GMAT Strategy

any advice on the best way to utilize these last few days leading up to the test?

rest and flashcards

Mine on Monday TOOO!!
But at 5pm...so essentially have 2 days still and feel rather guiilty winding down for TWO days


quick check...the GMAT prep software deosnt give the explanationsto the questions yea?



Nitya

There is not one answer for everyone; it all depends on your circumstances and on the intensity of your recent training. If you have been working your job all week with very little time for the GMAT then you definitely want to get your form back before Monday. On the other hand if you have taken two practice tests and done 100 official questions this week then you will need lots of rest so you will not be "jaded" on test day.

Winding down is a good idea, you do need lots of rest to be fresh on test day, especially if you are scheduled for a morning exam. However, depending on how you feel about your preparation you can use the remaining time to address any weaknesses and, perhaps even more important, to do a "walk-through" of the test.

I think that the best use of two days before the test is generally not in running through dozens more practice problems, but in planning your strategy for the test. Do not go in blindly hoping that you understand each and every question and that you finish each section with time to spare. Instead, focus on answers to the following four questions:

1. How are you going to prevent "silly" errors such as misreading and calculation errors? Everyone misses questions on test day, but you can minimize the number of questions that you miss for preventable reasons. For many students more than 50% of questions missed are based on preventable errors.

2. What are your time checkpoints for verbal and quantitative and what are you going to do if you find that you are running behind? At Veritas we talk about the difference between proactively managing your time versus desperation guessing on the last several questions. It is generally better to guess occasionally than to rush on every problem.

3. How are you going to handle all of the extraneous details? Be sure that you are ready for everything that goes along with taking the test, the location and parking, the checking in procedure, the breaks, snacks, the potential disturbances in the test room, (are you going to use the ear plugs?). There are things that you cannot control, such as the number of coordinate geometry questions and the subject of the reading comp. passages, but it is not too late for you to be professional about the details.

4. How are you going to get questions right? Too often students focus on trying to avoid missing questions. You can potentially still get a 99th percentile score if you miss 15 questions. Everyone misses questions. Be like an athlete and "walkthrough" the race. I recommended choosing just a few problems from each of the 5 question types and slowly walking through each problem, no concern for time, just for technique.

Answering these questions will allow you to recover from intense practice, and allow you to concentrate on performing to the best of your abilities on test day.

P.S. Nitya V You are correct, there are no answer explanations included with the official GMATPrep practice test.

Is it ok to leave the question without replying than completing it with guesses??

in the OG book and other places i found that LEAVING the question will drastically effect the score, that is the reason it is better to just mark like A for the last questions in case of less than 1 min.

pls suggest, i too have exam on monday.

Rocket -

You cannot leave a question without answering it. The computer adapts to you constantly so you are forced to answer each question before moving on and you can never go back to a question. You can only face one question at a time and sometimes it comes down to spending five minutes on the question (bad idea) or realizing it might take five minutes and choosing from the choices you have not eliminated.

And yes, even though you will certainly end up losing points if you guess at the last several you will lose much more if you leave those last few blank.

Thanks a bunch David!!!

Think i have my nxt 48hrs nailed....flip throught the oG and see if i hvae marked out anything. Go through some flash cards.
Tomorrow morning, do 10 questions from each of the five question types and then take the afternoon off- before the exam.

Will drop you a note to tell you how it went...if its not absolutely appalling....

Take deep breaths... stay as calm as possible... make sure you know the directions to the testing center... decide if you're going to bring a snack and pack it before hand... make sure there's enough gas in the car... eat a hearty breakfast... get enough sleep the night before... wear layers to the testing center... it's easier to be too hot and take off a sweater during the exam, than to be freezing the whole time... review the template for the essay writing portion...

take exam...

come on BTG and give us an update! Good Luck to everyone who will be taking their exam!

just had a big swim so it will help me sleep!!! fixed my self a VIRGIN mary!!!
have granola bars/chocolates and canned coffee for the breaks..

exams only at 5pm toorrow so i have the whole day.....

(sorry about the multiple posts) but almost JSUT waiting now!!!!

a 700 ! thats all i ask,....

NityaV you'll get it!!

hi Nitya,
All the best . And we at beatthegmat will be eagerly waiting on ur results as welll as your feedback for helpiing us. Let us know.
chio
sarthak

Thanks Sarthak, ERIC!!!!
just heading out...have only just been able to calm them nerves!!!

next post will be with results....either way...will let you know how it went!!

GOOOOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!