face fat. Like OMG no kidding you guys. When I selected “yes” to take the first optional break after IR and my photo popped up on the screen, I was scared by what I saw, the straight on headshot of my face with incriminating evidence of one too many twizzlers during GMAT studying. YIKES!! I apologize for the lengthy post. Definitely was not my intention, my fingers just can’t stop typing sometimes. But I’m off to give my brain a much needed rest. I’ll be at the pool tomorrow for the first time since beginning of July.. woohoo.. so my plan is to resume studying after the Labor Day weekend. I need some me time, before I can dive back into all that again. My apartment needs to be cleaned badly, errands I’ve been neglecting need to be ran, and shopping needs to be done. And if any readers out there have been successful retakers, would love to hear from you!! Damn GMAT… when will you stop consuming my life.  
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:53
| FROM GNPTH: Why MBA- How it will satisfy my needs? |
 I have been thinking about GMAT for quite a long time now, probably from 2011. Why MBA? Why GMAT? are the questions that popped up in my head, when i decided to prepare for GMAT. I believe most of the people are in the same boat like me when they started preparing for GMAT/MBA. My decision to pursue an MBA started within 2 months when I got a full time job. I was happy as it was my 1st job and when I felt everything going good, I realized that this will not take me to the highest level the industry. A little background: I belong to software industry and predominantly my job is based out in India. By now, most of you would have come to know what will be my job in software industry. Ok, I think that’s enough for little about my background. Now let’s continue with how I decided to get a Post Graduate degree and why specifically an MBA. As a child from my school days, college and even now in my workplace, I loved to take part any event management related activity that happens. Be it an organizer, presenter or coordinator, I LOVED it. I felt good when I did/do those stuffs. The time came for to realize that my current job which I’m doing is not satisfying me and will not satisfy me in future as well. At a point, I decided and realized that I had passion for a management role. I tried an internal switch, when I had opportunity to jump to that role in my previous company. I started learning what exactly a Manager/ Management office does. It gave me immense happiness when I walked into my office daily morning and the type of job I do gave me more exposure learn more about managing and management.  After having almost a year and half years of experience, I asked to myself “Why can’t do an MBA?”. This job which I do really good, “Why I can’t go further and move up the corporate ladder soon?”. The first step we always do when we need some information is that browse the internet. I did the same. Tried finding what are the requirements for an MBA. As an Indian, I already had an idea about IIM’s and CATs. I just wanted to research more about MBA, what an MBA really do to one’s career. As I was browsing the web, I came across GMAT. Well I already know about GRE as I wrote once when I was in college. What is this GMAT is all about, a voice in me echoed. A curiosity in me made me to look more information about GMAT. I took almost a week to completely get to know what is GMAT. Why it is so important for a candidate who wanted to pursue higher studies abroad etc. After my full research about GMAT from various sources and forums such as GMAT Club, Beat the GMAT etc. I decided to kick start my GMAT preparation. At the end my research, I signed up for the two forums mentioned above. These two forums got various information and study materials. Now, the main reason I choose to do an MBA is that I don’t want to end up in mid senior level in a corporate after some 8 or 9 years. Many would have been aware that it takes lot of time to reach to the top as there is ever growing competition in the industry. But after my research, I found an MBA from top B-school can put in top of the ladder as soon as you complete. Also other reason being, by doing an MBA, I thought it would give me more exposure, knowledge and path to reach my dream job. I felt MBA from a good school will give a boost and a slight edge in the completion. That’s it for now, in my next post, I will be sharing about my experience during my 1st GMAT attempt and my current preparation for the 2nd attempt.  
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:53
| FROM GNPTH: Preparing for the GMAT battle!! |
|
Quote: A good start is half battle won!!! I initially planned to start my preparation in June for my GMAT. And I did study for a week or two. But as the biggest sporting event in the world started in Brazil, so I had to stop my preparation as I will be watching most of football matches and considering the above quote, I wanted to give a good start to my preparation this time. During this whole month of football carnival, I had changed my baseline dates for my GMAT project, starting with Quant from July 21st.  It was a good journey till now. Even though I’m pretty much strong in my math basics. I started with fundamentals for a day, to make my basement more stronger. As far as my preparation materials are concerned, I’m using Veritas Prep 12 booklets + On Demand and Magoosh Premium membership. A small insight about these two materials. Veritas Prep : Each book contains the skill builders, skill builder quiz (Online), Lessons and Homework Problems. The Veritas prep recommends its students to finish the skill builder first and then start with the lessons. What I like about the lessons is that, each topic discussed with GMAT like problem and the learning by doing method is really good for beginners who wanted to learn the nuances in these topics. I use On-Demand videos (NOTE: It contains the same problem discussed in the book, but only difference is audio-visual that you get.) for revision of the topic, before I go to sleep each day, this makes me remember more about these specific topics and Skills required to solve the GMAT problems. The homework problems will be there at the end after the lesson chapters. But you will get only OA. If you need OE, you need to login to Student account online to see the explanation. Also you can take the practice problem online as well. Only advantage is the timer that runs in the bottom of each question, so you can practice with time online. Magoosh : I feel it is most cheapest and value for money product, as you get full support from the staffs for less than $100. And Video lessons are really good with great explanations on the problems. I go through both Veritas Prep and Magoosh when I take up the topics, to see which one has more details in each topic. For example: Certain topics are not covered fully in Veritas and when I feel I need more review of that topic, I would use Magoosh and Vice-Versa. Both the courses come with enormous amount of practice problems and mock tests. I believe there are 5 mocks in Magoosh (it depends on how many quizzes you take, as both are from same pool), and 12 mocks in Veritas prep. Now, onto my preparation. I started with Arithmetic and took a week to complete it including the homework problems and normally when I’m done with homework problem from Veritas, I would go to Magoosh and do some 25-30 problems on the same topic. I had almost 87 % of accuracy on the problems in Arithmetics. Algebra, was next as per my calendar. I always loved algebra. Same way just like Arithmetics, I took all 5 weekdays to complete everything in Algebra. And dedicated my whole weekends for practicing the problems. Normally on Weekdays, I normally study the theory and finish the skill builders and lessons from both Veritas and Magoosh. Then on my weekends I would do the practice problems (Homework problems in Veritas + Magoosh Quizzes). That’s how my preparation is till now. But my Achilles heals from my high school has been Combinations and Permutations. What a Shame!!!.  I would mostly score full marks in other sections but these two has been my nightmare. I had failed few times in my high school on these two sections. I have put 1 week each for combinations and probability, but it was not fruitful as my accuracy was just around 60% in these two sections on practice problems and homework. So I decided, I would complete other two books & lessons (DS & Word Problems) from both Magoosh and Veritas. And I have done that this week. Now I will give my full commitment to Combinations and Probability next week. And will incorporate Mike’s(Magoosh Instructor) suggestion on how to use the right brain to tackle these 2 sections. Well, Thanks Mike. I hope I’ll improve on these sections. Magoosh interactive dashboard has estimated my score in Quant to be in the range of 46-49. Probably due the fact that in combinations and probability, I got 4 questions wrong for every 10 questions I attended. No estimates for verbal, as I did not start my verbal preparation. I will start the preparation by September 2nd week. As of now, the plan is to get my ground strong in Probability and Combinations in next week. And the week after(Sep 1st week), I will be practicing the whole Quant’s section(For practice- I will be using Princeton Review 1037 problems book, GMAT Club test, Bunuel’s signature Collections, Jeff’s Challenge series and of course OG Review and OG Quant’s Review). Once done with practice, on weekend planning take one Mock test, to see where I stand in Quant. Until Next time, Gnpth.  
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:53
| FROM Road to My MBA: Getting ready for the GMAT |
 Yes, I’ve started my GMAT studies! Since last monday I’m studying an average of 2,8 hours/day, resulting so far into 14 hours of study (including 60 practice questions). My goal is to study around 160 hours so I’m still trying to keep the pace since it’s been a while that I don’t focus to study that much. For the moment, I’m using the Magoosh website to watch the videos and to practice some questions. As I’m trying to study as much as possible for the next 2-3 months (I’m really not willing to study more than 3 months) my study plan is based on the 1 month GMAT Study Plan from Magoosh’s website. My idea is to cover all the areas of GMAT in 1 – 1,5 months and then do tons of questions. I’m trying to keep the control of everything I’ve studied so far and the amount of hours spent. I’m kinda an Excel freak (just kidding) so I’ve made up some tables where I can understand my development. Based on this I’ll be able to schedule the exam. Below is one example:  Tomorrow, I’m planning to take the full-length GMAT on the GMAC software, thus I’ll be able to see in general what are my weakness and strengths. *** The picture in the top of this post is very emblematic for me. He’s Dunga, the Brazilian national team captain, holding the trophy after the victory against Italy at the 1994 World Cup in USA. Although I was only 5 years old I can remember every match we played in that World Cup. Next week, the 2014 World Cup starts again (here in Brazil!!!!) and I’ll probably stop studying to watch some matches. But as Brazil won in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002 (hopefully 2014 as well), I will beat the GMAT in my personal challenge against myself!   
|
25 Aug 2014, 21:53
| FROM Road to My MBA: Back to back |
|
Yes, I´m alive. It´s been more than a month, actually 51 days, without writing on this blog. I have no excuse for that, really need to come back here more often. Despite of that, I´ve read every single posts of my fellows bloggers who are keeping me motivated during my GMAT study. Special mentions to Grantmeadmission, Texaswannabecali, Naija MBA Gal and Top Dog MBA. A lot of things happened in my life during my absence, some which matters to the MBA subject and some who does not. Let me show the highlights: 1. Got a job promotion: Yes! Yes! Yes! Now, I´m finally a Senior Consultant, although I´ve been working as one for a year at least. Now it´s official and it´s a nice information to add to my resumé. 2. Created a logo for the blog: Ok. It´s not THE logo, but it´s nice to have a picture over there. 3. More than 80% done of my GMAT study plan: As I’ve mentioned in other posts, I have a goal of studying about 160 hours to take my first GMAT test and I’m almost there. My “G Day” is planned to be the 23rd of August. 4. Watched some games of the World Cup: For sure that was the highlight of June/July. As I am a fanatic of football (“soccer” for some of you), having the oportunity to watch World Cup games in my country (and some in my city) was such a huge experience. To name a few, I’ve watched live Croatia x Mexico, USA x Germany, and the Final at Maracanã. Really really great! —————————————————————————————————————————– Right now, the only thing that matters in my life is to beat the GMAT. I’m pretty obsessed for that and I think I will only rest in peace after getting my target score. Since I’ve less than a month for the test, I will try to focus on practicing as many questions as I can. All the other steps are in second place right now.  
|
22 Sep 2014, 01:01
| FROM GNPTH: Interview with Sarah of Accepted.com blog related to my GMAT/MBA journey. |
This is just a transcript of what is written in the Accepted.com post. You can find it here- https://blog.accepted.com/2014/09/19/iv-with-an-indian-b-school-hopeful-racking-up-the-work-experience/ Accepted: First, can you tell us a little about yourself? Where are you from? Where and what did you study as an undergrad? What is your favorite non-school book? Balaji: I’m based on out Bangalore, India. I currently work as a Program Management Analyst in a Fortune 100 company. I did my undergrad in Bachelor of Engineering (Electronics & Instrumentation Engineering) from Anna University, Chennai. I love reading fictional and history books. My favorite ones have been Dan Brown’s series and my most favorite book related to history is Glimpses of World History by Nehru. Accepted: What stage of the admissions process are you up to? Balaji: I did not start my application process yet. As I currently only have 3 and a half years of experience. And after thorough study, I thought I would require 5 years of experience to have a good chance of getting into top b-schools as the average WE is 5 years. Last year, I tried applying to one b-school to get some experience in the application process. But I was dinged without interview, and I think it was due to my WE, as I had only 2 years of experience while applying. Accepted: Do you plan on staying in your current industry post-MBA, or changing to a new field/career? Balaji: I haven’t decided on that yet. I wanted to stay in my field for sometime post-MBA, as I love Project/Program Management – rather to generalize I love management/operational stuffs. Also I have a plan to start my own business at some point in future. Accepted: As an Indian male in the software industry (a highly represented applicant group), you’re going to need to work hard to distinguish yourself from the crowd. What are some things that set you apart from your competition? Balaji: Yes, I belong to Indian-Male category but not in software industry any more. My previous employer was a top 15 IT service provider in the world. But as soon I was done with my undergrad, I wanted to pursue an MBA. So I avoided any software related jobs in my previous employer, so I worked as Enterprise Project Management Analyst. After 3 years working with CGI. I moved to Honeywell (here I work for Aero Division). I thought working in Fortune 100 Company will make my profile/application more visible and strong. Now moving onto distinguishing myself from the highly represented group, below are my extra-curricular activities I presently do/did during my work, undergrad and high school. A. Student Coordinator in National Entrepreneurship Network during my last 2 years of my undergrad. B. Core Cultural Committee member during my last 2 years of my undergrad – in charge/single point of contact for all technical related activities. C. Was a Sergeant of National cadet corps in my high school. D. Was a vice-captain of my high school football (soccer) team. E. Was core member in corporate social responsibility team at my previous employer. We conducted many charity and fundraiser events for orphanages, etc. F. Certified Competent Communicator and Competent leader from Toastmasters International. And also served as Vice President Education for 2 terms. G. Finally was a core member in Employee Welfare Association club at my previous employer. On Entrepreneurship: My in-law runs an event management company. I take care of the business when he is held up with other important works or on travel. Accepted: Why did you decide to blog about your experience? What have you gained from the experience? What do you hope others will learn? Balaji: There isn’t a better way than forums and blogs to tell everyone around the world who is currently preparing for the GMAT/MBA application that it is easy to get into top b-school with your efforts and perseverance. I thought, if I start blogging about my experience I can learn my mistakes. (In PM terminology: We always to tend to document our project plan and risks etc., so that it will be helpful for the lessons learnt at the end of the project.) And for others, there will always be room to improve from one’s own mistakes from others’ mistakes/experiences. Thank you Balaji for sharing your story with us – we wish you loads of luck! Thanks alot Sarah and Accepted.com for the interview and putting up the same in your blog.  
|
29 Sep 2014, 22:09
| FROM GMAT Pro: Keep running… |
Phew!! A lot of work, tensions, questions, explanations, failures, assignments, understandings, supplements, answers, learnings, rebuilding concepts, juices, exercises, managements, thoughts, reasons, spirits, blessings, and finally a minute view of some sunlight in the darkest. It always feels like a come … Continue reading →
|
05 Oct 2014, 21:01
| FROM Road to My MBA: The GMAT experience |
|
560 (Q33 V33). Yes, that was my score on my first GMAT attempt and that is the reason I´m retaking the GMAT in mid-November (not decided the date yet). I don´t know what exactly happened but I left about seven unanswered question in Quantitative section, even though that this did not happen during my practice tests. One thing I know is that I have no excuse to such a low score so I will try again in a month. This low score made change almost all of my plans of dividing my applications between round 1 and round 2 and now I will apply exclusively on round 2. Besides studying for the GMAT, my main goal for this week is to talk with one of my bosses to be my recommender. As I work in a consulting firm there are several managers that I could ask for a letter of recommendation, but I am not sure they are all “open minded enough” to understand my decision of pursuing a MBA in USA. After a long time of thinking, I´ve decided that one of them would understand me more and probably will be a good help during the process. Since I have no time to lose, tomorrow I will probably have a lunch with him and have a frank conversation about my MBA. Depending on how well this conversation goes, I will talk about the letter of recommendation. That´s it for the moment. Let me go back to the GMAT. Ciao.  
|
11 Oct 2014, 13:01
| FROM Road to My MBA: Letter of Recommendation |
|
It has been a good week so far. After the disappointment with my GMAT score, I have started to study again, re-schedule the new test date and talked with my boss about the Recommendation Letter. Rescheduling the GMAT 25th of November will be THE date. There´s no time to lose from now, it´s only studying and practicing. Recommendation Letter Asking for a Recommendation Letter is one of the most feared aspects of one´s application, specially mine, and the reason is that I´ve not talked to anyone in my work that I´m applying to MBA programs. Since I work for the same company for 4 years, my options really should be around there. Well, I spent a long time thinking about whom I should ask to be my recommender and the reasons below helped me to make my decision towards my manager:
[*]MBA Abroad: believe it or not, he´s the only one in the company who earned an MBA abroad (in Canada), which is interesting since I work for a Big 4 Consulting Firm. Besides that, during our conversation, he mentioned he has done several recommendation letters before and remembered when he was the one asking for it.[/list] [*]Technical knowledge: he has profound knowledge in corporate finance and has the CFA (which I aim to have in a couple years). I´m not sure whether this would improve the RL, but shows that he is qualified.[/list] [*]Works with me for about 3 ½ years: a couple months after I started to work here, he was hired to be one of the managers in our area. We have worked together in several projects, so he knows a lot about my business performance.[/list] [*]Trustworthy: this sounds obvious but I do not want my colleagues to know that I´m applying to MBA right now and I truly believe he´s someone I can trust.[/list] All that mentioned above, our conversation went smooth, I told him the reasons I want to earn a MBA and we discussed the other aspects of the application for a while. It was a good talk, which made me feel confident of the choice of him. I will use the GrantMeAdmission “Killer Recommendation Package” to help him through the letter. I know it is safer (and sometimes required) to have at least two recommenders, but I cannot think of anyone else at the moment. That´s it, good luck to everyone!  
|
05 Nov 2014, 11:01
| FROM GMAT Pro: SUCCESS UNDER CONSTRUCTION |
Again after an extensive study session, hard work and a lot of paper work, I took another practice test and this time it was 660. Breakup is Q 50, V 30. Well I am not totally disappointed with my score, … Continue reading →
|
24 Nov 2014, 08:01
| FROM GMAT Pro: Keep running… |
|
Phew!! A lot of work, tensions, questions, explanations, failures, assignments, understandings, supplements, answers, learnings, rebuilding concepts, juices, exercises, managements, thoughts, reasons, spirits, blessings, and finally a minute view of some sunlight in the darkest. It always feels like a come back when writing my new thoughts and achievements. A cold deep breath when seeing an … Continue reading →
|
24 Nov 2014, 08:01
| FROM GMAT Pro: SUCCESS UNDER CONSTRUCTION |
|
Again after an extensive study session, hard work and a lot of paper work, I took another practice test and this time it was 660. Breakup is Q 50, V 30. Well I am not totally disappointed with my score, I am not satisfied though. I was looking for a 700 but the score is moving … Continue reading →
|
24 Nov 2014, 08:01
| FROM GNPTH: Preparing for the GMAT battle!! |
|
Quote: A good start is half battle won!!! I initially planned to start my preparation in June for my GMAT. And I did study for a week or two. But as the biggest sporting event in the world started in Brazil, so I had to stop my preparation as I will be watching most of football matches and considering the above quote, I wanted to give a good start to my preparation this time. During this whole month of football carnival, I had changed my baseline dates for my GMAT project, starting with Quant from July 21st. It was a good journey till now. Even though I’m pretty much strong in my math basics. I started with fundamentals for a day, to make my basement more stronger. As far as my preparation materials are concerned, I’m using Veritas Prep 12 booklets + On Demand and Magoosh Premium membership. A small insight about these two materials. Veritas Prep : Each book contains the skill builders, skill builder quiz (Online), Lessons and Homework Problems. The Veritas prep recommends its students to finish the skill builder first and then start with the lessons. What I like about the lessons is that, each topic discussed with GMAT like problem and the learning by doing method is really good for beginners who wanted to learn the nuances in these topics. I use On-Demand videos (NOTE: It contains the same problem discussed in the book, but only difference is audio-visual that you get.) for revision of the topic, before I go to sleep each day, this makes me remember more about these specific topics and Skills required to solve the GMAT problems. The homework problems will be there at the end after the lesson chapters. But you will get only OA. If you need OE, you need to login to Student account online to see the explanation. Also you can take the practice problem online as well. Only advantage is the timer that runs in the bottom of each question, so you can practice with time online. Magoosh : I feel it is most cheapest and value for money product, as you get full support from the staffs for less than $100. And Video lessons are really good with great explanations on the problems. I go through both Veritas Prep and Magoosh when I take up the topics, to see which one has more details in each topic. For example: Certain topics are not covered fully in Veritas and when I feel I need more review of that topic, I would use Magoosh and Vice-Versa. Both the courses come with enormous amount of practice problems and mock tests. I believe there are 5 mocks in Magoosh (it depends on how many quizzes you take, as both are from same pool), and 12 mocks in Veritas prep. Now, onto my preparation. I started with Arithmetic and took a week to complete it including the homework problems and normally when I’m done with homework problem from Veritas, I would go to Magoosh and do some 25-30 problems on the same topic. I had almost 87 % of accuracy on the problems in Arithmetics. Algebra, was next as per my calendar. I always loved algebra. Same way just like Arithmetics, I took all 5 weekdays to complete everything in Algebra. And dedicated my whole weekends for practicing the problems. Normally on Weekdays, I normally study the theory and finish the skill builders and lessons from both Veritas and Magoosh. Then on my weekends I would do the practice problems (Homework problems in Veritas + Magoosh Quizzes). That’s how my preparation is till now. But my Achilles heals from my high school has been Combinations and Permutations. What a Shame!!!. I would mostly score full marks in other sections but these two has been my nightmare. I had failed few times in my high school on these two sections. I have put 1 week each for combinations and probability, but it was not fruitful as my accuracy was just around 60% in these two sections on practice problems and homework. So I decided, I would complete other two books & lessons (DS & Word Problems) from both Magoosh and Veritas. And I have done that this week. Now I will give my full commitment to Combinations and Probability next week. And will incorporate Mike’s(Magoosh Instructor) suggestion on how to use the right brain to tackle these 2 sections. Well, Thanks Mike. I hope I’ll improve on these sections. Magoosh interactive dashboard has estimated my score in Quant to be in the range of 46-49. Probably due the fact that in combinations and probability, I got 4 questions wrong for every 10 questions I attended. No estimates for verbal, as I did not start my verbal preparation. I will start the preparation by September 2nd week. As of now, the plan is to get my ground strong in Probability and Combinations in next week. And the week after(Sep 1st week), I will be practicing the whole Quant’s section(For practice- I will be using Princeton Review 1037 problems book, GMAT Club test, Bunuel’s signature Collections, Jeff’s Challenge series and of course OG Review and OG Quant’s Review). Once done with practice, on weekend planning take one Mock test, to see where I stand in Quant. Until Next time, Gnpth.
|
24 Nov 2014, 08:01
| FROM GNPTH: Interview with Sarah of Accepted.com blog related to my GMAT/MBA journey. |
|
This is just a transcript of what is written in the Accepted.com post. You can find it here- https://blog.accepted.com/2014/09/19/iv-with-an-indian-b-school-hopeful-racking-up-the-work-experience/ Accepted: First, can you tell us a little about yourself? Where are you from? Where and what did you study as an undergrad? What is your favorite non-school book? Balaji: I’m based on out Bangalore, India. I currently work as a Program Management Analyst in a Fortune 100 company. I did my undergrad in Bachelor of Engineering (Electronics & Instrumentation Engineering) from Anna University, Chennai. I love reading fictional and history books. My favorite ones have been Dan Brown’s series and my most favorite book related to history is Glimpses of World History by Nehru. Accepted: What stage of the admissions process are you up to? Balaji: I did not start my application process yet. As I currently only have 3 and a half years of experience. And after thorough study, I thought I would require 5 years of experience to have a good chance of getting into top b-schools as the average WE is 5 years. Last year, I tried applying to one b-school to get some experience in the application process. But I was dinged without interview, and I think it was due to my WE, as I had only 2 years of experience while applying. Accepted: Do you plan on staying in your current industry post-MBA, or changing to a new field/career? Balaji: I haven’t decided on that yet. I wanted to stay in my field for sometime post-MBA, as I love Project/Program Management – rather to generalize I love management/operational stuffs. Also I have a plan to start my own business at some point in future. Accepted: As an Indian male in the software industry (a highly represented applicant group), you’re going to need to work hard to distinguish yourself from the crowd. What are some things that set you apart from your competition? Balaji: Yes, I belong to Indian-Male category but not in software industry any more. My previous employer was a top 15 IT service provider in the world. But as soon I was done with my undergrad, I wanted to pursue an MBA. So I avoided any software related jobs in my previous employer, so I worked as Enterprise Project Management Analyst. After 3 years working with CGI. I moved to Honeywell (here I work for Aero Division). I thought working in Fortune 100 Company will make my profile/application more visible and strong. Now moving onto distinguishing myself from the highly represented group, below are my extra-curricular activities I presently do/did during my work, undergrad and high school. A. Student Coordinator in National Entrepreneurship Network during my last 2 years of my undergrad. B. Core Cultural Committee member during my last 2 years of my undergrad – in charge/single point of contact for all technical related activities. C. Was a Sergeant of National cadet corps in my high school. D. Was a vice-captain of my high school football (soccer) team. E. Was core member in corporate social responsibility team at my previous employer. We conducted many charity and fundraiser events for orphanages, etc. F. Certified Competent Communicator and Competent leader from Toastmasters International. And also served as Vice President Education for 2 terms. G. Finally was a core member in Employee Welfare Association club at my previous employer. On Entrepreneurship: My in-law runs an event management company. I take care of the business when he is held up with other important works or on travel. Accepted: Why did you decide to blog about your experience? What have you gained from the experience? What do you hope others will learn? Balaji: There isn’t a better way than forums and blogs to tell everyone around the world who is currently preparing for the GMAT/MBA application that it is easy to get into top b-school with your efforts and perseverance. I thought, if I start blogging about my experience I can learn my mistakes. (In PM terminology: We always to tend to document our project plan and risks etc., so that it will be helpful for the lessons learnt at the end of the project.) And for others, there will always be room to improve from one’s own mistakes from others’ mistakes/experiences. Thank you Balaji for sharing your story with us – we wish you loads of luck! Thanks alot Sarah and Accepted.com for the interview and putting up the same in your blog.
|
|
|
||
Hi Generic [Bot],
Here are updates for you:
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Tuck at Dartmouth
AGSM at UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE
 |
||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
