I Get It!!

I spy purple, green, red, yellow, orange, blue, so hmm...where am I? In the Skittles candy factory? Well, no I didn't get to taste the rainbow, but I got to see it in person this weekend at none other than the Pride Parade in SF! The best was probably a gi-normous float on the back of a tow truck...not sure how they worked their magic to make that happen, but it was sure fun to watch! It felt like Bay to Breakers all over again, except folks were also celebrating their new-found freedom to wed.

Anywho, back to what I'm supposed to be writing about: GMAT. I had my 3rd and 1st session this past weekend. Like I told you days ago, I missed the first class, so MGMAT let me make it up...yay! I'm so glad I did. I spent the entire last week working on the quant section (inequalities, absolute value, blah blah) and I finally GET IT! So, I also started doing more data sufficiency questions and since I missed class one, I was totally at a loss...but after taking my make-up session, I also FINALLY GET DS! The methods MGMAT teaches really do work in increasing my overall understanding of the subject matter. The only real problem I have (and will continue to work on fixing) is that I get stumped by the question which sucks b/c it's easier than they make it look. Like I mentioned earlier in my postes, GMAT questions always come with a funky disguise and until you learn to recognize their disguises, they'll totally stump even the savviest quant nerd.

And just another plug for MGMAT: Their instructors are so frickin awesome! In sum, I spent a total of about 7 hours in class this weekend and mark my words: the hours just breezed by like nothing! The interactive style of the class made learning quite fun I'd have to say (and this is coming from a person who took naps during afternoon 3-hr college lectures). Again, another positive affirmation that my 1390 smackers is oh so worth it! I'm not a fan of online courses, so I'm also really fortunate that MGMAT has an SF office, or else I'd be left with little choice. I guess my advice to you is that nothing beats the face-to-face interaction you get when you sign up for an actual class. Virtual courses, at best, should be a last resort because for someone like me, the classroom setting matters a whole lot in terms of allowing me to focus on a particular subject matter. Now, since my next session isn't until 2 weeks (thanks to our nation's birthday), I have some time to stretch out my studies without feeling that I'm being victimized by the GMAT. Wow...what a relief!

GMAT STUDY TIPS:
First and foremost: Time management is key to acing the GMAT. Always practice with a stopwatch or timer to make sure you're completing each question within the alloted time (I believe it's up to 2 min for Quant Q's and 1.5 min for Verbal)

1. Learn and re-learn ALL the math/verbal concepts with the MGMAT strategy guides
AND do most (if not all) of the practice problems AND check your answer!

2. Keep track of ALL your mistakes (a pattern will develop and you'll begin to hone in on your problem areas)

3. Understand WHY you got a question wrong. This is very important! If you don't know why a problem is wrong, you'll have a very difficult chance of getting the question right the next time you see it in a different "disguise"

4. Once you have mastered 2 or 3 concepts (either quant/verbal), practice with questions from the Official Guide for GMAT Review, 11th Edition.

5. Take practice GMAT CAT exams

6. Practice, Practice and Practice more Official Guide problems

7. Take the GMAT with confidence! (Don't forget to register at least 1 month in advance!)