Before you actually start with the prep....

Question

Hey Guys,

For a long time now , I have been searching and collecting good books / tests for verbal / quant.
I wanted to be ready with the material before I actually start preparing and start with my plan.

I have had discussions with some of the senior members of this forum and they were very very supportive.
I took GmatPrep last week and scored 620 (49 , 27) , clearly I need some serious prep for verbal.

I have decided , rather started with below plan.
Please have a look if it helps:

Phase 1 : Collect material from websites / friends / buy some famous stuff. This is just random collection of the material from websites Or the very specific books which you know you will need for preparation . (OG / Manhattan SC)

Phase 2 : Take diagnostic test. I preferred GmatPrep. Go through all the answers , find the problem area. It is not necessary that you will be able to find it exactly in this phase . For example in my case , I got 18 incorrect in Verbal in the GmatPrep . approx. 6 incorrect in CR / SC / RC. So , evenif I know that I need to work on verbal , I don’t know if I should focus on SC /RC / CR. Maybe , I will find it soon in the next phases.

Phase 3 : Based on the problem area you have noticed , go through the available material. If necessary buy few more books. Selecting the best material is crucial phase and many books focus on the specific area and are famous for those (for example Manhattan is famous for SC , for CR many use Powerscore). Decide the amount of material you are planning to study from. (This majorly depends on how much time you have , how many months? How much time daily you are planning to put in?).

Phase 4 : Device a study schedule. This is very important as you don’t want to waste time studying something not so important and run short of time studying something you should do first.
I have divided my study plan in 3 sub-phases.
Sub – phase1:Major stress on the concept books and daily practice. Start with a good blend of the concepts and the practice examples. I am going to use practice material which is not so tough also I am not going to time my practice in this sub phase. Spend most of the time understanding the mistakes / tricks / short methods / strong areas / weak areas . Know yourself , see how good you are at Gmat. Analyze thoroughly any test you write.

Sub – phase2: Start timing the practice you do . Use the amazing tools walker has developed .They are very good. No bugs , nice way to keep a track of the study progress. Start using some difficult material like MGMAT / KAPLAN .Start increasing the number of the problems you take daily. Keep a good track of the errors you make. Keep on revising the notes you have made so far . Go through the books you have noticed once in a while . Analyze thoroughly any test you write.

Sub – phase3: Start taking more tests per week .Take some stress tests , maybe 2 on weekends. Analyze thoroughly any test you write.

Below are the books I am going to use during my preparation.

I. Verbal
1. Manhattan SC (Concept Book)
2. Manhattan CR Or Powerscore CR Bible (Concept Book)
3. Official Guide 11 (Practice book)
4. Official Guide 10 (Practice book)
5. Official Guide Verbal Review
6. PR Verbal Workout.(Good for RC)
7. 1000 Series
II. Quant :
1. Manhattan Quant series (Concept Book)
2. Official Guide 11 (Practice book)
3. Official Guide 10 (Practice book)
4. Official Guide Quantitative Review
III. Tests:
1. GmatPrep(2)
2. GmatClub challanges
3. KAPLAN(4)
4. MGMAT
5. Paper Test sets 21- 30

My target score is 750.
I scored 620 in the first Gmat I ever wrote (Gmatprep).

The plan looks impressive.
It will be interesting to check if I can follow it till the G-day and if I will reach the 750 mark (improvement of another 150 points.)

Sorry for such a long post.

Please let me know if it helps , please let me know if you have any suggestions.

bb · Answer

How long are you planning to prep?

Just in case wanted to point you to this post that had a similar question:
 https://gmatclub.com/forum/t74310-recommendations-for-best-gmat-prep-books

Also, if you find anything useful, please post it in this thread - other members would benefit significantly from having a central space for content.

lahoosaher · Answer

I am planning to prep for 10 weeks .
I am already down 1 week.

I will surely update if I find any book helpful or if any book is not so good..
As always , thanks a lot for your links...

KajayK · Answer

IT was good information provided by you. It really helped me plan my Prep. I have joined a course which lasts for almost 6 weeks . 
Please guide me how to start with Verbal. I am really out of help on this

lahoosaher · Answer

To start with , I think you should use below stuff for verbal:
1. SC : Manhattan SC.

I am done with this book but surely re-visit every weekend.
The right way to work with this book is , after you have finished the chapter , go to the mentioned problems in the OG and check if you are able to identify the different types.
Its a great book , you will enjoy it.

2. CR : PowerScore CR.
I have'nt heard a lot about this book ; however I found it very usefull.
It is good book if you are not a native english speaker OR you have not taken GMAT / LSAT / CAT before.
The right way to work with this book is , DO NOT spend a lot of time on the topics you think you already know , first 3 chapters are introductory and you must keep your pace at max level if you dont wish to waste a lot of time.
DO NOT hesitate to throw away this book if its too simple for you or you know almost everything.

3. RC : Journals , Books , podcasts.

This portion is real fun , I have downloaded iTUNES on my office machine and I listen to all the radio stations , I read WSJ daily . I hope this will improve RC.
i hate reading books , however I have a link which lists some good books , please have a look..

t76079-books-to-read-improve-verbal-score-and-enjoy-a-good-read

bb · Answer

You may also want to take a look at this listing: Listing of Top 20 Best GMAT Books recommended by GMAT Club members
 https://gmatclub.com/forum/p576892-top-20-best-gmat-books-on-gmat-club

KajayK · Answer

My education was in English and we speak English at office mode of communication is also english as we deal with clients in US.
But when see the SC questions , i am totally blanked out.(Not able to find the difference when to use Have or Had) I am not able to figure out what to do next. Do you people suggest me to take some grammer classes on english ,so that i can imporve ? Please suggest me as i am in a helpless situation on this Verbal.

bb · Answer

Have you done your TOEFL preparation? I found a lot of TOEFL materials help get the SC up to standards and actually go far back enough for most international students to get plenty of solid answers. So I would recommend these books in the following order:
1.  Cliff's TOEFL Book  with a large section dedicated to grammar

2. Kaplan Verbal Workbook or Manhattan GMAT SC or Powerscore SC

I would probably guess the TOEFL book will take a month and the other ones about 1-2 weeks since the rest will be pretty easy and familiar.
The TOEFL book is outdated, but the grammar section works very well, still.

KajayK · Answer

Thank a lot for the info. I will start my preparation and tell you my improvements. This forum is really helpful.

bb · Answer

Please do! Many members are in the same shoes with SC.

Almost forgot, take a look at our all-time Top 20 GMAT Books List:
 https://gmatclub.com/forum/t76582-top-20-best-gmat-books-on-gmat-club

lahoosaher · Answer

This is not new when you are not aware of the problem type / question format. I think , before actually looking at the problems (SC / CR) one should learn the basics and know what actually a CR / SC queston is , what it is asking a student to do. manhattan SC / Powerscore CR are the best books to address this problem. spend some time on these books , dont hurry. (If you finish these books in hurry , you will have to rivisit them anyway

)

KajayK · Answer

In process of preparation with all your inputs. Hope i will be posting a positive reply next time . 
Thanks for your inputs

	Manhattan Prep: $99 Bonus Score Higher on Your GMAT Exam. Guaranteed.
	Target Test Prep - Save up to $599 $400 Discount + $99 Bonus GMAT Club Tests
	e-GMAT: 60% Off on GMAT Focus Get to 735+ from any starting point
	Magoosh increases your score, guaranteed - 15% off ALL Magoosh GMAT plans with code GMATCLUB15 + Free GMAT Club Tests.
	Experts' Global - ~~$1720~~ $960 End-to-End GMAT Prep + App Support: 150+ Videos, 2000+ Questions, 15 FLTs +
	GMATWhiz - $299 ~~$499~~ Experience the course through a free trial.
	GMAT Club Tests - Free Included with every course purchase of $149+ View all deals

Before you actually start with the prep....

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards