That is an extremely open question!!

You can do what is called "self-study" which is probably misnamed since it generally involves using paid resources such as the Official Guide to GMAT Review by GMAC and any of the several strategy books written by GMAT experts, as well as the use of other free resources like Beat the GMAT question forums, the Veritas Prep Question Bank https://www.veritasprep.com/gmat-question-bank/, the official GMATPrep software from mba.com, and additional practice test such as the free Veritas Prep practice test https://www.veritasprep.com/gmat/free-gm ... tice-test/

Other people find that they need to take a course. Courses from the major test prep companies are reviewed here at beat the gmat at https://reviews.beatthegmat.com/

Courses are more expensive. But they usually come with lots of resources such as strategy guides, live homework assistance, and of course the actual classes with a GMAT expert.

The best place for you to start is to try a few practice problems of each type (such as the 90 total problems that come from with the GMATPrep software from MBA.com). And then you should devote 4 hours to a good practice exam such as one of the practice exams on that GMATPrep software or the Veritas exam mentioned above. This will give you an idea of where you are starting from.

Then you need to think about what your goal is based on your overall MBA application. Many people want to get a 700 score of above (the 90th percentile) while others opt for a lower of higher target.

This will help you know how to proceed.

I generally give the following guidelines to people think about beginning on the self-study track or starting with a course.

1) How close are you to your goal right now? If your goal is a 700, for example. If you take a practice test now and you score within 100 points of your goal then you have a better chance of making up the ground alone, if you are more than that distance away it could be tough on your own in a reasonable amount of time.

2) How much time can you devote to your studies? If you have more time then you can self-study since to do it alone does take more time. If you can put in 20 hour a week of studying or if you have many months to study 4 to 6, then you have a better chance of doing it on your own with books. If you are busier with work, and can only do something like 10 - 15 hours a week or you have a shorter time frame and want to take the GMAT in only three months then you may be a candidate for getting some help. 12 weeks at 15 hours may seem like a long time, but it may not be enough to review all of the concepts and develop your own best techniques for each question.

3) Are you the kind of person who generally looks at something and tries to figure out the best way of doing it? If you plan your errands so that you have no left turns in traffic or so that you drive the fewest miles then you are a better candidate for self study. If you are a person who does better with lots of help then you might want to look into a course.

4) How disciplined are you? Some people can set a schedule and stick to it. Others do better when they have a class coming up and they know the homework will be reviewed. Sometimes just the structure of a course if very helpful.

5) When was the last time you had a math class? The more you need to review the more help you may need.


And of course you can always start out with self-study and see if you need more help later. The only problem with that is that you might develop some bad habits that you will need to unlearn later!


Welcome to Beat the GMAT and best of luck!


David