GMAT Prep

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by kobeb, Aug 6, 2005.

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  1. kobeb

    kobeb New Member

    Hi all...

    Which GMAT Prep is the most effective for someone who doesn't take standardized test very well and has been out of school for 3-5 years?

    1. Kaplan Comprehensive-- Classroom or the new Online Comp. version

    Kaplan Website

    2. GMAT for Dummies

    3. GMAT study guides (Misc--from book stores etc.)

    Any comments are greatly appreciated!

    - K Bob sends...
     
  2. qvatlanta

    qvatlanta New Member

    I don't know if classes would be much better than self-studying in your situation... maybe someone else can give advice on that. However, since I'm not terribly strong in the math area, here are two books that really, really helped me get up to speed for the math. I highly recommend them.

    The Ultimate Math Refresher Workbook (for the GRE, GMAT and SAT) (Lighthouse Review)

    Math Word Problems Demystified: A Self-Teaching Guide (Allan G. Bluman)

    There is not really any GMAT math that a close study of those two books will not prepare you for. But you should also spend plenty of time on studying the actual method of taking the test... the usual suspects are Kaplan and Princeton Review.
     
  3. Fortunato

    Fortunato Member

    GMAT Prep Strategies

    I used the following strategy for GMAT prep. It worked really well for me.

    First, I downloaded the free PowerPrep software from MBA.com. It has two practice GMAT tests based on retired questions. I took the first practice exam to get an idea of where I was starting out from, and what my strengths and weaknesses were. In my case, I did really well on the verbal, but had a lot of room for improvement on the math portion.

    I bought three GMAT prep books - the Kaplan, Arco, and Princeton Review books. Of the three, I only read the Princeton Review book cover-to-cover, and it was their strategies I used to "attack" the test. I used the other books for their practice exams, concentrating on the math sections on the paper exams, and doing the entire test on the CD-ROMs. After exhausting the prep materials studying over a few weekends, I took the second PowerPrep test to see where I was and what sort of progress I'd made.

    Using this strategy, I spent about $110 on prep materials and raised my score from 680 on my first PowerPrep test to a 750 on my first and only crack at the real GMAT. I'd say most of that improvement came from understanding that the "trick" to the GMAT is to concentrate on the first ten questions of each section, because the test weights these questions very heavily. Another benefit of my prep regimen was that I did a lot of testing on the computer under conditions similar to those at the test center. This meant I didn't waste much time learning the test interface.

    Finally, the best piece of advice I can give you is to relax about the GMAT. It's simply not a make or break thing for most people's MBA applications. Remember that these schools really do look at the entire application and that weakness in one area can be addressed by strength in another. I ended up at Duke University, in the Fuqua Cross Continent Executive MBA program, and there are people here with GMAT scores much lower (and probably a few higher, too!) than mine. They bring a wealth of knowledge and experience into the program, and it would be idiotic of me to dismiss them because of performance on a single test.

    Best of luck in your preparations!
     

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