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Scoring 329 on the GRE is not always about using more books, more courses, or a longer study plan. In this episode of GRE Success Talks, Ashutosh shares his GRE preparation strategy, study plan, and test-day experience, explaining how he kept his prep....
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01 Sep 2010, 08:55
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Hi everyone,
I just recently started thinking about applying to bschool and I'm fairly new to the forum. I'm contemplating between taking a prep course and studying on my own for the GMAT. Here's my situation in bullet points:
- I have 4-6 weeks to study, but I'm willing to put in 15-20 hours/week to study. I can be pretty disciplined on my own.
- I have a strong engineering background. Several years ago, when I was still in school, I scored 100% on the GRE math w/o studying. I do realize I need some refreshers on the math part but it should be easily done on my own.
- English is my second language but it has been my preferred language for many years; however, I think verbal will be my weakness. I'm actually excited about brushing up on my grammar and improving my reading and writing skills!
My dilemma: Again, choosing between studying on my own and taking a prep course. The prep course that I'm eying on is Knewton. I sat in on one of the math classes and the pace was too slow for me. Since the Knewton prep course is structured in a way that half of the 12 sessions are on math and the other half on verbal, I'm not sure if I want to shell out the money for utilization of 60% of the resources (based on the assumption that I'd use 20% of the math resources and 100% of the verbal resources). I know test-taking strategies are important. Will I learn the strategies from books? Or will I only be able to learn from classes? On the other hand, I feel this is the year to go to bschool and I'd like to put my all into it. It's almost like now or never. I don't mind paying for a prep course, as long as it's worth my time and money.
If self studying, I would get the GMAT OG, MGMAT CR, SC, and RC. After reading the book recommendations, I realized I probably need more strategy books, even on quant. Maybe I'd add Kaplan Premier to that?
Thank you very much in advance for your advice!
I just recently started thinking about applying to bschool and I'm fairly new to the forum. I'm contemplating between taking a prep course and studying on my own for the GMAT. Here's my situation in bullet points:
- I have 4-6 weeks to study, but I'm willing to put in 15-20 hours/week to study. I can be pretty disciplined on my own.
- I have a strong engineering background. Several years ago, when I was still in school, I scored 100% on the GRE math w/o studying. I do realize I need some refreshers on the math part but it should be easily done on my own.
- English is my second language but it has been my preferred language for many years; however, I think verbal will be my weakness. I'm actually excited about brushing up on my grammar and improving my reading and writing skills!
My dilemma: Again, choosing between studying on my own and taking a prep course. The prep course that I'm eying on is Knewton. I sat in on one of the math classes and the pace was too slow for me. Since the Knewton prep course is structured in a way that half of the 12 sessions are on math and the other half on verbal, I'm not sure if I want to shell out the money for utilization of 60% of the resources (based on the assumption that I'd use 20% of the math resources and 100% of the verbal resources). I know test-taking strategies are important. Will I learn the strategies from books? Or will I only be able to learn from classes? On the other hand, I feel this is the year to go to bschool and I'd like to put my all into it. It's almost like now or never. I don't mind paying for a prep course, as long as it's worth my time and money.
If self studying, I would get the GMAT OG, MGMAT CR, SC, and RC. After reading the book recommendations, I realized I probably need more strategy books, even on quant. Maybe I'd add Kaplan Premier to that?
Thank you very much in advance for your advice!
whiplash2411
Joined: 09 Jun 2010
Last visit: 02 Mar 2015
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Status:Three Down.
Concentration: General Management, Nonprofit
Schools: HBS '17 (M) Stanford '17 (A)
01 Sep 2010, 14:13
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I'd recommend you to take a GMAT Prep exam first before you start your preparation. The GMAT Prep is the official "practice exam" so to speak, issued by the GMAC. So it uses the actual testing algorithm and from results so far, it seems to be the most accurate, give or take 30 points.
Assuming you have a 45+ Quant score from what you've told us about yourself, I really feel like there's no need to throw away $600 on a prep course. Especially since you mention that you are disciplined enough to study by your own.
I'd recommend a self-study option. Start with the GMAT Prep. As for Math, even though you're at a good level, I'd still advise you to get some good books to completely prepare yourself and not get complacent on any grounds. The MGMAT Bundle is a good find, I'd think. It's around $200 and has the MGMAT Strategy Guides + OG12 + OG Quant and Verbal Review along with the stimulation booklet and marker, I think.
However, if you score at like a 45+ on Quant already, then I'd recommend just getting the OG12 and purchasing the GMAT Club Math Tests (These are hardcore 700+ level materials and they're excellent source of practice). Jeff Sackmann's Sets are also good, from reviews on the site, though I've not used them personally. If your score is in that range, getting math books might not be that helpful, so you can just use the GMAT Club Math Book for any concepts you need and so on.
As for verbal, I'd recommend the MGMAT SC Guide, Powerscore CR Bible (Personally, I really like Powerscore's strategies) and any LSAT Book for RC.
However if you like a comprehensive set of books, you could also get the Veritas Book Set for more practice. They've only recently been released and they seem to have a lot of problems that are new. The guides are also organized very effectively into question types, so you can brush up on your weaknesses easily.
So, in summary (This is beginning to remind me of my speech class more and more ..... )
1. Take GMAT Prep
2. If Q>45, don't buy books. Just stick with tests and sets. Or buy books if you really want them :D
3. Buy recommended books for Verbal.
Check out the self study portion of the forum for more detailed reviews on the books.
Assuming you have a 45+ Quant score from what you've told us about yourself, I really feel like there's no need to throw away $600 on a prep course. Especially since you mention that you are disciplined enough to study by your own.
I'd recommend a self-study option. Start with the GMAT Prep. As for Math, even though you're at a good level, I'd still advise you to get some good books to completely prepare yourself and not get complacent on any grounds. The MGMAT Bundle is a good find, I'd think. It's around $200 and has the MGMAT Strategy Guides + OG12 + OG Quant and Verbal Review along with the stimulation booklet and marker, I think.
However, if you score at like a 45+ on Quant already, then I'd recommend just getting the OG12 and purchasing the GMAT Club Math Tests (These are hardcore 700+ level materials and they're excellent source of practice). Jeff Sackmann's Sets are also good, from reviews on the site, though I've not used them personally. If your score is in that range, getting math books might not be that helpful, so you can just use the GMAT Club Math Book for any concepts you need and so on.
As for verbal, I'd recommend the MGMAT SC Guide, Powerscore CR Bible (Personally, I really like Powerscore's strategies) and any LSAT Book for RC.
However if you like a comprehensive set of books, you could also get the Veritas Book Set for more practice. They've only recently been released and they seem to have a lot of problems that are new. The guides are also organized very effectively into question types, so you can brush up on your weaknesses easily.
So, in summary (This is beginning to remind me of my speech class more and more ..... )
1. Take GMAT Prep
2. If Q>45, don't buy books. Just stick with tests and sets. Or buy books if you really want them :D
3. Buy recommended books for Verbal.
Check out the self study portion of the forum for more detailed reviews on the books.
01 Sep 2010, 14:38
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Bookmarks
You appear to be self-disciplined so perhaps the self study option might be good for you.
As whiplash said if you get a quant score of Q45 or above you'll need some really tough questions and you can get these with the GMAT Club tests.
On the other hand if you don't get a high score in quant you might want to purchase the MGMAT Guides. I would recommend these based on my personal experience. Check them out in the following link best-gmat-books-77703.html.
You didn't mention Powerscore CR Bible in your post. It's highly rated and personally I've found it very useful. Though it is a bit lengthy.
And yes forget about improving your writing skills. Don't bother spending too much time on the AWA portion of the test. Check this link out
how-to-get-6-0-awa-my-guide-64327.html
As whiplash said if you get a quant score of Q45 or above you'll need some really tough questions and you can get these with the GMAT Club tests.
On the other hand if you don't get a high score in quant you might want to purchase the MGMAT Guides. I would recommend these based on my personal experience. Check them out in the following link best-gmat-books-77703.html.
You didn't mention Powerscore CR Bible in your post. It's highly rated and personally I've found it very useful. Though it is a bit lengthy.
And yes forget about improving your writing skills. Don't bother spending too much time on the AWA portion of the test. Check this link out
how-to-get-6-0-awa-my-guide-64327.html
