Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Apr 2308:00 PM PDT
-09:00 PM PDT
Video explanations + diagnosis of 10 weakest areas + 150+ short videos + study plan!
Apr 2301:30 AM EDT
-02:30 AM EDT
Struggling with GMAT Verbal as a non-native speaker? Harsh improved his score from 595 to 695 in just 45 days—and scored a 99 %ile in Verbal (V88)! Learn how smart strategy, clarity, and guided prep helped him gain 100 points.
Apr 2512:30 AM EDT
-01:30 AM EDT
At one point, she believed GMAT wasn’t for her. After scoring 595, self-doubt crept in and she questioned her potential. But instead of quitting, she made the right strategic changes. The result? A remarkable comeback to 695. Check out how Saakshi did it.
Apr 2610:00 AM EDT
-11:00 AM EDT
The Target Test Prep course represents a quantum leap forward in GMAT preparation, a radical reinterpretation of the way that students should study. Try before you buy with a 5-day, full-access trial of the course for FREE!
Apr 2711:00 AM EDT
-12:00 PM EDT
Prefer video-based learning? The Target Test Prep OnDemand course is a one-of-a-kind video masterclass featuring 400 hours of lecture-style teaching by Scott Woodbury-Stewart, founder of Target Test Prep and one of the most accomplished GMAT instructors
Apr 2808:00 AM PDT
-11:00 AM PDT
Whether you are just beginning your MBA journey or fine-tuning your path to a 700+ score, GMAT Day is designed to give you a competitive edge.
18 Jul 2014, 21:48
Kudos
Bookmarks
I really appreciated these boards while I prepared for the GMAT, so I hope I can provide some guidance for future test takers.
I've been a professional triathlete since graduating from university in 2011. After graduating, I kind of assumed I'd end up earning either an MBA or a JD. I had an opportunity to shoot for the London Olympics, however, so I went for that. After barely missing out on the team, I decided to take these four years to prepare for the 2016 Games. Unfortunately, early this year I ended up with a stress fracture in my femur and was restricted to crutches for about 8 weeks. With some time to kill and to avoid going postal thinking about the races/training I'd be missing, I picked up a GMAT book and started doing problems. I had rehab to do, so I filled my days with rehabbing, studying, watching tv, drinking, and doing all four at the same time.
I'm going to lay out both how I prepared for the GMAT and how I'd recommend studying. I took 3 months to prepare, but easily could have cut that down with better study habits.
How I Prepared/Effective Studying Strategies
My materials:
1. Free GMAT download plus 2 additional tests
2. Official GMAT study guide, 11th ED (Used, free)
3. Kaplan Premier 2014
4. Kaplan 800
5. Free online Veritas Prep Test
6. Free online Manhattan Prep Test
7. GMAT Club Practice Problems/Forum
8. Manhattan SC Guide
First step (Week 1):
How I started:
Although I wanted to perform well, my initial focus was on distracting myself from my injury. As a result, I started out just doing problems and reading through Kaplan Premier, without really examining where I went wrong. The first practice test I did was from the free software download on the GMAC website, but I'd already been studying for a little while. I scored a 770 and was happily surprised.
How I'd recommend starting:
Before beginning the real studying, go through some practice problems just to know the organization of the test. Do one full length practice exam to determine on which parts you perform most poorly and to see how exhausted you feel after 4 hrs of circle clicking. Mark the results down in a log that you'll keep for the remainder of your preparation. I never kept a log and definitely wasted time.
The Meat and Potatoes (Week 2ish until 3ish weeks left)
How I did most of my studying:
I continued with my theme of just doing bunches of questions and practice tests, but I started going over each answer carefully. I never kept a log, but it would have been much more efficient to have done that.
I paid attention to specific hints in the test prep books. The 'tricks' that helped me most were: developing a specific essay outline which I could easily apply to all AWA, becoming comfortable writing down an outline of RC passages, and learning how to quickly eliminate wrong answer choices on the SC.
It was also helpful when I realized that all the concepts tested on the GMAT are straightforward, it's just the presentation that's weird. One thing that pissed me off, but was true, was when people would look at my math notes and go 'that math is simple. I could do that.' I wanted to say "nice job, you can multiply and divide", but really, the math is simple, it's just difficult figuring out what the GMAT wants answered.
Only once was I ever able to fit in a full practice exam in one sitting because I'd have rehab or training at specific times of the day.
I ended up taking 4 GMAC software practices, scoring 770, 770, 770, 780. Each time, except the (780), I was blown away that I hadn't scored 650ish. On the 780 I remember I only missed 3 questions on the whole test.
I also took the Kaplan tests from the Kaplan Premier package and scored: 710, 760, 760, 740, 750. I liked the advice and knowledge in the Kaplan packs, but I wasn't keen on their CR and RC questions. They tested good things, but they felt different from the GMAC practice and exam. I would say that Kaplan teaches in a good way, but that you shouldn't take your scores too seriously. Definitely go over the wrong answers, but recognize that occasionally the Verbal questions are just 'too clever'. I also felt that my 740 and 750 scores were better than my two 760s, so I was surprised to see the drop.
How I'd recommend studying:
I'd continue with the log of wrong answers. Once you identify specific areas of weakness, it's easier to work on those areas and efficiently improve your score.
Also, I liked to doing very difficult SC, even though the GMAT SC was never going to be as difficult. I think the very difficult SC helps clarify issues that the GMAT will be testing and helps you learn how to analyze SC problems efficiently. There are only so many ways to make a sentence wrong that when aspects of SC become complicated you begin notice patterns.
I don't think it's entirely necessary to do repeated full length practice tests. I think knowing that you can do a good amount of practice in a couple hours allows you to get in more practice than feeling that, for the practice to be 'effective', you need to rearrange a whole day for the full 4 hour test. Answering 2 hours of questions multiple days in a row is more effective than rearranging your whole week so that you can do one big day when you take the full practice test.
That being said, you need to be able to breeze through the essay. This means having an easily applicable essay format and being comfortable figuring out why the argument is wrong. Kaplan has a good format for the essay, but I'm pretty sure that any outline you practice and have down pat will work well. I started thinking of the essay as a warm up for CR because the AWA and CR are asking practically the same thing, they just test it differently.
The Final Push (Last 3ish weeks)
How I studied
Despite having scored highly in all practices, I got pretty anxious in the final month. I was actually scheduled to take the exam mid June after 2 months of prep, but panicked and postponed it. I took about a week break after postponing the test. I don't think I gained anything in Quant during the past month, but became much more confident in my SC and consistent on Verbal. In the past month, I took four tests: a GMAC (780), a Kaplan (750), a Manhattan (730), and a Veritas (800). As a side note, I may have been a few beers too deep by the time the MGMAT verbal rolled around. Each test I had to stop between the AWA/IR section and the Verbal/Quant section because of how my training/rehab was scheduled.
I was surprised by the Veritas score, but by the end I was mainly focused on improving my performance on the hardest questions. I think this made tests which are harder than the GMAT give me a high score, even though I could still be tripped up on the GMAT by extra funny wording. I think this skewed my studying because I could still make mistakes on easy questions, but started focusing on very hard questions instead. The questions I was practicing were too difficult and many of the concepts I spent hours learning didn't end up appearing on the exam. Knowing easy concepts down pat may have been more effective than being comfortable with harder questions (it took me forever to really understand combinatorics + probability).
How I'd Recommend A Final Prep:
Most of this prep should be about becoming consistent in your scores. Adding on new concepts at the end may confuse you. I started studying idioms at the end (worst idea ever for a native speaker during the final week) and definitely missed one on the exam as a result. If you're a native speaker, then I'd recommend getting idioms in early. You don't want to mess with your natural ear for idioms.
Figure out what level you're likely to score at and do problems in the corresponding range. You'll become more comfortable with the format and more relaxed during the test. I think the only exception to this rule was that I liked doing hard SC because I started to notice the specific things the GMAT tests. Again, the test isn't about English or Math, it's about your ability to work with basic concepts which are presented in novel ways.
The Test
How I took it:
About the only thing I think I nailed was my eating plan for the test. I think that came from specific nutritional plans for my triathlons! I had about 50% of an 8oz red bull with a 6 inch Subway (No Turkey!) before the test. A Kashi Bar and another 4oz of Red Bull I split between the two breaks. I brought in some Dilbert to read in the breaks, but obviously they wouldn't let me read it
I kind of freaked out on the Quant section because it felt way too easy, but I took a chill pill and just focused on doing each question to the best of my ability. Bunuel is a God amongst men (if you do math on this site at all you'll know who he is), but you don't need to be at his level for a 51. I finished the Quant right on time, but was able to spend about 4 minutes on a couple problems because I'd paced it well. The Verbal I could have finished early, but spent a really long time on the last two problems because I had about 10 minutes to spare.
My final score: 780 (51Q 46 V), 8 IR, 5.5 AWA
How I'd recommend taking it:
Like I did?
Take Aways:
Good luck! Let me know if there are areas that are unclear.
Sincerely,
@Grillington
I've been a professional triathlete since graduating from university in 2011. After graduating, I kind of assumed I'd end up earning either an MBA or a JD. I had an opportunity to shoot for the London Olympics, however, so I went for that. After barely missing out on the team, I decided to take these four years to prepare for the 2016 Games. Unfortunately, early this year I ended up with a stress fracture in my femur and was restricted to crutches for about 8 weeks. With some time to kill and to avoid going postal thinking about the races/training I'd be missing, I picked up a GMAT book and started doing problems. I had rehab to do, so I filled my days with rehabbing, studying, watching tv, drinking, and doing all four at the same time.
I'm going to lay out both how I prepared for the GMAT and how I'd recommend studying. I took 3 months to prepare, but easily could have cut that down with better study habits.
How I Prepared/Effective Studying Strategies
My materials:
1. Free GMAT download plus 2 additional tests
2. Official GMAT study guide, 11th ED (Used, free)
3. Kaplan Premier 2014
4. Kaplan 800
5. Free online Veritas Prep Test
6. Free online Manhattan Prep Test
7. GMAT Club Practice Problems/Forum
8. Manhattan SC Guide
First step (Week 1):
How I started:
Although I wanted to perform well, my initial focus was on distracting myself from my injury. As a result, I started out just doing problems and reading through Kaplan Premier, without really examining where I went wrong. The first practice test I did was from the free software download on the GMAC website, but I'd already been studying for a little while. I scored a 770 and was happily surprised.
How I'd recommend starting:
Before beginning the real studying, go through some practice problems just to know the organization of the test. Do one full length practice exam to determine on which parts you perform most poorly and to see how exhausted you feel after 4 hrs of circle clicking. Mark the results down in a log that you'll keep for the remainder of your preparation. I never kept a log and definitely wasted time.
The Meat and Potatoes (Week 2ish until 3ish weeks left)
How I did most of my studying:
I continued with my theme of just doing bunches of questions and practice tests, but I started going over each answer carefully. I never kept a log, but it would have been much more efficient to have done that.
I paid attention to specific hints in the test prep books. The 'tricks' that helped me most were: developing a specific essay outline which I could easily apply to all AWA, becoming comfortable writing down an outline of RC passages, and learning how to quickly eliminate wrong answer choices on the SC.
It was also helpful when I realized that all the concepts tested on the GMAT are straightforward, it's just the presentation that's weird. One thing that pissed me off, but was true, was when people would look at my math notes and go 'that math is simple. I could do that.' I wanted to say "nice job, you can multiply and divide", but really, the math is simple, it's just difficult figuring out what the GMAT wants answered.
Only once was I ever able to fit in a full practice exam in one sitting because I'd have rehab or training at specific times of the day.
I ended up taking 4 GMAC software practices, scoring 770, 770, 770, 780. Each time, except the (780), I was blown away that I hadn't scored 650ish. On the 780 I remember I only missed 3 questions on the whole test.
I also took the Kaplan tests from the Kaplan Premier package and scored: 710, 760, 760, 740, 750. I liked the advice and knowledge in the Kaplan packs, but I wasn't keen on their CR and RC questions. They tested good things, but they felt different from the GMAC practice and exam. I would say that Kaplan teaches in a good way, but that you shouldn't take your scores too seriously. Definitely go over the wrong answers, but recognize that occasionally the Verbal questions are just 'too clever'. I also felt that my 740 and 750 scores were better than my two 760s, so I was surprised to see the drop.
How I'd recommend studying:
I'd continue with the log of wrong answers. Once you identify specific areas of weakness, it's easier to work on those areas and efficiently improve your score.
Also, I liked to doing very difficult SC, even though the GMAT SC was never going to be as difficult. I think the very difficult SC helps clarify issues that the GMAT will be testing and helps you learn how to analyze SC problems efficiently. There are only so many ways to make a sentence wrong that when aspects of SC become complicated you begin notice patterns.
I don't think it's entirely necessary to do repeated full length practice tests. I think knowing that you can do a good amount of practice in a couple hours allows you to get in more practice than feeling that, for the practice to be 'effective', you need to rearrange a whole day for the full 4 hour test. Answering 2 hours of questions multiple days in a row is more effective than rearranging your whole week so that you can do one big day when you take the full practice test.
That being said, you need to be able to breeze through the essay. This means having an easily applicable essay format and being comfortable figuring out why the argument is wrong. Kaplan has a good format for the essay, but I'm pretty sure that any outline you practice and have down pat will work well. I started thinking of the essay as a warm up for CR because the AWA and CR are asking practically the same thing, they just test it differently.
The Final Push (Last 3ish weeks)
How I studied
Despite having scored highly in all practices, I got pretty anxious in the final month. I was actually scheduled to take the exam mid June after 2 months of prep, but panicked and postponed it. I took about a week break after postponing the test. I don't think I gained anything in Quant during the past month, but became much more confident in my SC and consistent on Verbal. In the past month, I took four tests: a GMAC (780), a Kaplan (750), a Manhattan (730), and a Veritas (800). As a side note, I may have been a few beers too deep by the time the MGMAT verbal rolled around. Each test I had to stop between the AWA/IR section and the Verbal/Quant section because of how my training/rehab was scheduled.
I was surprised by the Veritas score, but by the end I was mainly focused on improving my performance on the hardest questions. I think this made tests which are harder than the GMAT give me a high score, even though I could still be tripped up on the GMAT by extra funny wording. I think this skewed my studying because I could still make mistakes on easy questions, but started focusing on very hard questions instead. The questions I was practicing were too difficult and many of the concepts I spent hours learning didn't end up appearing on the exam. Knowing easy concepts down pat may have been more effective than being comfortable with harder questions (it took me forever to really understand combinatorics + probability).
How I'd Recommend A Final Prep:
Most of this prep should be about becoming consistent in your scores. Adding on new concepts at the end may confuse you. I started studying idioms at the end (worst idea ever for a native speaker during the final week) and definitely missed one on the exam as a result. If you're a native speaker, then I'd recommend getting idioms in early. You don't want to mess with your natural ear for idioms.
Figure out what level you're likely to score at and do problems in the corresponding range. You'll become more comfortable with the format and more relaxed during the test. I think the only exception to this rule was that I liked doing hard SC because I started to notice the specific things the GMAT tests. Again, the test isn't about English or Math, it's about your ability to work with basic concepts which are presented in novel ways.
The Test
How I took it:
About the only thing I think I nailed was my eating plan for the test. I think that came from specific nutritional plans for my triathlons! I had about 50% of an 8oz red bull with a 6 inch Subway (No Turkey!) before the test. A Kashi Bar and another 4oz of Red Bull I split between the two breaks. I brought in some Dilbert to read in the breaks, but obviously they wouldn't let me read it
I kind of freaked out on the Quant section because it felt way too easy, but I took a chill pill and just focused on doing each question to the best of my ability. Bunuel is a God amongst men (if you do math on this site at all you'll know who he is), but you don't need to be at his level for a 51. I finished the Quant right on time, but was able to spend about 4 minutes on a couple problems because I'd paced it well. The Verbal I could have finished early, but spent a really long time on the last two problems because I had about 10 minutes to spare.
My final score: 780 (51Q 46 V), 8 IR, 5.5 AWA
How I'd recommend taking it:
Like I did?
Take Aways:
- Keep a log of incorrect answers/weak areas
Read the GMAT Club "Everything you Need to Know" sections
Practice tons of questions, always go over answers
Practice and perfect an essay format - memorize some good 'argumental' vocab
Be comfortable taking good notes on the Verbal section
Realize that the test isn't about math/verbal - it's about working with relatively basic concepts
Relax and have confidence the last couple days
Focus on each question during the exam, don't think about how hard it "should" be
Good luck! Let me know if there are areas that are unclear.
Sincerely,
@Grillington
24 Jul 2014, 10:45
Kudos
Bookmarks
3.85, 780 gmat, athlete at the Olympic level.....you're like the bschool unicorn. 
Waiting for your extracurricular activity to be revealed as discovering a real unicorn.
Good share though!
Waiting for your extracurricular activity to be revealed as discovering a real unicorn.
Good share though!
Kconfused
Joined: 17 Oct 2013
Last visit: 30 Mar 2016
Posts: 31
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 549
Location: India
Concentration: Strategy, Statistics
Schools: ISB '17 (A)
GMAT 1: 730 Q49 V40
WE:Analyst (Computer Software)
24 Jul 2014, 12:27
Kudos
Bookmarks
Congratulations on a great score! Focusing on very hard SC questions makes a lot of sense now. There are only so many ways they can twist a sentence.
Would you also be able to share your strategy for CR questions? How did you comfortably deal with CR?
Thanks
Would you also be able to share your strategy for CR questions? How did you comfortably deal with CR?
Thanks
