GMAT Quantitative Review
2.0 How to Prepare
2.1 How Can I Best Prepare to Take the Test?
We at the Graduate Management Admission Council® (GMAC®) firmly believe that the test-taking skills you can develop by using this guide—and The Official Guide for GMAT® Review, 2016 Edition, and The Official Guide for GMAT® Verbal Review, 2016 Edition, if you want additional practice—are all you need to perform your best when you take the GMAT® exam. By answering questions that have appeared on the GMAT exam before, you will gain experience with the types of questions you may see on the test when you take it. As you practice with this guide, you will develop confidence in your ability to reason through the test questions. No additional techniques or strategies are needed to do well on the standardized test if you develop a practical familiarity with the abilities it requires. Simply by practicing and understanding the concepts that are assessed on the test, you will learn what you need to know to answer the questions correctly.
2.2 What About Practice Tests?
Because a computer-adaptive test cannot be presented in paper form, we have created GMATPrep® software to help you prepare for the test. The software is available for download at no charge for those who have created a user profile on www.mba.com. It is also provided on a disk, by request, to anyone who has registered for the GMAT exam. The software includes two practice GMAT exams plus additional practice questions, information about the test, and tutorials to help you become familiar with how the GMAT exam will appear on the computer screen at the test center.
Myth -vs- FACT
M – You may need very advanced math skills to get a high GMAT score.
F – The math skills test on the GMAT exam are quite basic.
The GMAT exam only requires basic quantitative analytic skills. You should review the math skills (algebra, geometry, basic arithmetic) presented both in this book (chapter 3) and in The Official Guide for GMAT® Review, 2016 Edition, but the required skill level is low. The difficulty of GMAT Quantitative questions stems from the logic and analysis used to solve the problems and not the underlying math skills.
We recommend that you download the software as you start to prepare for the test. Take one practice test to familiarize yourself with the test and to get an idea of how you might score. After you have studied using this book, and as your test date approaches, take the second practice test to determine whether you need to shift your focus to other areas you need to strengthen.
2.3 Where Can I Get Additional Practice?
If you complete all the questions in this guide and think you would like additional practice, you may purchase The Official Guide for GMAT® Review, 2016 Edition, or The Official Guide for GMAT® Verbal Review, 2016 Edition, at www.mba.com.
Note: There may be some overlap between this book and the review sections of the GMATPrep® software.
2.4 General Test-Taking Suggestions
Specific test-taking strategies for individual question types are presented later in this book. The following are general suggestions to help you perform your best on the test.
1. Use your time wisely.
Although the GMAT exam stresses accuracy more than speed, it is important to use your time wisely. On average, you will have about 1¾ minutes for each verbal question and about 2 minutes for each quantitative question. Once you start the test, an onscreen clock will continuously count the time you have left. You can hide this display if you want, but it is a good idea to check the clock periodically to monitor your progress. The clock will automatically alert you when 5 minutes remain in the allotted time for the section you are working on.
2. Answer practice questions ahead of time.
After you become generally familiar with all question types, use the sample questions in this book to prepare for the actual test. It may be useful to time yourself as you answer the practice questions to get an idea of how long you will have for each question during the actual GMAT exam as well as to determine whether you are answering quickly enough to complete the test in the time allotted.
3. Read all test directions carefully.
The directions explain exactly what is required to answer each question type. If you read hastily, you may miss important instructions and lower your scores. To review directions during the test, click on the Help icon. But be aware that the time you spend reviewing directions will count against the time allotted for that section of the test.
4. Read each question carefully and thoroughly.
Before you answer a multiple-choice question, determine exactly what is being asked, then eliminate the wrong answers and select the best choice. Never skim a question or the possible answers; skimming may cause you to miss important information or nuances.
5. Do not spend too much time on any one question.
If you do not know the correct answer, or if the question is too time-consuming, try to eliminate choices you know are wrong, select the best of the remaining answer choices, and move on to the next question. Try not to worry about the impact on your score—guessing may lower your score, but not finishing the section will lower your score more.
Bear in mind that if you do not finish a section in the allotted time, you will still receive a score.
Myth -vs- FACT
M – It is more important to respond correctly to the test questions than it is to finish the test.
F – There is a severe penalty for not completing the GMAT exam.
If you are stumped by a question, give it your best guess and move on. If you guess incorrectly, the computer program will likely give you an easier question, which you are likely to answer correctly, and the computer will rapidly return to giving you questions matched to your ability. If you don”t finish the test, your score will be reduced greatly. Failing to answer five verbal questions, for example, could reduce your score from the 91st percentile to the 77th percentile. Pacing is important.
6. Confirm your answers ONLY when you are ready to move on.
Once you have selected your answer to a multiple-choice question, you will be asked to confirm it. Once you confirm your response, you cannot go back and change it. You may not skip questions, because the computer selects each question on the basis of your responses to preceding questions.
7. Plan your essay answers before you begin to write.
The best way to approach the two writing tasks that comprise the Analytical Writing Assessment is to read the directions carefully, take a few minutes to think about the question, and plan a response before you begin writing. Take care to organize your ideas and develop them fully, but leave time to reread your response and make any revisions that you think would improve it.
Myth -vs- FACT
M – The first 10 questions are critical and you should invest the most time on those.
F – All questions count.
It is true that the computer-adaptive testing algorithm uses the first 10 questions to obtain an initial estimate of your ability; however, that is only an initial estimate. As you continue to answer questions, the algorithm self-corrects by computing an updated estimate on the basis of all the questions you have answered, and then administers items that are closely matched to this new estimate of your ability. Your final score is based on all your responses and considers the difficulty of all the questions you answered. Taking additional time on the first 10 questions will not game the system and can hurt your ability to finish the test.