GMAT Strategy

bubbliiiiiiii wrote:Thanks Ron for the post. Though I have read this idea earlier, I think I am understanding its true meaning only now because I am trying to drive that approach. :)

My current action plan is to revisit the OG12 SC section and try to solve the questions from meaning perspective. I also found a good post by Stacey on MGMAT, analyzing OG12 questions from meaning perspective. I hope this approach would help me understand things.

this sounds like a good thing to do.

Also, I was worried about my score from one of my MGMAT tests. Firstly, I found the MGMAT tests to be very tiring for me (may be because the level of complexity of questions is slightly higher in MGMAT than it is in GMAT PREP) and I ended up guessing the last 5-6 question in verbal section. My score from my MGMAT Prep was 640 (while 680, on average, in GMAT Prep). Is this fine or am I going down in my understanding?

if you left that many questions blank at the end of the exam, then those questions would account for the difference. also, 40 points isn't much of a discrepancy anyway, considering that the standard deviation in the results of this test is 30 points -- i.e., if you just took two random tests, you would actually expect them to differ by almost that much on average.

If you would like to analyze things before suggesting me, I can export the results of my exam in an excel sheet and send it to you.

sorry, i can't do that much individual analysis on a forum for free -- that would constitute private tutoring.

sachindia wrote:I am asking this because like the original poster of the thread, I have been studying without a break..There's never been a day without having studied for gmat ever since I started preparing for GMAT..

take a week off.
or two.

sachindia wrote:ok.. what If I lose the skills I gained?

For eg, If I don't revise the math concepts, I might have to work with them again..

i guess i don't understand this comment. i'm reading it as "if i don't go over the concepts, i might have to go over the concepts", which doesn't make sense.

in any case, there is nothing on this test that can be forgotten in just a couple of weeks (or months).

Just trying to understand the importance of break which you are suggesting..

your brain doesn't build new neurons when you are studying; it builds them during rest periods. your brain needs time off to build new connections, in exactly the same way your body needs time off to get stronger. (if you try to work out every day, you won't get any stronger -- and eventually you'll injure yourself.)

and my question still remains. does 'this break rule' apply for everybody always?

experiment with it and find out.

sachindia wrote:Thanks a lot for this.. Yes I was aware that the body builds muscles when you are not working out. That is why, trainers recommend working out only for 3-4 alternate days in a week.
Didn't know same applies for our brain as well :)

it most certainly does -- and, if you've been unaware of this, you have the potential to make your whole life (not just your studying) a lot better by scheduling "time off" accordingly.
granted, very few people are consciously aware of the effect of "mental rest" on the brain -- because they simply haven't ever stopped to think about it -- but the subconscious understanding is there.
viz., most people understand the importance of having weekends that are actually, well, weekends. though they may not be able to articulate exactly why, almost everyone understands that doing something every single day, and/or consuming all of one's free time with something, is not optimal.

it's no coincidence that the notion of rest/Sabbath/meditation/retreat/etc. is enshrined in just about every single one of the world's major religions.
whether you are a religious believer or not, if you haven't been taking appropriate periods of rest, you should probably start... now.

vikram4689 wrote:these advices on rest are absolutely applicable. i have been following them.

ron,
since i have been studying for long time, i know almost every question. i mean i can tell just by looking at question if i have solved that earlier or not. when i take practice tests, same thing happens. i have given gmat prep 1.0 (2 tests),gmat prep 2.0 and an mgmat cats - my scores were 770,760,770,780 and yes there were question that i could say "yes i have seen them, though i didn't remember the answer to them and actually solved the question". still i guess this could easily give an inflated score. i would like to know how do i find what is my exact gmat level. mgmat cats and gmat prep are 2 reliable indicators and i have exhausted them.

please advise me on this issue.

go take the official exam already.

sachindia wrote:Dear Ron,

How do we make use of CATs other than those of MGMAT and GMATPrep?

the best answer i've got to this question is that, in general, those exams should be enough for most people. that's already 8 exams.

remember that, at the end of the day, full-length practice tests serve only two purposes:
1/ you can use them to diagnose areas to work on,
2/ you can use them for timing practice.

as far as #1 is concerned, it's sufficient to take 1-2 practice tests a month. after all, a fundamental diagnosis of strengths and weaknesses is not going to change over a few days or a week; therefore, taking diagnostic tests more often is essentially a waste of time (not to mention a waste of the exams themselves).
in this stage, rather than taking more practice tests, you should (a) use your study time to do concentrated work in the particular areas diagnosed by the exam, and, of course, (b) make sure that you get sufficient rest / time off.

#2 is obviously important, but it shouldn't be your primary concern until you are closer to your exam date. (in general, between improving your understanding of the problems themselves and improving your timing, you have to pick one; it's not feasible to try to improve your skills and your timing simultaneously.)
as i wrote above, once you get closer to your exam date, you should think about taking a couple of practice tests with little or no review, for the purpose of solidifying your timing.

--

finally, and perhaps most importantly, don't let yourself fall into the "more work is always better" mentality. that sort of thing may be ingrained in you, as a result of the educational system in which you were raised, but this test simply isn't that way.