Overwhelmed! Please Help

[ZahD]

Hi Guys,

I am new to this and I am feeling overwhelmed with everything!.... I have ordered the Princeton Review book and will hopefully receive it soon. I am going to order other books soon but wanted some advise on what wud be best to order.

Also if i start right now to write the test in first week of June, will it be enough to prepare for GMAT? I'd also really appreciate it if someone can help me organize a study plan. I dont mind putting in the work but when I have a structure in place I work much better.

I hope to receive some feedback soon.

Thank-you .

PS: my background is Economics.

[papgust]

Be sure that you include Official Guide 12th edition and its supplements as part of your arsenal. These official materials are vital to your GMAT preparation.

Did you take a diagnostic test to see where you stand? If you take that, you will understand better about yourself. Based on this performance, you can well plan for the attack.

[Osirus@VeritasPrep]

If you can, send the Princeton Review book back and get a refund. It won't be that helpful. I would buy the Manhattan GMAT math guides (all 5). The power score Critical Reasoning Bible and either the power score SC or the Manhattan Sc. Go through all of that and you will be ready.

[ZahD]

Hi,

Well I am planning on taking a diagnostic test this weekend and plan on using on of the free ones that are available. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

As in for Princeton Review return, does that mean this books are not worth it at all? I went to chapters and spent some time reading both the Kaplan and the Princeton Review and found that I enjoyed the Princeton Review. Kaplan somehow made my reading slower. However I've read alot of great reviews about Kaplan so i was thinking of ordering them as well but now that you've brought Manhattan in the picture I i'll look into them as well.

Would it be wise to get my hands on all three of them? Also is my timing sufficient for reviewing everything if i plan on writing the test in June?

[Osirus@VeritasPrep]

Hi,

Well I am planning on taking a diagnostic test this weekend and plan on using on of the free ones that are available. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

As in for Princeton Review return, does that mean this books are not worth it at all? I went to chapters and spent some time reading both the Kaplan and the Princeton Review and found that I enjoyed the Princeton Review. Kaplan somehow made my reading slower. However I've read alot of great reviews about Kaplan so i was thinking of ordering them as well but now that you've brought Manhattan in the picture I i'll look into them as well.

Would it be wise to get my hands on all three of them? Also is my timing sufficient for reviewing everything if i plan on writing the test in June?

You have about 3 months which is pretty standard. If you decide to go through the books I recommended it will take you about 3 months to get through. I don't think the Princeton Review or Kaplan offer enough depth with their materials, but if you found the material helpful, then go with it.

[ZahD]

Thanks it is helpful to know that 3 months is sufficient. I will look into manhattan books this weekend and keep you posted.

Thanks again for responding .

[MFaulkner]

If you can, send the Princeton Review book back and get a refund. It won't be that helpful. I would buy the Manhattan GMAT math guides (all 5). The power score Critical Reasoning Bible and either the power score SC or the Manhattan Sc. Go through all of that and you will be ready.

+1

[ZahD]

If you can, send the Princeton Review book back and get a refund. It won't be that helpful. I would buy the Manhattan GMAT math guides (all 5). The power score Critical Reasoning Bible and either the power score SC or the Manhattan Sc. Go through all of that and you will be ready.

Hi Osirus,

I was looking at the Manhattan books on Amazon and had a quick question for you if you know the ans to it. If I buy the used books would i be able to get access to the online test on Manhattan website or would you recommend I buy new ones? These books do not come with a DVD i belive.

Thanks.

PS. If anyone else can assist with the above please feel free to post a reply. Thank-you.

[papgust]

Firstly, there are no DVDs attached with the Manhattan book (new or old). When you buy a new book, you have a unique code at the back of the page to get access to online CATs. When you buy an old book, there is a 99.99% chance that you will not get access to the CATs. People might have used all its CAT exams when you buy an old book. So, it's better to buy new books.

[money9111]

ZahD the Princeton review book may be a waste of time. I only say may because that's what I've heard. When I was thinking about getting my materials I did not even consider this book.

Also, I wouldn't use one of the free GMAT prep exams to see where you stand. Save these for the end of your studies. If you're not going to return the Princeton review book... start going through it now UNTIL you get the MGMAT guides. Take one of those as your first practice. I'm not sure how new you are to the process, but the GMAT prep exams are pretty close to the actual exam so you'd want to see where you are later in your studies.

[ZahD]

Firstly, there are no DVDs attached with the Manhattan book (new or old). When you buy a new book, you have a unique code at the back of the page to get access to online CATs. When you buy an old book, there is a 99.99% chance that you will not get access to the CATs. People might have used all its CAT exams when you buy an old book. So, it's better to buy new books.

Thank-you... I am going to order the new ones. Just looking them up on Amazon...

[ZahD]

ZahD the Princeton review book may be a waste of time. I only say may because that's what I've heard. When I was thinking about getting my materials I did not even consider this book.

Also, I wouldn't use one of the free GMAT prep exams to see where you stand. Save these for the end of your studies. If you're not going to return the Princeton review book... start going through it now UNTIL you get the MGMAT guides. Take one of those as your first practice. I'm not sure how new you are to the process, but the GMAT prep exams are pretty close to the actual exam so you'd want to see where you are later in your studies.

Hi,

In ans to your question i am very new to this. However i've read a few forums on here and have a general idea but the info is all over the place in my mind right now which is making me nervous. I've ordered the wrong books and now will have to wait for the new ones. Anyways lets look past this, hopefully i'll be able to return the Princeton review.

My new list of books will be this: OG (Gmat review, verbal review, and quantitative review), Critical reasoning bible, and MGMAT 4th ed. of all four math books. Does this list look fine? What should i order for SC?

Thanks a million this forum is a life saver!

[money9111]

MGMAT SC and/or PowerScore SC Bible. I personally have both... but MGMAT SC will suffice... don't worry about ordering the wrong books. It's not a big deal even if you can't return them. Unless it's hurting your bank account. If I had PR book I would still do the problems in it for extra practice. I just wouldn't read any of the material.

[ZahD]

A quick update.

So i took the diagnostic test in PR while I wait on my MGMAT material. I don't even want to know my score because it must have been horrible!....

Math section was very interesting but I've forgotten the fundamentals. I knew how to solve them but couldn't go too far with them having forgotten the fundamentals. I believe if I refresh my memory i should be able to do them and practice will make it better.

My CR was a huge issue! I could eliminate the options that were not right but then the ones i had to pick from took a lot of my time!... I was thinking too much and making scenarios that weren't a part of the questions. One thing I noticed here was that I wasn't reading the question properly.

The SC section was a disaster!.... It looked like it was my toughest one out of all since most options looked right to me and elimination was difficult.

The Verbal section was orite but the flaw here was that I did not read the passages well. I had a general idea of what it was addressing but I didn't get all the questions that followed.

My question.... How do I approach my weakness? I think a lot in depth. The section that kept most of my attention was the math section. I have usually had problems with English in the sense that I love to free think and those questions require you to think in a particular way. That is why i enjoy math because you can approach a particular question in different ways!... I can't believe i am actually identifying my problems here .

It's great that i have pointed out my weakness but now comes the point where i need some advice on how to approach it. Any tips on how you studied for the Verbal, CR, & SC sections will be helpful.

Please feel free to reply. The more responses the better!