90 day plan

[frenchwr]

Hey guys,

New to the forum, and have been putting off the gmat for a while, but I want to get serious and begin preparing. What is the best 90-day study plan, and what materials will I need to get started.

Thanks!

[BestGMATEliza]

Hi!

I think the most important first step to GMAT studying is assessing your needs. In order to do this, you need to first figure out your target score by looking at the median and average scores for the schools you want to go to. The next step is figuring out how close you are to that score by taking a practice test. I recommend one of the free tests from the official test makers that can be found at mba.com. You may be closer than you think, especially if you have a strong math or grammar background or great critical reasoning skills.

Once you have figured out your needs, you can figure out what your study plan should be. If you are struggling equally in all GMAT topics, a full in person or online course might be the best option for you. If you are almost at your target score in quant and just need help with verbal (or vice versa) part of an online on demand course or a tutor might be the way to go. If you are looking to self study, you can use your test results to figure out what books you need to buy and what topics you should be focusing the most on.

Hope this helps!!

[Brent@GMATPrepNow]

You might consider signing up for Beat The GMAT's free 60-Day Study Guide (https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/gmat-guide).

Each day, you'll receive an email with a series of learning activities that guide you, step-by-step, from Day 1 to test day. This will ensure that you will cover everything that the GMAT tests. The 90 days you have will allow you take a little extra time.

Here's an outline of all 60 emails: https://www.beatthegmat.com/mba/gmat-guide-outline

To use the Study Guide, you will need either the GMAT Prep Now videos or the MGMAT books, as each day's learning activities reference both resources. You will also need a copy of the Official Guide for GMAT Review.

Cheers,
Brent

[[email protected]]

Hi frenchwr,

When starting off, it's important to define your goals and abilities. As has been mentioned, you should take a FULL-length practice CAT test (you can download 2 for free from www.mba.com). The test will take almost 4 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to do so. You also need to define your score goal (which will probably be based on the schools you're planning to apply to and any scholarships that you're interested in).

To help you set your expectations, it's worth noting that most Test Takers take 3 months (or more) to hit their respective peak scores. During that time, 10-15 hours of study per week is common with plenty of "review" built in so that you don't just "blow through" early material and forget the concepts later. It's a big process, but the GMAT is a predictable, standardized exam, so you CAN train to CRUSH it.

Once you've taken that practice CAT, you should report back here with your scores so we can talk through your options.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich