Are books necessary for prep? And if so, only the most recent version?

Hello, nounstoverbs, and welcome to the forum. As zhanbo has already indicated, the official guide series is by far the best material from which to practice, since the OG and GMAC™-published materials are the only ones that contain official questions. For someone shooting for a 700, I typically recommend the Verbal and Quant Review as well, if for no other reason than the extra questions/exposure they provide. Your OG 2019 is fine to use, but you might have noticed that for all its pages, it is quite thin in terms of advice or strategies for each section of the test, the different question types, and so on. This is why some students choose to purchase other guidebooks, such as those by Manhattan Prep, PowerScore, or other test prep companies, or to purchase subscriptions to online-learning modules. Such resources provide more than questions and the hollow commentary offered by the OG. (Oh, you missed an SC question. Why? Because of logical predication, diction... What does that mean? How does knowing that help you?)

You can check out this post by GMAT Club founder bb for further book recommendations. Do not overlook the free practice questions and two CATs you can get through mba.com either. Those CATs especially are the closest you can get to simulating the actual exam.

Finally, a word of advice: do not blow through the OG just to finish it. Sit down with each question and really take the time to understand each of the answer choices (in Verbal, but also, to an extent, in Quant). Look up every single question you miss on GMAT Club and read the analyses provided by the community, both regular members and Experts alike. You will probably find that certain posters resonate with your way of thinking, and when you take the time to research many thoughtful analyses, such thinking starts to rub off on you, and your own approach will improve. Then, when you practice more questions from the OG, you can do so with fresh ideas, rather than going through the doldrums of another x-questions-a-day set.

Good luck to you, however you structure your studies. Feel free to post at any point to seek advice or feedback in general. This is a community that would like to help you reach your goal.

- Andrew

Hi nounstoverbs,

You ask a number of good questions. To start, there are a variety of different study materials that you might use as you prepare for the GMAT - so you should consider how YOU best learn (along with the specific areas that you'll need to work on to hit your Score Goal). Since the Official GMAT is a remarkably consistent and predictable Exam, the content of the GMAC Official Guides does not actually change that much from year to year, meaning that you would be fine using the GMAT2019 during your studies.

Since it sounds like you're just beginning your studies, then it would be a good idea to take a FULL-LENGTH practice CAT Test; you can take 2 for free at www.mba.com (and they come with some additional practice materials). If you want to do a little studying first, so that you can familiarize yourself with the basic content and question types, then that's okay - but you shouldn't wait too long to take that initial CAT. That score will give us a good sense of your natural strengths and weaknesses and will help provide a basis for comparison as you continue to study. A FULL CAT takes about 3.5 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to take it in one sitting. Once you have those scores, you should report back here and we can come up with a study plan.

I'd like to know a bit more about your timeline and goals:
1) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
2) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
3) What Schools are you planning to apply to?

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

It might be helpful to check out some of the youtube videos on gmatclub. Also Thursdays with Ron.

Hi nounstoverbs,

For sure you can use online resources for your GMAT prep. To see what is available, in addition to seeking advice in this thread, take a look at the GMAT Club reviews for the best quant and verbal courses, and also read through some GMAT success stories to see what materials have worked well for other test-takers.

Also, would you like some general advice on how to improve your verbal and quant skills?

You also may find it helpful to read this article about how to score a 700+ on the GMAT.

Good luck!