Quickest way of revising Quant to get same score as 1st test

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haidgmat: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 55; Joined: Mon Jul 12, 2010 6:32 am

Quickest way of revising Quant to get same score as 1st test

by haidgmat » Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:36 am

I took the test about 3 weeks ago and got a Q:48 V:33. I have been focussing on the Verbal portion since then and now am a little scared that I've forgotten some of the tricks I learned just before the first test. I am taking the test again in two weeks and its still have to go over RC again. What is the quickest way to revise all the math concepts and tricks I had learned? (unfortunately now I realize the importance of making notes

I blindly practiced like crazy and didn't take notes of any sort). I used the OG-11, Quant Review, Kaplan 800, BGMAT and MGMAT CATs.

Please give me some suggestions since I don't have enough time (due to 60-70hrs of work per week) to go over everything in Quant all over again.

Any suggestions will be higly appreciated!!!!!!!

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Quantitative Reasoning | Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:36 am

Jim@Grockit: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 641; Joined: Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:07 pm; Location: Madison, WI; Thanked: 162 times; Followed by:45 members; GMAT Score:760

by Jim@Grockit » Sun Nov 14, 2010 7:26 pm

haidgmat wrote:I took the test about 3 weeks ago and got a Q:48 V:33. I have been focussing on the Verbal portion since then and now am a little scared that I've forgotten some of the tricks I learned just before the first test. I am taking the test again in two weeks and its still have to go over RC again. What is the quickest way to revise all the math concepts and tricks I had learned? (unfortunately now I realize the importance of making notes I blindly practiced like crazy and didn't take notes of any sort). I used the OG-11, Quant Review, Kaplan 800, BGMAT and MGMAT CATs.

Please give me some suggestions since I don't have enough time (due to 60-70hrs of work per week) to go over everything in Quant all over again.

Any suggestions will be higly appreciated!!!!!!!

Do the Quant section of full-length practice tests . . . or even do the whole thing. It's the best practice, will be a random assortment of questions and topics, and builds up your endurance for the real thing.

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lunarpower: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 3380; Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 1:20 am; Thanked: 2256 times; Followed by:1535 members; GMAT Score:800

by lunarpower » Sat Nov 20, 2010 2:53 am

in only three weeks, the amount of quant material you've forgotten should be completely negligible.
you should be fine.

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if you absolutely insist on doing something, you can try what i call the OPENERS DRILL.
in this drill, you hammer through about 80-120 o.g. problems per hour, and just specify how you would START the problem. that's right - you don't actually go all the way through the problem, you just start it and move on. (if you have no idea how to start the problem, then review it.)
if you've more than one way to start the problem, even better! more solution methods = better chance of success; don't get caught up in searching for one true way to do everything.

this is a great review drill because you won't waste any time on routine operations, and will be able to focus on conceptual approaches.

Ron has been teaching various standardized tests for 20 years.

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haidgmat: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 55; Joined: Mon Jul 12, 2010 6:32 am

by haidgmat » Sun Nov 21, 2010 11:05 am

Interesting..I'm going to try that today. Thanks!!

lunarpower wrote:in only three weeks, the amount of quant material you've forgotten should be completely negligible.
you should be fine.

--

if you absolutely insist on doing something, you can try what i call the OPENERS DRILL.
in this drill, you hammer through about 80-120 o.g. problems per hour, and just specify how you would START the problem. that's right - you don't actually go all the way through the problem, you just start it and move on. (if you have no idea how to start the problem, then review it.)
if you've more than one way to start the problem, even better! more solution methods = better chance of success; don't get caught up in searching for one true way to do everything.

this is a great review drill because you won't waste any time on routine operations, and will be able to focus on conceptual approaches.

Quote

youngs: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 4; Joined: Fri Nov 19, 2010 8:45 am

by youngs » Fri Nov 26, 2010 6:23 pm

Interesting idea.....The one issue I can think of with this method is how one quickly *checks* all of his or her ideas for accuracy. I suppose the only way would be to read through the answer explanation for each and every question? Or is the main purpose of this exercise to sniff out question types and topics that one has obvious weaknesses in?

lunarpower wrote:in only three weeks, the amount of quant material you've forgotten should be completely negligible.
you should be fine.

--

if you absolutely insist on doing something, you can try what i call the OPENERS DRILL.
in this drill, you hammer through about 80-120 o.g. problems per hour, and just specify how you would START the problem. that's right - you don't actually go all the way through the problem, you just start it and move on. (if you have no idea how to start the problem, then review it.)
if you've more than one way to start the problem, even better! more solution methods = better chance of success; don't get caught up in searching for one true way to do everything.

this is a great review drill because you won't waste any time on routine operations, and will be able to focus on conceptual approaches.

Quote

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lunarpower: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 3380; Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 1:20 am; Thanked: 2256 times; Followed by:1535 members; GMAT Score:800

by lunarpower » Fri Nov 26, 2010 7:17 pm

youngs wrote:Interesting idea.....The one issue I can think of with this method is how one quickly *checks* all of his or her ideas for accuracy. I suppose the only way would be to read through the answer explanation for each and every question?

nah. remember that this is a last-minute drill -- the point isn't to dwell on details.
the point is to recognize that detail-oriented preparation isn't a very fruitful thing to do when the test is right around the corner; once the test is really close, it's better just to make sure that you have a general idea as to how you should approach each type of question that you might see.
even if some of the little details are hazy, that's fine -- because the details won't be repeated in the questions that appear on the test. the general idea of the questions, on the other hand, certainly will -- so having general approaches (even if you don't have the exact details worked out each and every time) is much more important.

i guess the best way to summarize the main idea underlying this drill is "realistic preparation".
if it's 2 days before the test and you're going over every detail of the answer keys with excruciating precision, you are probably wasting a great deal of that time (and you may even be sacrificing a more big-picture understanding of the problems!). on the other hand, if you're just making sure that you have an "emergency plan" for each general type of question that you might encounter, then that's a better use of your time, especially since the test is right around the corner.

Or is the main purpose of this exercise to sniff out question types and topics that one has obvious weaknesses in?

it's not even really a strengths/weaknesses thing anymore -- in most cases, it's not realistic to think that you could significantly improve a weakness in a couple of days.
it's really just a matter of finding out whether there are any problem areas that you just have no clue how to approach. if there are such areas, then they need to be addressed.

Quote

youngs: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 4; Joined: Fri Nov 19, 2010 8:45 am

by youngs » Mon Nov 29, 2010 9:06 am

Thanks for the response, lunarpower. Good points all around.

BTW, you really got an 800? Wow. Any idea if you got any wrong or did you ace it entirely?

lunarpower wrote:
youngs wrote:Interesting idea.....The one issue I can think of with this method is how one quickly *checks* all of his or her ideas for accuracy. I suppose the only way would be to read through the answer explanation for each and every question?
nah. remember that this is a last-minute drill -- the point isn't to dwell on details.
the point is to recognize that detail-oriented preparation isn't a very fruitful thing to do when the test is right around the corner; once the test is really close, it's better just to make sure that you have a general idea as to how you should approach each type of question that you might see.
even if some of the little details are hazy, that's fine -- because the details won't be repeated in the questions that appear on the test. the general idea of the questions, on the other hand, certainly will -- so having general approaches (even if you don't have the exact details worked out each and every time) is much more important.

i guess the best way to summarize the main idea underlying this drill is "realistic preparation".
if it's 2 days before the test and you're going over every detail of the answer keys with excruciating precision, you are probably wasting a great deal of that time (and you may even be sacrificing a more big-picture understanding of the problems!). on the other hand, if you're just making sure that you have an "emergency plan" for each general type of question that you might encounter, then that's a better use of your time, especially since the test is right around the corner.

Or is the main purpose of this exercise to sniff out question types and topics that one has obvious weaknesses in?
it's not even really a strengths/weaknesses thing anymore -- in most cases, it's not realistic to think that you could significantly improve a weakness in a couple of days.
it's really just a matter of finding out whether there are any problem areas that you just have no clue how to approach. if there are such areas, then they need to be addressed.

Quote

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lunarpower: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 3380; Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 1:20 am; Thanked: 2256 times; Followed by:1535 members; GMAT Score:800