GMAT Preparation: 8 rules for GMAT success

Hi everyone. I just found a good article about GMAT preparation and thought someone could benefit from it.

1. The man and the plan
2. Rehearsal, rehearsal, rehearsal
3. The way to read
4. How to correct that sentence
5. Reason critically
6. Guesstimate
7. Don’t look for the right solution
8. Write simple and clear
1. The man and the plan
First, you have to figure out for yourself where you stand. Analyze yourself, what are
your strengths and what are your weaknesses. You know which kind of questions you
are going to face, so you just have to ask yourself the question which bridges will be
the hardest to cross. You know you will have to take geometry questions in the
Quantitative section; so are you strong enough with triangles and quadrilaterals, but
too weak with circles? If you can answer this question about yourself you already
know where the focus of your preparation should be put Why would you spend a lot
of time on an a question you know you will probably answer it wrong in the end, no
matter what? Knowing what you can, but especially what you can not, will prove very
valuable in the time pressure that the GMAT puts on you. So to use your time wisely,
it is very important to know your own abilities beforehand.

2. Rehearsal, rehearsal, rehearsal
It should be stressed even more than three times. Rehearsal and practicing is key in
getting a good GMAT result. This test isn’t just like an IQ test for which you can’t
train, training is essential in getting improved results on a GMAT test. If you set aside
time in a silent environment to prepare by taking some practice GMAT exams, you’ll
be up for the hard work: sitting in a chair and focusing on test material for a few
hours. But after all the hard work is very rewarding. Since the skills doesn’t come
naturally for most people, why not practice? By practicing you will also get to know
your own abilities, which, as mentioned already, are very important to know.

3. The way to read
The part of “Reading Comprehension” requires you to really read each passage
quickly and look for its most important ideas. It’s also crucial to understand that
everything that is written is there for a reason, and those reasons are in general more
important than the little details that can be found throughout the text. Taking notes is advised, and be structured while doing it. Also, learn the most frequently used
types of flawed answers that are used in the GMAT test and get to know how you
should avoid choosing them.

4. How to correct that sentence
In the part “Sentence corrections” you will be given a few sentences which require
correction. About twenty percent of all the sentences will already be correct as they
are. A very good method to track those correct sentences is by reading them out loud
in your mind. If you think they sound alright, most probably they are. Wording the
sentences “tight” is an effective way of correcting sentences. Don’t use more words
than necessary. If you can’t see a difference between multiple sentences, choose the
shortest answer!

5. Reason critically
The “Critical Reasoning” section requires you to recognize the most essential
elements of any argument – evidence, conclusion, and assumptions. Remember the
following logics: when a statement makes the conclusion more likely to be accurate,
then that statement reinforces the argument. If it is the other way around, the
statement weakens the argument. Get to know the most common errors in some
reasoning (again, by rehearsal, rehearsal, rehearsal) and learn how to recognize
them. Don’t be fooled by what you already know about a certain subject or topic,
because that’s not the point. Act as if you don’t have more information than others
about the subject and respond to the question, only in terms of the argument
presented.

6. Guesstimate
The “Multiple-choice questions” in the Quantitative section will require you to beak
word problems into separate simple sentences that you redefine as numbers and
symbols. Sometimes it can be interesting to sketch your own situation on a piece of
scrap paper. Spend half a minute on examining the pictures and graphs that are given
for graph interpretation problems before you go in depth in answering the questions.
By all means use guesstimates as most answers are unique enough to really give a
calculated answer. The logics are more important than the actual math’s!

7. Don’t look for the right solution
For the “Data Sufficiency” section, it’s very important to keep in mind that you should
not look for the right solution. Just reason whether or not you can get to a right
solution by all the info that is given. Learn the directions and answer choices
backward and forward before the test date, because for every single GMAT test, the
answer choices are exactly the same. This will save you a lot of time on the actual
test day.

8. Write simple and clear
For the analytical writing part it would be best to use the four-step process in order
to effectively structure your time and energy: brainstorm, outline, write and revise.
Keeping your text simple and clear will make your point of view pop out even better.
Be specific and avoid mechanical errors.