Tips on Reading Quantitative Section Questions

Question

Hi! 
I have strong problems in effectively reading the quant questions and understanding what they are requesting. I find the language used to be very ambiguous and unclear. 
Do you have any tip on how to improve it? 
Thanks!

MartyTargetTestPrep · Answer

One key move you can make is simply to practice Quant untimed. Take all the time you need to understand the question in front of you and get it correct. By doing question after question that way, you'll learn to understand the type of language used in the Quant questions and get faster at answering them.

For more on how to practice for the GMAT for best results, see this post.

The Best GMAT Practice Methods

For more on how to practice for the GMAT for best results, see this post.

The Best GMAT Practice Methods

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

One thing that may help is working with a study buddy who is strong on Quant. If you have any queries about certain terminology that is used, you could quickly bring it up. You could also gather a "list" of the phrases you find unclear and share them here for people to explain.

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi alfonspm,

GMAT questions are written in a specific way, so if there are particular 'phrases' that you are finding difficult to understand, then a certain amount of repetition will likely be required (so that you can properly learn what those phrases mean and train to use that knowledge whenever it applies). In addition, you might find it helpful to break down the wording of Quant questions into small pieces (and not try to understand everything 'all at once'). Are there any examples that you can point to that you still have trouble with?

Before I can offer you any additional advice for your studies, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

Studies:
1) How long have you studied? How many hours do you typically study each week?
2) What study materials have you used so far? What “brands” of CATs/mocks have you used?
3) On what dates (or approximate dates) did you take EACH of your CATs/mocks and how did you score on EACH (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)?

Goals:
4) What is your overall goal score?
5) 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: [email protected]

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi alfonspm,

What quant topics cause you the most issues?

sulimanov · Answer

Good example is this question: https://gmatclub.com/forum/a-salesman-h ... l#p3448511

The phrase "A salesman has five chocolates each of three different varieties. " got me really puzzled. I interpreted it as 5 chocolates bars of 3 different types. Apparently, the question implied that the salesman has 15 bars.

Tips on Reading Quantitative Section Questions

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