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big0space: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 6; Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2008 8:16 am

I need help to improve preparation

by big0space » Fri Mar 27, 2009 12:39 pm

Hello,
Im a Spanish telecom engineer. I took GMAT two times. First time in january. (Q43/V14=480), and today (Q44/V18=510) while in GMATPrep I never scored less than 580, my best score (Q49/V27=640).

I have only 1 month to prepare GMAT and score at least 680 to get into the Business School I want to go.

I can dedicate 8 hours per day minimum so, I have between 250 and 300 hours.

When I am taking the verbal section in the exam I have the sensation that I dont understand anything at all and the time goes by extremely quickly because I don't feel very confident with my answers.

I would be very grateful if somebody can help me to improve my preparation. I have all the books OG11, etc.

Thanks.

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Source: Beat The GMAT — GMAT Strategy | Fri Mar 27, 2009 12:39 pm

ladistar: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 28; Joined: Wed Mar 25, 2009 7:05 am; Thanked: 1 times

by ladistar » Fri Mar 27, 2009 5:11 pm

Buy everything from Manhattan GMAT, all 3 of their guides (SC, CR and RC). It appears that your problems are extremely fundamental, and their guides cover all of the foundational knowledge you need, and much more. Since each guide focuses on a specific question type, you get much more comprehensive coverage than you would from most all-in-one books.

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pJackson79: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 85; Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 11:44 pm; Thanked: 1 times

by pJackson79 » Fri Mar 27, 2009 5:28 pm

I absolutely agree with ladistar about Manhattan GMAT guides. In addition, I would recommend the PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible and the PowerScore Sentence Correction Bible.

Finally, how thoroughly do you read the explanations in the OG? For a while, I did not read these throughly and I didn't learn much as a result. Now, I read any explanation very thoroughly and it has been very helpful. Good luck!

Last edited by pJackson79 on Tue Mar 31, 2009 4:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.

P. Jackson
Vocabulary Words & GMAT Practice Questions

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GMAT/MBA Expert

Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pm; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times; Followed by:21 members

by Bara » Fri Mar 27, 2009 7:43 pm

A challenge you might be faced with is having English as a second language. If you haven't had a history of understanding DEEPLY, the difference between spoken and written English, you'll want to develop that literacy. It will require that instead of going with your gut when answering the questions, that you take a very calculated and scientific approach to the questions, most specifically the Sentence Corrections. This is the part of the verbal that one can improve the most, and study the fastest.

Bara Sapir, MA, CHt, CNLP
Founder/CEO City Test Prep
Maximize your Score, Minimize your Stress!
GMAT Badass and Test Anxiety Relief Expert
SPEEDREADING: https://citytestprep.com/mindflow-workshops/
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big0space: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 6; Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2008 8:16 am

by big0space » Sat Mar 28, 2009 3:11 am

Thanks for the replies.

Yesterday when I was doing the exam, as I know the first questions are very important for the Adaptative issue and as I was not very sure about my answer and I dedicated them more than 3 minutes, when the RC appeared, I started to read without being able to concentrate, so after this the same happened to the rest of the exam. I got block. However at home I do verbal with an accuracy of 55% or 66%.

[ladistar] I think I will do that.
[pJackson] I read explanations trying to understand why?
[Bara] You are completely right, I must control myself and I do believe that if get more confident with my answers and try to answer the question faster I will get through GMAT.

Yesterday I did the exam with another guy who wants to apply for the same school as I want to (he finished verbal in 55 minutes, and scored 720 and he said he only studied hard for one week), now I am much more motivated than ever.

Do you think I should take course? I can move to London to take classes, for instance.
I will dedicate this month of april exclusively to GMAT. I will think, read and breathe for GMAT. What's my best option?

Thanks folks
Cheers from Spain

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GMAT/MBA Expert

Bara: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 383; Joined: Sun Oct 26, 2008 5:20 pm; Location: Online Conferencing - in person in select cities.; Thanked: 55 times; Followed by:21 members

by Bara » Sat Mar 28, 2009 1:18 pm

Before you fully submerge into GMATland, I'd recommend you take a BALANCED approach. The brain needs time to integrate what you learn. If you can go to England or the US for the month of April, and take a course, go for it. A course will give you structure and hold you accountable to the material and homework. Decide if working with 15 - 20 others in a class will serve you the best. You might find that working one-on-one is the most efficient and therefore, economical. Most tutors work remotely - - so do your homework, and figure out what you need from a course or a tutor before you proceed. Surf around the forum: you don't need to reinvent the wheel. Many people have been here before, so see if you can speak to others and figure out what resonates and makes the most sense for you.

Don't go crazy about how long you spend working on the first 10 - 12 questions just yet: do your best to get these questions right. When it is 1 - 2 weeks before the test, spend more time dealing actively dealing with speed. Now the issue is mastering content. (You can also integrate in your study some timed question sets: we do this with clients, and it helps keep them limber...but when it comes to timing on diagnostics -- don't worry about that yet.)

From what you've written (and how you've written) I strongly recommend you work with tutors who understand the challenges of a student with English as a second language. We've found that when working through the Verbal portion of the test, our non-native English speaking students work best with our tutors who are either linguists or fluent in their native language.

(We've actually worked with students from Spanish-speaking countries, so if you wanted to learn how we worked with them, I'd be happy to put you in touch with one of them. Send me a PM if interested.)

Keep up the great work...it's wonderful to read that you're newly motivated!