GMAT Maths Absolute Beginner

Question

Hi,

I am planning to take the GMAT and just completely out of touch with Maths which I did 20 years back. I would request some recommendation for material in GMAT where I start with Maths foundations, absolute basics and then build up on it. I have around 3-4 months for preparation and knowing my weak area want to start with the Basics

Any recommendations will be greatly helpful. (Preferably self study books)

Regards

Rohit

AmrithS · Answer

Hi Rohit

I would recommend the Manhattan Series of Books. However, some people recommend Kaplan books too. I am biased in favour of Manhattan though! P.S. I believe you're from India, so a small bit of advice - you can order the books online from a website called 'flipkart com' It's very convenient and you can get all the books delivered to your doorstep within three or four days. They accept debit cards and payment can be made online.

rohitsharma · Answer

Hi Amrith, Many thanks for your suggestion. I will go ahead and order these books on the recommended website. Do you think it has all the material for a thorough review and study of GMAT maths or do I need any additional study. I intend to study Maths with an intense focus for 2 months and then go through the other subjects before doing a repeat round.

AmrithS · Answer

Yes, Rohit. The Manhattan series pretty much covers the entire spectrum of concepts tested in the GMAT.
Another book, which is an absolute must have, is the Official Guide for GMAT Review, 12th Edition. 
Since GMAC, the agency that conducts the exam, has copyrights over the GMAT questions, no one other than GMAC can publish original GMAT questions. So in order to practice 'real' GMAT questions, you must buy the Official Guide for GMAT Review, 12th Edition.

rohitsharma · Answer

Thanks Amrith once again. I was gifted the GMAT official guide by someone. Many thanks for your support.

AmrithS · Answer

Awesome... Now since you have decided to buy the Manhattan Series and you already own a copy of the OG, the best way to get the most out of each of them is to use them together.

Don't start solving from the OG immediately. The best approach is to read a chapter and then solve the 'In action' problems followed by the 'Official Guide' problems.

After reviewing all the chapters in the 5 books, start solving the OG questions one by one from the first question onwards.
Maintain an error log to determine areas which require further improvement. 
Do another round of solving and you're good to go...

spizzl · Answer

my 2 cents regarding the OG-questions.. i started solving them and wondered about how easy they are! did ~ 50% of the questions (~ 400) - think it was a waste of time! 
i bought the kaplan premier 2011 - this will provide you with a lot of tests & quizzes (online+via CD) on a more sophisticated level .. furthermore it teaches u the basics of quant + verbal!

same about the gmat prep software.. the CATs are great and as others mention the best performance indicator, though the contained practice question sets within the software are ridiculous ..

I'd buy either the Kaplan books or the Manhattan books (recommended by a lot, i haven't used them)

rohitsharma · Answer

Thanks once again for your recommendations. I will post how it goes with the above suggestions

kundozei · Answer

For math basics I'd recommend to start with Manhattan GMAT "Foundations of GMAT Math" book. It starts with really basic concepts and makes it easier for you to transition to the main Manhattan GMAT book set.

bb · Answer

I second this recommendation. Kaplan also has a similar version of this book: Kaplan Math Foundations (but MGMAT is better integrated in the rest of the MGMAT books).

kundozei · Answer

I'm speaking from personal experience. I haven't opened a math book for about 15 years. MGMAT book helps a lot with refreshing some very rusty concepts. Plus, I was taught math in Eastern Europe, so certain concepts were explained differently. The only problem with MGMAT foundations book is that the book is big. It took me some time to finish it.

rohitsharma · Answer

Many thanks for all the responses. The kit should be there with me in few days and I appreciate everyone's assistance.

bb · Answer

Yes, just to chime in, don't stretch out your prep beyond 4-6 months (2-4 months is ideal). Otherwise, you start forgetting things.

rohitsharma · Answer

Thanks . Will keep this in mind as well.

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