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In most of the business schools worldwide GMAT is recognized as the most effective test. I offer you the more personalized GMAT preparation GUIDE to get the results you desire.

Archive for April, 2009

How To Score in Gmat

April 17, 2009 at 12:26 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

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How to score in gmat :

 

  • Before you subscribe to the Test Series, we recommend that you take our FREE diagnostic
    test. This would give you an idea of our Test Series.
  • As soon as we receive your subscription fee for the Test Series, you will receive a mail
    indicating that you have been enrolled as a subscriber. You can then download the test
    series on your computer.
  • You can then proceed to take the first of the Five tests, which you can do off-line,
    without being connected to the Internet. You even have the option of “pausing” a
    test and resuming it later from where you left, though our advice is to take a test at one
    go.
  • Once you complete Test One, you can get to know your scores and the solutions to the
    questions in Test One.
  • After you’ve reviewed your performance in the Test, you have access to Test Two.
    Again, take the test off-line at your convenience, view your scores and the solutions, and
    access Test Three. This process continues till you have completed all the Five Tests of
    the Test Series.

 

 

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Advantages of GMAT Test

April 17, 2009 at 12:10 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

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Advantages of SCORE GMAT Test Series

  • ADAPTABILITY : Just like the
    actual tests, the Crack-GMAT test series adapts to your ability level. There are different
    levels of questions, and just as in the actual GMAT, the level of your next question will
    depend on your response to the previous questions.

  • COMPREHENSIVENESS : The GMAT
    test     series consists of a comprehensive set of questions prepared to cover a large
    variety and type of questions. It also consists of a detailed explanation of each question
    to help you understand your mistakes and improve your scores.

  • CONVENIENCE : Once you have the
    tests with you, you can set your own pace depending on the time you have for preparation.
    You can take these tests in simulated settings on your own home or office PC.

  • FULL-LENGTH : The Crack-GMAT
    tests are full-length tests. It is important to maintain your concentration and focus for
    the entire duration of the test. Most students fail to develop that level of
    concentration. The three ways to develop the concentration are practice, practice
    and practice.

  • INTERACTIVITY : At any point
    after subscribing to the test, you can e-mail us with any problems that you might face at
    any stage of the testing process. Rest assured that you will get a reply within 24 hours.

    •  

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Best GMAT resources

April 16, 2009 at 9:30 am · Filed under Uncategorized

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There are thousands of GMAT resources you can find online. But all of them may not be up to the mark. Some of them might even be misleading!  I have added a few resources that I feel are best for a GMAT test-taker and many of them are free downloads !

Please note : There are a few links and mention of commercial products. I do not, in any way, endorse any of these products. I am mentioning them here because they are of International repute among the test-takers and these must be bought at your sole discretion.

All the links below were working at the time of writing this page. Please let me know if any link is broken or dead.

Free GMAT Resources:

The GMAT Information Bulletin 2009 : This is where you find the official information on the GMAT exam.

GMATPrep Software : This is the best ever GMAT test simulator. You can take two full length tests. And you can re-install it to get almost all new questions (except the AWA). Practice with this is a complete must. This is the closest indicator of your GMAT performance.

Analysis of an Argument essays : Official list of Analysis of  an Argument essays.

Analysis of an Issue essays: Official list of Analysis of an Issue essays.

Free Online GMAT Practice Tests:

These are tests provided for free by the commercial test-prep companies. Take the test results with a pinch of a salt because none of these are close to the real GMAT (GMATPrep is the best indicator and is closest to the real GMAT). But these tests make great practice. These are in no particular order.

Best GMAT Books :

These are the books you MUST buy if you intend to take the GMAT seriously.These are the ONLY books in the market that feature real (but retired) GMAT questions. If you have to buy only one book then buy the “The Official Guide for GMAT Review, 11th Edition”.

  • The Official Guide for GMAT Review, 11th Edition
  • The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review
  • The Official Guide for GMAT Quantitative Review

Best GMAT Discussion Forums :

Discussion forums are a great place to learn. There are hundreds of test-takers discussing questions, strategies and GMAT experiences. Active participation on these forums will help you learn things that you would not learn from books or tutors. The best part is, participation on these forums is totally free !

Good GMAT resources :

There are many other GMAT books that are worth a try. These books are products from commercial companies and must be bought at your sole discretion.

  • Manhattan GMAT Sentence Correction Guide – This is supposed to be the best book on GMAT Sentence Correction.
  • Princeton Review’s Cracking the GMAT with DVD – This is a good book to start your GMAT prep. But the questions in this book are a lot simpler than the real GMAT.
  • Kaplan GMAT Premier Program (with CD-ROM) – This is a good book for practice.
  • Powerscore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible – This is the best CR book. Read and work through this book. This helped me increase my CR accuracy.
  • Manhattan Review Sentence Correction guide – This is a good e-book to kick-start your sentence correction preparation.

Please suggest any books/resources that are worth a mention. Please do not include ANY affiliate links.

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What is GMAT ?

April 16, 2009 at 8:42 am · Filed under Uncategorized

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What is GMAT ?

The Graduate Management Aptitude Test or more simply GMAT (pronounced as G-MAT) is one of the most popular standardized tests around. If you plan to attend a business school, you would most likely have to take the GMAT. So, what exactly is the exam all about and do you need to take it? Lets see …

What is the GMAT ?

It is a standardized test conducted by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC). This test tries to assess and predict your academic capability to undergo the MBA (Master in Business Administration) programs.

The GMAT exam is a standardized assessment, delivered in English, that helps business schools assess the qualifications of applicants for advanced study in business and management. –

This test is delivered as a Computer Adaptive Test (CAT). It is only administered via computer on many pre-determined locations around the world.

Who uses the GMAT scores ?

The scores are used as one of the criteria for selection in graduate business schools. More than 1500 business schools around the world use the score as a predictor of an applicant’s academic capabilities.

What is the history of this test ?

In the early 1950s, a small group of schools got together and started an assessment test (now GMAT) to select candidates for its business programs. In the first year, the assessment test was taken by hardly 2000 times. Now it is taken at least 200,000 times annually and that number is set to grow. It used to be a paper-based test. From January 1 2006 GMAT became computerized and the paper-based test is no longer offered. Despite the change in the way the test is offered, the format of the test remained the same.

What exactly is GMAT out to test?

This exam measures basic verbal, mathematical, and analytical writing skills that you have developed in your education and work. – GMAC

The GMAT is not a pass/fail test. As the name clearly shows, it is a management aptitude test for graduates. It tests on the following 3 broad areas.

  • Analytical Writing Assessment (two 30-minute essay sections)
  • Quantitative Ability (one 75-minute multiple choice section)
  • Verbal Ability (one 75-minute multiple choice section)

A separate score is awarded for each of the three abilities listed above. A combined quantitative/Verbal score (scale of 200-800) is also awarded.

More importantly, GMAT is an endurance test. This test can be a grueling experience if the test-taker is not mentally trained for the test.

How long is the test?

It consists of 150 minutes of multiple-choice testing(quantitative and verbal) and 60 minutes of 2 analytical essays (30 min each). The test taker is allowed to take two 10 minute breaks(optional). Add all this and the time taken for administrative procedures, the test-taker spends around 4-hours at the test center.

So apart from the academic side of preparation for the test, one needs to be prepared for the mental pressure that the format of the exam poses.

How much does the test cost?

The cost to take the GMAT exam is US$250 globally.

How long is the GMAT score valid?

The score is valid for 5 years from the day you take the test. You can take the test as many times as you like. But, your score card will show all your attempts for the last five years. Graduate Business schools take only the latest score on the score card.

Do you need to take the GMAT?

If you plan to apply to a business school, chances are that you will be required to take the GMAT. Around 1800 business programs in over 1500 business schools require the applicant to take this exam. Almost all top (or best) schools mandate the GMAT.

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Format of the GMAT exam

April 16, 2009 at 8:41 am · Filed under Uncategorized

scoregmat-logo11Now that we will go forward with the format of the exam.

There are 3 parts of the GMAT exam.

  • Analytical Writing Assessment (60 minutes, 2 essays)
  • Quantitative Ability ( 75 minutes, 37 questions )
  • Verbal Ability (75 minutes, 41 questions)

Analytical Writing Assessment: The GMAT begins with Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA). The test-taker is required to write 2 short essays. The GMAT provides a simple word-processing program for this purpose. Each essay has to be completed in exactly 30 minutes.

The first is the Analysis of an Issue, in which you need to analyze the issue presented and explain your views on it. The second essay is Analysis of an Argument, in which a given argument has to be critically analyzed and evaluated. For both the essays, the emphasis is on the “Analytical” part, and not on the “Writing” part.

Quantitative Section: As the name suggests, this section contains questions on mathematics. This section begins after an optional (in my opinion,recommended) 10-minute break.  The 37 questions in this section comprise two kinds of questions : Problem Solving (PS) and Data Sufficiency (DS). These two types are intermingled, with no fixed number for each type.

Verbal Section: After another optional (again, recommended) 10-minute break, the verbal section begins. The verbal section in GMAT tests basic English skills coupled with reasoning and analysis. The 41 questions consist of three types : Sentence Correction (SC), Critical Reasoning (CR), and Reading Comprehension (RC). The three types are intermingled, with no fixed number for each type.

Computer-Adaptive format

The GMAT is a Computer Adaptive Test (CAT). The essays are not adaptive. The quantitative and verbal sections, however, are adaptive. By adaptive it means the difficulty level of every question (barring a few experimental questions) apart from the first question depends on whether you got the previous question right or wrong. In other words, if you answer a question right, the next question presented will be of higher difficulty and if you get a question wrong, the next question will be from easier levels.

Few points to remember (in no particular order):

  • Reading from a book and paper is different from reading from a computer screen. Get used to reading questions from a computer screen.
  • Pacing is extrememly important. There is heavy penalty for questions left unanswered.
  • Due to the adaptive format of GMAT, your score will reduce drastically if you have a string of wrong answers.
  • Practice at least one full length test from the two free GMATPrep tests provided by http://www.mba.com. Of course, the more you practice, the more equipped you are to sit through the four hour grueling session.
  • Time is the most expensive resource even on GMAT. If I say every second counts, I am not exaggerating.

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About Author SCORE GMAT

April 16, 2009 at 8:31 am · Filed under Uncategorized and tagged:

Score Gmat is an honest attempt of Krishna Kumar to help fellow GMAT test-takers. During his preparation, he has learnt a lot and would like to share it all with fellow test-takers so that they do not have to re-invent the proverbial wheel. There are a huge number of blogs and prep companies that are loaded with self-bias and mis-information. This blog is a neutral take on best approaches to prepare and succeed in GMAT.

KrishnaKumar

KrishnaKumar

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