Ask Manhattan GMAT

[goolu]

Quote

"...While it is true that you should give each question your best shot, the absolute number of questions answered correctly is not as important as their difficulty level. Better to have a 50/50 success rate at a high level than a 50/50 success rate at a lower one, even though the percentage of right and wrong answers is the same."

WRONG. WRONG, WRONG.

It does not take a "GMAT guru" to figure out that the first 8 questions in a section are AT LEAST 2 times MORE important than the last 8 questions.

Though I agree that any extreme statements like "The first 10 Qs are make or break" are hogwash, all you need to do, Kevin, is to run GMATPrep (or for that matter PowerPrep) till you are blue in the face, and you will figure out the simple theorem:

"Get the first 10 questions right, or you WILL face an uphill task to get a super score on the GMAT"

I am not saying the first 10 Qs are the be-all end-all, all I am saying is that they are pretty *darned* important.

So, notwithstanding what the OG tells ya, what the so called gurus expostulate, take it from somebody who has done pretty serious curve-fitting!!

Goolu

[nits]

Hi Kevin,

I will be taking GMAT on June30th.
Please suggest on what all I should be doing as part of my final stages of preparation.
I am done with OG11,Kaplan800.

Cheers,
Nitesh

[svchetan]

Hi Kevin!!

This thread is a very good initiation from manhattan. This would help a lot in our preparation for GMAT. I was more curious to know about the second aproach of preparation that you were talkin about 'Academic approach'. It would help a lot if you could enlighten us on this method.
As amit has asked for above, it would be best if you could give us an example for this approach especially for verbal section

Thanks a lot
Chetan

[KevinFitzgerald]

Hi Goolu,

Thanks for your note. You may be misinterpreting our strategy. We are not arguing that the initial 10 questions are not important (of course they are, that's 1/4 of the test!). We are arguing that spending significantly extra time on them is a major mistake for those aiming for a 700+ score. Why? Getting most of the LAST 10 questions wrong (in our experience, a very likely scenario for those who spend too much time on the early questions) will absolutely preclude one from a 700 score. I hope this clarifies things.

Also, as the weeks progress, I'll continue to post strategies and tactics on how we help our students achieve a competitive score on the exam. Our method is very unique (the academic approach is very different from the traditional test prep approach). As a result, our students average around 700 on the exam, our median student score is 710 and our mode student score is also 710 (not to mention that all our instructors have scored 750 or higher and one has scored 800, twice). Please keep an open mind as you read through our strategies because they are very different from the established norm.

As any "Pagal Guy" knows, the path less traveled is the one that leads to success! If you are trying to differentiate yourself to get into a top 10 b-school, you better not think/act the same as the other 90%, or you'll be lost in the crowd.
Kevin

[inblue]

Excellent insight !
High verbal and low quant is indeed a rare and its comperehensible to understand a higher score with that combination than a high quant and low verbal

I did 2 princeton tests and did well on Quant ( 40-45) and ok-ish on Verbal( 32- 40) on Verbal. My score never scaled beyond 670 !

Thanks !

Inblue

[rajat_nda]

a ripping initiative from Manhattan...
seein d posts of d day especially the initial post and
the counter from @goolu has put us all(i assume) in
a quandary...i suppose d future posts will make things pellucid enough.
waitin 4 dat 2 happn soon enough
ciao

[jerry123]

Hi
Kevin
I would be starting my GMAT prep and intend to give it by august end could u guide me as to how i should be goin with 2 months in hand how best could i utilise them (I am aware of the syllabus and am reasonably good with the analysis of argument and verbal part ,my weak area being maths)
please advice me on the same

[tellkp]

Dear Kevin,

Was a grt post. Am just starting my prep for GMAT. What is OG so commonly used here in forums. I tried looking for Manhattan classes in Delhi India couldnt find. Can u guide as to how to awail your coaching.

KP

[cat07]

Originally Posted by KevinFitzgerald

Hi Goolu,

Thanks for your note. You may be misinterpreting our strategy. We are not arguing that the initial 10 questions are not important (of course they are, that's 1/4 of the test!). We are arguing that spending significantly extra time on them is a major mistake for those aiming for a 700+ score. Why? Getting most of the LAST 10 questions wrong (in our experience, a very likely scenario for those who spend too much time on the early questions) will absolutely preclude one from a 700 score. I hope this clarifies things.

Also, as the weeks progress, I'll continue to post strategies and tactics on how we help our students achieve a competitive score on the exam. Our method is very unique (the academic approach is very different from the traditional test prep approach). As a result, our students average around 700 on the exam, our median student score is 710 and our mode student score is also 710 (not to mention that all our instructors have scored 750 or higher and one has scored 800, twice). Please keep an open mind as you read through our strategies because they are very different from the established norm.

As any "Pagal Guy" knows, the path less traveled is the one that leads to success! If you are trying to differentiate yourself to get into a top 10 b-school, you better not think/act the same as the other 90%, or you'll be lost in the crowd.
Kevin

Hi Kevin,

I zeroed on Manhattan GMAT course material after spending good time on exploring and short listing the best course available in market to start the GMAT prep. I have purchased the complete set of Manhattan GMAT and OG, 11th Ed to start GMAT prep.

I will appreciate if you can share your opinion on the study approach to follow to take the best advantage of the study material. I am targetting 700+ though not decided on the date to attempt GMAT.

Cheers!
cat07

[KevinFitzgerald]

Hello KP,
Thank you for looking for Manhattan GMAT classes. We teach many students in India. Click here to visit our website and to see what classes, 1-day workshops and private instruction are available to you in India: http://www.manhattangmat.com/gmat-prep-global-home.cfm