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Strategy for GMAT : study under a month.

The general answer for EVERYBODY :
PREPARATION for GMAT: STRATEGY for 30 days schedule:

[Here’s quick-n-dirty article about ‘study under a month’. Many people have aced the test by just 3 to 4 weeks of study. If you’re in time crunch, dont worry! by using right approach/ method you too can ace it.]
I presume you have sound knowledge of: all areas that GMAT tests; how GMAT works; what is its structure etc…
I assumed this because you generally register a date at least one month before. (if you’ve not, you should. …at least this is what I recommend! The early you book a date, easier it will be for you to plan a killing strategy). Lastly, of course, I assume you do get acquainted with GMAT before sending them your credit card number!
So you’ve thirty days. or let’s say, just four weeks!
Since it is much short period than ideal period to study for the test, you might need to compromise on few study materials which are not significant to you.
e.g. If you’re weak in verbal and Math is your strength you should devote more time for verbal (obviously! )
Coming to materials:
GMAT official guide 11th Edition is must:
Purchase the book immediately if you haven’t already!
As they suggested in the OG (official guide), ‘start with the diagnostic test’. Know your weak areas and know your strengths.
Repeat diagnostic test next day to see how awfully you score. Do meticulous analysis (let’s call it MA here onwards; I’ll come to it in next paragraph.) about your test/answers.
OG 11 has labeled/classified each question (which is great!). Use these tags in the future prep too….know which question belong to which category.
My definition of MA (meticulous analysis) and when & how to apply it:
While practicing GMAT problems I advise to solve at least 35-60 questions in one stretch. GMAT is more about mental stamina and patience! The real test is FOUR hours long and it tests your endurance like no other online test. 40-60 questions assures that you can sit at least for an hour at one go.
Make a table, on spreadsheet (on your computer) or on paper, of no. of rows you’ll be taking questions. And write details about how you feel about each question. This should be done while you’re doing the questions. So dont spend more than 2-3 seconds on filling the table (you can tick on pre-defined columns that will save your time). It can be used as a future reference for your study: the table should enable you to quickly realise your problem areas and which type of questions you require maximum amount of time. One session of this sitting should at least be of 35-40 questions; be it from any section: PS, SC, CR, RC or DS.
(…maybe I’ll put snapshots of table if you’re still confused, please remind me at my blog )
Same amount of time you should spend in reading explanation and analyzing each answers as the amount of time you spent in answering these questions. If you got many questions wrong, increase the analysing time.
Coming back to books and materials:
You can refer basic math books, college algebra or high school grammar books to brush up your verbal and quant skills if you really wanted. But with given time constrains like “GMAT in a month” I think I would instead stick to GMAT materials. If you study smart you, over the time, would know that GMAT asks particular type of questions; and they just love to ask them that way 😉 You’ll be familiar with GMAT style if you solve more OG problems.
Refer to Official guide 11.
Check the math section of the book. Read it (~10 hours?) and re-read all its theory to know the syllabus of GMAT right. Don’t end up studying subjects that are not tested in GMAT.
Download GMAT Prep software for simulated CAT from mba.com. It’s free!
There are many other sim CATs (simulated Computer Adaptive Tests)� that you should purchase.
Check out the article to know more about these sim C A Ts
You can finish OG11 in 5-6 days (Yes you can! but you shouldn’t). Many folks I know finished it in a week (I too did it once-just for fun); but that is not the right strategy. Since the time is short you surely can compromise on other books but not on OG11.
The problems in OG 11 are arranged in ascending order of difficulty. That means, you get harder (/upper range) questions at the end of the problem sets in each section. However problem types (categories) are mixed throughout the sets. This makes many things easy in setting a study schedule. You know your level and can begin the OG accordingly 😉
They say OG11 is a bible of GMAT! Solve as many as problems you can; examine the answers carefully do the ‘MA’ as suggested above. Make Analysis chart.
Try to go through OG 11 twice in the month. (Since I’m not suggesting any other book along with OG, I think its possible to do this.) Check your progress regularly. Once you finish OG for first time you’ll get idea of how many day it’ll take to you to study one more time! If you think you have more time left you should check with other two official guides
OG Verbal guide
and the OG Quant guide.

These new two official guides, (also known as purple and green guides,) are
published when GMAC stopped the production of OG 10th edition. While new
problems are in OG 11; purple and green guides give you lot of repeats from OG
10th edition. Therefore it is wise not to buy these two books iff you already have OG 10.

Three official guides (along with the sim CATs ) are enough for a month study!
Usually, I suggest to take as many simulated CATs as possible. Practice them periodically; say, one in three-four days.
Practice tests play very significant role in your preparation. You’ll need four hours to solve each of them and two more hours to analyze them.
Since they are Computer Adaptive tests you get only one question at a time and at times, you become curious to know your score and you hurriedly complete the test. (just to know where you stand and see the answers) Needless to say: dont do that 😐 While these CATs are especially created to gauge your performance for actual GMAT, I see practice tests purely for practice. These tests hone your endurance, mental stamina to face four hour long real GMAT test! The tests are time consuming and drains your energy and hence you should keep special period for these CATs in your schedule. Be ready to spend ~6 hours for a test. Keep your cell phone on silent mode. Don’t start the test at 10.30 in the night: I know most of you out there are owls 😀 but it really not going to help in your real test. (You cant take the real-McCoy in the night, right? 😉 In fact, once you know your test times be sure to take these practice tests on the same time of the day… say: start your test everytime on 1.30 pm if your real test is scheduled on 1.30 pm of the G-Day!
——————————————————————————————–
I think this much is enough!
If I receive any comment I might add something you wanted.
To sum up the article I can say:

  • Eat OG 11.
  • if time permits study OG verbal and quant
  • Eat OG 11 one more time
  • GMAT Prep : the official computer adaptive practise test for GMAT
  • Plus other CATs

Note that I have not set any particular order in this you should all of it simultaneously.
Hope that helps everyone who is in time crunch.

I’m back to GMAT world and kicking!

Lot of things happened during this break/phase.
Actually I had asked by my parents to stay in my native place as they were going out of town for vacation. That caused me two months of separation from net world :p I was desperately waiting to get back here. for beating GMAT and beyond (heeheee) But when I came back, a tragedy occurred. I lost my connecting device and a CELL phone. 😥
And then it was again one more month without internet. 🙁
It’s been five days since I’m back to GMAT world and already kicking. 😀
Soon I’ll add some post to this blog. Meanwhile I just changed the signature of my posts of the forums where I’m most active.
I have added the link of my other blog: “Do you Aim-WSC ? ” , which I think I am going to make more happening in near future. (I’ve merged all my blogs in one place now.)
Not that I am going to apply this year.
As you know I have yet to take the real test. oh Yeah! GMAT I mean. I am yet to take the GMAT test and I’m not thinking of it until next February.
So there’s no question of applying this year.
Well You’ll find all these answers about why I’m delaying this application process and hence MBA program / course on the above mention blog ( http://jc-4mba.blogspot.com ).

In GMAT front:
I’ve again joined all my favourite forums, BeatThe GMAT, PagalGuy and Test Magic and started contributing there.
I’ll be back within ten days and bring some food / special gifts for all you reader 😀
as I promised earlier.
Thank you for patience!

Do you Aim-WSC (?)

Hi there,
Check this out, haahaa
I just changed the title of this blog. (I merged all my blogs now)
Do you Aim-WSC?
It’s the name I chose for myself in some GMAT and MBA related forums couple of years ago and now it’s almost became a synonym for me… though I go by Johny Cage, my identity as aim-wsc is more popular than my name. They’ve nicknamed me as “aim” and now I really check the sentence twice whenever I see that word…Many of my phone calls I answer these days had to attend by aim-wsc and not by Pranav Amrute.
Heck! People actually discussed about my username on “forum trivia” thread!
Aim-wsc has a great potential to grow further in future! (but now I dont endorse that brand)
Watch this space as I’ll be writing more here from now. And make a brand as aim-wsc :mrgreen:
I have been doing research on b-schools since ages; and when I joined these online forums, I had shortlisted MBA programs from three top b-schools: Wharton, Stanford, Columbia. Today, though I have chucked the thought of applying to Stanford, ( as I realised that it’s not my kind of school and I dont fit in that MBA program.) , it is still there in my name.
I am loser yet I am aiming high. Do you too aim higher?
Do you Aim-WSC?
If you do, join the squad!
Check out the Google friends connect in the sidebar, & sign up.

testing it on cell phone

Nope
its not working on cell phone.
I tried to add a new article related to GMAT and world MBA tour which is coming to Mumbai this July, a quick link actually, through my opera mobile browser but dont know what s the problem…

Anyway I guess I’ll have to stick to my PC for sake of blogging at least

My biggest nightmare

Heroes are losers!

Yeah! That’s my observation… Not all of them though. 😉 I have been on world wide web for quite a while and I know who are the heroes out here.
(Well! I am talking about the GMAT industry here.)

They’re active, they inspire, and they have great deal of experience in this field; they sometimes do analysis of the trends, keep track on the latest news and inform other people. They posses vast knowledge of this area and always try to help rookies in the industry. (GMAT prep industry 😉 ) And therefore they are termed as “experts” ; they are heroes for many.

YEAH! Words they speak (oops I mean, articles/ posts they write) and publish online become a reference material for many; become note of inspiration for many. Yes! Many regard them as heroes because of their commitment and constant zest to help and inspire other newbies.

They are heroes for many.
So whats wrong in that?

Well! Nothing’s wrong there. Even I had these heroes shape my prep and choose proper path in GMAT and MBA application process.

But one thing I observed in most of these heroes: They are losers in their own life.

am not pointing on anybody, specifically in this article but if you are well ol’ here you might guess about whom I am talking…

(Now don’t go and check my “tributary article for my heroes”. None of them has mentioned here or anywhere… they are different not mentioned anywhere in my blog.)

Although they write very inspirational posts or know many killing strategies, in their own journey to beat the GMAT they had failed to succeed. I feel sorry for them.

And guess what’s my biggest nightmare?

Yeah! I fear to become the loser. Being the loser just like them!

Well! I am no near to them! They are, perhaps, the world class. And I don’t regard myself in ^Hero^ category. I’d be happy to be a tiny person … but you cant ignore the fact… fact that I’m one of the top posters in America’s most popular GMAT related forum! And with this Annual PagalGuy Forum Awards I am getting some clear signs about people’s perception about my articles/ posts.

Oh yeah! They take them quite seriously 😉 😆 I feel really honored. I am pleased at the same time I feel it as a burden.
But then they say Great Power comes with Great responsibility!!! ( Damn I am yet to see Spiderman III… will watch it soon 🙂 ) I know my potential and I’ll damn achieve my ultimate goal. But this GMAT along with the aim-wsc, does it comes in my ultimate goal?

Perhaps yes but it’s in the path and I CAN/COULD choose alternative path for my ultimate goal(????)

I have been thinking of this for a quite while to b’ or not to b’… OK so I might not even apply to any b-schools.
But what about GMAT thingie? What about this blog? What about those award winning posts of mine? What about the brand aim-wsc?

I wont let my followers disappoint… I know many people out here want to see my ‘real marathon article about my own GMAT experience’.

So I WILL take the GMAT no matter what… I don’t want to turn them down.

This is strange; now I fear of being loser 😆 Isn’t it ironic!
You post something about how to beat the anxiety and nervousness and now YOU are nervous!! You suggest hundreds of strategies to rookies for their specific circumstances and now if you need help you cant ask about it because you already know the answers. Haahaa isn’t it a tragedy!

Sigh!

Well! Lets keep it away for time being … I’ll write some more articles about which I mentioned in my last post. Just wanted to vent that’s it.

Thanks for patience and thanks for reading!

Stay tuned for some products from research den of my GMAT blog

I have so many articles to publish here L tsk my unpublished posts dammit! There’s a lot to come from my “research den”

Just stay tuned, wait for some days and you’ll get:-

  • some cool reviews about the GMAT online forums from me. Yeah! You know that I have been on all forums for some time I know the culture of every forum

  • The compilation of all great GMAT stories (edited my with my comments) of Test Magic ( urch.com ) forums. Yeah! The forum is quite old and produced some of great GMAT gurus who gave ultimate strategies to crack the GMAT.

  • Complete dissection of GMAT prep and GMAT PowerPrep softwares ( 26 MB & 9 MB) comparision of these with OGs (sounds exciting na! )

  • And of course my unfinished business with thousand SC 1000 SC document. I’ll try my best to make a complete list of Answers of that document. … some say that SC doc is clean… lets see…

Scholarship Beat The GMAT

“Never Before Mega scholarship for GMAT studies on cyberspace.”
…that’s my new signature in one of the GMAT and MBA related forums.
But now I think I have to modify it a bit. Scholarships are not just limited to GMAT aspirants. Thanks to generous Stacy Blackman Co It has something to offer for beyond GMAT test too.
I salute generous Forum site who’s launching this Scholarship. ( And also the sponsors Manhattan GMAT and Stacy Consulting Co. )
Well! the name is none other than Beat the GMAT. As you must have known by now by reading earlier parts [Part-I] and [Part-II] of this article, about the site and its community involvement.
To-day, I am really feel proud of being part of it.
This year’s annual BeattheGMAT scholarship is, as I said earlier, gonna be bigger and wider than before. I call it Mega Scholarship.
Here’s a sneek peek of What scholarship comprises of this year.

  • The competition is running from April1- May 7.

Gosh! its gonna be huge!
( Total price money is going to exceed $8000!! )

  • First Price:

GMAT registration
One full Manhattan GMAT course
4-hour consultation with Stacy Blackman Co.

  • Second Price:

GMAT registration subsidy ($150)
One full Manhattan GMAT course
1-hour consultation with Stacy Blackman Co.

  • Third Price:

GMAT registration subsidy ($50)
One full Manhattan GMAT course
1-hour consultation with Stacy Blackman Co.

  • Fourth Price:

GMAT registration subsidy ($50)
One full Manhattan GMAT course

  • Fifth Price:

One full Manhattan GMAT course.
[PS] Beat The GMAT and sponsors might change some details @ scholarship so please refer to the link provided at the title.
Check for updates here: http://www.beatthegmat.com/scholarship/
Thank you.

1000 SC, CR are they worth your time?

They are very famous documents. Yes they are famous and there are lots of reasons for it.
But being famous doenst make them nice.
All right, so lets see whats these documents are upto!
If you are checking my blog regularly, you must be knowing that some months back I made an announcement that I’ll exhaust 1000 SC document & I’ll provide the explanation of their questions. Yes! I tried that but while I was in process of eating 1000 SC document I observed many things about the document that I’d like to share here.
But before that, what’s the fuss? What’s 1000 SC & 1000 CR all about?
1000 SC is a compilation of thousand sentence correction problems related to GMAT exam. Similarly 1000 CR is a word document of thousand critical reasoning problem related to GMAT and LSAT tests. They were produced by very renowned company called scoretop ( you can see the link of the scoretop forums on right hand column of my blog, )
They are easily on internet on sharing/ uploading sites such as esnip or megaupload or rapidshare well you might find some copyrighted documents on such sites but these documents are even available on various (almost every ) GMAT related forums the reason for this is they’re meant to share it across the world wide web.
I am sure you’ll find them anywhere.
So, they are popular. And have so many problems to practice, that GMAT aspirants download them and use them.
Well even I did the same.
[Now before I go ahead I must thank score top for compiling such huge documents. These documents, since available for free on internet, helped and are helping many people who can’t otherwise affort to buy premium GMAT study material.]

But the problem with 1000 SC is that it doesn’t give you the explanations to the answers. That end us up in wondering why given particular answer is correct.
As I started solving 1000 SC problems more & more I realized that the problems are not that ^GMAT like^.
If you compare the 1000SC problems with problems from Official guides or Power Prep or GMAT prep you’ll realize that they do not follow the same trend, or similar style or what they call GMAT like.
Many constructions are bad awkward and they simply arent worth your time studying.
Morever I started a special thread on one of the forum encouraging people to post the problems from 1000 SC that have wrong answers.
Take one, for example, Problem #985 discussed in one of the forums where I am active member.
So there are some problems like these where the answer given in the document is actually wrong!
I am looking for some more such problems. but then I think is it worth the time?
The answer come : NO. You have other good materials that you can refer.
SO the bottomline is refer to OG 11th edition; exhaust it, you have GMAT-Prep, solve every problem also there are similar official materials such as Power Prep & other books Purple and green official guide (refer to How to Approach GMAT & GMAT strategy for more details )
& still if you think that you need some more material to practise then refer them back exhaust OG 11 twice.
& then you’ll be able to know which are GMAT like problem then you can safely start 1000 SC
PS: I think special article for 1000 CR is not worth, same can be said about 1000 CR or 3000 RC. However good (or a bad) thing about these other documents is: they’ve included LSAT type problems which are good for practise as they’re considered more difficult than GMAT types. So one last tip before wraping up: go for LSAT problems for higher level 🙂
Thank you.
You can download these documents from here.

In search of GMAT blogs

Hello people as I mentioned in my earlier article in my blog, I am compiling the list of GMAT bloggers.
If you have a blog and you write something about GMAT in your blog then just let me know. I’ll add your url weblink in this article. All you have to do is send me a note. You can post a comment or just put a note on the chat box, which is available on the right hand side of the blog.

You must have seen a new item “Great GMAT links” in the right column.

Yes, I know what now you are thinking… something similar to League of MBA bloggers or Dave’s MBA list… NO.

For “Great GMAT links
No. I wont just add the link of your GMAT blog. I’ll check your blog and will see whether you are regular into blogging, whether you write more about GMAT. If I find it really worth you will be listed in the “Great GMAT links”

I hope a good response from GMAT enthusiasts :

The list of GMAT bloggers (so far)
UPDATE:Apologies I updated the links today on Aug 2008. I must say some of the links mentioned below are worth reading entirely!!

Keep them coming guys.

& I found a Blogs Directory which keeps database of all blogs available.

Where’s the pink?

Where is the pink?

it is moved here!

All right I got lots of comments on the theme of my blog.
Pink?
Are you crazy?
you are man, right?
geeeee its girlish!
change the colour dammit.

But I ignored all the comments. Because I am inlove with this journey. Well but now I changed the theme and made it look somewhat more professional and serious. Yeah I am changing the culture here a li’l bit.

I ll add some more features in my blog. I am compiling the list of GMAT bloggers.

I encourage all bloggers who write anything about GMAT to post me their link. post a comment or post it on chat-box on right column. I am desperately hunting the good quality GMAT blogs. Soon I ll provide the list of [Great GMAT blogs]
bytheway I ll add your url in my article anyway, all you have to do is send me a note via comment or chat-box.
In addition to this, what’s new you have come up with? we are expecting some quality article from your research den.
Yeah! I met some applicants in Pune GMAT meet.
And stuck with the question “What about other 80% people who couldnt make it to top 15 b-schools? how would you finance your MBA?” The only way I could finance any of my projects was to get help this california agency that gives out hard money.
This is very serious issue and I ll try to find the solution for it.
Soon I ll come up with the article, till then enjoy the links on the right hand side.
And of course Thanks for coming!