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Need advice about whether or not to take a Prep Course

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Need advice about whether or not to take a Prep Course

by cms879 » Sun Sep 14, 2008 4:34 pm
Hello,

I have been studying for the GMAT at a moderate pace for a few months now. My study program, up to this point, has consisted of doing the practice problems in the Official Guide and working through the Princeton Review online course.

I have taken 4 online GMAT practice exams from the Princeton Review. I scored the following:

Verbal Math
40 29 570
33 29 520
40 32 590
36 31 560

Clearly, I am struggling with the Math. Although I have done many practice problems and read through the explanations (which made sense when reading them), when I am taking the actual exams I feel that I don't have enough time to complete the problems and I don't feel confident in my answers for the most part.

I would like to get my score at least into the mid-600's.

In light of the preparation I have already done, with the books and the practice exams, would a GMAT prep course really help me to boost my score to where I want it to be? What would be the advantage of the course, seeing as that I've already done a few hundred math problems without improvement?

If so, should I take Princeton Review or Kaplan?

Any help you could offer would be much appreciated!

Cheers,

Chris
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by ab46 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 4:39 am
Hi Chris,

I've been on a self study plan, but that was also because there weren't any decent prep courses where I live. Infact I did join one, it was so bad that I left after a few days.

So here's my two cents.

I believe that as long as you join a decent prep course, it will be helpful. I took way more time to learn about new things than I would have if I was part of a course. I did get lost while studying, it took me a while to come across new concepts.

If you have lots of time, consider a self study. But if you feel a time constraint or lack of improvement, then consider a prep course for maths.

I can't comment on which course because I didn't really take one. But I've heard a lot about MGMAT.

Cheers
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by cms879 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 5:15 am
Thaks for the reply!
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by LSB » Mon Sep 15, 2008 6:56 am
See my comments in another thread

============
Thank you. I did not take the full course as I was quite rushed to do this in three weeks. I found the weekend course very valuable for my specific circumstance, which was brushing up on things I already knew, and finetuning my strategy towards GMAT questions.

If you want to build fundamentals you should definitely stay away from the weekend course and consider the full course as it allows more time for practice and homework. I can imagine the 7 day boot camps that MGMAT and VP offer are quite similar in that they are a sledgehammer approach. As I said this is not for everybody.

As far as Veritas is concerned. I was extremely impressed with the instructors. They knew their stuff and could explain things very well. Could I have done it by myself? probably ... but as I was rushed I did not want to waste time.

When selecting a course I find three things are important (in no particular order):

1) Instructors
2) Timing of the course ... they say you should complete the course a few weeks before test date. I agree
3) Often forgotten but very important: your classmates. You want to be in a class that is close to your skill level. I went to a Kaplan and Princeton class and found that there were many undergrads who were lacking some fundamentals. I decided that I would be ahead of the class and opted for VP. However, if you are still building fundamentals a class with people who are farther in their prep may be too fast-paced for you.

Hope this helps. Good Luck
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Link to thread
https://www.beatthegmat.com/750-q48-v46-t17715.html
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