hi everyone new member and taking the GMAT soon

Question

hello everyone...
i have been going through posts here since a week or so..and registered myself for better use of this forum.
Im from India and based in Mumbai though working on some projects in the eastern part of the country.
Im an orthopedist b profession and after 3 - 4 years of working in some top notch hospitals decided to start my own facility something modest to begin with (that did not require a huge bank loan) but something that will grow in the future.
Now our projects involve 2-3 industries of different though related specialties and core hospital is one of them the rest being supportive services.
Its been sometime i have been thinking of getting a management training/ experience firstly because we need to have someone with adequate management expertise for our own projects and secondly now that im relatively free (the projects are up and about) its a good time to rewind do something new and get expertise in management that i will most likely need in future. Im a practicing surgeon and am not looking for a career change so basically the future role i see for myself is of mainly business plus continue practice in whatever time i can find.

trouble is its been almost 15 years i did any maths...i use a calculator to add flight costs and if u ask me to add 129 with 87 i need a calculator or pen and paper. But i scored a perfect 100 in both my maths papers when i passed school. I loved maths i still do but as far as GMAT is concerned im scared of it.

Two is there anything that i can see to get an idea of essays? i understand there are two kinds of essays...but what r the subjects like ...or anything goes? i suspect i would not be casual about these. how do i prepare for them.
the books and prep material im using is this:

Manhattan GMAT Set of 8 Strategy Guides, Fourth Edition (Manhattan
GMAT Strategy Guides)///Manhattan GMAT Set of 8 Strategy Guides,
Fourth Edition (Manhattan GMAT Strategy Guides)  
Manhattan GMAT

The Official Guide for GMAT Review, 12th Edition  
Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) (Author)

Kaplan GMAT 2012 Premier with CD-ROM (Kaplan Gmat Premier Live)  
Kaplan (Author)

Kaplan GMAT 800: Advanced Prep for Advanced Students (Kaplan Gmat
Advanced)  
Kaplan (Author)

Kaplan GMAT Math Workbook  
Kaplan (Author)

The Official Guide for GMAT Quantitative Review, 2nd Edition  
Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC)

Foundations of GMAT Math: GMAT Strategy Supplement (8 Guide
Instructional Series)  
Manhattan GMAT (Author)

Advanced GMAT Quant (Gmat Strategy Guides)  
Manhattan GMAT (Author)

Total GMAT Math  
Jeff Sackmann (Author)

Kaplan GMAT Verbal Workbook  
Kaplan (Author)

The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review, 2nd Edition  
Graduate Management Admissions Council (Author)

Aristotle Prep SC Grail

Foundations of GMAT Verbal (Gmat Strategy Guides)  
Manhattan GMAT (Author)

The PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible: A Comprehensive System
for Attacking the GMAT Critical Reasoning Questions  
David M. Killoran author

GMAT Ultimate Grammar: The Only Guide You Need  
Gmat Club (Author)

i have either got these books or they r in shipping...so should be getting them soon. Im working at Indo china border at the moment so its an issue getting stuff!only if there were chinese versions of these!!

but i really don't know which computer based tests or material etc should i include in preparation for GMAT besides the ones which are provided as CD / link to an online subscription with the GMAT books i purchased.

oh this post went long...sorry for the length.

im browsing thorugh old posts and am sure the advice is hidden somewhere here.
grt forum kudos to everyone for that!

bb · Answer

For AWA - it is pretty easy, see these:

1. how-to-get-6-0-awa-my-guide-64327.html
2. all-awa-topics-for-gmat-collection-official-list-from-gmac-82734.html

P.S. You are way over-prepared I think but that's a good thing. I think you can lose half the books since you have both the Kaplan books and the MGMAT 8 guides.

My suggestion would be - don't overdo it. Plan to spend 3 -4 months on your prep and work backwards from that date. Do not stretch it.

Lolcat33 · Answer

I might be asking a stupid question...but are you intending to study these books because you plan to get better with math and English or because you plan on obtaining an MBA in the future in order to improve you business in the long term?

It seems to me that you ordered these books only because you have assumed that GMAT tests future MBA students (who need to know how to work in business), and that is my friend a mistake. Why? Because GMAT and its prep books will not help you run your business better and GMAT is supposed to rank people according to their skills of analysis, writing etc.

For example, why would you need to know stuff such as geometry to do well in running business? Do you know what I mean? I have no skill in entrepreneurship or management and cannot provide you with some better guidance. But I assume you would want to know the basics of accounting, management, entrepreneurship and leadership. You should probably aim at such kind of books.

If I am completely off with this post, please disregard it. I hope that your business goes well!

drgauravortho · Answer

thats striking right at the heart of the exam system ....
well no geometry will not help me run my business...it does but not an extent that matters.

and im not studying for the gmat to run my business better...
im studying for the gmat cos that seems to be a way to get an MBA degree and that as far as my impression goes may help me in running my business better...if im wrong on that too then that proves me...i dont know anything beyond orthopedic surgery and i will head back to that now.

but seriously now in our GBMs opinion has been voiced and i agree that we need trained ppl with management experience to run our projects better...and the way things are going we will hopefully be growing strong next few years to a level when a full fledged head will be required.
i dont want control to go into other hands and i think doing business management will keep me fit for those affairs of our enterprise which im not well versed with being a doctor...
is there anything wrong in this reasoning? correct me...does doing MBA give u skills and knowledge to handle business managemnt better or not? I dont know much about anything beyond my field...and thats getting to be a handicap now.

half of my work these days is related to issues like marketing, investment, taxes, legal aspects of business vat cess and what not. i dont know the meaning of half of them and dont want this to become the reason im forced to sell my enterprise to an MBA guy!!
i welcome all comments on this...cos im making up my mind still...tho i have started on those books n they r fun!

drgauravortho · Answer

P.S. You are way over-prepared I think but that's a good thing. I think you can lose half the books since you have both the Kaplan books and the MGMAT 8 guides.

My suggestion would be - don't overdo it. Plan to spend 3 -4 months on your prep and work backwards from that date. Do not stretch it.

wow...i have to thank you for these links. they r pretty awsome and so r ur tips on u know..how to go abt it...
well looks like my work is cut out for me....
there are so many posts on this forum that just browsing takes up hours.

hey i start way behind the starting line...been out of touch with these things for a long long time now so probably overdoing on the preparation! tell me when do i start using those computer tests and GMAT simulations etc?after i finish those books or before or sumwhere in between?
sorry im sure these are stupid questions but could not help asking!

Lolcat33 · Answer

I did not mean to undermine the whole purpose of the test but to check whether you are studying the GMAT for the right reason

. I was not sure that you plan to get an MBA but now I see you do. I think the best way to prepare for GMAT is definitely to use this forum. I also see that you have required books that a person needs to succeed on the test. This forum also provides you information regarding the various MBA programs so make sure you check it out. I think the best thing for you might be to look for programs that have something like entrepreneurship in healthcare (or something similar) and analyse to see if it is going to help. Then you can make your decision. Keep in mind that these programs are very expensive in the western Europe and USA. Good luck!

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hi everyone new member and taking the GMAT soon

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