How important is the GMAT in the admission process scale of one to ten?  Hmm… let us first redefine the scale. It is a scale of ten ones rather than a scale from one to ten. Each applicant is evaluated on a gamut of aspects ranging from aptitude to work experience to extra-curricular activities to essays. Even recommendations are a critical component…

The GMAT is an indicator of your aptitude. It helps to predict how one would perform in class. It is better to get the GMAT out of your way and get onto other things which demand more effort and time. Certainly, the GMAT might appear to be a monster on your journey to secure an MBA. But trust me, once you get past this hurdle, you will realize that you have just hit the tip of the iceberg. Simply blow the GMAT out of your way and swiftly fly past it.  Giving one’s best to every inch of the admission process is important. No piece weighs more than any other.

If you need some guidance into acing the test be sure to see my article “The Four Letter Word..GMAT”

There is no ‘one size, fits all GMAT strategy!  “THE BEST” strategy is merely a myth.  No test taking strategy can be universal.  Strategy is something that’s highly dependent on a particular individual.  Tailor a strategy for your self.  I wasted some of my time trying to fit into the “universal” strategies.

Skimming is employed by many people to crack Reading Comprehension in the GMAT.  However, this suits me the least and I always ended in soup.  Luckily for me, I realised my problems sooner than later.  Neither skimming nor skipping are my cup of tea

Reading through each and every word is MY way.  But let me add something here… Do devote some time to read how people devised their strategies and what they did. You can get some cues that may help you and then develop your own DO-IT-YOURSELF GMAT strategy.    The MBA365 article “3 Steps to Scoring a 700 on the GMAT‘ details a good GMAT strategy and is one that for some people may indeed prove successful.  Also be sure to read my article “The four letter word..GMAT” to get a good intro to the test and some of the resources which were helpful to me in my studies.  Good Luck!

GMAT.. What is this test all about? Although it only covers English and Math, the big picture has much more to say.  As Princeton review rightly points out, to crack this test, you must be able to look at questions through the eye of the test maker rather than that of the test taker.   You are required to be good at your basics in Math and English grammar, BUT that’s definitely not all.

Understand what the exam intends to test.  Practice from genuine study material.  It’s easy to fall prey to the endless resources available on the Internet.  Understand that practice will help you to wade easily through the answer choices to the right answer.  That comes to you only when you know how to eliminate incorrect choices at a glance and solve smartly!  It is always better to stick to resources that give not only the solutions but their detailed working.

GMAT Official Guide and GMATPrep software make the BIBLE for GMAT.   Go ahead and solve from the supplement materials for Quant and Verbal from Official Guide(OG) for more questions. These study materials contain real GMAT questions that are retired from the database.  Get tuned to solving problems in the ‘GMAT Official Guide’s‘ way.  Once you fall into that groove, you can be sure that you are on the right track.  Ensure that you brush up on your basics and learn everything about the test; timing, number of questions, scheduling the test.. well before solving OG and I would recommend The Princeton Review: Cracking the GMAT to get an overview of the test.

The GMAT is one of the most crucial elements to a prospective business student’s application to any MBA program. The following three steps outline a program that anyone can follow and hopefully have you on your way to scoring over a 700 on your GMAT in only 2 months!

1) Develop a Consistent GMAT Study Plan and Stick to IT!
Developing a study plan that will get you ready for test day is one of the most important parts of your planning for the GMAT exam.  Developing this study plan will keep you on a stringent path and increase your probability of achieving a solid score on exam day.  Steps to take in order to create this game plan include:

– Figure out your time-line for Studying

Most students typically take an average of about 2 to 3 months to study for the GMAT.   Some have told me that they have been able to ace the GMAT in 3 weeks, yet others have needed from 6 to 12 months of study time. Regardless, you need to figure out what is going to be best for you.  Determining which days of the week you can study will be helpful too.  But deciding on what your time frame will be, will let you determine how much time you need to devote to every day of study.

– Use Excel to create a GMAT tracking spreadsheet

I strongly suggest creating a spreadsheet which allows you to track every problem set and practice exam that you take. Create columns in excel which list possible answers, what you answered, correct/incorrect, and why you might have answered the problem incorrectly. Mark the problems with an “X” which left you completely baffled or that took you quite some time to answer. By revisiting these questions you can refine your knowledge and definitely pick up some points on exam day.

2. Get the Right Materials!

I recommend one of the following books in your preparation:

– Kaplan Premier Program

– Manhattan GMAT Set of 8 Strategy Guides, 4th Edition

– Princeton Review GMAT

Each of these books explains the layout of the GMAT, an idea of the questions that you will see, and just great information on how to organize your studies.   They also provide some great practice questions and are a very good start in order to get in gear for acing the GMAT.  Starting with one of these guides first will be a great strategy, and once you are comfortable with the material you can then switch over to the The Official Guide for GMAT Review as they include questions from actual GMAT tests.

Now since you’ve set a schedule, have a spreadsheet to keep track of your progress, and have started working on one of the aforementioned GMAT review books, you’re ready to finish up your studies.   You can use the Official GMAT Guide to focus on your problem areas and try to narrowly focus your study on the areas which need the most work. Continue to use your excel spreadsheet to track your progress and work to improve your overall knowledge.

3)  Practice Makes Perfect!
Now is the time to start taking some practice exams under real exam conditions.  In order to score a 700 on the GMAT you will need to take several practice tests.   I  would recommend that you take a practice test on a weekly basis, probably at least a month out from your actual test date.   I would recommend that you work at least 30 problems from each category of the GMAT each week.   One the weekend, I would take one timed test, but make sure that this is timed  and under real test conditions.  Don’t sit in front of the TV or your computer!  Go to a library or an office and stay focused!!    Be sure to give yourself the full 3 uninterrupted hours to take a Computer-Adaptive Test to follow the real structure of a GMAT exam.

So you are now on your way to acing the GMAT!  What are you waiting for!  Go get your books, set your schedule and start cranking away on some problems!