Obligatory GMAT post

I have a confession. I took the GMAT again today. My score before was fine and I was content, but I had scored higher in practice and in the back of my head, I thought I should give it another shot. A friend pushed my final buttons by making a bet with me. I'm competitive, so that was enough. I didn't study except for reviewing some concepts this morning. I had done the bulk of my studying about 2 months ago when I took the GMAT. I did quite a bit better today, so I'm content and it's over. I also won the bet, so I'm doubly happy.

The GMAT is a topic that most people address in detail in their blogs. It's definitely been a process. I truly believe that the GMAT is a learnable test. That if you put some time into studying, you'll get a better score. Five years out of college and a good 8 years past any quantitative-related classes, there was no way I would have known how to do some of the math problems. As if permutations are part of my everyday life. Ofcourse I'm constantly trying to ascertain the probability of picking a green apple out of a basket or the area of a triangle. Right, no, I'm not. This stuff isn't part of everyday life. Thank god.

I'm a proponent of old-fashioned studying. I know that classes and tutors are all the rage, but I really don't think they're necessary. I hate that standardized tests have become classist - those who can afford tutors and classes seem to do better. Those that can't afford the luxury of hand-holding and prepping don't do as well. But I honestly don't think an expensive prep class or tutor is necessary to get a good score. There are plenty of free websites and cheap books out there that do the trick. It's like admissions consultants - the hype around them makes one feel as if it's imperative, but the reality is that they're not. As for recommendations on books, I used one - The Official Guide. I only studied math concepts, so I can't make any recommendations on good books for Verbal study. I have heard that Manhattan GMAT books are very good for Sentence Correction.

I made some errors when I first started studying. I would look at my mistakes and be like 'ah, right, that's how you do it'. And wouldn't give them a second glance. If I could give any suggestions for how to really improve your scores - study your mistakes. I know it's not fun. I much prefer to get things right than to really concentrate on getting concepts. I think most people like to do things that they're good at. But it's crucial to understand your mistakes.

Finally, take practice tests. There are two free tests that can be downloaded at MBA.com. If you re-download, you can get almost entirely new content. After a few times, Verbal starts repeating, but Quant is still primarily new.

That's my two cents on the GMAT.

I'm ready to move back to essay mode. It's a holiday weekend here in the US. Most people should have Monday (Labor Day) off work. Tragically, I have nothing fun planned. Tropical storm, 'Ernesto', is moving in here and the weather is yucky. I'm hoping to get into my Wharton and Stanford essays. I have a foundation on both (more so on Wharton), but I'm ready to move ahead again.