I took the GMAT twice and crushed it the second time (>750). I think the recommendations here are pretty much spot on, but I would add a few points: - I recommend Kaplan 800 for advanced questions – this book has some of the hardest questions on the market. It’s particularly good for quant, imo. - Don’t just do practice questions, take practice tests under real conditions (i.e., short breaks). 75 minute sections are longer than they sound and endurance can be a factor. Practice with the stupid plastic sheet and crappy pen that you have to use for the real test so that you are comfortable with the real deal (I personally hate this sheet and writing with a sharpie, and this kind of tripped me up on my first attempt). - Take the GMAT Prep tests that come in the mail with registration. Uninstall the program, reinstall it and take them again (you only get two exams). - Make sure you know the basics cold so that you can get all the low hanging fruit. The mistake I made the first time was to think that I would definitely get all of the easier questions, so I focused all my prep on the hard questions. This backfired when I missed a few of the easier questions and didn’t even get to the hardest questions until the very end of the exam, which put a cap on my score. Every question counts! - Timing is just as important as knowledge and ability. If you screw up your pacing, your score will suffer.
I found this on UPenn’s website. I found it very helpful. http://graddiv.wharton.upenn.edu/diaries/?p=45
bromion what did u get the first time?
I was in the low 700s the first time – right around average for M7. I personally think everyone should take it at least twice even though it is a horrible test (well, I guess not if you get a great score the first time). The reason is that there is some randomness and variability in the results since the questions vary each time you take it. I revamped my prep for the second attempt, but I also felt like I “clicked” a lot more with the 2nd exam – it just seemed like I got more of the types of questions I am good at and less of the type that I am not good at. This was particularly true of the quant section.
bromion - Are you going to grad school?
thx