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09 Feb 2015, 10:57
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Hi,
I've been a lurker on this forum for quite a while now. However, I have finally decided to take the plunge and start preparing for GMAT.
My background: A little over 7 years in a typical Indian software firm - and feeling as if am drifting through life like so many of my peers, with little to no chance of career advancement in the next couple of years. Hence, an MBA is a no-brainer in this situation - especially because I want to learn about essential business functions/strategies etc. which could help me set up my own shop in the near future or help me move towards a 'consultant/BA/BD' role.
Clearly, I have been out of touch with any form of academics and the last time I did any high school math was - well, in high school!
So, with absolutely NO preparation of any sort, I picked up OG'15 and took the diagnostic test.
The result is disheartening at best:
Q: 10 (Average)
DS: 8 (Below Average)
RC: 9 (Average)
CR: 5 (Below Average)
SC: 11 (Above average)
Now,
a) I don't have any fancy expectations and I want to keep it realistic. I have decided to give it 3 months and follow : BB's How to Start Your GMAT plan OR Atlantic's 11 week GMAT schedule.
b) I don't plan to schedule the GMAT unless am consistently scoring at least 650+ (given my current state, I believe even this would be an uphill task).
c) I don't plan to spend any money on courses or private tutors at the moment. The reasoning is that it won't make sense if am not even scoring 650+.
Are my assumptions correct? Am I on track even remotely?
Thanks for even reading this!
Regards,
Trishul
I've been a lurker on this forum for quite a while now. However, I have finally decided to take the plunge and start preparing for GMAT.
My background: A little over 7 years in a typical Indian software firm - and feeling as if am drifting through life like so many of my peers, with little to no chance of career advancement in the next couple of years. Hence, an MBA is a no-brainer in this situation - especially because I want to learn about essential business functions/strategies etc. which could help me set up my own shop in the near future or help me move towards a 'consultant/BA/BD' role.
Clearly, I have been out of touch with any form of academics and the last time I did any high school math was - well, in high school!
So, with absolutely NO preparation of any sort, I picked up OG'15 and took the diagnostic test.
The result is disheartening at best:
Q: 10 (Average)
DS: 8 (Below Average)
RC: 9 (Average)
CR: 5 (Below Average)
SC: 11 (Above average)
Now,
a) I don't have any fancy expectations and I want to keep it realistic. I have decided to give it 3 months and follow : BB's How to Start Your GMAT plan OR Atlantic's 11 week GMAT schedule.
b) I don't plan to schedule the GMAT unless am consistently scoring at least 650+ (given my current state, I believe even this would be an uphill task).
c) I don't plan to spend any money on courses or private tutors at the moment. The reasoning is that it won't make sense if am not even scoring 650+.
Are my assumptions correct? Am I on track even remotely?
Thanks for even reading this!
Regards,
Trishul
09 Feb 2015, 13:40
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi Trishul,
The Diagnostic Quiz at the beginning of the GMAT2015 book is NOT representative of the actual GMAT for a number of reasons: The number of questions does not match, the frequency and difficulty of questions do not match, the book does not adapt, pencil-and-paper work is different from computer-work, etc. As such, you should not get too down on yourself for this performance. To establish a proper "baseline" score, you should take one of the 2 free practice CATs from www.mba.com. A FULL CAT takes about 4 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to do so in one sitting.
Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) studying for the GMAT; during that time, it's common to spend 10-15 hours per week (or more) on the process. By not spending any money though, you're putting yourself in a difficult situation. The yearly average GMAT score is right around 540-550; you want to score 650+, but you don't want to invest any money into the process. You've also admitted that this will likely be a difficult task. You're expecting to score close to the 80th percentile on your own and THEN you'll spend money....
You should start looking at this whole process as an "investment" in your future. You don't necessarily have to spend a lot of money to hit your goals, but limiting yourself in this way could keep you from everything that you're after.
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
The Diagnostic Quiz at the beginning of the GMAT2015 book is NOT representative of the actual GMAT for a number of reasons: The number of questions does not match, the frequency and difficulty of questions do not match, the book does not adapt, pencil-and-paper work is different from computer-work, etc. As such, you should not get too down on yourself for this performance. To establish a proper "baseline" score, you should take one of the 2 free practice CATs from www.mba.com. A FULL CAT takes about 4 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to do so in one sitting.
Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) studying for the GMAT; during that time, it's common to spend 10-15 hours per week (or more) on the process. By not spending any money though, you're putting yourself in a difficult situation. The yearly average GMAT score is right around 540-550; you want to score 650+, but you don't want to invest any money into the process. You've also admitted that this will likely be a difficult task. You're expecting to score close to the 80th percentile on your own and THEN you'll spend money....
You should start looking at this whole process as an "investment" in your future. You don't necessarily have to spend a lot of money to hit your goals, but limiting yourself in this way could keep you from everything that you're after.
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
sarahrs
MBA Blogger
Joined: 13 Apr 2013
Last visit: 10 Mar 2015
Posts: 118
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 9
Concentration: General Management, Nonprofit
Schools: Cambridge'16 (S)
GMAT 1: 510 Q29 V31
GMAT 2: 590 Q32 V38
WE:Research (Non-Profit and Government)
09 Feb 2015, 14:43
Kudos
Bookmarks
In terms of deciding how to spend resources. It useful to consider your time as well as your wallet.
Two avenues:
Self taught. Along the lines of good at standardised tests. Just need a bit of practice to get swing of these. Happy learning from a book.
More formal teaching: more likely to appeal if you have cash and limited on time. You would rather sit the GMAT once or twice. You learn best through audio visual. Your better at learning when someone holds you accountable. Some online tools are surprisingly affordable. Have a look at options and prices before ruling them out.
I would have saved alot of time and heartache by jumping to pay for teaching rather than muck around with self learning.
Good luck
Posted from my mobile device
Two avenues:
Self taught. Along the lines of good at standardised tests. Just need a bit of practice to get swing of these. Happy learning from a book.
More formal teaching: more likely to appeal if you have cash and limited on time. You would rather sit the GMAT once or twice. You learn best through audio visual. Your better at learning when someone holds you accountable. Some online tools are surprisingly affordable. Have a look at options and prices before ruling them out.
I would have saved alot of time and heartache by jumping to pay for teaching rather than muck around with self learning.
Good luck
Posted from my mobile device
