Chapter 1 “Introduction”
Possible section orders:
·
Classic Order:
o
Analytical Writing Assessment
o
Integrated Reasoning
o
Optional break (8 minutes)
o
Quantitative
o
Optional break (8 minutes)
o
Verbal
·
Order 2 (Verbal 1st)
o
Verbal
o
Optional break (8 minutes)
o
Quantitative
o
Optional break (8 minutes)
o
Integrated Reasoning
o
Analytical Writing Assessment
·
Order 3 (Math 1st)
o
Quantitative
o
Optional break (8 minutes)
o
Verbal
o
Optional break (8 minutes)
o
Integrated Reasoning
o
Analytical Writing Assessment
Pick the “easy” order for you! Play to your strengths!
Types of questions:
·
Verbal 41 36 questions
o
Reading Comprehension ~12 questions
o
Sentence Correction ~14 questions
o
Critical Reasoning ~10 questions
·
Math
o
Problem Solving
o
Data Sufficiency
·
Integrated Reasoning
o
Table Analysis
o
Graphics Interpretation
o
Multi-Source Reasoning
o
Two-Part Analysis
Scoring:
·
Verbal (0-60)
·
Math (0-60)
·
Total (200-800)
·
Analytical Writing Assessment (0-6)
·
Integrated Reasoning (1-8)
Note that schools mostly look at percentile scores (NOT scaled
scores) and the overall score.
GMAT prep software free on mba.com – uses real GMAC GMAT
questions!
PrincetonReview.com – 2 full length practice tests! Updates
to the book! Information about admissions and more!
Chapter 2 “How to Think about the GMAT”
Remember: the GMAT only measures how good you are at taking
the GMAT – so think of the test the way a test-maker would think about it.
Cracking the GMAT is about test-taking strategies, not about math, English, or
business.
Chapter 3 “Cracking the Adaptive Sections: Basic Principles”
You will NEVER see how the scoring is working on your screen
– but look at p. 19 to get an idea. Now, the adaptivity of the test is NOT a
one-to-one correspondence the way the book illustrates, but a general trend.
Ultimately the test will find your ability level by moving between slightly
harder and slightly easier questions in alternation.
Two things to remember:
Early questions have slightly more impact than later
questions, and
Unanswered questions ALWAYS lower your score.
See answering time chart on p. 22 – spend a little more time
on earlier questions and a little less time on later questions. Pace yourself!
Through practice, find your difficulty level – high, medium,
or low – and practice at a slightly higher level to change your ability.
Chapter 4 “Cracking the Adaptive Sections: Intermediate Principles”
Basic strategies: Use scratch paper/noteboards and Process
of Elimination
Since on the GMAT you canNOT skip questions, but you also canNOT
just guess randomly. This is why we use the Process of Elimination:
·
Look for wrong answers to get rid of them
·
Every answer choice you eliminate improves your
probability for selecting the correct answer:
o
With all five answers, you have a 20% chance of
guessing correctly
o
Eliminate one answer, you have 4 left with a 25%
chance of guessing correctly
o
Eliminate two answers, you have 3 left with a
33% chance of guessing correctly
o
Eliminate three answers, you have 2 left with a
50% chance of guessing correctly
·
Is this fair? Well – if you get marked wrong for
accidentally clicking the wrong answer, that isn’t fair. So correct guessing balances
the fairness some.
Last, note that we use scratch paper/noteboards to write
things down instead of trying to hold everything in our heads. Use notes to
help on ALL parts of the test!
Chapter 5 “Cracking the Adaptive Sections: Advanced Principles”
The difficulty of the test is made worse by making wrong
answers look like the correct answers, or in other words, the test maker will
phrase some wrong answers to seem obviously right. These are those “trap”
answers you may have heard about:
·
Easy questions tend to have obvious right
answers
·
Medium questions tend to have obvious answers
incorrect some of the time
·
Difficult questions tend to have obvious answers
always be incorrect
The GMAT is NOT constructed to be fair, knowing the content is
NOT enough to get all or most questions right, and GMAC does NOT want you to
get questions right:
·
Designed to make you get wrong answers even when
you ought to know better
·
Content understanding is insufficient
·
The test makers want to trick you into making “small”
mistakes
However, in test prep there are no small mistakes!
Don’t be predictable: because most test takers are
predictable, the test makers can create those trap answers. See pages 34-37 to
see how the test makers think.
·
Read carefully, look for qualifying statements
& conditions on the answers
·
After selecting an answer, re-read the answer
and the question to check your work!
·
Harder questions have more ‘trap’ answers
Chapter 6 “Taking the GMAT”
See p. 42 for help with registration
Notice the advice for the days before the test, the night
before the test, the day of the test, and at the testing center:
·
Practice daily at the same time.
·
DO NOT CRAM. NO ALL-NIGHTERS.
·
Take a final practice test a few days before the
real test.
·
Picture of screen on p. 44 and explanation of
buttons on p. 45
If you get stuck on a question:
·
Remember that hard questions are a sign you are
doing well. Take heart!
·
Look at the ceiling for a few seconds and think
about something else
·
Reread and use your strategies
·
Guess with PoE
ALWAYS answer every question with at least a guess!
NEVER tell the computer not to record your score!
Contact info on p. 47 if something happens like a glitch,
etc.
Chapter 15 “Sentence Correction”
·
5 answer choices, choose the most grammatically
correct one that ALSO maintains the meaning of the original sentence
·
~ 1/3 of the Verbal section
·
The “question” is a sentence that is underlined
in part or wholly – and may have one error, more than one error, or no errors.
·
See directions on p. 254
·
Keep in mind that even native speakers of
English struggle here because almost no native speaker uses the language with
perfect grammatical accuracy. Focus on the rules in Princeton; these are the
most commonly tested.
·
Don’t trust your “ears” about what “sounds” correct
– learn the rules!
Basic PoE approach:
·
A – always repeats the original form (no
change); if you know an error exists, automatically eliminate
·
Eliminate answers that repeat the original error
·
Eliminate answers that introduce new errors
·
Eliminate answers that change the sentence’s
meaning
·
Choose the most concise answer if you have no
other criteria
See the flowchart on p. 256.
Most commonly tested errors: pronouns, misplaced modifiers,
parallel construction, comparison, verb tense, subject-verb agreement, and idioms.
If you cannot find an error in the original sentence: first,
check the answers for errors and eliminate them; second, look for the 2/3 split
– two answers will be somewhat similar to each other, and three answers will be
somewhat similar to each other; last, look at what changes from answer to
answer to see what kind of error they might be testing. See the example on p. 258.
Grammar terminology, p. 259-260.
Parts of Speech: noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun,
conjunction, interjection, preposition; also phrase, prepositional phrase,
clause, independent clause, dependent clause.
Common Sentence Correction Errors
1.
Pronoun Errors – ambiguity vs. agreement. Ex. p.
260, list of pronouns p. 261, practice question p. 262.
a.
Correct ambiguity by identifying the referent
(who or what does the pronoun refer to?)
b.
Correct agreement by identifying the number (is
the referent singular or plural?)
2.
Misplaced Modifiers – commonly, this error
involves beginning a sentence with a gerund (an -ing form of a verb used as a
noun) or other dangling participial phrase (including prepositional phrases,
adjectives, or adjective phrases). Ex. p. 262-3, practice questions p. 264-5.
a.
Look for sentences that begin with a phrase
followed by a comma
b.
Check to see whether the phrase modifies the
correct noun or pronoun
c.
Correct modifications of the wrong noun or
pronoun
3.
Parallel Construction – lists of multiple verbs
usually, sometimes nouns, which all need the same grammatical structure. Ex. p.
266, practice questions p. 267-268.
a.
Verb structures vary according to tense, number,
infinitive, etc.
b.
Correct by making all verbs have the same pattern.
c.
With nouns, make sure the same pattern exists in
their structure as well.
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