Help on GMAT Prep

Hi gauravk,

I think it’s a great idea idea to take an MBA.com practice exam to get a baseline score. To ensure that you do not see any repeated questions, you might consider taking the 2nd exam from the free exam pack. In regard to your other questions, before I can answer those, it will help to first learn some more about your prior GMAT experience and MBA goals. I have a few questions.

1) What is your GMAT score goal?

2) Describe your study routine for your previous GMAT. Were there any GMAT-related issues that forced you to stop your prep?

3) For your upcoming GMAT, for how many hours a day can you study and for how many total months?

4) To what schools do you plan to apply?

5) What deadlines are you targeting?

Thanks Mike for the quick response, when you say that I can give each test twice - are you referring to the reset option?

Also, what do you recommend that shall I take the mock test right away without brushing any Quant basics or shall I go through some of the basics in a week and then try my hands at the mock test?

I'm trying to go through these links which you shared around verbal and will get back to you for sure with more questions.

Your inputs are appreciated.
TIA

Rich Thanks for your reply. I'll take a mock test soon and will get back to the forum with my baseline score.

Answer to your questions:

1. Goal score is 740
2. Probably in 3 months from now.
3. I'm planning to take GMAT first and then plan accordingly.

Do you recommend that before giving mock test I should brush up my quants a little or should I jump right in?

TIA

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for your time. I honestly don't think I will remember any questions which I did 3 years back, but to be on the safe side I do understand your point and will take Mock test 2 for now.

1. GMAT goal score - 740

2. During my last phase I was trying to study 2 Hrs daily, spent most of the time on quant to begin with. Studied close to 4-5 weeks and then due to work pressure had to give up in between.

3. I'm planning to invest 3 hrs on daily basis and probably 4-6 hrs over the weekend over a period of 3 months.

4. I plan to apply to schools in top 30.

5. As of now I'm planning to write GMAT in 3 months.


Do you recommend that before giving mock test I should brush up my quants a little or should I jump right in?

Hi gauravk,

That initial CAT score is important for a couple of reasons. To start, we need to define your existing skills, strengths and weaknesses. Without that initial result, we won't know which specific areas you'll need to spend extra time on. In addition, you might be tempted to keep pushing back the date of that initial CAT - and that would actually work against your progress. There are also a variety of skills that you can develop only by taking realistic FULL-LENGTH CATs at regular intervals, so the sooner you get started on THAT process, the better.

While 3 months of potential study is a good plan, you might end up needing more time than that, so the sooner we can define the improvements that need to be made, the easier it should be to define exactly what you have to do to get to your goal score.

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

Hi gauravk,

Thank you for answering my questions. To get the most accurate baseline score, you might consider taking a practice test ASAP to determine an accurate GMAT score.

If after taking that exam, you would like a clearer picture of your GMAT quant strengths and weaknesses, I welcome you to take my free 37-question quant diagnostic. After completing the diagnostic, you’ll be provided with a detailed analysis of your proficiency level on all GMAT quant topics as well as an opportunity to discuss your diagnostic results with me or another TTP instructor/coach.

Also, once piece of general prep advice. In regard to how to study for the exam, you must remember that the GMAT is such a challenging exam because there are relatively few questions asked in a given exam, yet those questions come from a huge topic pool. Thus, the best way to get a great GMAT score is to have a thorough understanding of all the topics that may be tested on the exam. To develop such mastery, you want to strive for linear and targeted learning and follow that with focused practice. In other words, you want to master one topic before you move to the next. So, regardless of which resources you use, ensure that you can achieve such focused learning and practice.

Here’s a good article that provides some tips on how to balance work and GMAT prep.

Finally, feel free to read the following article that provides some actionable steps that you can follow to help achieve your GMAT score goal.

Since I didn't want to waste any time, so I gave the GMAT practice test today. I gave test 2 just to get a fair estimate of my current level.

Few challenges which I faced:

1. Didn't have enough time for the LR, I had to guess last 3 questions as I ran out of time.

2. I was running through quant section and had spare time by end of section.

3. Verbal -- I wasn't very comfortable with 2 of the passages and some of the SC questions and that's pretty obvious from my score as well.

Attaching here the scorecard, would like to know how should I plan my prep for next 3 months.



I just completed my test will try to a detailed analysis in a day or two to come up with my weak areas, but as of now in quant I know I need to invest time on following areas:

1. Perm and Combinations

2. Inequalities and Mods

3. Daily reading habit to improve on SC and RC skill. - Planning to start with Economist, WSJ etc. (Will try to cover books which are mentioned in the Verbal reading habit thread).

Hi gauravk,

To start, a 600 is a strong 'baseline' score (the average score on the Official GMAT hovers around 540-550 most years). Raising a 600 to a 740+ will require some serious work, but it seems like you already understand that. Almost all of the missing points that you're looking for are going to be found in the Verbal section, but you could still squeeze a few more points out of the Quant section (a Q48 is a strong performance though. I'd be curious to know how many questions you got wrong in the Quant that you COULD have gotten correct vs. the number that you got wrong because they were 'too hard'?).

Considering your score goal and needs, you should get started with your Verbal studies - since it will take some time to build up all of the necessary skills to score at a high level in SC, RC and CR. Your performance in IR will likely improve once you build up your RC and CR skills.

1) What practice materials do you currently have?

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

Hi Rich,


Thanks for the quick reply.

I'll be analyzing the overall test and will get back to you with the details around the quant section. On surface it looks like I would have made silly mistakes in 5-6 questions, and rest of them must be too hard or must be from topics which I think I need to spend some additional time on.

From the Verbal section score and from my previous experience I guess I would have to put some significant effort in this section. I'm ready for that - be it reading regularly or doing questions from different study material.

I've following study material as of now:

Quant:
1. Kaplan GMAT Math workbook
2. The OG for GMAT Review for Quant
3. OG 11th Edition


Verbal:
1. The OG for GMAT Review - GMAT Verbal
2. Kaplan Verbal workbook
3. Manhattan GMAT prep RC
4. Manhattan GMAT prep SC
5. OG 11th Edition

All these books aren't the latest editions they are at least 3 years old, as I bought them when I started preparing few years back -- Is it ok to use these or shall I invest in new books?

Also, I'm planning to buy:

1. Powerscore GMAT CR Bible
2. Powerscore GMAT SC Bible
3. Manhattan GMAT set of strategy guides - I may be able to get it from one of my friends.
4. OG 13th Edition -- is it required?

Pls suggest if this is good enough and also how should I begin with Verbal section based on my current score.

TIA
Gaurav

Hi gauravk,

Many Test Takers who use a 'book heavy' study approach end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level, so you'll likely end up needing to invest in some non-book resources at some point. The GMAT hasn't really changed in the last 3 years, so your current book materials should be fine for what you'll use them for. Since you've already acquired some practice materials, and you've given yourself lots of time to study, you can get started with those books. I suggest that you study as you see fit for the next 2-3 weeks, then take a new FULL LENGTH CAT (with the Essay and IR sections). That score result will give us a better idea of how well you're improving and what changes might be necessary.

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

Hi Rich,

Thanks for the reply, when you say non-book resources are you referring to study material or just the CATs?

I'll analyze my current test and see what my weak areas are and will try to focus on them.
I'll start with this study material as of now for 2-3 weeks and then as you suggested will take another Full Length CAT to assess where I'm.

Based on the study material which I've, what do you suggest for Verbal - where should I start from?

TIA