Bad idea to take GMAT practice cat? 4 days to go!

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chmny3: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 16; Joined: Tue May 19, 2009 9:38 pm; Location: new york; Thanked: 1 times

by chmny3 » Fri Aug 14, 2009 10:06 am

Hi there,

I've been reading here and there that it is essentially a "bad" idea to take a GMAT practice CAT exam close to your exam date since it'll exhaust you mentally, etc. I'm thinking of taking a final GMAT prep test 2 tomorrow (sat) with my exam on Tuesday.
I am already terribly nervous, and I don't want to add to that nervousness by then being worried about "exhausting" my brain! (as you may have guessed, slightly neurotic!)
However, I have only ever taken 1 GMAT prep cat, and I certainly want to practice as much real content as possible prior to the exam.

Any thoughts ? Any tips on my game plan within the next 4 days would be much appreciated!

Source: Beat The GMAT — GMAT Strategy | Fri Aug 14, 2009 10:06 am

zuleron: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 223; Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:50 pmFollowed by: 4 members; Location: Philly, USA; Thanked: 76 times; GMAT Score:750

by zuleron » Fri Aug 14, 2009 10:21 am

Upside is you get more practice.

Downside is you get exhausted AND if you bomb then you will have a confidence problem!

I suggest not taking any test... BUT if you must, then take only one section e.g. do the quant seriously and then pick randomly on the verbal. You'll prolly score really bad but you will getan accurate indication of your quant....

myohmy: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 252; Joined: Mon Feb 02, 2009 6:34 amFollowed by: 55 members; Thanked: 305 times; GMAT Score:760

by myohmy » Fri Aug 14, 2009 10:32 am

It just depends on the person. Are you the kind of person that needs to save up your energy for the big day or do you recharge easily? I took 5 practice tests the week preceding my exam, and I got a 760.

One compromise you could make would be to do a practice CAT without the AWA. The test seems MUCH shorter and more manageable without it and likely wouldn't exhaust you that much.

Good luck!

4seasoncentre: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 211; Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2009 12:17 pm; Thanked: 12 times; GMAT Score:680

by 4seasoncentre » Fri Aug 14, 2009 7:40 pm

I suggest taking it so you get used to the format and timing. I took the 2nd GMAT Prep test about 2 days before my real thing and found it helpful.

Good Luck!

chmny3: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 16; Joined: Tue May 19, 2009 9:38 pm; Location: new york; Thanked: 1 times

by chmny3 » Sat Aug 15, 2009 10:19 pm

hi all,

thanks for the advice. i actually ended up taking my 2nd gmat prep cat today (previously have focused on manhatttan gmat cats)- and glad i did!

my main game plan has been to review any OG problems i got incorrect over again until i knew them backwards and forwards- but this also means i didn't spend enough time going back to certain # props problems that i used to have no trouble with!
after taking today's cat, i realized i needed a refresher on all of those "how many consecutive even integers between..." questions! glad i took it!!

thanks =)

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