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Self Stufy or take the course?

by namitrs » Wed Aug 20, 2014 10:41 am
Hello Experts
I have booked my GMAT date for 12/6 and have started spending sometime on preparation. I have a pretty demanding job and wife and infant at home. They are going away starting Oct and those 2 months is when I will be able to put my 100% into the preparation. I have started doing some self study and now trying to decide whether I should consider enrolling into one of the courses conducted by Kaplan, Veritas etc..

The main purpose for me to even consider these courses is that I might learn some tricks or shortcuts in solving some kind of problems and thus eventually save time. I have already reviewed the material once and dont think there is any topic which I dont understand well though. I was pretty good in all the basics around Quant in school and feel as I start practicing more I should be able to crack it. Verbal is a totally different story :)

I looked into the course and it seems like they have a 2.5-3 hr session to cover each topic. I feel this is a short time to go into tips and tricks at all and the best approach to solve a problem, instead they would be covering the topic itself.

I have reviewed the Princeton Review and now going through GMAT offical guide 13th edition

Would appreciate any guidance.
Thanks
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by [email protected] » Wed Aug 20, 2014 10:49 am
Hi namitrs,

Have you taken any FULL-LENGTH practice CAT tests yet? Since you've done some studying already, it would be a good idea to have an accurate measure of your current strengths and weaknesses. You've mentioned how you'll probably need to do some extra work to prep for the Verbal section, but we don't have a sense of how much extra work.

You can download 2 practice CATs for free from www.mba.com. It takes about 4 hours to complete a CAT, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to do so in one sitting. Once you have those scores, you should report back here and we can talk through your options.

With a December Test Date, you've given yourself plenty of time to study, which is good. With the proper resources, you'll have have a good chance to hit your goals.

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by namitrs » Sun Aug 24, 2014 9:21 pm
Thanks for the reply Rich. Completely agree with your approach, and I have been wanting to take one of the CAT's. Its just a matter of being able to take 4 hrs out straight :) Will post back with results.
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by [email protected] » Sun Aug 24, 2014 10:58 pm
Hi namitrs,

Taking practice CATs on a regular basis is a necessary part of proper preparation for the GMAT. A FULL-LENGTH practice CAT every 1-2 weeks should be a "built-in" part of whatever study plan you choose to adopt, so you have to make the time for it.

You didn't mention your score goal in your prior post. What score is your goal and what schools are you planning to apply to?

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by David@VeritasPrep » Wed Aug 27, 2014 10:59 am
The reason to take a GMAT course - particularly on the verbal side of the equation - is not really for tips and tricks. It is much more fundamental than that. While on the Quantitative side of things there are particular shortcuts for various problem types - such as weighted average problems - on the verbal side it is all about your fundamental approach to the different question types.

In order to succeed well on the verbal side you need to allow the question to do most of the work for you. You need to be able focus on the words that matter and ignore the ones that do not. You need to read the paragraph, sentence, or passage in just the right way.

I can tell you exactly how I begin each type of question and what I am looking for in each. I spend very little time debating answer choices, but usually know what I am looking for. This saves considerable time and energy.

In 3 hours you can learn things that will completely change the way that you look at SC, in another 3 hours you can see critical reason in a new way, and the same for reading comp.

Now you can get to this point on your own, but I want to make sure that you understand what it is that you are trying to achieve, and it is this:

The correct answer to a verbal question should be as clearly correct as the right answer to a math problem. It is not a matter of degrees. There is one right answer and you should be able to recognize it as such.

And as far as your initial CAT test - you do not need to take 4 hours on this first exam. Just do the Quant and the Verbal for a total of 2.5 hours. Find the time and take it and see where you are!
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