Study and Strategy questions relating to the GMAT.
karagiannis.ger
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Gmat study plan advice

by karagiannis.ger Wed Feb 12, 2014 11:28 pm

Hi there!

Yesterday i ordered the Manhattan GMAT Complete strategy Guide 5th, OG 13, GMAT Verbal 2nd edition and PowerScore CR.

I will apply for a Master Degree in several EU business schools where the admission score is 600 however i need much more because i hold a bachelor degree in Physics and some of them clearly define that they put more emphasis on the GMAT score. This is why i need my highest score! I don't need to study for the AW and IR they ask only for Verbal and Quant score.

I have 8 weeks to prepare and i am willing to spend 8 hours per day. Plus 4 weeks in case that i need to retake the exam.

I borrowed the OG 12 from a friend and a Barrons prep book and with 7 days quick scan i scored 130 on the first 180 questions. With an average 51 min per 30 questions on the Quant PS questions without solving any combination and probability question because i didn't preapare at all. In case that i have time i am thinking to buy the MGMAT advanced Quant.

Could you please advice me for a study plan? For non native English speakers?

Should i start first with the Quant and then with the Verbal or study both daily? For instance study 2 quant guides and a one verbal guide at the same time? Give me a daily or weekly Q/V fraction please!

I am not a native English speaker and i am thinking to put more emphasis on Verbal. Is there any study plan for 2 months. I was thinking to spend 50 days for preparation and 10 days on revising my weaknesses and taking the online MGMAT online tests plus the free GMAT test and several tests on the internet.

Do you advice me solve the OG after studying each topic on the complete strategy guide or leave it for the end?

Regards,

GK
StaceyKoprince
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Location: Montreal
 

Re: Gmat study plan advice

by StaceyKoprince Sun Feb 16, 2014 7:55 pm

The first thing I recommend is taking a practice CAT. You can use that to figure out your strengths and weaknesses, so that you can set up / prioritize your study plan. That will help you decide how much time to spend on Q vs V, and so on.

In fact, I've written an article all about how to set up that study plan. I address most of the questions that you ask here:
https://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/inde ... our-score/

Take a look through that and let me know any questions.

You may not need to get very high scores on the AWA and IR sections, but you do still have to take those sections, and it won't look very good if you get the lowest possible score. Further, those two sections come before the quant and the verbal sections. If you're not prepared somewhat for AWA and IR, you will use up WAY too much brain energy trying to get through those sections and then your performance on Q and V will suffer.

So you want to do some study - a minimal amount, but some - for AWA and IR. Further, whenever you take practice tests, do make sure that you include those two sections. Mimic the real test conditions exactly. Otherwise, your Q and V scores are likely to drop significantly on the day of the real test (because you won't be prepared to do those sections after first spending an hour doing other mentally-challenging activities).

After you've read the above article and taken your first practice CAT, you can use the below to analyze it (this should take you a minimum of 1 hour):
https://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/inde ... ts-part-1/

Figure out your strengths and weaknesses as well as what you think you should do based on that analysis. Then come back here and tell us; we'll tell you whether we agree and advise you further. (Note: do share an analysis with us, not just the raw data. Part of getting better is developing your ability to analyze your results - figure out what they mean and what you think you should do about them!)
Stacey Koprince
Instructor
Director, Content & Curriculum
ManhattanPrep