Questions about Test Day

[albyman32]

A few questions about materials and test day procedures...

1.) PR strategy for math is to take your booklet and divide each page up into 4 boxes and number each box and put ABCDE. They say you can do this while the test directions are up. Is there actually time to do this before you start each section without using your 75 minutes?

2.) Is this the best strategy you would reccomend to do your scratch work, particularly for the Math section?

3.) For your 5 minute break, does the test automatically start without you if you're not back?

4.) Is the marker a fine tip, or will it write fat on the laminated paper? How easily does it smear?

5.) For the verbal section I like to employ the Kaplan strategy of creating a big grid with ABCDE down the left side so you don't have to keep writing it over and over. Since I don't really need room for scratch work for each question I like this strategy? Any other reccomendations?

[Ian Stewart]

3 Yes, the test will start without you if you don't return before the end of your break.

4. The marker has a pretty fine tip- it's not one of those fat whiteboard markers. You can definitely smear it or erase it with your finger if you want to.

As for your other questions, I've never bothered with answer choice grids- with only five answer choices to keep track of, I've never seen the need- though I imagine some people find them useful. Whether they help you is something you should be able to work out by doing practice tests.

[albyman32]

Can anyone answer my question on whether theres time to create answer grids or divide up your booklet into sections for scratch work?

[Prasanna]

I think you will have five minutes to read through instructions which you can use to work on the booklet. I am not sure whether this will help though. You may have to make that call

[LSB]

I did not do a grid for Quant as it seemed impossible to forecast how much room I would need for each question (to take notes).

For DS I used ADBCE (which seems to be a similar strategy to yours)

Now to Verbal:
You have a 10 minute break. But you cannot be in the testing room during that break. As a result you cannot create a grid. When you return to your desk there are two options:
1) you are late and the test has started. In this case I would not worry about any grids
2) you are ahead of schedule at which point you loose the remaining breaktime as the proctor will initiate the next session (verbal in this case). When the next session is initiated you have exactly 60 seconds for instructions. I managed to write ABCDE forty times (10 on each of four sheets) in 60 seconds. I found the grid helped a lot in verbal. I used process of elimination quite a bit. Especially at the higher difficulty questions, answers may not come intuitively and once you have eliminated an option you dont want to read it again later.

Also refer to this post: (my last post on the first page)
https://www.beatthegmat.com/750-q48-v46-t17715.html