How many hours per day? - Magoosh - GMAT 3 month beginner's study plan

Hey camitela12, welcome to GMAT Club.
Before you start working with the Magoosh 3 month plan, I need to ask have you taken an mba.com practice test to know where you stand?

I would in general aim for 2-3 hours as a max.
I think even 4 hours is pushing it, particularly if you're doing it in one sitting.
Burnout is a serious possibility if you're overdoing it.

Hi camitela12,

Welcome to the GMAT club community! I agree with the hours mentioned above by Gmatisking above. If you even spend more time mastering lessons, that would help to solidify concepts. Taking small breaks while studying would help one to cover lessons well.

Good luck!

Seconded.


The answer to your question is that it depends.
As a working professional, I am able to study only ~2 hrs every day.
If I had more time, I would probably bump it up to ~3 hrs, but no more than ~4 hrs.
Remember, GMAT prep isn't a sprint, but rather a marathon.
So, don't forget to plan some down time everyday, to avoid experiencing burnout.

Another question to think about is prep duration.
If you're scoring in the ~Q49/V40 range already, then you would probably need only a couple of weeks to prepare.
The further away you are from your target score, the longer it takes.
So, you should definitely take a full-mock, if you haven't already.
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Hi! I’m following the 3-month quant-focussed plan by Magoosh and I honestly found the workload to be quite a bit, especially if you’re maintaining a detailed error log like they mention.

On average, I spend 3-4 hours studying. With a full-time hectic job, it’s not easy but I’ve found it really worth it.

Good luck with your GMAT journey!

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Make sure that you can see weekly improvement. Studying that long with a full-time job can become just a mundane an ordinary process like wiping shelves or washing dishes but GMAT studying should be a very alert and engaging process, something along the lines of hunting for a secret treasure where every little clue matters and details cannot be overlooked. Make sure you are engaged and always thinking how to uncover that treasure….



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Can you share which practice exam on the MBA site before starting on Magoosh? Exam 1 or 2 as part of the kit OR GMAT mini quiz?

Hi swing9cats,

The scoring algorithm on the Official GMAT is far more complicated than most people realize. Since that algorithm is proprietary, no GMAT company has an exact match for it, thus CAT scores can vary a bit based on the 'biases' involved in their respective designs. The most realistic CATs available are the 6 from GMAC (the 2 free CATs, and each of the 2 that come with Exam Pack 1 and Exam Pack 2), but the CATs from Kaplan, MGMAT and Veritas are all 'close enough' to the real thing that they will provide you with a relatively realistic score assessment (assuming that you correctly take the CAT in a realistic fashion that matches the parameters that you will face when you take the Official GMAT).

If you are early-on in your studies - and want to do a little studying so that you can familiarize yourself with the basic content and question types, then that's okay - but you shouldn't wait too long to take that initial CAT. That score will give us a good sense of your natural strengths and weaknesses and will help provide a basis for comparison as you continue to study. A FULL CAT takes about 3.5 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to take it in one sitting. Once you have that Score, you should report back here (or you can feel free to PM me directly) and we can discuss the results and come up with a study plan.

I'd like to know a bit more about your timeline and goals:
1) What is your goal score?
2) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
3) When are you planning to apply to Business School and what Schools are you planning to apply to?

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

Contact Rich at: Rich.C@empowergmat.com

If you want to get a true baseline score, then take the first free practice exam from MBA.com.
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