A good GMAT score is crucial for obtaining admission to a management program in top-tier business schools. It also facilitates the securing of merit-based scholarships to fund your education. Therefore, to achieve an excellent score, you must organize your preparation by devising an effective strategy.
The perfect GMAT strategy includes the following steps:
- Create a GMAT Study Plan: The admission process of a business school comprises many activities like writing a statement of purpose essay, making a resume, getting letters of recommendation, etc. Juggling between these chores and your GMAT studies prep is the last you would want to do. To organize the whole process, making a good study plan is crucial.
- Acquaintance with Exam Pattern: To ace this exam with an excellent score, you need to understand its structure and the question pattern. The structure of this exam is tailored to test your knowledge of mathematics and evaluate your skills in critical thinking, data analysis and interpretation, reading comprehension, writing, and problem-solving. It consists of four sections:
- Analytical Writing Assessment(AWA): This section examines your ability to critically analyze the argument and articulate your opinion.
- Integrated Reasoning(IR): this section measures your ability to analyze data given in different formats and interpret it to solve problems.
- Verbal Reasoning(VR): This section assesses your linguistic skills and your understanding of English grammar.
- Quantitative Reasoning(QR): This section measures your ability to solve problems through mathematical and logical reasoning.
- Picking Study Material: It is very important to select study material for the GMAT preparation wisely. The internet, being an infinite source of information, contains numerous options to choose from. This wide range of resources can be overwhelming. It can misguide you with erroneous content and inaccurate information. The best place to find the precise study material is the official website of the Graduate Management Admission Council or GMAC. The Official GMAT Guide provides all the relevant information about the exam and the preparatory material required for solving the exam with proficiency.
- Time Management: The GMAT is an exam with a time limit of 3 hours and 7 minutes. The time constraint can be a great challenge when solving the questions of verbal quantitative reasoning sections. It is important to dedicate a certain time limit to all the questions you are facing. Moreover, it is significant that you choose the right question to solve as some problems can act as traps that can waste your time.
- Identification of Your Weaknesses: It’s necessary to know where your preparation is falling out of proportion. When you identify your mistakes, you tend to find ways to rectify them. Understanding and rectifying your mistakes is an essential part of learning. Through this process, you remove all the obstacles that impede your progress through the journey of GMAT preparation.
- Solving Advanced Questions: Once the fundamentals are strong, solving advanced questions increases the upper limit of your capabilities. The proficiency in solving the advanced questions will make you ready for all the uncertainties this exam can impose.
FAQs
1. How many months of preparation is required for GMAT?
A minimum of 2 months of preparation is required for cracking GMAT. The suggested duration is 6 months as it gives plenty of time to prepare while completing other commitments.
2. What is an ideal score for GMAT?
If you are aspiring to a top-notch university and M7 B-Schools, a 700+ is your safe score.