Advice needed please

Question

I've recently decided to persue an MBA when I finish my BA in August 2010. I'm looking to entroll at a local, well ranked (in state /region) private MBA program. They had an average GMAT score of 530 last year.

I took a practice Kaplan test last night and got a 520 (non CAT), ideally I'd like to hit 600-630 when I take the GMAT for real in order to make up for a lower GPA (will end up with a 2.3-2.5 or a little higher). And I'd definatly like to even out my scores some, I'm way better at verbal.

I'd like to take the GMAT in the next 5-6 months, aiming for admission in Jan 11.

The score breakdown was:

Quantitative 
Raw Score 7 
Scaled Score 23

Verbal Section: 
Raw Score 32 
Scaled Score 40

My weakness is definatly in math. I already ordered the OG and the Kaplan GMAT Math Workbook (to help me get a better math foundation). What else would you recommend? I'm also considering enrolling in a program, leaning towards manhattan gmat after I've done some initial prep.

Thanks for your help!

lagomez · Answer

From what I heard most people tend to score lower on Kaplan than on the real exam. Download GMAT Prep and see what you score on that.

bigoyal · Answer

Here is the link to GMAT books and reviews: best-gmat-books-reviews-recommendations-77703.html

trzaskm · Answer

I can personally recommend Kaplan Premier for strategy, and the Manhattan Guides for help with concepts in quant and verbal.

M1santhrope · Answer

You should take a practice test that adapts to your responses; after all, that is how the gmat works. Nevertheless, assuming those scores are moderately credible, you'll likely want to confront your math woes. If you can't bring your quant score up into the high 30s or better, your verbal score will be irrelevant, whether it turns out to be 40 (strong) or 46 (superior). More to the point, if math isn't your strong suit -- or any suit -- maybe reconsider the wisdom in choosing an mba program. 
Mgmat practice tests are well liked because they provide lucid explanations leading to each answer; as opposed to just providing the correct answer. Once you're done, you can also observe the level of difficulty assigned to each question. Most importantly, the questions can ramp up to be very formidable as you answer a string of questions correctly, making almost certain that you have enough wrong answers to mull over.

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Advice needed please

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