GMATPrep harder than GMAT?

Question

I read a post on another message board saying that GMATPrep is harder than the actual GMAT. Any truth to this? I've never heard this before, but the guy who posted it was a ManhattanGMAT instructor so I thought it might have some cred? Thoughts?

chineseburned · Answer

Having taken the real thing twice and the GMATPrep about 10 times, I respectfully disagree. The Quant in particular seemed alot harder on the real thing. The verbal seemed easier but in the end I scored a little lower on it that expected.

kevincan · Answer

Add my name to the list of those who say that GMATPrep quant has harder questions than the hardest in GMAT quant.

farend · Answer

Conflicting views from two GMAT heavyweights....
What will happen to mortals like us ????

terp26 · Answer

I will say gmatprep is slightly harder than the reg GMAT in quant

kidderek · Answer

Yup.

When I took the gmat, I couldn't believe that the actual gmat was noticeably easier than gmatprep.

lsuguy7 · Answer

Here is my take. The set of questions you get really determine what "hard" is to you. I find the real GMAT questions very tricky, more so than GMATPrep. I find that GMATPrep quant might be slightly more difficult (this really depends on what questions you pull and your strengths) BUT the scoring is basically identical. It's like saying that PR quant is very easy (it is) but the score you get is still somewhat accurate, even thought the problem set isn't.

I got basically the same breakdown on my GMATPreps as my real thing both times I took.

I got basically the same breakdown on my GMATPreps as my real thing both times I took.

chineseburned · Answer

I certainly ain't no heavyweight - until 6 months ago I had no idea what the GMAT is, and kevin certainly is a veteran. I do agree there are some GMATPrep questions (just a few) that are probably harder than anything the real GMAT will throw at you. However, judging the entire Quant section collectively I still think the real thing is tougher.
It makes sense that it has gotten tougher, right? The GMATPrep software was written a couple of years ago. Since then the people scoring higher on the Quant (due to resources such as this site) has increased. And since the GMAT needs to maintain percentiles, it makes the questions tougher. Also, how many reviews have you read where people (good in manth) thought they blew the Quant and were shocked to still see a 50 or 51? A lot I think. That has to do with the fact that they thought they didn't do so good because the section appeared harder. The fact that they still managed to pull off the score they were after should not take away any of the hard(er) work they had to do on that section to get it.

kidderek · Answer

Agree and agree.

On the second point, when I took the gmat, I found myself changing my answer about 3-4 times, because when I re-read the problem, I noticed the "trick." On gmatprep, I never did so.

Not necessarily. The percentiles have changed, but not the scores. Therefore, one would think the test has remained the same and the caliber of test takers has gotten better.

Desperate123 · Answer

is the verbal in that gmat prep harder than the real gmat? pls tell me

hothunk · Answer

GMATPrep may seem slightly harder than actual GMAT but this software is the closest you can get to actual GMAT. All the questions and tests out there are much harder. But as someone has said before "Aim for the stars and you'll get to the moon".

deepakdevi · Answer

i got 600 in gmat prep how much sholud i expect

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi deepakdevi,

A practice CAT score result is only as realistic as you make the CAT-taking 'process.' If, when you took this CAT, you made sure that it 'lined up' with all of the aspects of what you'll face on the Official GMAT, then this Score is likely accurate. To be more specific, you would need to take the ENTIRE CAT (including the Essay and IR sections), at the same time of day as your Official GMAT, away from home, under test-like conditions, etc. The more that your CATs deviate from what you'll face on Test Day, the more likely your score results are to be 'off.'

1) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
2) What is your score goal?

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

GMATPill · Answer

GMATPrep software is the best indication tool that you can have. There will always be some people who feel it is easier/harder than the real thing -- but who cares? The only thing you should care about is what you have control over. And during practice, you have control over your preparation.

You're really good at math rate questions -- but you stumble at mixture ones. The real thing shows up and you get a difficult mixture question rather than a difficult rate question. Tough luck.

Do what you can now during prep so that you can be as prepared as possible. What actually happens on test day involves a small amount of randomness, but you should be so prepared that none of that even matters.

We encourage you to test out your GMAT skills in our open online Practice Pill Platform: www.gmatpill.com/gmat-practice-test

GMAT PILL video explanations are available for paid members -- along with core course material.

dabral · Answer

deepakdevi

I would say in the range of 570 to 630, provided you took your practice test in as close a condition as the real exam, and can perform at the same level in the real test environment.

Dabral

daviddaviddavid · Answer

as for me (non-native), the verbal part is significant harder than the questions in both books (official guide, official guide verbal review)

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