GMAT Strategy

Hi Rastis,

Sorry to hear that things aren't progressing as you'd like them to.
You've explained how difficult it has been to achieve your target score. That's one side of the "equation".
To address the other side of the equation, I need to ask, "How important is it for you to get an MBA?"

That said, I should mention that some MBA programs don't have a GMAT requirement.

Cheers,
Brent

Okay.
Next question: How important is it for you to attend a MBA program that has a minimum GMAT score requirement?

Cheers,
Brent

Okay, good to know.

One of the drawbacks of classroom courses is that the instructor typically advances to the NEXT concept regardless of whether or not every student has fully grasped the LAST concept. So for example, the student may move from "exponent rules" to "algebra" without fully mastering exponent rules. This deficiency will hamper the student's progress in algebra. Likewise, if a student begins studying the topic of "clauses" without fully understanding what a "subject" is, he/she will have difficulty.

To combat the problem of advancing to a topic before one is ready, I suggest a systematic (even methodical) approach, in which you take the time required to master each topic/concept (e.g., percents, ratios, assumption questions in critical reasoning, comparison questions in sentence correction, etc).

So, for each topic/concept, you should:
1) Learn the underlying concepts (rules, attributes, notation, etc.)
2) Learn GMAT-specific strategies related to that topic
3) Practice TONS of questions related to that one topic.
4) Don't stop working on that topic until you have mastered it
Then, and only then, move on to the next topic.

To help you focus on one topic at a time, you can use BTG's tagging feature. For example, here are all of the questions tagged as statistics questions: https://www.beatthegmat.com/forums/tags/ ... statistics
See the left side of that linked page for more tag options.

While completing questions from the Official Guide (OG), you should you use an Error Log (aka Improvement Chart). You can find a free downloadable Improvement Chart here: https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/gmat-error-log. This will help you identify and strengthen your weak areas.

You should also spend a lot of time reviewing the responses from the Experts on this site. They model the steps one should take when tackling problems.

In addition to learning the core concepts and GMAT-specific strategies, be sure to work on your endurance and test-taking skills (e.g., time management). If you're interested, we have a free GMAT time management video at https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gener ... es?id=1244

Finally, you might consider signing up for Beat The GMAT's free 60-Day Study Guide (https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/gmat-guide).
Each day, you'll receive an email with a series of learning activities that guide you, step-by-step, from Day 1 to test day. This will ensure that you will cover everything that the GMAT tests.

Here's an outline of all 60 emails: https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/gmat-guide-outline

Cheers,
Brent

Well, it's a good sign that you you have success with individual practice questions. The trick now is to add a ticking clock, and a computer-adaptive test program that keeps presenting you with questions that are just within/beyond your skill level.

Your experience sounds a lot like test anxiety. I have a few suggestions for this:
- a free video on combating test anxiety: https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gener ... es?id=1252
- Two articles on adopting the proper mindset/attitude on test day:
- https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2013/06/ ... -destroyer
- https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/2011/04/ ... n-the-gmat

Cheers,
Brent