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Need Help: GMAT preparation - books and strategy

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Need Help: GMAT preparation - books and strategy

by m_aspirant » Tue Sep 27, 2011 12:58 pm
Hi all,
I'm a 30 year old Asian female. 3 years ago, I took GMAT and scored poorly 590 (Q49/V22).
For personal reasons, I had to postpone the idea of getting into a good B school.
But deep inside, I've always yearned for it.
Now, I'm back. I want to take GMAT again within next 6 months, aiming at 700+ (720+).
I need help. I used to think my Math is okay but it's not. Verbal is pathetic.
I've following books -

1- PowerScore Sentence Correction Bible (Completed 10 days ago - also completed 129 SC questions from OG -- Still not very confident on SC)
2- PowerScore Critical Reasoning (almost finished studying but need to revisit some concepts).
3- OG 11
4- Manhattan Reading Comprehension
5- Princeton Review 2003 Edition
__________________
Practice Tests
1- PowerPrep
2- GMATPrep
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Q1: What other books do I need for GMAT Verbal as well as for Quant?
Q2: What should be my strategy to prepare? I can spend 2-3 hours a day.
Q3: How frequently should I take prep test?

Thanks,
m_aspirant
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by tpr-becky » Tue Sep 27, 2011 3:35 pm
As far as books go, please know that The Princeton Review has a new book out in the past few months so you may want to pick that up. many of the strategies will be the same but you may find the new format appealing.

As far as a study strategy you have to balance three elements - knowledge, technique and confidence.

When studying for knowledge you are looking to categorize error types or math formulas - ultimately you want to learn the basics of each category and develop a way to quickly identify when that concept is in play on a question along with a consistent way to approach that type of question. Never just do problems without identifying the content area.

When studying for technique - you again have to find the techniques that work for you and then find out when the technique is most useful and how to apply that technique. Be careful of studying too many different books as slight differences in techniques may prove more confusing than helpful.

When gaining confidence you are looking to approach the problem in a way that you always know you did the right thing for you as a test taker at the time, whether that means solving the problem or guessing completely.

as far as tests - I would say it is best to take a test every 2 - 3 weeks in the begining and then bridge to one test per week the 3-4 weeks before your test date.

Best of Luck
Becky
Master GMAT Instructor
The Princeton Review
Irvine, CA
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by AbhiJ » Tue Sep 27, 2011 9:05 pm
m_aspirant wrote:Hi all,
I'm a 30 year old Asian female. 3 years ago, I took GMAT and scored poorly 590 (Q49/V22).
For personal reasons, I had to postpone the idea of getting into a good B school.
But deep inside, I've always yearned for it.
Now, I'm back. I want to take GMAT again within next 6 months, aiming at 700+ (720+).
I need help. I used to think my Math is okay but it's not. Verbal is pathetic.
I've following books -

1- PowerScore Sentence Correction Bible (Completed 10 days ago - also completed 129 SC questions from OG -- Still not very confident on SC)
2- PowerScore Critical Reasoning (almost finished studying but need to revisit some concepts).
3- OG 11
4- Manhattan Reading Comprehension
5- Princeton Review 2003 Edition
__________________
Practice Tests
1- PowerPrep
2- GMATPrep
___________________


Q1: What other books do I need for GMAT Verbal as well as for Quant?
Q2: What should be my strategy to prepare? I can spend 2-3 hours a day.
Q3: How frequently should I take prep test?

Thanks,
m_aspirant
After you finish OG11 completely and the mentioned books, you can take a free test offered by any prep company, review your mistakes and then formulate a strategy based on your weakness.
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by AbhiJ » Wed Sep 28, 2011 1:28 am
Could you reply how you found Powerscore SC book vis a vis Manhattan SC book.
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by m_aspirant » Wed Sep 28, 2011 9:52 am
Thank you Becky and AbhiJ.

I do not have Manhattan SC so cannot compare this with PowerScore SC; but PowerScore SC is quite good.
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