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Advice for Verbal preperation

Critical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension
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Advice for Verbal preperation

by BeattheVerbal » Wed Aug 21, 2013 6:47 am
Hi,

I have already scored poorly in verbal in my last 3 GMATs. Those were around 20-22. I find my weak area to be SC, in which I spent lot of time figuring out the correct answer. Have gone through MGMAT SC guide in last few months, also read online articles of leading news papers almost regularly.

My question is-
1. How should I prepare for the verbal section? What materials to be used?
2. Is any online course required for the preparation?
3. And most important, how to handle the stress during the test, especially the fear of failure?

I am thinking of to give one more shot but not at all feeling confident at the moment. So, experts advice will really be helpful for me.

Thanks
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by [email protected] » Wed Aug 21, 2013 12:43 pm
Hi BeattheVerbal,

Many self-studiers hit a "ceiling" in their studies. You've gone about as far as you can go on your own, so if you want to increase your score, you're going to need some consistent, professional help. Can you provide your scoring info for each of your Official GMATs? I have some suggestions for you, but I'd like to see all of the data first.

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by BeattheVerbal » Wed Aug 21, 2013 11:57 pm
Thanks Rich.

In all the last 3 official GMAT it was around 18-20-22. Could not pull it up. Though, I should have not given the first two attempts as I was going through certain personal issues & thought I could make it but was wrong. My biggest problem is verbal. Scored around 48-49 in quant in all these attempts. My mocks scores were pretty much in the range of 650-680.

In verbal, I specifically feel that I am weak in SC. In the actual test, maybe because of fatigue,nervousness or fear, I mess it up. While answering SC, especially the longer ones, I read too much into the options & at times get lost. And, remember had left 30 mins. for last 20 questions in last test.

I have went through MGMAT SC, SC Grail as well, but still it looks a tough nut to crack. Now, I want to change my approach & trying to find out what to do? Your advice will be helpful. Also, would like to know from you & even other test takers - how to keep cool & confident? I think if we start thinking about the performance during the test then it results in disaster!

Thanks
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by BeattheVerbal » Thu Aug 22, 2013 12:00 am
Thanks Rich.

In all the last 3 official GMAT it was around 18-20-22. Could not pull it up. Though, I should have not given the first two attempts as I was going through certain personal issues & thought I could make it but was wrong. My biggest problem is verbal. Scored around 48-49 in quant in all these attempts. My mocks scores were pretty much in the range of 650-680.

In verbal, I specifically feel that I am weak in SC. In the actual test, maybe because of fatigue,nervousness or fear, I mess it up. While answering SC, especially the longer ones, I read too much into the options & at times get lost. And, remember had left 30 mins. for last 20 questions in last test.

I have went through MGMAT SC, SC Grail as well, but still it looks a tough nut to crack. Now, I want to change my approach & trying to find out what to do? Your advice will be helpful. Also, would like to know from you & even other test takers - how to keep cool & confident? I think if we start thinking about the performance during the test then it results in disaster!

Thanks
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by [email protected] » Thu Aug 22, 2013 12:59 pm
Hi BeattheVerbal,

When it comes to the Verbal section, the 2 biggest "hurdles" for most Test Takers are:

1) At that point in the GMAT, most people are really tired, so they're more prone to making silly mistakes.
2) At no point will you ever think that you're wrong (and yet you'll gets lots of questions wrong).

There are a variety of tactics and actions that you can take to improve your Verbal section, but to learn them all requires you to enroll in a Prep Course and have consistent guidance.

In the short term, there are some things that I can advise though:

1) For CR and RC questions, you have to take notes and be clear on the Author's Main Point and Focus.
2) For SCs, grammar knowledge is key, but you also need to learn the "patterns" and "style" behind how SCs are written. With enough practice, you can probably spot some of those patterns (and store them away for later use).

If you have any specific questions, then feel free to contact me directly.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
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