Hi all,
I have been spending a lot of time on this forum, but this is my first post. This is a great website, and I hope I can contribute with my short story.
Study materials
For the quant, I used Jeff Sackman's Math Bible and the 1,800 questions. These materials are definitely what made the difference for me in the quant area. I also got the MGMAT quant books and they are very good as well. These books have questions that resemble real GMAT questions.
For the verbal, I used MGMAT for SC. Undoubtedly the very best for SC in my opinion. I am not a native English speaker and verbal was my weakest area. RC and CR: OG 12 and OG Verbal. I did all these questions and I made sure I knew exactly what went wrong with incorrect answers by looking at the explanations. Then, I wrote a list of take-aways. The most important thing I learned here was that sometimes you have to select the answer that the GMAT considers correct, even if it goes against your feeling. If that makes any sense at all lol
More prep
For me, it was crucial to simulate real exam conditions and take prep CAT exams. I took 2 GMAT prep practice tests and 3 MGMAT CAT tests:
GMAT Prep 1 640
MGMAT 1 670 (Q43;V38)
GMAT Prep 2 700 (Q47 ;V39)
MGMAT 2 710 (Q47 ;V40)
MGMAT 3 700 (Q46 ;V39)
Actual GMAT 730 (Q48 ;V42)
I found the actual GMAT easier than the MGMAT practice tests, specially for quant, but the MGMAT CAT tests are quite close and defo worth it! These practice tests before the actual test (including essay writing) gave me the stamina to do this very long test.
I studied for about two months for the second attempt. I think the trick here is to do little every day for a long time. Let all of it sink in. Except for a few lucky and/or gifted people, cramming is bad idea for a test like this.
One last thing for smokers: since the first GMAT test I quit smoking and this took away a lot of nerves during the breaks. For you smokers out there: quit smoking! If that's not an option, get like a nicotine patch or some substitute so the need for a cigarette doesn't make you nervous. Today during my breaks, I didn't have to rush outside for a smoke and that kept my head cool.
If it helps at least one of you reading this, I'm a happy dude
This forum has helped me tremendously!
Best of luck to all!
I have been spending a lot of time on this forum, but this is my first post. This is a great website, and I hope I can contribute with my short story.
Study materials
For the quant, I used Jeff Sackman's Math Bible and the 1,800 questions. These materials are definitely what made the difference for me in the quant area. I also got the MGMAT quant books and they are very good as well. These books have questions that resemble real GMAT questions.
For the verbal, I used MGMAT for SC. Undoubtedly the very best for SC in my opinion. I am not a native English speaker and verbal was my weakest area. RC and CR: OG 12 and OG Verbal. I did all these questions and I made sure I knew exactly what went wrong with incorrect answers by looking at the explanations. Then, I wrote a list of take-aways. The most important thing I learned here was that sometimes you have to select the answer that the GMAT considers correct, even if it goes against your feeling. If that makes any sense at all lol
More prep
For me, it was crucial to simulate real exam conditions and take prep CAT exams. I took 2 GMAT prep practice tests and 3 MGMAT CAT tests:
GMAT Prep 1 640
MGMAT 1 670 (Q43;V38)
GMAT Prep 2 700 (Q47 ;V39)
MGMAT 2 710 (Q47 ;V40)
MGMAT 3 700 (Q46 ;V39)
Actual GMAT 730 (Q48 ;V42)
I found the actual GMAT easier than the MGMAT practice tests, specially for quant, but the MGMAT CAT tests are quite close and defo worth it! These practice tests before the actual test (including essay writing) gave me the stamina to do this very long test.
I studied for about two months for the second attempt. I think the trick here is to do little every day for a long time. Let all of it sink in. Except for a few lucky and/or gifted people, cramming is bad idea for a test like this.
One last thing for smokers: since the first GMAT test I quit smoking and this took away a lot of nerves during the breaks. For you smokers out there: quit smoking! If that's not an option, get like a nicotine patch or some substitute so the need for a cigarette doesn't make you nervous. Today during my breaks, I didn't have to rush outside for a smoke and that kept my head cool.
If it helps at least one of you reading this, I'm a happy dude
This forum has helped me tremendously!Best of luck to all!
