Verbal 40+

You don't have to read particularly fast to score high in GMAT verbal, partly because most of what you have to read is not particularly voluminous.

You do have to be quick in other ways though. You have to be quick to pick up on the logic of what's stated, to notice details that are key for determining which choice is correct, and to see whether something written makes sense.

The way to develop those skills is, of all things, to practice slowly and carefully. In fact, one of the most common mistakes made by people training for GMAT verbal is seeking to answer practice questions too quickly. You won't learn to do what you have to do if you don't give yourself time to learn it. So, when training, you have to give yourself all the time you need in order to see what's going on in questions. As you develop skill in seeing what you have to see and in clearly defining why choices are incorrect or correct, you'll speed up.

Hi kevinthomas,

To start, you do NOT need to be a 'fast' reader to score at a high level on the GMAT, but you do have to work at a reasonable pace, 'attack' each prompt that you face (re: actively read, look for patterns, etc.) and take a reasonable amount of notes.

Your first post in the forums was back in October of last year. Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, 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?
3) How have you scored on EACH of your CATs/mocks (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)?

Goals:
4) What is your overall goal score?
5) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
6) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
7) What Schools are you planning to apply to?

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