11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
2 books is all you need: Princeton Review and The Official Guide, July 4, 2007
This review is from: Cracking the GMAT, 2007 Edition (Graduate School Test Preparation) (Paperback)
You DO NOT need the version with the DVD. Save the money and either use it for lunch or buy a set of practice tests from the mba.com website. At least they are official.
Now on to the review...
I've tried The Official Guide, Arco, Kaplan and Princeton Review books. After taking the test the first time using only the Kaplan and Arco guides I was not happy with my score, nor the review material in either book. I then purchased and used the Princeton Guide and the Official Guide (big orange one). An important point concerning me was that it helped raise my score by 90 points to where I needed it to be. More importantly, for this review, is to let you know that the tips, practice tests, questions and hints on how to prepare and take the exam were top notch in the Princeton Guide. Using the Princeton Guide as your strategy and the Official Guide for the practice questions is the best way to raise your score. The diagnostic test in the Official Guide helps and the warm up tests in the Princeton Review both help give you a feel for what type of questions you'll need to practice most. Use the 2 online practice tests from Princeton Review after you buy the book also since the Official Guide only comes with questions in the book, no CAT.
My advice:
1) Read the information about the test and thoroughly understand the time limits per question to finish on time
2) Take the warm up test and the diagnostic test to determine your strong and weak points
3) Go through the Princeton Review, every section to learn strategies
4) Go through the Official Guide and answer the first 20, middle 20 and last 20 of each section to get a feel for what level of difficulty you are consistently scoring well at
5) Then take a practice exam and time it
6) Go back and answer the next 20/20/20 from the Official Guide
7) Then take the other practice exam
8) Then just finish as many questions in the Official Guide as you have time for
I would recommend at least 1 month preparation and if you don't score as good the first time, take it the very next month after studying the addional weeks.
The best things are having a very good feel for timing (practice timed tests) and do as many practice problems from the Official Guide as you can. Finish the book if possible. I did about 75% of all the questions in each section. I answered like 30 questions almost each night for a month until I was sick of GMAT type questions but well aware and familiar with all the questions types.
So 2 books: Official Guide and Princeton Review and you are off to the score you'll need. Practice and endurance. And drink a red bull 30 min before the test.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
good start, March 16, 2007
This review is from: Cracking the GMAT, 2007 Edition (Graduate School Test Preparation) (Paperback)
Eventhough it did not come with the cd I expected, it is a great start for those about to take the gmat. The book itself says that you should also use the official review for the gmat, so it should be only your start study, once you're up and running, then move to higher levels of dificulty.
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I Owe The Bulk of My Score to This Guide, May 12, 2007
This review is from: Cracking the GMAT, 2007 Edition (Graduate School Test Preparation) (Paperback)
The state B-school I was looking into last year required a 400 score on the GMAT, but when I started taking practice exams online, I realized I wasn't quite ready to take the test. My scores were in the 400 range, but I was afraid that I would choke on the actual test. That's when I started looking for a good test prep guide.
I chose The Princeton Review based mainly on online reviews like this. It didn't hurt that this guid was one of the cheapest I found either. Though it didn't come with a CD or DVD-ROM, I found that the material covered in the book was more than adequate. In fact, this guide was the only book I purchased.
I spent weeks reading and re-reading the study sections, and I found that the practice questions in the back of the book were very representative of what I saw on the actual test (I worked every one in the week leading up to my appointment). I took the official GMAT practice test using the program downloaded from the mba.com website and was scored at 620. But when I actually went to take the test, I came out with a 710. I actually did go against the advice in the book and spent way too much time on one of the math problems, which put me in a lurch. If I'd listened to the advice to guess and move on instead of wasting time trying to figure one problem out, I may have raised my score even more.
Thanks to this study guide, I now have options I never dreamed of before. Second tier schools that seemed like a pipe-dream are sending me letters of recruitment
If you're looking into B-school, do yourself a favor and buy this book. It's the best investment you'll make going into the GMAT.
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