Evaluate my Study Plan

Question

Hello everyone,

I am currently finishing up my Master's in Biochemistry (thesis is under review) from McGill University and plan to graduate sometime this June. Although certain aspects of academic research were interesting, I really did not enjoy the academic lifestyle and the career path that followed. I therefore have no intentions of getting my PhD anytime soon or working as a researcher for any pharmaceutical company. I am essentially at a cross-road in my career and I'm looking to transition into business. My ideal job right now is consulting for three main reasons: I enjoy problem solving, the approach to problem solving is very hypothesis driven and similar to academic research, and I'll be exposed to a wide variety of industries and get a strong sense for business.

With this in mind I want to take the GMAT and break the 700 barrier, ideally getting a score around 730. I want to get a good score for two reasons: it will help me get into a good consulting firm, and since the score is good for 5 years, will help me get into a good MBA program (which I plan on doing regardless if I get into consulting or not). Since I'm done writing my thesis, I currently have the time and energy to focus on studying for this exam. I plan on taking the GMAT before the new GMAT is implemented, giving me a solid 3 months to prepare.

Here is the material that I currently have:
-OG12
-OG Quant Review edition 2
-OG Verbal Review edition 2
-MGMAT 8 Strategy guides

I haven't purchased any CAT exams but plan on getting the 6 MGMAT CAT exams as well as doing all the free exams that are available to me. This should give me about 12 CAT exams total.

I have taken the first free GMAT Prep Exam after zero studying to get an idea of where I stand. I scored a 600 with Q:41 and V:31. I also did the GMAT Club diagnostic test and did very poorly on it. I'm currently reviewing it and have realized that I have a big timing issue! I've used this to create the following study guide for myself:

First month will focus on the quantitative aspects of the exam. I plan on systematically going through the 5 Quantitative MGMAT strategy guides, taking notes and reviewing basic foundations that I have forgotten. I will also be doing all of the practice questions they refer to in the OG guide and keep track of my errors using the error log. I won't be doing the OG Quant review questions yet as I want to save them for the end of the month and use them as an overall review once I'm done all sections of the quant. Hopefully I will have a strong understanding of my weakest areas in quant by the end of the month and I'll be able to practice questions in those specific areas.

The second month will focus on the verbal aspects of the exam. I will go through the 3 booklets and do all the practice questions that are mentioned in the book. I feel like this is the area that can give me the most significant improvement on the GMAT. I will focus first on the SC booklet and then try to develop strategies for the CR before moving on to RC. I plan on doing a CAT exam each weekend starting in the second month just to keep the math material fresh. I also will try to do quant problems targeting my weak areas.

The third month will focus on CAT exams and problem areas. I plan on writing a few AWA essays as well just to get a better overall feel for the exam.

I expect to be able to spend up to 4 hours a day studying, maybe implementing a rest day here and there.

So there it is, my study plan for the next three months. A 130 point increase is ambitious, but I feel like I have the time, motivation, materials, and all the support I need (through this forum) to reach my goal. I was wondering what you guys thought about this plan? Do you have any additional suggestions for me? I heard that the MGMAT Verbal material wasn't the best... is there an alternative that has proven helpful for you? All suggestions are very welcome!

Cheers,

deadlycat · Answer

Your study plan is very balanced which is good considering that you have room for improvement in both the quantitative and verbal section. 130 point improvement is certainly doable. The only other suggestion I have is that you use PowerScore GMAT CR Bible instead of MGMAT CR.

abhi47 · Answer

Sounds Good. Try RC 99 book instead of MGMAT RC book.

wallstreetbarbie · Answer

sounds like a sound plan... I will say this... stay flexible!

Currently your split is equal between time spent on quant and verbal. A 41 in Q will be much harder to improve upon without some time spent doing challenging questions. Many people have done the jump from 45 to 50 by using the GMAT club question banks. Consider that if you get to the 45 bracket and stop seeing improvements.

Verbal - SC is something every 700 score has mastered. Really spend some time getting comfortable with it and even doing the questions in a minute. I found that RC is my strong suit so my time spent on practice has not been as intensive. You may find the same. As such, no need to go and purchase all the materials if you wont end up using it. I would start with the MGMAT materials, if you find them lacking then go out and seek for a replacement.

Also when you purchase any one of the MGMAT strategy guides you get access to their 6 cats for free (well its included in the price of the book) so no need to separately purchase them.

Yekrut · Answer

Thank you everyone for the additional advice! I'll keep posting my updates and thoughts on the material as I progress through it.

I'll definitely check out the PowerScore GMAT CR Bible and RC 99 books when I get to those two sections. I'll need to better evaluate my comfort level with those questions before spending the money on the purchase.

I'll for sure try to stay flexible! I think it's a very important component. My goal is to be able to consistently get around 48-49 in the Qaunt section and then really focus on the Verbal section to drive the overall score up. Once I can score in the 45 range comfortably I'll check out the GMAT Club questions banks as well. Sentence corrections seems to be the easiest section to improve in the verbal section. I will definitely want to master that before moving on to either CR and RC which I feel more comfortable with.

Thank you all for you support and advice!

Yekrut · Answer

Wanted to post an upadte on my study schedule. I have currently finished the MGMAT Number Properties booklet and have started the MGMAT Word Translation guide. I found the MGMAT Number Properties book to be extremely useful. It provided me with shortcuts and tips for things that I knew how to do making me much more efficient. While going through the material I've been taking extensive notes, studying my notes before doing the OG questions. I've been keeping an error log and trying to figure out my weaknesses within this section. I've also downloaded miguelmick's flashcards (my-comprehensive-quant-flashcards-109836.html) and have found them extremely useful. They help test any of my weak areas and also added some tips that I hadn't seen in the book. Although I haven't had too much difficulty with the Number Properties section, I seem to make dumb mistakes with more complex exponent problems.

I'm finding the Word Translation section very useful so far. I have a lot of trouble with the combinatoric section. Does anyone have a set of exercises that I could practice to improve my capacity to translate these types of questions (often getting confused between combination and permutation)? While I study this section I'll be making note cards for the previous booklet to keep the material fresh and continuously test myself.

Voila just a short update.

Yekrut · Answer

Update #2 (27 - 2 - 2012):

I have now finished the MGMAT Word Translations Guide. I have completed all of the OG12 problems within the booklet and am going to tackle the advanced ones soon. I'm noticing that I have difficulty with algebraic translation: I either get it right away, or struggle and spend way too much time trying to figure it out. I'm also finding that I'm a bit slow when the calculations start getting intensive.

I was wondering if anyone had specific problem sets to practice algebraic translation type questions? I think the more I practice these the more comfortable I will be with them.

I was also wondering if anyone had some extra advice for becoming more comfortable with performing "complex" math. I tend to be slow with bigger numbers. Does anyone have a website that I could use to improve this?

Any help would be much appreciated!

Yekrut · Answer

Update #3 (5-03-2012):

I'm halfway through my third Quant booklet. I did not progress as much as I would like. Kind of hit a low point and lacked the motivation to study the entire week. But I've hopefully kicked myself back into gear and plan on finishing two of the booklets this week. I'm looking forward to finishing up the Quant section and going over my mistakes so I can take another diagnostic test and track my improvements/what still need improving before moving on to the Verbal section.

As I mentioned last week I am having trouble with algebraic translations and any problems that fall in this sub-category would be welcome. I also seem to have trouble with problems involving cobinatorics. This is something I have always been weak in and would love some problems to improve this area.

All help is very appreciated.

gmatchlub12 · Answer

I also want to thank everyone that has responded to Yekrut. I have found some of these comments helpful in my situation as well.

Yekrut · Answer

Hello everyone,

Here's another update. I'm not going to lie, I've hit a rut. I'm lacking motivation and drive to put in the studying hours and do the exercises. I've probably spent about 2 hours total this past week working on the problems. I have now fallen behind schedule and feel down.

I was wondering if any of you had gone through a similar experience and if you had any advice of how to get back on the horse? What kind of advice do you have for someone struggling to find the motivation and drive? Any advice or experiences would be very welcome.

Cheers,

Yekrut · Answer

You're welcome!

Still looking for advice about over coming a lull in my studying. Anyone else have this experience? And if so what did you do to over come it?

Cheers,

01dynamic · Answer

Yekrut:

Studying for the GMAT is a big undertaking, but nevertheless an extremely important one. Staying motivated to keep up your intense studying can sometimes be hard. I’m going to give you a few ideas that I have used to stay motivated. Hopefully they can improve your GMAT motivation as well.

1) Remember why you are doing this in the first place. Is it because you want to bring morals back to the business world? Whatever it is, picture yourself as the successful person you want to be, and think about the changes you will make. Envision that you have already achieved the accomplishments you desire. Think about how good it’s going to feel when you get there.
2) I know that I have certain movies that get me psyched up, and I bet you do too. I like to picture myself as the main character in some of my favorite movies and that gets me in the mood to study. It lets me imagine what my life will be like in the future and really revs up my GMAT motivation.

3) Just like the movies, I also have some motivating songs. For whatever the reason may be, we all have songs that make us feel good. It may bring back certain memories or make you daydream of the future. These songs are great to throw on your mp3 player to listen to while you are studying.

4) Like it or not, money is a big motivator. When you find it hard to crack open the book to study, think about all the nice things you’ve always dreamed of having. Think about that fancy house on the lake that you will be able to afford when you get your good paying job in the future. Picture yourself in that sweet sports car. Whatever you need to do to keep your GMAT motivation, do it.

Virtually everyone goes through periods of wanting to give up. Studying for the GMAT is hard. But you have to stay motivated. These tips may seem childish or selfish, but they can work. Would you rather try one of these tips or flunk the GMAT because you gave up trying?

wallstreetbarbie · Answer

I am kind of hitting my own personal rut... I think after 4 months of intense study (20+ hours per week) and I am burned out... so I took a vacation... now im back and need to snap out of vacation mode and kick it into high gear.

For me, deadlines motivate me. I have a very detailed study plan for the next 3 weeks and I will make sure i hit them. But different things motivate different people. Also, the weather in NYC has been super nice and its only March... so the thought of spending my summer studying is discouraging... thus I want to be done and tested ASAP.

Yekrut · Answer

Thank you dynamic for your kind words. I agree with much of what you have said. I have indeed lost sight of my original reason of doing the GMAT: bolster my CV use my score as a strength when applying for a consulting position. Bringing this back in the picture will hopefully help me hit the books again.

You are also very correct about music and movies! You've actually just reminded me of a TV show I really enjoy: Mad Men. Who wouldn't want to be Donald Draper (or at least some aspects of him). Hopefully watching the show will get me back in the mood to study.

Thank you very much for your motivating words!

Yekrut · Answer

I'm actually going to be taking a vacation next week as well. I hope to come back refreshed and ready to study. Hopefully I'll be able to bounce back as you have. It's very comforting to know that I am not the only one who has struggled with motivation. Thank you for your advice. Hope you bounce back strong and hit all of your targets!

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