I decided today that I am going to take the GMAT in October of 2010. It’s too early to even sign up for a test date, but I’m going to start studying for the test. Worst case scenerio I decide to retake the GRE instead and my math skills have improved, or I end up in a job I love and I have no reason to go to grad school right now or ever, and I know a bit more about grammar and Algebra II.
But where do I start? I made a very strict study plan for the GREs (noting how many new words I needed to learn each day) and that lasted about a week before I threw myself off. With the GMAT, there is no date I “need” to take it, but I’d like to aim for October because that should be enough time to study — really study — without waiting too long that I’ll just procrastinate and not study at all.
I’m not a smart person. But I’d like to see if it’s possible to do well on a formulaic test without a high IQ.
Have you ever taken the GMAT? What study advice do you have?
Congrats! Have you already taken your GREs? You know many top MBA programs accept the GREs? Here are some resources we offer for the GMAT (scroll to the bottom of the blog post to find our GMAT related podcasts and videos): http://www.mbapodcaster.com/blog/2009/05/summary-of-free-gmat-classes-that-are.htmlGood luck!
Ahhh the GMAT. When I was studying for it I referred to it as The Beast. I took it 2x (and have known some people who've taken it 3x), so my suggestions are to be prepared to take it 2x. I was WAY less nervous the second time around.If you can afford it, I'd suggest a prep class ($1K-$1.5K). Then go through the Official Guides. Make sure you understand each question and answer (and all the wrong choices as well). A good prep class will teach you HOW to study, but the actual studying is still up to you. I'd say slow & steady wins the race – try to study for 1 hr – 3 hours a day, but broken up into chunks. Take 4-5 GMATPrep practice tests (under realistic time schedule) before you take the real thing. Good luck!
I was 3 years out of college and JUST had my second baby when I decided to go for the masters degree (in 2002). FSU told me that if I could take the GMAT in 2 weeks and score a 520, I'd be in for the fall semester. So I used the GMAT website, studied and took the practice tests offered there, and took the exam at the end of the two weeks. I was fortunate in that I have a math brain, so I could fairly easily recall much of the math I thought I had forgotten. And I had been taking weekly grammar quizzes at the newspaper where I had worked for the 3 years before. I didn't buy any prep material, just used what was on the website. I took the exam, got my score – a 640, and then went straight home to pump my boobs b/c I was about to explode! (did I mention I was still on maternity leave and breastfeeding? I was in PAIN during the whole last hour of that exam!)When FSU admissions received my score, they called me and offered me a fellowship (fully paid tuition plus an "allowance" if I agreed to put in some extra hours doing research and/or tutoring/teaching an undergrad class) if I would sign up to be a full time student. But unfortunately that was not an option for me 🙁 That allowance was but a fraction of my salary at my full time job, which I needed to support my family of 4 (husband was a stay at home dad).Just do it – tell yourself you will succeed, and you WILL succeed! Good luck!