The Manhattan GMAT books (or more properly, the Manhattan Prep GMAT Strategy Guides) are arguably the most well-known GMAT guides out there. But are they really worth the time and money? In this guide, I’ll examine the Manhattan GMAT prep resources in depth, discuss their pros and cons, and talk about how to figure out whether they’re right for you.

What Makes a Good GMAT Prep Book?

When considering what kind of GMAT prep to invest in, it’s important to think about the quality of the resource. A GMAT prep book with top-notch practice questions and easy-to-follow lessons will help you a lot more than a book that has shoddy strategies and questionable content. Here are some of the questions you should be asking yourself when evaluating the quality of your prep book.

#1: Does the Book Have High-Quality Practice Questions?

The GMAT writes questions in a very specific way. Good GMAT test books need to have high-quality practice questions that are similar to real GMAT test questions. This helps you familiarize yourself with the style of GMAT questions and practice the skill sets needed to do well on the test. It’s important to make sure you’re practicing the right types of questions.

Some books may include drills that help you build your skills by asking different kinds of questions, but, the majority of the practice questions in your book should be written in the GMAT’s style.

#2: Does the Book Have Full-Length Practice Tests?

Full-length practice tests are the best way to simulate test day conditions. You should do your best to take them in one sitting, with little interruption.

#3: Does the Book Have Clear, Effective Content Review?

Good GMAT prep books have clear review sections that help you build your skills in a concise and simple way. These books should offer in-depth answer explanations to help further your knowledge. The point of these books is to help you learn, after all!

#4: Does the Book Offer Studying and Practice Tips?

The best books also offer studying tips for setting your schedule and sticking to it so that you maximize your prep. Many books offer sample study schedules, as well as suggestions for when to take practice tests and how to carve out time to prepare.

What’s in the Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set?

This bundle provides a comprehensive overview of all topics seen on the GMAT. The ten books that make up this bundle are designed to provide a substantial learning impact for students by helping them develop the knowledge, skills, and strategic thinking they need to do well on the test. The total cost for the set is around $130 on Amazon.

The full Manhattan GMAT set includes a year-long subscription to web materials and practice tests and the following books:

• GMAT RoadMap
• Fractions, Decimals, and Percents; Algebra
• Word Problems; Geometry
• Number Properties
• Critical Reasoning
• Reading Comprehension
• Sentence Correction
• Integrated Reasoning and Essay.

Each book dives into a specific section of the test with detailed instruction tailored to that particular section. Manhattan GMAT Prep focuses on building content knowledge, so that you, as a test-taker, are not just learning test-taking strategy, but developing a deep understanding of the topics covered by the GMAT.

Pros of the Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set

There are many pros to the Manhattan GMAT prep set. Here’s a look at some of the biggest advantages:

• Each GMAT prep book provides in-depth instruction about one specific part of the exam. This format means that you’ll be building your foundational knowledge about the content that the GMAT covers. Every section will receive equal attention, so that you’re prepped across the full spectrum of content on the GMAT.

• The bundle comes with access to six full-length, computer adaptive practice tests that simulate test-day conditions. Taking full-length CATs is a great way to make sure that you’re familiar with the structure and format of the test before test day.

• The books are written by 99th-percentile scorers at Manhattan Prep, so quality and rigor are high, because the authors are very familiar with the test. The books mirror the curriculum taught in the in-person Manhattan Prep courses, which are consistently highly rated.

• The GMAT Roadmap provides great wisdom for test-takers who are looking to develop their knowledge about the test, as well as strategies for scheduling their practice.

Cons of the Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set

While the Manhattan GMAT Strategy Guide Set has many pros, it has cons as well. It’s important to familiarize yourself with the cons of a resource so that you can make an informed decision of whether or not its right for you.

• Beyond the six practice tests, there aren’t very many online features included. Since the GMAT is a computer-based test, it’s a good idea to build in online practice before you take the test. You’ll likely need to supplement the guide with other online GMAT practice resources.

• You need to renew your online subscription every year, so it’s not cost effective if you’ll be studying over a longer period of time.

• While the guides do build a deep foundation of content, they don’t go over many test-taking strategies, so you won’t find a lot of tips for how to quickly discount incorrect answers.

• The GMAT Roadmap can be redundant if you’re already good at setting your test strategy.

• There are a few typos in the verbal practice problems which may make the questions hard to understand, particularly for non-native English speakers.

Is the Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set Right for Me?

If you’re considering purchasing the Manhattan GMAT books, consider the following questions.

#1: What Kind of Score Are You Aiming for?

The Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set is best for scorers in the middle ranges, while not as useful for scorers that are looking to do extremely well or who have huge foundational gaps to make up. Test-takers that are looking for high percentages of hard questions should supplement this strategy guide set with other books, such as Advanced GMAT Quant by Manhattan Prep.

#2: How Much Time Do You Have?

This strategy set requires a large time commitment in order for you to get your money’s worth. Each book is hefty and contains plenty of material that you’ll really need to dig into. If you have a significant amount of time to practice, these are the books for you. If you only have a month before you take the GMAT, you’ll probably need a different resource, because you can’t possibly cover all of the material in these books.

#3: Are You Looking to Learn Test-Taking Strategies?

The Manhattan GMAT prep books are definitely better for learning content and practicing, rather than learning test-taking strategies. While the GMAT Roadmap does cover some larger, over-arching strategies for the test and for how to structure your practice, you’ll need to look elsewhere for a greater focus on strategies.

#4: Do You Want to Review Online or in Print?

If you’re looking to do more online prep, you’ll probably need to pursue additional practice materials. Aside from the six CATs, the complete Manhattan GMAT set doesn’t offer a lot of online options.

#5: Is Money a Concern?

The Manhattan GMAT books are undeniably pricey, but they’re also extremely comprehensive, covering every section and question type in depth. Whether they offer good value depends on what your GMAT prep needs are.

How Can I Get the Most Out of the Manhattan GMAT Books?

If you’ve decided to buy the Manhattan Prep Complete Strategy Guide set, here are some tips to make sure you’re getting the most out of your purchase.

Use the Strategy Guide Set in Conjunction With the Official GMAT Guide

Together, you will have a comprehensive set of realistic practice questions (from the GMAT Official Guide) along with a comprehensive review strategy (from the Manhattan Prep Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set). The GMAT Official Guide will give you access to 900 official practice questions, while the Manhattan Prep GMAT set will give you the content knowledge you need to succeed. Between the two, you’ll have access to as many as 12 online CATs, as well.

Make Time to Take All Six CATs

Taking CATs is a great way to prepare for the GMAT. You’ll be able to simulate test day, build endurance, and familiarize yourself with the format of the exam. Make sure that you build time into your practice schedule to sit down and take these tests in full.

Buy the Guides Secondhand If You’re Looking to Save Money

If you’re looking to get a deal on the cost, you can buy the Manhattan GMAT prep books used on Amazon. You can also find them on GMAT Forums like GMAT Club or Beat the GMAT. Note that the online subscriptions for resale guides may be close to running out, so you may have to pay to renew the subscription associated with the set.

Only Buy Some of the Guides

If price is a concern, you could also get away with only purchasing 5 or 6 of the guides in conjunction with the Official GMAT Guide. I recommend purchasing the Number Properties, Word Problems, Sentence Correction, Critical Reasoning, and Reading Comprehension guides. These five guides cover 90% of the content covered on the GMAT, meaning that you’ll get comprehensive preparation while saving money (and shelf space).

Supplement Your Practice with Advanced Prep Books

If you’re looking to score above 700, you’ll likely want to supplement your practice with books like Advanced GMAT Quant, so you have access to a greater percentage of difficult questions.

What’s Next?

Looking to compare more options for GMAT studying? Check out our guide to the best GMAT prep books.

If online prep is more your style, check out our guide to the best online GMAT prep.

If you want to learn more about the GMAT Official Guide, check out our guide on how to get the most out of it.

The post Expert Review: Manhattan GMAT Books appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

When it comes to GMAT verbal practice materials, what should you look for? What official and unofficial GMAT prep materials are out there, and which ones will best fit your needs?

In this article, I’ll go over a list of the many GMAT verbal practice tests, questions, and workbooks that are available, how to know which materials will work for you, and tips for making the most of your preparation time for the GMAT verbal section.

GMAT Verbal Preparation: What Should You Look For?

Prep time is precious, so you don’t want to waste any of your GMAT verbal prep hours with subpar practice materials or ones that don’t fit your needs. Instead, you should learn to identify high-quality GMAT study resources and focus on using those.

Let’s go over the characteristics of ideal GMAT verbal practice questions.

Same Question Types and Format As the Real GMAT

The GMAT verbal section includes three types of questions: reading comprehension, sentence correction, and critical reasoning. Each of these question types should be included in your practice materials. Worthwhile GMAT verbal practice questions will also be written in the same style (in terms of length, content, topic, and structure) as those on the real GMAT. (I’ll go over which practice materials do the best job with this in the guide below).

Computerized Adaptive Format

The GMAT is always administered on a computer, and it’s an adaptive test, which means it uses an algorithm to determine your score and the difficulty of the questions you receive as you go along. Using practice tests that are administered in a computerized adaptive format will help you get accustomed to and feel more comfortable with the unique circumstances you’ll face on the day of the exam. It will also help you get a better idea of what your score might be on the real GMAT and how you’re progressing in your preparation.

Range of Difficulties Reflective of the Actual GMAT

If you’re finding all of your GMAT verbal practice questions to be wildly difficult or shockingly easy, the issue may not be you, but your practice materials. Your practice tests should include a range of easy, medium, and difficult questions, because that’s what you’ll see on the test itself.

There’s one key exception to this rule: if you’re looking for a top score (700+) on the exam, you’ll need to practice more with especially difficult hard questions, and should look for resources with a larger proportion of difficult questions.

Organized by Concept and/or Difficulty

When you start practicing, you’ll likely notice that you tend to make the same kinds of errors over and over. For instance, you may have trouble recognizing subject-verb agreement errors in sentence correction questions, which means you might need a review of grammar concepts you may have forgotten, like parts of speech and sentence structure.

The best GMAT verbal practice materials will classify each question by its relevant parts, which will help you start to identify your weaknesses and choose skill-specific drills to work into your prep.

Fit Your Budget

Some quality GMAT verbal prep materials are free or low-cost, but many others aren’t. You’ll have to decide, based on your target score, your needs, and your budget, what you’re willing to pay.

Fit Your Learning Style

Are you more of a visual or audio learner? Bonus materials that accompany some verbal practice tests, like video explanations of answers, might be up your alley and reinforce the skills you’re building, as well as give you more bang for your buck.

Official GMAT Verbal Prep Materials

The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) provides a variety of official resources with verbal practice questions and tests. For each one, I’ll go over what’s included and the pros and cons.

GMATPrep Software

The GMATPrep Software is the gold standard for GMAT verbal prep. It contains two full-length simulated computerized adaptive tests that are virtually identical to what you’ll see on exam day.

You can tailor your sets of practice questions to include 1-15 questions of each type (critical reasoning, sentence correction, and reading comprehension, for verbal) and difficulty (easy, medium, or difficult). In addition to the questions on the two practice tests, there are 90 additional practice questions available on the software.

The Good:

• It’s free for registered users of mba.com.
• Answer explanations are step-by-step and in-depth, and you can go back and review or drill questions you previously got wrong as many times as you like.
• Detailed performance reviews break down what you’re getting wrong so you can hone in on your weak spots.

The Bad:

• Not much! There aren’t many resources that can beat official questions under simulated testing conditions, and it’s free.
• However, while the GMATPrep Software includes an in-depth review of math skills you’ll need for the quant section, it doesn’t have a review of grammar or reasoning skills for the verbal section.

GMATPrep Question Pack 1

An official addition to the GMATPrep Software, the GMATPrep Question Pack contains 404 additional official questions, including 180 verbal practice questions.

You can create your own sets of practice questions based on your strengths and weaknesses. Each set of questions can be completed in either ‘exam mode’ (timed, under simulated test conditions) or ‘study mode.’

The Question Pack will cost you $29.99 to download.

The Good:

• This resource contains a wealth of verbal practice questions that aren’t available in any other official prep materials.
• Your performance reviews for these practice questions will be integrated into your overall progress reports in the GMATPrep Software, allowing you to get an even more accurate picture of what your needs are in terms of prep.

The Bad:

• There aren’t quite as many verbal practice questions in the Question Pack as there are quant questions.

The GMAT Official Guide Verbal Review 2018

The GMAT Official Guide 2018 Verbal Review is a comprehensive resource for GMAT verbal prep. Included in your purchase ($19.95) are 300 official practice questions from retired GMATs, access to an accompanying site where you can customize sets of practice questions, reviews of grammar and reading comprehension fundamentals, and online videos with tips and strategies specific to the verbal section.

The Good:

• Answer explanations are detailed and in-depth, and the discussions of grammar fundamentals are thorough enough to be helpful for non-native English speakers.
• Practice questions are organized in order of difficulty, which makes it easy for you to gauge your progress.

The Bad:

• Only 15% of the content is brand new. If you own a previous version and are on a tight budget, it might not be worth the purchase.
• The verbal practice questions tend towards the slightly easier side, though there are some difficult questions included. If you’re shooting for an especially high score (700+), you will want to supplement with other resources.

GMATPrep Exam Packs 1 and 2

These are official additions to the GMATPrep Software. You can only get them once you’ve downloaded the original software.

Each Exam Pack contains 90 additional practice questions (30 quantitative, 45 verbal, and 15 integrated reasoning), as well as two full-length computerized adaptive GMATs.

Each Exam Pack costs $49.99.

The Good:

• In-depth diagnostics will let you know how you’re doing in comparison to your peers on every subsection of the test, as well as how your pacing could improve on each question type.

The Bad:

• Not much (official GMAC questions are always helpful), except that they’re a bit expensive.

GMAT Paper Tests Set I, II, and III

These are real retired GMAT tests, written by the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC). Each set (I, II, and III) contains three official GMAT tests, answer sheets, and a guide for converting your raw score into a scaled score. They’re available in downloadable PDF form.

Each set costs $29.99.

The Good:

• Over half of the questions in these tests aren’t available in any of the other official GMAT practice tests or resources.
• You may want to order these if 1) you’ve exhausted all the other options for official verbal practice questions and you want a LOT of practice, or 2) if you’re a test-taker with a disability that may require an accommodation and using paper tests at home is easier for you during prep time.

The Bad:

• It’s on paper! You’ll have to score it yourself using the answer sheet, and it’s not computerized (obviously) or adaptive, so it doesn’t simulate any of the testing conditions.
• There is some overlap with questions in the GMAT Focus Quantitative Diagnostic Tool.
• No answer explanations are included, just the answers themselves.

Unofficial GMAT Practice Tests

There are many resources for unofficial GMAT verbal practice tests. Let’s take a look at the strengths and weaknesses of the major ones.

Veritas Prep

You’ll need to register with your name, email, and password to take the free Veritas Prep practice GMAT, which is a computerized adaptive test. At the end of the practice exam, you’ll get an in-depth analysis of your score, including your average time on questions you answered correctly vs. your average time on questions you answered incorrectly.

The verbal questions here are on the tougher side, which is great if you’re looking for a challenge. But like all other unofficial resources, Veritas doesn’t perfectly simulate GMAT test conditions. The visuals are very different from what you’ll see on the actual test, and the reading comprehension passages are a bit different in content (less science-based and more literary) than those on the real GMAT.

You can also purchase six more practice tests for $49.

Kaplan

You’ll have to register and create an account to access this free GMAT (the ‘self-proctored’ option), which is computerized and adaptive.The Kaplan test also allows you to choose 50% additional time or 100% extra time if you’ll be receiving accommodations during the exam. The instructor-proctored version includes a live mini lesson with an instructor and a live chat box where you can ask questions.

The Kaplan verbal questions are realistic in terms of both content and visuals. When you’re finished, you’ll get an in-depth analysis of your score, including Kaplan strategies and detailed answer explanations. You’ll only get in-depth expert video explanations of up to 13 questions, however.

You can also purchase a question bank (Qbank) with over 1,500 practice questions for $99, or a Practice Pack with access to the same practice questions and four full-length CAT GMATs for $149.

Manhattan Prep

All you need to do is create an account to take the free Manhattan Prep GMAT; You can manually time yourself as you take the Manhattan Prep practice tests, which you won’t be able to do on the actual GMAT.

The verbal questions here are realistic, but the visuals and conditions are not. You can set a time limit for each question during your practice, which can help if you want to work on your pacing. However, every verbal question type takes a different amount of time (reading comprehension questions generally take about two minutes, for example, while sentence correction questions should only take one), so you shouldn’t get into the habit of spending the same amount of time on each one.

If you’d like, you can purchase a set of six more Manhattan Prep practice GMATs for $49.

Princeton Review

Creating an account at Princeton Review will give you access to a free self-proctored online GMAT. If you sign up for an in-person practice GMAT event at a local university instead, there will be some advertising for Princeton Review programs and events, but you will get a very realistic simulated GMAT experience.

Princeton Review verbal practice questions are high quality, but they do tend towards the easier side. The software can also be a bit temperamental: before taking the exam, make sure you have the right version of Java and that your pop-up blocking software is turned off.

800 Score Test

All you need to access the free GMAT practice test at 800 Score Test is a username and password (no initial registration required).  The 800 Score verbal practice test is timed, computerized, and adaptive, and even allows for extended time options of 50% and 100%, making this test especially helpful for students who will require extended time as an accommodation on the actual exam.

It also keeps track of how long you spend on each question and gives you an in-depth diagnostic analysis of your performance when you’re finished, much like the GMATPrep software.

The verbal questions on this test don’t look exactly like they do on the GMAT, but they are otherwise realistic. The reading comprehension questions in particular are quite similar in style and content to the official GMAT reading passages.

You can also purchase five full-length CATs for $24.95.

Babson, or London Business School, Practice Test

Create an account and you’ll have access to free, timed quantitative and verbal practice tests (both schools offer the same practice resources). You can also take a micro test (a 20-minute test with an analysis of your mistakes) and a mini test (100 minutes with a score estimate).

The Babson and LBS verbal practice questions are realistic, and the score analysis you’ll get after your test is top-notch. However, be careful about the timing on the LBS test: It gives you a 10-minute break between sections, while you actually only get eight-minute breaks on the GMAT, so try not to get used to the longer breaks. The mini and micro tests also obviously don’t have as many questions as the real GMAT.

GMAT Club Test Practice

GMAT Club has two free full-length GMAT sections available (one quantitative and one verbal). GMAT Club tests aren’t adaptive, but they do contain a similar combination of questions—in terms of question type and difficulty—as the real exam.

Also included on GMAT Club are some helpful verbal-specific drills and practice tests: a 30-question critical reasoning set, a 13-question reading comprehension set, a 21-question sentence correction set, and a 31-question idioms quiz.

You can also purchase three-month access to a 1,572-question bank for $79.95 or six-month access for $99.95.

McGraw-Hill Test

McGraw Hill Education has six free GMAT tests available. On the McGraw Hill tests, you can save your progress at any time, and the exams can be taken timed or untimed, making them ideal for extra practice. However, the score report will only tell you the percentage of questions you got right or wrong, so this isn’t a good resource for estimating your GMAT score.

The McGraw-Hill tests include all sections of the GMAT except the analytical writing assessment, and the verbal practice questions in particular (especially critical reasoning) are very close to what you’ll see on the exam.

Useful GMAT Verbal Prep Materials

Some GMAT verbal prep materials include practice questions as well as skill-specific lessons, drills, quizzes, and tips. Let’s go over a few of the best ones. For each resource, I’ll explain what’s included, the pros and cons, and who would benefit most from using it.

Kaplan GMAT Verbal Workbook

The Kaplan GMAT Verbal Workbook contains about 220 unofficial GMAT verbal questions, with nearly 100 of those questions devoted to sentence correction.

The workbook also details specific, three-to-four-step strategies for each question type in the verbal section. There’s also a section on the analytical writing assessment that includes strategies and practice essay questions.

The workbook is available for $12 on Amazon.

The Good:

• Bonus materials include a style and usage guide that reviews basic grammar concepts and a list of common idioms that appear on the GMAT. They’re great for a quick reference if you’re completing other practice questions and need to look up a rule or idiom.
• The “Reading the GMAT Way” chapter is a particularly effective guide to breaking down reading comprehension passages, what to look for, and what to disregard.
• Plenty of questions! Kaplan includes many more verbal practice questions than comparable books, in addition to strategies, so it’s a good deal.

The Bad:

• Since the grammar review is a bit thin, and the answer explanations aren’t particularly in-depth, the Kaplan Verbal Workbook wouldn’t be the best option for non-native English speakers.
• As with all unofficial resources, Kaplan questions aren’t exactly identical to official GMAT ones. This is especially evident in the critical reasoning questions.
• The questions aren’t organized in order of difficulty, so it’s nearly impossible to isolate difficult questions if you’re a 700+ scorer looking to target trickier questions.

Who Would Benefit?

• Students who are somewhat lacking in prep time would benefit from the Kaplan Verbal Workbook. It’s less in-depth than a more targeted guide (like the PowerScore question-specific Bibles), but still offers a comprehensive overview of the GMAT verbal section with plenty of quality answer explanations.
• Students who want a one-stop GMAT verbal shop should consider Kaplan: practice questions and strategies for both the verbal section and the analytical writing assessment are all right here.

Princeton Review Verbal Workout for the GMAT

The Princeton Review Verbal Workout includes a chapter each on content and strategy review for reading comprehension, sentence correction, critical reasoning, the analytical writing assessment, and integrated reasoning. There’s also a full practice verbal section and an answer key with detailed answer explanations.

Other chapters include general verbal test-taking tips and three appendixes: a glossary of grammar terms, a list of common GMAT idioms, and grammar ‘odds and ends’ (common grammar errors you’ll find on the GMAT).

The Verbal Workout is $14 on Kindle.

The Good:

• Answer explanations are high-quality, breaking down each question in a concise but comprehensive way.
• The grammar review here is heftier than in other GMAT verbal resources, such as Kaplan (though it’s still not enough for a non-native English speaker).

The Bad:

• A common complaint about Princeton Review materials is that they’re a bit easier than others: the Verbal Workout is no exception. While it offers a solid overview, in-depth analysis of very difficult questions won’t be found here.
• There aren’t quite as many practice questions in this text as in the Kaplan workbook.
• Princeton Review resources have a habit of overemphasizing ‘tricks’ rather than skill-building. While the strategies may work for you, it might be better to focus on truly understanding the concepts behind the questions rather than jumping right to strategy.

Who Would Benefit?

• Test-takers who like specific, actionable strategies tend to go for Princeton Review resources.
• Time management is also covered effectively, so if you have trouble with pacing, the Verbal Workout is a good go-to guide.

The PowerScore GMAT Bibles: Sentence Correction, Critical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, and Verbal Bible Workbook

The PowerScore Bibles offer detailed explanations of each of the GMAT verbal question types.

The Sentence Correction Bible includes 140 sentence correction questions, all labeled by error type. Each chapter is devoted to a kind of error you’ll see on the exam (sentence construction, verbs, pronouns, nouns, and modifiers, for example) and contains both practice questions and skill-specific drills.

The Critical Reasoning Bible is a comprehensive guide to critical reasoning questions, including a chapter on each subsection of question types (‘weaken the argument,’ ‘strengthen the argument,’ ‘paradox questions,’ etc.) as well as specific strategies for how to tackle each one. The authors break down the fundamental skills you’ll need to develop to answer critical reasoning questions, including identifying premises, counter-premises, assumptions, and conclusions. Each skill you learn is accompanied by mini-drills that reinforce that skill.

The Reading Comprehension Bible contains chapters on deconstructing passages and finding their main ideas, strategies for identifying and approaching different reading comprehension question types, and common traps to avoid when answering reading comprehension questions on the GMAT. Like the other PowerScore Bibles, it includes a variety of drills and exercises to reinforce the skills presented, as well as GMAT-style practice questions.

The GMAT Verbal Bible Workbook is designed to offer extra practice and to be used in conjunction with the trilogy of question-specific Verbal Bibles (Sentence Correction, Reading Comprehension, and Critical Reasoning). Each section contains drills and exercises that reinforces the skills gleaned from each of the Bibles in the trilogy.

Each PowerScore GMAT Bible costs $24.99, but you can get the full trilogy of section-specific Verbal Bibles for $69.99.

The Good:

• The PowerScore Bibles offer highly in-depth breakdowns of GMAT verbal questions. Skill building and concept analysis are highlighted. They’ll also help you learn to identify question stems (the phrasing used in a particular question type) on sight, which helps you know how to approach a given question.
• Though they’re detailed, the books aren’t overly dense or tough to get through. They’re great resources for students with limited time to prep.

The Bad:

• There’s a lot of content overlap between the Bibles, but the GMAT Verbal Bible doesn’t include nearly as many practice questions as the other books. It’s particularly thin in the reading comprehension department (only two passages with four questions each). If you’re on a very tight budget, it might be best to select the question type-specific Bible that addresses your weakest area.
• In general, the PowerScore Bibles have fewer practice questions than other GMAT prep materials, averaging about 125-140 verbal practice questions per text. They focus more on skills, mini-drills, and strategy. So if you’re just looking to get more verbal practice questions under your belt, they’re not your best bet.

Who Would Benefit?

• The Sentence Correction Bible would be especially helpful for non-native English speakers, as it goes over the basic fundamentals of English grammar before going more in depth on each topic. In fact, all the PowerScore Bibles are some of the best GMAT verbal resources for non-native English speakers, as they address each topic in a lot of detail.
• Don’t be afraid to buy an entire book devoted to your particular weak spot (assuming you have one)! These are some of the most in-depth guides out there to specific verbal question types; no other resources delve this deeply into strategies for each subsection of questions.

Manhattan Prep GMAT Strategy Guides: Critical Reasoning, Sentence Correction, and Reading Comprehension

Each Manhattan Prep Strategy Guide is around 140 pages and contains a detailed guide to a particular question type. The Reading Comprehension Strategy Guide, for example, includes a detailed breakdown of how to approach a GMAT reading comprehension passage, the different question stems that one might encounter, and what to look for or avoid in answer choices, as well as broader strategies for both prep time and exam day. The last chapter of each strategy guide includes practice questions that allow you to reinforce what you’ve just learned (four passages in the Reading Comprehension guide, for example).

Purchasing a Manhattan Prep Strategy Guide (or a set of them) and setting up a student account gets you access to a companion website with online question banks (about 25 questions per guide), six Manhattan Prep computerized adaptive tests, and five online interactive GMAT Interact lessons.

Strategy Guides are $26 each or $32 in eBook form. Package deals are regularly available, depending on which you want to combine.

The Good:

• Manhattan Prep guides focus on a methodical approach to each question type and skill set, such as unpacking an argument into its components or finding the main idea of a passage. Magic tricks aren’t the focus here, which means you’ll build more effective and reliable skills that you can count on during the exam.

The Bad:

• Some of the answer explanations assume prior knowledge and are not detailed enough for non-native English speakers.
• The Manhattan Prep guides focus more on strategy building than practice questions, so if you’re looking for extensive question sets, they might not be your best option.

Who Would Benefit?

• The Manhattan Prep strategy guides, unlike some of the other GMAT verbal practice materials, help students learn what to expect visually on the exam (what you’ll see on the screen for each question type and how to interpret it). This is especially helpful for students who might feel uncomfortable with the computerized adaptive format or uncertain in unfamiliar test-taking circumstances.
• The Manhattan Prep guides also offer specific note-taking strategies for different verbal question types, which can help students with testing anxiety or who tend to lose focus while reading lengthy passages.

4 Top Tips for GMAT Verbal Practice

Of course, there are ways to prepare for the GMAT verbal section beyond completing practice tests or drills. Here are a few verbal prep strategies that go beyond the practice materials listed above:

Start Reading Early

GMAT reading comprehension and critical reasoning questions will require you to be able to read and synthesize high-level material. Sentence correction questions will require you to be familiar with a variety of frequently used English idioms (common phrases or sayings). Regularly reading newspapers and magazines that use fairly sophisticated language, like The New York Times, The Economist, and The New Yorker, will help you absorb the idioms and vocabulary that are sure to crop up in the GMAT verbal section. You’ll also get practice comprehending sophisticated arguments and absorbing information.

Review Grammar Concepts and Terms

Sentence correction questions on the GMAT verbal section will require you to understand grammar concepts that you may not know or have forgotten, like dangling modifiers, subject-verb agreement, and correct pronoun usage. Carve out some study time to review these concepts and make sure you fully understand the grammar rules you’ll see tested on the GMAT.

The PowerScore Verbal Bibles are the best sources for GMAT-specific grammar information. If you need a more in-depth review of the grammar basics, the Princeton Review’s Grammar Smart is an excellent resource. TOEFL books like Timothy Dickeson’s TOEFL Grammar Guide are also effective.

Focus on Your Weaknesses

When you review your GMAT verbal practice tests, identify the kinds of questions you tend to get wrong. Then drill those concepts in your focused study sessions. For example, if you find you’re missing a lot of sentence correction questions, you’ll want to spend extra time studying and practicing that question type. If you use a resource like the GMATPrep software that allows you to customize your practice question sets or quizzes, you can easily highlight the question types you struggle most with.

Moreover, the more specific you can be in your analysis, the better. It’s helpful to know that you’re struggling with sentence corrections, but you’ll be able to target your prep more carefully if you can determine which sentence corrections concepts are tripping you up: are you missing mostly questions on concision or pronoun agreement? The more exactly you can break down what types of questions you’re missing, the more focused and effective your prep will be.

Use Practice Tests to Improve Your Stamina and Time Management

You have 65 minutes to complete 36 verbal questions on the GMAT. On average, you have about a minute and a half per question, though some question types (reading comprehension) take longer than others (sentence correction). That’s not a ton of time, so pacing is key to getting through all of the questions. 

When you complete sets of practice questions, challenge yourself to spend a little less time on each question, without sacrificing accuracy. Then, when you review practice tests, think about where you took more time and where you took less. Resources like the GMATPrep software can help, since they’ll tell you how long you spent on each question.

What’s Next?

Looking for more in-depth explanations of the different GMAT verbal question types? Check out our top tips for sentence corrections, reading comprehension, and critical reasoning.

For a similar guide to prep resources for the quant section, check out our GMAT quant practice article.

Need an overall guide to all the best free GMAT prep materials? Look no further than our list of the best free GMAT practice tests.

The post The Best GMAT Verbal Practice: 500+ Questions and Tests appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

There are dozens of GMAT prep options out there, but none as important as The Official Guide for GMAT Review 2019. After all, it does have the word “official” in it’s title.

But what’s the deal with the official GMAT guide? Should every test taker get one? Read on to find out what’s in the book, what it’s best and worst features are, and how to get the most out of it in your prep.

What’s in the GMAT Official Guide?

So, what’s even included the GMAT official guide (or GMAT OG)? Well, quite a lot.

The Official Guide for GMAT Review 2019 includes 900 practice questions of all levels with answers and explanations, practice essay topics, and a diagnostic test, which helps you focus your practice.

The GMAT OG also includes a dedicated Integrated Reasoning chapter to build your IR knowledge and grammar and math review sections that cover concepts tested on the GMAT. While the review sections are nice to have, the guide’s real value lies in its plethora of official GMAT practice questions.

Pros of the GMAT Official Guide

Nearly every GMAT test prep company and private tutor recommend you purchase the GMAT Official Guide as part of your GMAT review. Why? Here’s a look at some of the guide’s pros.

#1: It Contains Real GMAT Questions Retired From Past Tests

Having access to real GMAT questions is an invaluable resource. It’s important to study realistic practice questions as much as possible because these questions help you recognize the format and content tested on the actual GMAT. While unofficial guides try to build realistic questions, nothing is as accurate as retired questions themselves.

#2: The Practice Questions Follow Actual GMAT Test Patterns

Similarly, the practice questions and the practice tests, follow the GMAT test patterns. Because the Official GMAT Guide is written by GMAC, you’ll get an accurate breakdown of the types of questions and content tested.

#3: You Have the Ability to Build Online Question Banks

You have the ability to build online practice question banks with your purchase of this guide. This ability helps you target your practice, especially if you’ve used the diagnostic test to figure out the areas that you need the most work on. All of the questions that are available in the Official Guide for GMAT in print are also available online, meaning you can access 900 practice questions from your computer.

#4: The Online Practice Bank Has New Features That Make Practice Easier and More Effective

The online question bank is set to a default “Exam Mode,” which is a very close simulation of what the test will actually be like. In this mode, you can’t skip questions, which ensures you’ll practice questions at different difficulty levels. The online practice bank also shows you how many questions of each difficulty level (easy, medium, and hard) you’ve answered or not answered.

#5: It Contains an Overview of the Integrated Reasoning Section

The Integrated Reasoning section is the newest section on the GMAT, and, as such, isn’t covered in a lot of depth in many places. The GMAT OG offers one of the most in-depth looks into the section itself, as well as real IR questions.

Cons of the GMAT Official Guide

Although The Official Guide for GMAT Review can be an incredibly helpful resource, it does have some drawbacks.

#1: The Grammar and Math Review Are Not That Comprehensive

The grammar review only really scratches the surface of concepts tested on the GMAT. The math review covers more, but doesn’t go into the depth you need to truly learn all of the content on the GMAT, especially if you’re looking to build a strong content foundation. I’d recommend supplementing the official guide with section specific strategy guides, such as those from Manhattan Prep or Veritas Prep.

#2: The Answer Explanations Can Be Confusing and Unhelpful

While the Official Guide for GMAT does include several strategies for test day, this book is mainly valuable for its official test questions. While all of the answers do have explanations, most GMAT test takers will find that they’re unsatisfied with just answer explanations and need more substantive review. Similarly, some of the answers can be confusing and unclear, which may cause frustration or prevent you from learning the underlying content tested in the question.

What Do Readers Think of The GMAT Official Guide?

Despite its flaws, most readers think that the official guide is extremely important to have. It has an average rating of 4+ stars on Amazon, and virtually all experts agree that it’s important to get. Most cite the realistic practice questions as the guide’s most useful feature.

The main complaints with the guide are that the question difficulty is a bit too easy, and there are few errors that make some of the questions unsolvable (most of these have been fixed in the corrected version).

Is The GMAT Official Guide Right For You?

I would recommend that almost every test taker purchase the Official Guide for GMAT Review. The sheer volume of actual GMAT questions you get makes the guide worth every penny.

However, if you have purchased an older version of the guide (e.g., the 2018 or 2017 editions), you don’t necessarily need to go out and buy the new one. Out of the 1,500+ total questions offered in this guide, only 220 are new. In total, about 15% of the guide is brand-new, never-before-seen GMAT content, so it’s a nice addition but not a vital upgrade.

Tips For Getting The Most Out of The GMAT Official Guide

So, if you’re buying the Official Guide for GMAT Review, how do you make the most out of it? Consider these tips as you’re thinking about the structure of your GMAT review.

#1: Supplement With Other Books

If you’re purchasing this guide and want to do a more comprehensive review, you’ll likely have to supplement it with other texts. Consider adding the dedicated books on the Verbal section and Quantitative sections from Manhattan Prep for more general overviews of the test. If you’re looking to really boost your performance, check out the Advanced Quantitative Guide we recommend in our Best GMAT Books 2017.

#2: Make Use of the Practice Tests and Questions

Try to do as many as practice tests and questions as possible during your GMAT review. These are going to help you develop the skills and familiarity with the test you need to do well on test day.

#3: Try to Simulate Test Day During Practice Tests

When taking a practice test with the Official GMAT Guide, try to simulate test day conditions as much as possible. Simulating test day means taking the test in a quiet environment, in one sitting, and with few interruptions. Doing so helps you ensure that your getting an accurate result.

What’s Next?

Want to supplement your GMAT Official Guide with other books? Check out other GMAT book options with our guide to the best GMAT books.

Alternatively, learn about options for studying on the computer with our guide to the best GMAT online prep.

Think about pairing your GMAT Official Guide with the Manhattan Strategy Guide Set. Check out our review to learn more.

The post How to Study With the GMAT Official Guide 2019: Full Review appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

If you’ve started to prepare for the GMAT, you’ve probably noticed that there are dozens of different GMAT books on the market. As you’re deciding what to buy, it’s important to understand what makes a good GMAT prep book, so you’re not wasting your time and money on a tool that won’t help you.

In this guide, we’ll talk about what makes a good GMAT prep book and then give recommendations about the eight best GMAT prep books for a range of circumstances. We’ll also discuss other GMAT prep resources and talk about how to choose the right book for you.

What Makes a Good GMAT Prep Book?

A good GMAT test prep book will help you get a higher GMAT score with realistic practice and rigorous content review. As you’re deciding which book to purchase, consider the following qualities that make a prep guide stand out from the rest.

Realistic Test Questions

It’s extremely important for your book to have realistic test questions. GMAT questions are written in a very specific style. Having realistic practice questions helps you familiarize yourself with the style of these questions and practice the skill sets you really need to do well on the test. Practicing with unrealistic questions will waste your time and may lead to you developing strategies that won’t help you on the test or worse, will lead you to wrong answers.

The best sources of realistic GMAT practice questions are the official GMAT guides and prep software. You can also get questions that closely resemble actual test questions in solid GMAT test prep books, though they’ll never be as good as the official practice questions.

Comprehensive Answer Explanations

While virtually all GMAT books offer answer keys, the best GMAT prep guides will have answer keys and comprehensive, detailed explanations of why each answer is correct. Thorough answer explanations will help you understand the skills and strategies you need to do well on the test. 

In fact, we think this is so important that PrepScholar GMAT’s online course offers thorough answer explanations for each of our over 1,000 practice questions that explain not only why the correct answer works but also why each incorrect answer doesn’t.

Full-Length Practice Tests

Taking full-length practice tests is one of the best ways to make sure that you’re getting a realistic GRE prep experience. The GMAT is a long test. It’s important to build up your stamina by practicing the test in its entirety, so you don’t get fatigued on test day. Think of it like a marathon. A marathon runner would never go out and run without doing some long training runs. As a GMAT test-taker, you should build up your endurance by taking full-length practice tests, too.

Because the GMAT is a computer-based test, taking computer-based practice tests is the best possible option to realistically simulate test day. Good GMAT books will often include the ability to access online practice tests and test question banks.

Useful Test-Taking Strategies

The GMAT is a unique test. In addition to building your knowledge of the content covered on the exam, it’s important to build an internal bank of test-taking strategies that you can rely on during the test. These strategies may have to do with time management, quickly eliminating wrong answers, identifying question types, making educated guesses or other skills. Having these skills will help you save time and quickly get to the correct answer on test day.

Clear Review Sections

The best GMAT books help you learn about the content that’s covered on the exam.  The book should have clearly defined review sections that help you build your skills in different areas. For instance, the book may contain a chapter on sentence correction questions, with lessons to build your knowledge and drills to build your skills. The explanations in these chapters should be logical, easy-to-understand, and followed up with exercises or questions that test your knowledge.

While good GMAT prep books don’t have to have all of these qualities, they should have at least one or two specific purpose and strengths that will help you achieve your GMAT goals. Now that you know more about the criteria that makes a good GMAT book, let’s take a look at eight examples.

The 8 Best GMAT Prep Books

I’ve reviewed the eight very best GMAT books below. For each, I explain what it includes, what is especially good about it, what drawbacks you should be aware of, and how you can decide if it’s the best GMAT prep book for you.

Most Realistic GMAT Prep: The Official Guide to the GMAT Review 2018

Price: $54.36 (for the bundle with all three books); $27.93 (for just the GMAT Review 2018 guide and online question bank)

This three-book bundle contains all the basic info you need to know about the test, as well as actual retired test questions from the GMAT. The three books included in the bundle are: GMAT Review 2018 Guide, GMAT Quantitative Review 2018 Guide, and GMAT Verbal Review 2018 Guide. Between all three of these books, the entire test is covered.

In addition to the book bundle, your purchase will give you access to an online question bank with over 1500 questions, including 220 all-new test questions that were just retired from the real exam. All practice questions, both in the book and online, come with answer explanations.

Pros:

• This is the guide you need if you’re looking to practice with real questions (which you should be). These guides are super realistic because they’re written by the test-maker.

• The online practice interface comes with an exam mode, which is identical to what you’ll see on the real test day, so you can familiarize yourself with what questions will look like and how you can navigate throughout the test.

• The guide is not too expensive. In most cases, it’s worth it to buy the bundle with the three guides, rather than just the official guide. This gives you access to over 600 more questions.

Cons:

• The guide gives access to a lot of test questions, but not to full-length practice tests. Remember, it’s important to take full length practice tests to help build your stamina and comfort with the exam. While the guide doesn’t offer full-length tests, you can get access to official, full-length GMAT practice tests for free by using the corresponding GMATPrep software. For more information about online practice options, check out our guide to online GMAT prep.

• While this guide has the most realistic test questions available, it doesn’t have much more. There is very little in the way of strategy in these guides.

• These guides don’t have a lot of questions on the highly difficult end of the question spectrum. If you’re looking to get a 700+ GMAT score, you might be better served with other materials.

• Some of the answer explanations (particularly in the quant and sentence correction sections) can be too simplistic or confusing.

Who Should Buy This Book:

Despite it’s flaws, I recommend most students purchase this book bundle. It’s one of the best resources for getting realistic questions. But be aware that you’ll need to supplement the practice question bank with full-length practice tests in order to be fully prepared.

Best Overall GMAT Prep Book: The Complete GMAT Strategy Guide Set by Manhattan Prep

Price: $133.64 for the complete set of strategy guides

This Manhattan Prep bundle provides a comprehensive overview of all topics seen on the GMAT. The 10 books that make up this bundle are designed to provide a substantial learning impact for students by helping them develop the knowledge, skills, and strategic thinking they need to do well on the test. The set includes the following books: GMAT RoadMap; Fractions, Decimals, and Percents; Algebra; Word Problems; Geometry; Number Properties; Critical Reasoning; Reading Comprehension; Sentence Correction; and Integrated Reasoning and Essay. You can purchase all of the books individually or as a bundle.

These GMAT prep books come with a year-long subscription to web materials and practice tests. Each book dives into a specific section of the test with detailed instruction tailored to that particular section. The books don’t emphasize the use of quick tips or tricks; rather, they focus on building a methodology and skillset to strengthen your performance. They’ll help you build a deep base of content knowledge and a set of reliable test-taking strategies that you can rely on for exam day.

Pros:

• The Manhattan prep books focus on teaching the fundamentals behind questions. This builds a deep understanding of the test because you’ll have test-taking strategies that directly correlate to the content covered in the exam.

• Each book provides in-depth instruction about one specific part of the exam, so you can mix-and-match the exact guides you need based on your strengths and weakness.

• The bundle comes with access to six full-length, computer adaptive practice tests that accurately simulate test-day conditions.

Cons:

• At over 100 dollars, the Manhattan prep books are fairly expensive. You can always buy just a few of the books if you know what you want to focus on, but if you’re looking for a complete guide, this one is a definite investment.

• The test questions tend to err on the more difficult side, so they might be challenging for test-takers who are not looking to score a 650+.

• There are a few typos in the verbal practice problems. This usually isn’t a big deal, but the errors can sometimes be confusing.

• This is a very comprehensive test prep set, and requires a significant time investment to really see an improvement.

Who Should Buy This Book:

The Manhattan Prep books are a solid test prep package that can benefit most test-takers, especially if you’re looking to learn content rather than strategy. If you have a lot of time to devote to your prep and you’re serious about building a studying schedule, this is the book for you. If you don’t have as much time or are only looking to work on specific sections of the test, you should consider purchasing the guides you need individually.

Best Prep Book for Building a GMAT Foundation: Veritas Prep Complete GMAT Course Set

Price: $250.00 for the complete strategy guide

The Veritas Prep Complete GMAT Course Set includes a total of 15 guides (8 for the quant section, 6 for the verbal section, AWA and test simulation booklet). The package includes access to online resources, including hundreds of free practice questions and one full-length, adaptive practice test. The online resources include in-depth guides to 14 of the world’s top business schools. Each of the books is clearly named and contains specific, clear strategies for tackling the types of questions covered.

Pros:

• Every single one of the Veritas Prep guides is packed with practice questions, and the bundle includes access to an online guide with more practice questions.

• The Veritas Prep books are clearly written and offer in-depth coverage of each topic.

• The practice questions are known for being difficult and unique.

Cons:

• The Veritas Prep course set online comes with just one full-length adaptive practice test. By contrast, Manhattan Prep offers six.

• These books are extremely expensive ($250+). You can buy the guides individually, but if you’re looking for a complete strategy guide and you’re worried about price, Manhattan Prep is probably a better option.

Who Should Buy This Book

Get the Veritas Prep guides if you’re looking for a lot of practice questions, but don’t necessarily feel worried about simulating online practice. This would be a good companion set with the Official GMAT Guide, which offers a lot of online practice. It’s also a good set to buy if price is not a concern.

Best Overall Prep Book for the GMAT Quantitative Section: Total GMAT Math by Jeff Sackmann

Price: $59.95

Total GMAT Math is designed to be a total overview of the GMAT quantitative section. It’s all about math, obviously! No verbal questions or strategies here.

The book contains tutorials explaining every type of question that you’re likely to see on the GMAT quant section. There are forty sections that review different question types, followed by a drill section with exercises to make sure you can apply what you’ve just learned. There are over 500 exercises in the book and over 300 GMAT practice questions. Of those 300 questions, 100 are “challenge questions” designed to simulate the hardest questions you may see on the test.

Pros:

• There are a lot (300+) of GMAT-style math questions to help you practice.

• There are even more (500+) of exercises that aren’t GMAT style, but still build up your math knowledge. These include drills that are targeted at building the underlying skills you need for the exam.

• The guide covers all the topics tested on the GMAT and each question type gets a section.

• The questions come with good answer explanations, complete with diagrams and solid strategy suggestions.

Cons:

• Total GMAT Math‘s format can be a bit confusing. The text is densely packed. If you’re going to use it, make sure you read the first section (“How to Use This Book”) to make the most of it.

• The structure of the chapters is bit unorthodox, with no real logic or sequence to the chapters, meaning that sections stand alone and don’t really build on each other, skill-wise.

• No summary sheets – the book would be more useful if there were key concepts or words highlighted at the end of each section.

• It’s on the expensive side for one book.

Who Should Buy This Book:

If you’re looking to build a foundation for the GMAT quantitative section, this is the book for you. The extensive questions and drills in Total GMAT Math will help you focus on the skills you need to feel confident about the quantitative section.

Best Overall Prep Book for the GMAT Verbal Section: Kaplan’s GMAT Verbal Workbook

Price: $13.37

Does the idea of the GMAT verbal section make your palms start sweating? Never fear! Kaplan’s GMAT Verbal Workbook will help you build a strong foundational knowledge for all of the specific verbal skills required on the GMAT.

The book provides straightforward strategies to cover every section (Reading Comprehension, Critical Reasoning, and Sentence Completion) on the verbal section. The book also provides a Vocabulary and Idioms list that are helpful, particularly for non-native English speakers.

Pros:

• Kaplan GMAT Verbal offers realistic strategies for every part of the Verbal section.

• It does a good job of explaining the difference between casual reading and GMAT reading and specifically teaching you how to read for the GMAT. The Reading Comprehension section is very strong in general and chock full of strategies and tips that will help build your skills.

• The Critical Reasoning strategies are also very helpful — you’ll learn how to approach the questions systematically and efficiently to reduce errors.

• Contains 2220 GMAT-style questions that are on the harder side, so you can really up your score.

• It’s cheap! Who doesn’t love a book that’s under $15?

Cons:

• The Sentence Correction section is a little bit weaker, only containing 5 pages plus a grammar section in the back. If you’re a non-native English speaker, this is probably not enough for you to get the hang of the concepts tested by these questions.

• The question banks in Kaplan GMAT Verbal overlap with those from the Kaplan Premier book, so if you’ve already bought that, you’ll be reusing questions.

• Some of the questions, particularly those on the Critical Reasoning section, are slightly different in style from those on the GMAT. Make sure you’re taking official practice tests as well so this doesn’t throw you off.

Who Should Buy This Book:

If you need to build a foundation for the verbal section, Kaplan GMAT Verbal is the book for you. This is a solid all-in-one verbal book that you can cover in a few weeks.

Best Prep Book if You’re Looking to Really Boost Your Quant Score: GMAT Advanced Quant by Manhattan Prep

Price: $16.22

This book, from Manhattan Prep, is designed for students seeking a top GMAT score. It’s geared at students who are already scoring at the 70th percentile on the quantitative section. It provides techniques for approaching the most difficult GMAT math problems.

There are over 250 practice questions in GMAT Advanced Quant, which are all extremely difficult. The book also includes access to two additional online practice sets. The sections included are Problem Solving Principles, Problem Solving Strategies & Tactics, Data Sufficiency Principles, Data Sufficiency Strategy & Tactics, Pattern Questions, Common Terms & Quadratic Templates, Visual Solutions, Hybrid Problems, and a chapter called “Workout Sets,” which contains practice problems.

Pros:

• • • If you’re already doing well on the quantitative section, this will help you push yourself even further. It covers concepts and strategies that aren’t reviewed in depth in either the full Manhattan Prep or full Veritas Prep guides.
    • The content really pushes you to the “next level” of thinking, particularly by ensuring you’re working on very difficult practice questions.
    • The problems in GMAT Advanced Quant are all much more challenging than anything in the GMAT Official Guide, which are generally easy or medium questions. These questions will prepare you for the hardest questions you may see on the quantitative section.
    • It’s a cheap supplemental to your other practice books.

Cons:

• • • GMAT Advanced Quant is not very useful for anyone scoring below the 70th percentile. It doesn’t cover any basic quant concepts and assumes a high level of knowledge.
    • There are a few typos in the book that can make it hard or impossible to get the right answer to some of the questions.

Who Should Buy This Book:

If you want to be a top-scorer on the quant section, GMAT Advanced Quant is the guide for you. Many guides only offer easy or medium questions, whereas this guide offers the chance to practice hard questions that you’ll encounter if you’re a top-scorer.

Best Prep Book to Help Develop Your GMAT Strategy: The GMAT Roadmap: Expert Advice Through Test Day by Manhattan GMAT

Price: $18.10

The GMAT Roadmap gives you a blueprint to follow as you get ready for the GMAT. This book isn’t focused on content knowledge; it focuses on helping you develop an excellent test and preparation strategy, and then getting you to achieve that strategy.

Manhattan’s GMAT Roadmap helps you map out your studying, develop and stick to a game plan, and manage your test anxiety. It also includes access to six online practice tests.

Pros:

• • • It’s like having a personal coach in your pocket (or on your Kindle) — this book will really guide you through every step of the studying process.

• • • GMAT Roadmap provides solid study tips to maximize your study sessions.
  • • It includes tips from test takers and instructors, as well as tips for international students.

• • • The book includes some high-level overview of the different test sections (for instance, telling you what kinds of questions you’ll see on the verbal section). It also gives a detailed overview of the test, including length for each section, order of the sections, and types of skills tested.

Cons:

• • • Some of the advice is a little too obvious, such as getting a good night’s sleep before the exam.
    • The chapter on test day expectations is not very in-depth and will likely leave you with some questions.
    • This isn’t as useful for people who have already taken the GMAT, because it’s primarily designed for people who aren’t familiar with what will be on the test. If you’ve taken the test before, you’ve seen what’s on it and you’ll know about the basics of its formatting.

Who Should Buy This Book:

If you’re a first-timer, GMAT Roadmap is a great book that helps you manage your expectations, put together a plan, and stick to it through test day.

Best Prep Book If You Struggle With Critical Reasoning: The PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible

Price: $31.79

The GMAT Critical Reasoning questions are notoriously difficult. This book will teach you how to understand GMAT argumentation, how to recognize question types, and how to separate correct answer from incorrect answers. It offers an in-depth overview of Critical Reasoning strategies and approaches to different questions.

Pros:

• • • PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning clearly divides CR question types and gives specific strategies for each type of question. It also addresses common mistakes for each question type.
    • The CR practice questions are very realistic.
    • Every question is accompanied by solid explanations that help you make sure that you’re not just solving a question, but solving it in the correct way.

Cons:

• • • PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning doesn’t include any tests or online content.
    • There aren’t that many practice questions. You’ll probably want to supplement with more official practice tests or questions.
    • Though most of the answer explanations are very clear, a few can be a bit long-winded or confusing.
    • The price point is slightly high for a book that focuses so narrowly on one question type.

WHO SHOULD BUY THIS BOOK:

If you’re trying to improve your Verbal score and have noticed that Critical Reasoning is a weak point for you, this is a great book to hone in on a very specific set of skills.

How Can You Choose the Best GMAT Prep Book for You?

It’s important to make sure you choose the right GMAT book for you. Consider the following factors when deciding what book to buy:

What Are Your Goals?

It’s extremely important to think about your goals when you’re considering which prep book to buy. After all, your GMAT test prep book will be a time and money investment. You want to make sure it’s meeting your needs. For instance, if you’re starting from scratch and want to learn a lot about the entire test, you’ll probably want to think about purchasing one of the larger strategy guides. If you’ve taken the test before or if you feel confident in your skills in most sections, you might consider purchasing a guide that works on a specific area that you struggle with.

Is the Book You Want to Buy Good Quality?

Buying a good quality prep book is just as important as buying a GMAT prep book that meets your goals. You don’t want to waste your money or time on a book that’s filled with inaccurate information or bad strategies. Not only will incorrect information not prepare you for the test, it could actually hurt you. If you’re practicing the wrong skills, you’ll be unprepared for the skills that actually appear on the GMAT.

Make sure the book you buy is high quality. Check out our reviews here and read the reviews on Amazon. Knowing what other people think will help inform your decision.

What’s Your Budget and Time Frame?

Make sure you’re not stretching your budget or your time frame. You want to purchase a book that is affordable and fits your study plan. If you only have a week to go before your GMAT, it’s probably not a good idea to spend $250 on a set of 12 GMAT books that you’ll never have a chance to read. Similarly, if you’re stretched for money, there are plenty of free resources around the Internet. You could buy a cheaper book, while supplementing your prep with some of the other study tools I’ll discuss in the section below.

4 Other Study Tools to Consider

You’re not confined to traditional GMAT prep books when approaching your studying. There are numerous resources (free and paid) that you can and should use in order to make sure you’re fully prepared. Here are some ideas for tools that you can use to supplement your GMAT books.

GMATPrep Official Software

This online software helps you prepare, practice, and improve. You’ll learn about the skills you need and get a step-by-step guide for preparing for the GMAT.The software includes 90 free questions with answers and explanations. You also get full-length, computer adaptive practice tests. These are great for simulating test day (and they’re official!), so you should definitely work them into your studying.

Free Online GMAT Practice Tests

Several resources offer free online practice tests. It’s important to note that these practice tests are not necessarily of high quality. It’s definitely better to take the official practice tests first. If you’ve exhausted those, try these.

• Manhattan Prep’s online free practice test
• Veritas Prep’s online free practice test
• Kaplan’s online free practice test
• Princeton Review’s online free practice test

GMAT Forums

There are a number of GMAT forums (such as Beat the GMAT and GMAT Club) out there that offer a whole range of services: test prep questions, interactions with business school and test prep company representatives, and general support. The forums also offer honest reviews of test prep options, as well as business school programs

GMAT Flashcards

Flashcards are a great way to make sure that you’re practicing any time, anywhere. Several different groups offer free GMAT flashcards that cover everything from equations to idioms. Magoosh’s free math flash cards review all the topics covered on the GMAT. Beat the GMAT also offers free GMAT flashcards that offer a complete set of GMAT “quick tips.”

What’s Next?

For some alternate GMAT study options, check out our guides to free GMAT prep, GMAT practice tests, and the best GMAT study materials.

Want an in-depth look at specific GMAT prep books? Check out our reviews of the Manhattan GMAT books and the Official GMAT Review Guide.

The post The Best GMAT Prep Books, Reviewed (2019) appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

There are so many GMAT prep resources out there that it’s hard to pick the best ones. What’s more, even a well-written GMAT prep resource may not be right for your specific needs.

In this article, I’ll walk you through what to look for in GMAT prep materials and give you an in-depth review of GMAT for Dummies 6th Edition, including its biggest pros and cons, who should use it, and how to best incorporate it into your overall GMAT prep.

What Makes a Good GMAT Prep Book?

Before we get into the specifics of our GMAT for Dummies review, it’s important to know the basics of what makes a GMAT prep resource worth your time. Your study time is valuable, and you never want to waste it with subpar practice materials. Let’s go over the main traits to look for when you’re selecting GMAT prep materials.

#1: Realistic, High-Quality Practice Questions

The practice questions in tests, drills, and quizzes in your chosen prep materials should be as close to what you’ll see on the GMAT as possible in terms of tone, content, length, and difficulty. This might seem obvious, but many prep materials skew towards easier or more difficult practice questions, and it’s important to know that before you invest in a resource.

It’s also best if the practice questions are organized by difficulty and specific content area, so you can choose which ones to target based on your specific needs and current skill level.

#2: Full-Length Practice Tests

Any GMAT prep book worth its salt will include full-length practice tests to help you build knowledge of the test, familiarity with its content and format, and stamina, as the test itself takes about three and a half hours.

In particular, the practice tests should be computerized adaptive tests (CATs). The GMAT is a CAT, meaning it is entirely computer-based and uses an algorithm to adapt to your skill level in real time as you take the exam. Many practice materials include one paper-based test within the book itself, as well as multiple tests in CAT format on either an accompanying disc or a companion website.

#3: Helpful Test-Taking Strategies

Succeeding on the GMAT requires not only skill and knowledge, but strategy. A helpful GMAT prep resource will include relevant test-taking strategies to deal with common obstacles like timing, guessing, following the process of elimination, and anxiety. You should look in particular for tips that are specifically relevant to the GMAT, rather than generic.

It’s also best if a wide variety of test-taking strategies are included, so you can pick and choose the ones that work best for you.

#4: Clear, Relevant Content Review

To do well on the GMAT, you need a firm grasp of some fundamental math and grammar concepts. You also need to know exactly how those subject areas will crop up on the GMAT, as they’re tested in similar ways on every GMAT.

To this end, a high-quality GMAT prep resource will include a solid math and grammar review, showing you not only the skills you’ll need to brush up on or develop, but how they’ll be tested on the exam. Bonus points if the book works through multiple specific examples of each one.

#5: Guidance on Structuring Your Studying

The best GMAT practice materials will be detailed and in-depth enough to break down each question type and thus allow you to identify and target your own strengths and weaknesses. Some practice materials will give a brief overview of each question type or tell you what kinds of “trap answers” you might see in the answer choices, but don’t provide step-by-strategies to tackle or avoid those potential pitfalls.

Others include drills and practice tests, but the answer explanations are not in-depth enough for you to see exactly where your thinking fell through or where you made a careless mistake. A high-quality GMAT prep resource will help you pinpoint exactly where you’re going wrong and how to avoid that issue in the future.

GMAT for Dummies Review: The Basics

GMAT for Dummies 6th Edition, released in 2013, offers an in-depth overview of the GMAT, including each section and question type. It’s a bear of a book, reaching nearly 350 pages.

It’s available on Kindle with access to a companion website for $18.66 and in print with an accompanying CD for around $20 on Amazon.

After the initial overview of the exam and a guide to how the GMAT is scored and how to register, GMAT for Dummies 6th Edition focuses heavily on test-taking strategies, including methods to help you work on your timing, process of elimination, and guessing, and provides ways to tackle each question type.

GMAT for Dummies also features mini-tests after each section, with a walkthrough and full breakdown of each sample question.

The book closes with tips on getting into MBA programs and using the GMAT to your advantage in MBA admissions.

GMAT for Dummies is accompanied by a CD that includes five computerized adaptive practice tests. If you buy the Kindle version, you’ll get access to a companion website with the same materials.

GMAT for Dummies Review: Pros

Every GMAT prep resource has particular strengths and weaknesses. Let’s go over the pros and cons of using GMAT for Dummies as one of your GMAT prep materials.

By far the biggest strength of GMAT for Dummies 6th Edition is its comprehensive overview of each GMAT section. It goes into more detail on what you’ll see on the exam than the vast majority of prep materials.

Similarly, the book’s accessible tone makes even an in-depth overview of this difficult standardized test easy to comprehend. GMAT for Dummies is user-friendly and not overly dense or complicated, making it easy to read in small pieces so you can digest it over time and really get a sense of the exam.

GMAT for Dummies focuses heavily on strategy, particularly specific ways to tackle each question type. After teaching you how to recognize each question type through various examples, the book walks you through a step-by-step, methodical approach to every category of question type. This feature makes it ideal if you aren’t sure exactly what a certain kind of GMAT question is asking you, or how you would begin to approach it.

GMAT for Dummies is also noteworthy for its more general GMAT test-taking strategies on guessing, timing, and dealing with testing anxiety. Like its question-specific strategies, these are methodical and step-by-step rather than generic, broad-based tips, so you can take an action-based approach to the GMAT.

In terms of section-specific strengths, GMAT for Dummies contains one of the most useful integrated reasoning overviews and strategy guides available, with methodical, step-by-step approaches to each question type. Many GMAT prep resources are weaker in this area because the integrated reasoning section was added more recently than the others, so prep companies have had less time to get to know the section in depth.

For those who struggle with the quant section, GMAT for Dummies also contains an especially in-depth math review, with examples not only of GMAT practice quant sections but of specific fundamental math skills that will be tested on the exam as well. The mini-tests after each section will help you review the skills you just brushed up on.

GMAT for Dummies also offers several sample AWA (analytical writing assessment) essays, which will help ground you in concrete examples and compare your own essays to the samples provided. This is a unique resource, as most practice materials provide strategies for succeeding on the AWA section, but not specific examples.

Finally, in terms of overall content and value, with five full-length computerized adaptive tests and many other practice questions throughout the book, GMAT for Dummies gives you a lot of bang for your buck, especially alongside such an in-depth content review and strategy guide.

GMAT for Dummies Review: Cons

GMAT for Dummies’ biggest weakness is that the practice questions given in both the online materials and the book itself stay solidly in the easy and medium ranges of difficulty. There aren’t too many very difficult questions here, so if you’re already scoring very highly, it won’t be as helpful to you as other resources.

Also, while GMAT for Dummies does include a GMAT grammar review, it’s far less detailed than the math review. So if you struggle with the verbal section, this book may be the best option for you.

Finally, GMAT for Dummies hasn’t been updated yet to reflect the 2017 changes to the GMAT. Check out our guide to selecting the section order that works for you to find out more.

Is GMAT for Dummies Right for You?

Overall, GMAT for Dummies is better for “prep” (learning the format, developing strategies, and reviewing the content) than for practice. By that, I mean it’s a very helpful resource for those starting out in their prep, especially those who need to learn the format of the exam and who work well with methodical, organized, step-by-step strategies.

There’s no question that it contains more in-depth strategies and breakdowns of question types than other books. It’s also an especially good resource if you need a comprehensive math content review.

GMAT for Dummies is best for low-to-mid-range scorers or those just starting out in their prep. It’s not going to be as helpful if you are already scoring very highly and are looking to bump your score up above 700 or 750 with some extra practice or drills.

How to Use GMAT for Dummies

GMAT for Dummies 6th Edition is best used to learn the GMAT format at the beginning of your prep. It’s a good option to use alongside the full-length practice tests in the Official GMAT Prep Software as a kickoff to your overall prep.

You can also use this book to get to know the computerized adaptive format in more depth, as it has a more detailed overview of CAT format than any other practice resource. The specific strategies aimed at each question type will help you develop and experiment with the strategies that work best for you. The many note-taking tips throughout the text will also help you know how to use the scratch pad to your advantage on the day of the exam.

Once you’ve used GMAT for Dummies, you might want to move on to more challenging resources that feature more difficult practice questions, such as Manhattan Prep’s Strategy Guides or Advanced Quant materials. This is especially true if you’re a high scorer looking to bump up those last few points.

Finally, you can use GMAT for Dummies if you’re looking for tips on how to get into an MBA program or to understand more about how your GMAT score fits into the overall picture of MBA admissions.

What’s Next?

Want to work on the underlying fundamental skills you’ll need to do well on the GMAT? Khan Academy can help in three major ways.

Looking for other GMAT prep books? Check out our review of Cracking the GMAT.

Ready for a GMAT diagnostic test? Find the best ones, along with other high-quality prep materials, here.

The post Expert Review: GMAT for Dummies appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

How are you planning to prepare for the GMAT? The answer might seem obvious (study!), but there are actually several different ways you can get ready to take the exam.

When you’re trying to decide on what the best GMAT prep method is for you, you’ll need to take your unique strengths, weaknesses, and study style into account, as well as your budget and time limits. In this article, I’ll help you decide how you can best prepare for the GMAT in the way that works for you. I’ll also go over what you should look for when you’re considering different GMAT prep methods.

How Can You Choose the Best GMAT Prep Method For You?

The best GMAT test prep method is the one that works for you and your particular needs. Which one is best for you depends on several factors, all of which you should consider as you create your GMAT study plan. Let’s go over each of them.

#1: Score Goal

How in-depth and comprehensive do you need your chosen GMAT prep method to be? How much time do you need to devote to GMAT prep, and how intensively do you need to prepare? Part of that depends, of course, on how much you need or want your GMAT score to improve.

If you’re looking to bump up your score by a few points (say, 30 or so), you might be able to target a few of your major weaknesses through self-paced study or a GMAT prep book.

If you’re hoping to improve your score by 100 points or more, you’ll likely need more in-depth GMAT prep, more hours of study, possibly one-on-one instruction, and/or more customized feedback. After you’ve decided on a target GMAT score (see our article on finding yours), select the best way to prep for GMAT accordingly.

#2: Learning Style

Do you learn best with one-on-one instruction, alone, or in a group? Are you an audio or visual learner? Do you do better when you have lots of uninterrupted time to devote to studying, or when you study in short spurts? Do you learn a lot from reading in-depth explanations of skills, or do short drills and exercises do the trick when you’re trying to fix your mistakes?

As you choose a GMAT prep method, these are questions you should be considering. A GMAT prep method that works perfectly well for another applicant won’t give you the same results if it’s not a good match for how you process information.

Think about how you’ve learned best in the past. In particular, how have you successfully approached the things you found most difficult? Use what you know about your own learning style to help you decide between the four main methods of GMAT prep.

#3: Time

How much time do you have to devote to your GMAT prep? It’s important to be realistic about what you can accomplish in the time you have available for studying, and to choose your form of GMAT prep accordingly.

If you plan on studying for six months or more, it’s a good idea to choose a GMAT prep option that will give you structure and a routine. If you’re studying for a long time, you can sometimes start to lose momentum or focus, which a prep class, online program, or tutor could provide for you. With this much time, you’ll also have time to switch it up if you like, and try out more than one GMAT prep class or shop around for a tutor that works for you.

If you have three months—the standard time to spend on GMAT prep, as it gives you enough time to set up a regular study schedule, but isn’t overly long and doesn’t put you at risk of losing focus—you’ll want to be efficient and targeted in terms of your study sessions. You should plan for about ten hours of study time a week. Any of the four main kinds of GMAT prep could work well in a three to four month span.

Are you trying to do some last-minute one-month prep? Then a class or tutoring likely isn’t the best idea, or even feasible. If you’re looking to target a few weaknesses in a short time, you’d probably be better off with targeted GMAT self-study through prep books and online resources. However, note that cramming isn’t likely to get you the best results in terms of score improvement: check out our article here [link] on why it’s important not to rush when it comes to GMAT prep.

#4: Price

Of course, your GMAT prep budget makes a difference in what method you end up choosing. If you’re low on cash, a private tutor likely won’t be your best option, as experienced GMAT tutors tend to be expensive. Prep classes and online programs are less expensive than most private tutors, but more expensive than a program of self-study (using prep books and online resources).

You should think not only about price, but also about what you’re getting for your money. Self-study is obviously likely to be the cheapest option, for example, but if you’re restricting yourself to only free or inexpensive resources, you might miss out on guidance or reviews of particular skills that you need to improve your score. Think about your budget, but also about your overall investment in your GMAT score.

4 GMAT Prep Options

There are four main GMAT prep options: taking a GMAT prep class, completing an online GMAT prep program, private tutoring, or self-study.

Let’s go through each one, including its pros and cons and why you might choose it or avoid it as your primary prep method.

Method 1: GMAT Prep Class

A live or online GMAT prep class usually involves instruction from an expert in the format of the GMAT. The best GMAT prep course will usually include several practice tests, as well as weekly lessons, quizzes, and drills. You will normally be asked to complete homework in between classes, so that you are prepping both in and outside of class.

Pros: If you learn well in groups and enjoy teamwork, you will likely benefit from an in-person or online GMAT prep class. Instruction in real time, including diagrams, plenty of opportunities to ask questions, and in-person or timed online practice tests, also appeals to many students who might feel more disconnected trying to find the answers to their questions themselves online.

Cons: You don’t get as much one-on-one attention in a GMAT prep class as you would from private tutoring.

Your schedule also won’t be that flexible, as you’ll have to stick to the structure of the course and show up in person or at a particular time online, and new classes might not be consistently offered at times that work for you. If you miss classes, you may or may not be able to make them up later, so you could miss valuable aspects of GMAT prep.

Examples:

#1: Manhattan Prep Live and Online GMAT Prep Courses

• Very comprehensive with 27 hours of instruction and six practice tests.
• Accelerated classes last a month, regular classes last two months.
• In-person and live online Manhattan Prep GMAT courses are $1299. Two-week intensive boot camps are $2650.

#2: Veritas Prep In-Person and Live-Online GMAT Courses

• 36 hours of live instruction,12 full-length computerized adaptive tests, and about 1,500 GMAT practice questions.
• Veritas Prep GMAT courses usually meet twice a week for five weeks. Each class is three hours.
• Live online classes normally cost $1,650 and in-person classes cost $1,850.

#3: Kaplan In-Person and Live Online GMAT Test Prep

• Each course includes six three-hour classroom (or interactive online) sessions.
• Costs
  • In-person basic package: $1449
  • In-person GMAT Prep PLUS: $1889
  • Online basic package: $1249
  • Online GMAT Prep PLUS: $1649
• You can take a practice test at a Pearson VUE testing center, where you will take the actual exam. This can be especially helpful for students with testing anxiety or who have trouble performing well under pressure.

Method 2: Online Programs

Online GMAT prep programs, which can either follow a set schedule or allow you to set the pace, normally begin with a diagnostic test that will assess your strengths and weaknesses. They usually include practice questions of all types and difficulties, regular assessments of your progress, and full-length computerized adaptive practice tests. They may or may not include lessons about the GMAT content and format.

Pros: Online GMAT prep programs are structured and motivating, much like prep courses. The best GMAT prep courses are also flexible and customizable, adapting to your progress as you go along. They can also pinpoint your unique weaknesses quickly and specifically, so you won’t spend as much time on general information about the GMAT (like you might in a prep course or even possibly with a tutor).

With the best online GMAT prep programs, you also bypass the problem of human error. Unlike a tutor or prep course instructor, an online program is less likely to make a mistake or spend too much time on something that doesn’t directly benefit you.

Online programs also tend to be less expensive on average than GMAT tutors and prep classes.

Cons: Online GMAT prep programs are, obviously, missing some degree of a “human” component. Because they are often automated, if you’re someone who enjoys and benefits from connections with teachers and fellow students, you might struggle to stay motivated in an online GMAT prep program.

Examples:

#1: PrepScholar

• PrepScholar’s online GMAT program is a customized prep tool that monitors your progress closely and creates a study plan specifically for you.
• Coming in the summer of 2017!

#2: Princeton Review GMAT Prep

• Self-paced online program for $499.
• The program includes 10 computerized adaptive practice GMATs, customized feedback on one GMAT essay, and 4,000 practice questions, including video answer explanations.
• Princeton Review GMAT practice questions are well-written and realistic, but they tend to be on the easier side. So if you’re already a very high scorer, this program is probably not the best way to prep for GMAT questions.

Method 3: Tutoring

With an online or in-person private tutor, you can create a customized study plan based on your target GMAT score, your prospective business schools, and your strengths and weaknesses.

Pros: A highly qualified GMAT tutor will know all the ins and outs of the exam and will be able to assess what fundamental skills you need to review and what drills you need to complete to get over your particular hurdles. The one-on-one attention offered by a private tutor is obviously the biggest plus.

Tutoring is flexible. It can be highly intensive or short-term, depending on your needs. You can ask a tutor to delve solely into the quant section with you, to work extensively with you on the GMAT essay, to focus primarily on your pacing, or to give you a comprehensive overview of the exam. Because it’s just you and the tutor, you can reach a level of customizability that isn’t possible with other prep methods.

Cons: A private GMAT tutor’s time can be expensive, though prices vary depending on your location, the tutor’s level of experience and expertise, and how many hours of instruction you need.

There’s also a degree of subjectivity in selecting a GMAT tutor that can prove risky. You could always fail to click with a tutor or end up having to find a more reliable one, both of which are problems you’re less likely to encounter with, say, an online program.

Examples

You can find a private tutor through larger test prep companies like Kaplan and Princeton Review, through GMAT consulting firms, or through online sources like The Economist. You can also check at local business schools or on local message boards like Craigslist, especially if you need a cost-effective option.

Method 4: Self-Study

GMAT self-study means just that: you make the rules. You can include GMAT prep books, reviews of foundational skills, online resources, and whatever else you need in your self-study.

Pros: Self-study is likely to be the cheapest GMAT prep method by far, so if you’re on a budget, this may be the best way to prep for GMAT questions, particularly if you’re highly self-motivated.

Self-study is also a good idea if you need a great deal of flexibility in your schedule, or if you only have a short time to prepare. Because you are customizing your own study plan (see our article [link] on crafting an effective GMAT study plan), you can adapt it whenever you need to, add to or subtract from it, and make it work for you and your everyday life. You can spend as much or as little time on any given subject or section as you feel you need.

Cons: The biggest downside of self-study as a form of GMAT prep is that it’s often hard to stay on track and gauge your progress if you’re going it alone. If you struggle at all with time management or self-motivation, or if you feel at all lost without structure or routine, self-study is not the best option for you.

Also, you might miss out on reviewing essential areas of GMAT content if you’re trying to do everything yourself and, unlike a GMAT expert instructor, haven’t learned all the nuances of the exam. You could wind up with gaps in your knowledge or preparation.

Examples

Self-study is, by definition, tailored to whatever you need to review. You should start your self-study for the GMAT with a computerized adaptive diagnostic test (find out more about GMAT diagnostic tests here) and create a specific study plan and timeline to keep yourself on track.

Next, gather your GMAT prep resources, including online tools and/or prep books. Check out our suggestions for the best GMAT prep resources for an idea of where to start.

Reviews of fundamental skills in verbal and quant should also be integrated into your self-study. Find out more about the math concepts you should review and the verbal skills you should brush up on.

Make sure to track your progress as you work. Keep a log of the practice quizzes and tests you take, and adjust your GMAT study plan accordingly.

What to Look For in a GMAT Prep Method

When you’re choosing a GMAT prep method, you need to make sure it fits your particular needs, works for your schedule and budget, and will get you the score increase you want.

There are a few things to look for when selecting a GMAT prep method. Let’s go through the top five.

#1: Realistic Practice

Whichever GMAT prep method you choose should include realistic practice questions and tests, so that you’ll be prepared for anything on exam day. The practice tests you take should be in computerized adaptive format and should be the same length as what you’ll encounter when you take the real GMAT.

The GMAT practice questions you encounter in drills, quizzes, and full-length exams should be as similar in content, tone, difficulty, length, and format to what you’ll see on exam day as possible. You should practice with every question type and, ideally, also get used to the visuals you’ll see on the actual GMAT.

#2: Customization and Responsiveness

One of the most important aspects of preparing for the GMAT is recognizing, assessing, and addressing your personal strengths and weaknesses. Thus, you’ll have to ensure that the prep method you select is customizable to your particular needs and responsive to how those needs change over time.

Private tutors and online programs are usually the strongest prep methods in this regard. A good private tutor will help you adapt your study plan and schedule as you progress in your GMAT prep so that you cover all the bases, devoting more time to things you’re still struggling with and less to topics you’ve mastered.

Likewise, a strong online GMAT prep program will regularly update you on your progress and on where you need to continue to brush up your skills.

#3: Regular Motivation

Many students have trouble keeping up their focus and momentum over the course of their GMAT prep. Particularly if you struggle to stay on track, choose a prep method that will provide you with regular motivation.

Motivation can come in the form of a structured routine that doesn’t allow you to stray too far from your study plan, a scheduled course or study time, and/or regular updates on your progress so that you know where you’re at every step along the way and have a reason to keep moving in a forward direction.

If you’re good at incentivizing yourself and are used to self-directed study, this tip might not be as important for you. But in assessing your GMAT prep needs, be honest with yourself. If you need guidance and structure, don’t be afraid to seek it out.

#4: Similar to the Real GMAT

To prepare for the GMAT, you don’t just need to prepare yourself for the content tested on the exam. You’ll also need to be familiar with the format and logistics of the GMAT.

For example, you’ll have access to a simple onscreen calculator for the integrated reasoning section, but not for the quantitative section. Also, you’ll be given a double-sided, laminated scratch pad with a thin marker to take notes on if you choose during the exam. You should get accustomed to these conditions as much as possible by practicing with a legal pad similar to what you’ll get on exam day and by practicing quant questions without a calculator.

The GMAT prep method you select should also help you focus on timing. Pacing can be as much as a problem for students as the actual content of the GMAT. A good GMAT prep method will help you build stamina for the three-and-a-half-hour tests, administer timed practice tests, and let you take only the two optional eight-minute breaks that will be available to you on exam day.

If you have a lot of testing anxiety and tend to get thrown off during exams by distractions or the unfamiliar, an in-person class or private tutor who can administer a live practice test might be a good idea, as they can help you get accustomed to the realities of taking the GMAT.

#5: Up-to-Date

The GMAT doesn’t change often, but you want to make sure that whatever prep method you use is as up-to-date as possible.

Prep books written before 2012, for example—the year the integrated reasoning (IR) section was added to the exam—might not include advice or drills for the IR section. Make sure that any prep resources you use include the integrated reasoning section and that any tutor you select to work with you has a great deal of experience in helping students with IR questions (especially, of course, if this section is a trouble spot for you).

Be sure at least one of your GMAT study materials is current to make sure you’re getting the most accurate information about the exam.

Summary: The Best GMAT Test Prep Method

So, what’s the best GMAT prep? That depends on you! The best GMAT test prep is one that takes your strengths and weaknesses into account in order to help you achieve your GMAT score goals in the most efficient way possible.

There are many ways to study for the GMAT, including in-person classes, online programs, tutors, and self-study. The best GMAT prep courses, the best online GMAT prep, and the best GMAT tutors and self-study resources will each have strong benefits to using them. Before you make a decision, be sure to do your research so you know the investment required for each method and what you’ll get about it. Think honestly about which method will work best for you to ensure you have the best test day possible.

What’s Next?

A prep book can be your most useful study tool for the GMAT. Check out our reviews of the best GMAT books to get started.

If you’re worried about the Quant section, check out our complete guide to how to prepare for GMAT Math.

Concerned about your grasp of sophisticated vocabulary? Our guide to GMAT vocabulary can help you prepare for the Verbal section.

The post How to Pick the Best GMAT Prep Method for You appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

Are you worried about the GMAT integrated reasoning section? You’re not alone. Many students find the integrated reasoning section difficult to understand and to prepare for.

In this article, I’ll guide you through the best prep books and other materials available to help you succeed on IR questions, as well as offer some tips for GMAT integrated reasoning prep. By the end, you’ll be more than ready to start your Integrated Reasoning prep.

The GMAT Integrated Reasoning Section: The Basics

First off, before getting into the best integrated reasoning prep books, let’s go over what the integrated reasoning section of the GMAT is and what it tests.

The GMAT integrated reasoning (IR) section tests your ability to integrate complex information from multiple sources and to answer questions about the information provided by those sources. The sources can include short passages, tables, graphs, charts, and other graphics.

The IR section includes twelve multi-part questions that need to be answered in 30 minutes and includes four question types: table analysis, graphic interpretation, two-part analysis, and multi-source reasoning (which usually includes several short passages).

Each of these questions has multiple parts, usually two or three. You must answer each part of an IR question correctly in order to get credit for the question. There is no partial credit.

The IR section is scored from 1-8 in single-digit intervals and is not adaptive (find out more about the computerized adaptive format of the GMAT here). The IR score doesn’t impact your total GMAT score, which includes only the verbal and quant scores.

Do You Need Integrated Reasoning GMAT Books?

So, now that I’ve gone over the basics, let’s talk IR prep. When you’re considering integrated reasoning GMAT prep books and materials, the first thing to consider is if you need them at all. MBA admissions committees generally don’t consider the IR section to be as significant as the verbal and quantitative sections, so you shouldn’t overdo your IR prep. You don’t want to go off on a tangent and spend too much time prepping for this section, particularly if you’re struggling significantly with the verbal or quant section.

Though the integrated reasoning section isn’t as significant as the verbal or quant section, it still matters to admissions committees and shouldn’t be entirely overlooked. Regardless of how you do on practice tests on the integrated reasoning section, you should take time to review the basics of the IR format and question types. It’s especially important to make sure that it’s not an extremely weak spot in your overall GMAT.

After you take an initial diagnostic GMAT, you’ll know more about how much trouble you have with the integrated reasoning section. These are some of the signs that you should devote some extra time to integrated reasoning prep:

• You don’t get through all the questions or struggle with timing.

• You have a lot of trouble with answering the questions or understanding what they’re asking of you.

• You got a very low IR score (below 4 out of 8) on your first practice test.

If any of those statements apply to you, you should devote some time to IR prep (which might require an integrated reasoning prep book).

Also, if you’re doing well in the other sections and the IR section is a particular weakness, you should devote some targeted prep time to the IR section to ensure that it isn’t a glaring weak spot on your MBA application.

Why get a prep book rather than simply completing integrated reasoning practice questions? GMAT integrated reasoning books are especially helpful if you find the format of the integrated reasoning section baffling or who have trouble analyzing graphics and graphs. In this case, you’ll benefit from more in-depth answer explanations and breakdowns of the IR format.

Also, GMAT integrated reasoning books could help if you are regularly completing practice quizzes and aren’t improving on integrated reasoning questions. A lack of progress could signal that you need more devoted attention to this area.

What to Look for in Integrated Reasoning GMAT Books: 3 Key Characteristics

Quality integrated reasoning GMAT books should have several key traits. Let’s go over what they are so you know exactly what to look for.

#1: Easy to Digest

Remember that even if you’re struggling with the GMAT integrated reasoning section, it should never take over your GMAT prep.

This means that any prep book you choose should be easily digestible. It should be thorough and in-depth without being overly long or taking up too much of your prep time. Make sure it’s a quick read, straightforward, and not overly dense.

#2: Realistic Practice Questions

The practice questions in the IR prep book you select should be as similar in tone, content, format, and length to real GMAT IR questions as possible.

You should also ensure that there are plenty of practice quizzes and question sets available in the prep book you select, so that you can regularly implement the skills you’re building through drills during your GMAT study sessions.

#3: Detailed Explanations of Answers and Format

In a high-quality IR prep book, there will be detailed answer explanations of practice questions that will help you understand exactly where you’re going wrong on ones you answer incorrectly. A good prep book will help you break down the questions you don’t answer correctly and analyze your weaknesses and error patterns so you can quickly remedy the problems.

Additionally, the best IR prep books will include an in-depth breakdown of the four IR question types and the format of each, and will help you learn what to look for in different kinds of graphs and charts that you might encounter on the exam.

5 Best GMAT Integrated Reasoning Books

Now, let’s take a look at the five best GMAT integrated books available. For each book, I’ll go over its price, pros, and cons, as well as why you might choose it (or not) as an integrated reasoning resource.

#1: Manhattan Prep GMAT Integrated Reasoning & Essay Strategy Guide

Overview: This 144-page Manhattan GMAT integrated reasoning book (half of which is concerned only with integrated reasoning) includes breakdowns and examples of each IR question type, as well as practice questions and answer explanations. There’s also an IR strategy section that illustrates ways to tackle each question type and each hurdle you might encounter in integrated reasoning.

Price: $26 in paperback; $32.99 in ebook

Pros: Manhattan Prep’s breakdown of integrated reasoning question types is particularly in-depth and comprehensive, and the strategies are straightforward. If you struggle with knowing how to approach IR questions, this book will be especially helpful for you.

Also, with your purchase, you get one year of access to an accompanying website with additional IR practice questions, exercises, and answer explanations.

Cons: While the strategies in this book are helpful, there aren’t as many practice questions as you might get in another resource. You should also probably only consider the book if you’re looking for help with the analytical writing assessment as well, because about half the book is devoted to the GMAT essay.

#2: Manhattan Review GMAT Integrated Reasoning Guide

Overview: Manhattan Review’s GMAT Integrated Reasoning Guide emphasizes both strategy and practice, taking readers through an overview and examples of each IR question type before launching into a series of IR practice quizzes.

In total, there are 50 integrated reasoning practice questions in the Manhattan integrated reasoning book, each of which is accompanied by an answer explanation.

Price: $13.55 in paperback

Pros: The GMAT Integrated Reasoning Guide includes a wide variety of IR practice questions of varying difficulty levels and question types. Whatever you find most challenging in the integrated reasoning section, you’re likely to find practice questions that address it here.

Cons: The answer explanations in the Manhattan integrated reasoning book aren’t always as in-depth or detailed as they might be.

Also, the strategies offered in the book are often focused around logical deduction, which may or may not be the best way for you to approach the IR questions. In contrast to other books that offer a wider variety of options for how you might tackle GMAT questions, Manhattan Review sticks to a single strategy.

#3: Peterson’s Mastering the GMAT: Part IV, Integrated Reasoning

Overview: This prep ebook is sold as part of Peterson’s larger Mastering the GMAT volume. It gives readers an overview of the integrated reasoning section, followed by a three-step approach that test-takers are encouraged to follow for each IR question type. Examples and explanations of each question type are included.

While the text is 115 pages in total (including a guide to the GMAT overall, the computerized adaptive format, tips for business school applications, and other helpful general information), the integrated reasoning section ends on page 45.

Price: $2.51 on Google Play

Pros: This is a quick, inexpensive guide to GMAT integrated reasoning questions. If you don’t have a lot of time to devote to IR prep but need a bit more depth than you can find in more general prep books, Peterson’s is a great resource.

Cons: To get integrated reasoning practice questions, you’ll have to purchase the rest of Peterson’s Mastering the GMAT or their online resources. This slim volume only includes a few examples (though they are very in-depth).

#4: McGraw-Hill’s Conquering the GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning and 500 GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning Questions to Know By Test Day

Overview: McGraw-Hill’s Conquering the GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning is a comprehensive guide to both the GMAT quant section and the GMAT integrated reasoning section.

While the book is over 300 pages in its entirety, only about a third or slightly less of the guide is devoted specifically to integrated reasoning. It includes IR tips, strategies, and practice questions, including two full-length IR practice tests and answer explanations.

McGraw-Hill’s other integrated reasoning resource, 500 GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning Questions to Know By Test Day, is also over 300 pages, but is devoted entirely to practice questions and answer explanations. In total, there are over 500 practice questions here: 300 quant questions and 200 integrated reasoning questions, divided by question type.

Price: Conquering the GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning: $11.99 in ebook format; $12 in paperback

500 GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning Questions to Know By Test Day: $19 in ebook format; $7.35 in paperback

Pros: Chapter 6 of Conquering the GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning goes in depth on how to tackle each integrated reasoning question type. There’s a lot of meaty strategy and quite a few helpful and specific tips.

Of course, the biggest pro of this prep book is the fact that it includes two full-length IR tests.

Similarly, 500 GMAT Math and Integrated Reasoning Questions to Know By Test Day provides a lot of IR practice, with 200 practice questions (more than any other IR prep resource) available within its pages.

You might consider purchasing both of these books as companions, if you’re looking for both in-depth strategy guides and a wide variety of practice questions for both the quant and integrated reasoning sections of the GMAT.

Cons: In both books, interpreting and drawing conclusions from graphics (a skill that’s difficult for many GMAT test-takers) could be explained more fully and in more depth. Answer explanations are sometimes brief and lacking in detail. Also, both books contain typos and proofreading errors that can sometimes get distracting.

#5: Vibrant Publishers’ GMAT Integrated Reasoning Practice Questions

Overview: Vibrant Publishers’ GMAT Integrated Reasoning Practice Questions includes 150 integrated reasoning practice questions, divided by question type and followed by answer explanations. The book begins with an overview of the GMAT as a whole and a brief explanation of each integrated reasoning question type.

Price: $14.95 in paperback; $3.99 in Kindle

Pros: The biggest advantage of this book is its large number of practice questions and answer explanations. Because the practice questions are divided by question type, you can focus on the ones that you struggle with most.

The answer explanations are also in-depth and detailed, and will take you through each step of reading and answering an IR question.

Finally, GMAT Integrated Reasoning Practice Questions is highly affordable, giving you quite a bit of value for a low price.

Cons: The practice questions provided here are primarily of easy to moderate difficulty, so if you’re specifically looking for advanced IR practice questions, you’ll need to supplement elsewhere.

Also, there’s not an in-depth section on the IR format that breaks down each question type. This book is primarily a source of practice questions, not an overview of the IR section as a whole.

3 Additional GMAT Integrated Reasoning Resources

Looking for integrated resources beyond prep books? There are a few other high-quality materials that you can use to hone in on the integrated reasoning section of the GMAT. Let’s take a look at the three best ones.

#1: GMAT Official Integrated Reasoning Prep Tool

Overview: The GMAT Official Integrated Reasoning Prep Tool is a web-based tool that includes 48 integrated reasoning practice questions and in-depth answer explanations. You’ll also receive a progress report at the end of each customizable practice session that will let you know how you did on the practice questions in comparison to others who answered the same ones.

Price: $20

Pros: The most obvious pro of the Official IR Prep Tool is that it’s one of the only sources of official integrated reasoning GMAT practice questions, so it’s a reliable way to gauge your progress as you prepare for the IR section. The visuals are also quite similar to what you’ll see on exam day.

Cons: With your purchase, you only get access to the IR prep tool for six months. If you need it longer, you’ll need to buy an extension.

#2: GMAT Pill Online Integrated Reasoning Practice Questions and Videos

Overview: The online GMAT Pill guide to integrated reasoning includes an overview of the section, strategies to succeed in integrated reasoning, sets of IR practice questions divided by question type, and video explanations for each set of practice questions.

Price: Many of the GMAT Pill integrated reasoning resources are free with no required sign-in. Others are also free but require a signup with your email. Still others (marked with a “lock”) require you to purchase the full GMAT Pill course for $437 (lifetime membership) or $169 for the first month (and $99/month thereafter).

Pros: GMAT Pill offers one of the most comprehensive guides to integrated reasoning questions out there. The question types are further divided into skill sets or concepts being tested, making each practice question set all the more helpful for targeting your particular weaknesses.

There are hundreds of IR practice questions, many of which are available for free, and the video explanations that break down examples and the skills you’ll need to address them are in-depth and easy to digest.

Cons: GMAT Pill’s visuals can get distracting and confusing, making navigation of the integrated reasoning section difficult. It’s also difficult at times to know what you can access for free and what you need to purchase.

#3: Magoosh’s Complete Guide to GMAT Integrated Reasoning (PDF)

Overview: This online ebook contains strategies for each IR question type, about two examples of each question type, and answer explanations.

Price: Downloadable for free

Pros: Magoosh’s book is concise and to the point. The examples presented are of appropriate complexity levels, and the answer explanations are easily digestible and detailed.

Cons: There aren’t many practice questions available here, and only a few examples of each type of integrated reasoning question.

This resource might be good for a quick overview during one or two study sessions if you’re not struggling a great deal with the IR section.

Top 3 Tips for GMAT Integrated Reasoning Prep

If you’re ready to prepare for the GMAT integrated reasoning section, make sure you’re making the most of your prep time by using these top study tips.

#1: Practice, but Don’t Overdo It

If you take an initial diagnostic GMAT (find out more about how to do so here) and find that you struggled quite a bit with the integrated reasoning section, you should absolutely devote prep time to it using the materials above.

However, keep your IR prep in perspective. Generally speaking, business schools aren’t going to be as concerned about your integrated reasoning score (or your analytical writing assessment score, for that matter) as they are about your total score.

So, while you should devote some time to the integrated reasoning section, don’t spend too much unless your initial IR score is very low. Focus on ensuring you can reliably hit an OK score (usually agreed upon as a 4 or above, or a 5 for a top MBA program) and don’t worry too much about getting a perfect 8. Spending too much time on IR prep can take away from studying for the more significant GMAT sections.

#2: Know When to Guess

You shouldn’t be afraid to guess on the GMAT when you’re unsure, but this rule is especially true on the IR section.

You have very limited time on the IR section, and each question has multiple parts, all of which you must answer before you can move on to the next one. If you want to answer all 12 questions on the IR section, you’ll have only two and a half minutes per question.

Because there’s no partial credit on IR questions, it’s not in your best interest to agonize for too long over questions you’re struggling with. Even one incorrect answer will make the whole response incorrect, so you have more chances to miss the entire question. If you’re having trouble with a question, take your best guess and move on, leaving yourself more time for questions you have a higher chance of getting right.

Pay attention to your skill set when you’re deciding when to guess, too. If you’re a whiz with reading comprehension passages but struggle with reading pie charts, consider guessing earlier on questions that include the latter. This way, you’ll give yourself a higher chance of being able to take your time with, say, multi-source reasoning questions that include several short passages, which you might find easier.

#3: Familiarize Yourself With Graphs and Charts

Reading graphs, tables, and charts, which are commonly included in the integrated reasoning section, is a difficult skill for many test-takers. The way we read graphs and charts when we read articles, for example, won’t necessarily help you on the IR section.

When you read a magazine or newspaper article, you might skim graphs and charts for just the information you consider most interesting or pertinent. On the IR section, every detail could potentially be significant; you’ll need to read all of the captions and other specifics and be able to synthesize and interpret them efficiently and effectively.

When you complete practice IR questions and read IR prep books, regularly note how you might be misinterpreting graphics or missing details in them in order to improve your performance on questions that include graphs, tables, charts, and other pictorials.

What’s Next?

Ready to start your IR prep? Find the best sources of GMAT integrated reasoning practice questions here.

If you’re looking for more specific tips for excelling on the IR section, check out our expert guide to getting a top integrated reasoning score here.

Ready to shoot for a top GMAT score? Our eight expert tips will put you on your way.

The post The 5 Best GMAT Integrated Reasoning Books appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

Princeton Review’s Cracking the GMAT Premium 2018 is one of the most popular GMAT prep materials out there, but does it live up to its reputation? With all the GMAT prep materials on the market, it’s not always easy to know which ones to choose.

I’ll help you through the process, beginning with a guide to the traits to look for in a GMAT prep resource, followed by an in-depth review of Princeton Review’s Cracking the GMAT Premium 2018, including its pros and cons, who would benefit most from it, and how best to incorporate it into your overall GMAT prep.

What Makes a Good GMAT Prep Book?

Before we get into the specifics of Cracking the GMAT Premium 2018, it’s important to know what makes a GMAT prep resource worthwhile. Your study time is precious, and you never want to waste it with practice materials that won’t give you what you need. Let’s go over the main criteria to look for when you’re selecting GMAT prep materials.

#1: Realistic, High-Quality Practice Questions

The practice questions in tests, drills, and quizzes in your chosen prep materials should be as close to what you’ll see on the GMAT as possible in terms of tone, content, length, and difficulty. This might seem obvious, but many prep materials skew towards easier or more difficult practice questions, and it’s important to know that before you invest in a resource.

It’s also best if the practice questions are also organized by difficulty and specific content area, so you can choose which ones to target based on your specific needs and current skill level.

#2: Full-Length Practice Tests

The best GMAT prep books will include full-length practice tests to help you build knowledge of the test, familiarity with its content and format, and stamina. Stamina is especially important, as the test itself takes about three and a half hours.

In particular, the practice tests in the prep resources you select should be computerized adaptive tests (CATs). The GMAT is a CAT, meaning it is completed entirely on the computer and adapts to your skill level in real time as you take the exam, using an algorithm. Many prep books include one paper-based test within the book itself, as well as multiple CATs on either an accompanying CD or a companion website.

#3: Helpful Test-Taking Strategies

Succeeding on the GMAT requires strategy in addition to skills and knowledge. A useful GMAT prep resource will include test-taking strategies to deal with common obstacles like timing, guessing, and anxiety. You should look in particular for tips that are specifically relevant to the GMAT.

It’s also best if a wide variety of test-taking strategies are included, so you can pick and choose the ones that work best for you and experiment with all of them.

#4: Clear, Relevant Content Review

To succeed on the GMAT, you need a solid understanding of some fundamental math and grammar concepts. You also need to know exactly how those subject areas will crop up on the GMAT, as they’re tested in the same ways on every exam.

Therefore, a worthwhile GMAT prep resource will include an extensive math and grammar review, showing you not only the skills you’ll need to brush up on or develop, but how they’ll be tested on the exam. It’s also best if the book works through a variety of specific examples of each one.

#5: Guidance on Structuring Your Studying

The highest-quality GMAT prep resources will break down each question type in detail and thus allow you to identify and target your own strengths and weaknesses.

Some prep resources include drills and full-length practice tests, but the answer explanations are not in-depth enough for you to see exactly where your thinking fell through or where you made a careless mistake. A high-quality GMAT prep resource will help you pinpoint exactly where you’re going wrong and how to avoid that issue in the future.

Cracking the GMAT: The Basics

Princeton Review’s Cracking the GMAT Premium 2018 is available for $19.99 on Kindle and $19.57 in paperback. The book begins with a brief overview of each section of the test, information about how the GMAT is scored, and logistical info about the exam.

Your purchase of the book includes access to six full-length computerized adaptive practice GMATs, available online in the companion website, along with video tutorials and business school advice.

The bulk of the Princeton Review GMAT book is devoted to test-taking strategies, primarily POE (process of elimination) and PITA (plugging in the answers), which are two key ways to tackle each question type. Cracking the GMAT takes the reader through examples of how to apply these strategies to a variety of GMAT question types, and how to avoid the common traps you might encounter along the way.

Additionally, there are warm-ups and drills that accompany each chapter’s strategy to help you build the skills necessary to succeed on the exam. In total, the book contains about 180 practice questions in addition to those on the computerized adaptive practice tests that accompany it.

Cracking the GMAT ends with a series of practice question “bins,” which are collections of practice questions divided by difficulty and question type. You’ll select which bins will be most useful to you during practice sessions based on your performance on the 60-minute diagnostic practice test (which appears after the strategy chapters) in Cracking the GMAT. Each practice question is accompanied by an in-depth answer explanation.

Cracking the GMAT: Pros and Cons

Every GMAT prep resource has upsides and downsides. Let’s go over the main pros and cons of Cracking the GMAT 2018 edition.

Pros

Princeton Review’s Cracking the GMAT’s greatest strength is that it offers a comprehensive overview of the GMAT in plain English. If you’re looking for a straightforward explanation of the ins and outs of the test, Cracking the GMAT is one of your best bets.

This book also goes into detail about specific options for tackling the various GMAT question types, helping you get to know each question type and learn how to recognize it. Similarly, Cracking the GMAT helps you get to know the common “traps” on the GMAT and get to see inside the mind of a GMAC author, so you know more about what to expect. If the format of the GMAT makes you nervous or seems confusing, Cracking the GMAT is a great first step to assuaging those fears.

Cracking the GMAT also offers several sample templates for GMAT essays that you can choose to follow as you prepare for the analytical writing assessment. This is an especially unique feature and is particularly helpful if you struggle with the essay section of the exam.

Finally, the Princeton Review GMAT book is a great resource for extra practice, including drills that test your mastery of specific strategies (good if you know what your specific weaknesses are) and six computerized adaptive practice tests. The book isn’t expensive at all for how much it offers in the way of practice.

Cons

The test-taking strategies in Cracking the GMAT are helpful, but they sometimes rely a bit too much on “tricks.” While tricks are helpful, they are never as important as gradually building the skills and knowledge you’ll need to succeed on the exam. There’s no quick fix to doing well on the GMAT.

Another downside of Cracking the GMAT is that many of the practice questions tend to be on the easier side. If you’re a high scorer looking for a challenge, this book won’t be enough; there are materials out there with more difficult practice questions.

Finally, both the math and grammar reviews could be more comprehensive and in-depth. While Cracking the GMAT does a good job of providing a comprehensive overview of the exam, the nitty-gritty specifics of each section get a bit lost in the shuffle. If you need a detailed math or grammar review, you’ll likely need to supplement this resource elsewhere.

Is Cracking the GMAT Right for You?

Cracking the GMAT is especially helpful if you’re looking for a better understanding of the GMAT format and the different kinds of strategies you can use for each question type. In particular, it’s helpful for beginners who are just starting out in their prep, since you’ll walk away from Cracking the GMAT knowing just what to expect on the test.

The Princeton Review GMAT book will especially help you if you’re looking for an in-depth look at the integrated reasoning section. Many prep materials don’t devote a lot of time to the integrated reasoning section, especially because it’s newer and a little less well-known than other sections, so the strategies you’ll find here are particularly valuable.

In terms of specific sections, Cracking the GMAT is better for improving fundamental math skills than for improving verbal skills, as the grammar review is slightly less in-depth than the math review. Non-native English speakers and those who struggle with the verbal and/or writing sections will need more assistance in those areas, possibly from resources like the PowerScore Verbal Bibles, which focus solely on the verbal section.

Like I said before, this book isn’t the best resource for especially high scorers looking to give themselves a final boost. Many of the practice questions available in this book are on the easy side, making them ideal for low-to-mid-range scorers or beginners who have only taken an initial diagnostic GMAT. 700+ scorers will benefit from supplementing Cracking the GMAT with other, more challenging practice questions and strategy guides, such as those offered by Manhattan Prep.

How to Use Cracking the GMAT

Cracking the GMAT is best used shortly after your first official diagnostic test to get an overview of each section of the exam. It’s a quick, straightforward read, so it’s a helpful resource to quickly get your bearings in terms of the GMAT before you begin your regular study sessions. Find more information about taking a diagnostic GMAT at the beginning of your prep here.

As you continue your practice, you can try out the strategies offered in Cracking the GMAT in your study sessions and see which ones work for you. As you implement and experiment with each strategy on practice quizzes and tests, you’ll gradually develop a methodical approach to the test that will help you feel confident no matter what kinds of questions or “trap” answer choices you encounter on exam day.

Once you’ve used a diagnostic GMAT to get an idea of your error patterns, the drills to work on specific skills in Cracking the GMAT can be used to hone in on your weakest areas. Set aside time in your study sessions each week to complete drills that are specifically related to skills you need to brush up on.

Cracking the GMAT’s practice bins and variety of practice questions make it an excellent source of additional prep. It’s always good to take additional computerized adaptive practice tests and to answer high-quality practice questions beyond the official GMAC materials, and the answer explanations offered in Cracking the GMAT are in-depth enough to help you accurately gauge your progress as you seek to raise your score.

What’s Next?

Looking to understand more about the GMAT format? Check out our GMAT study guide.

Interested in incorporating nine of the best GMAT quizzes out there into your prep? We’ve found them for you.

If you need a more comprehensive math or grammar review before the GMAT, Khan Academy may help you. Our Khan Academy article will show you how to effectively use this free resource.

The post Read This Review Before You Buy Princeton Review’s Cracking the GMAT appeared first on Online GMAT Prep Blog by PrepScholar.

There are a lot of options out there for GMAT prep. You can purchase online programs, books, apps, flashcards, and more. It can be hard to determine which prep option is the best for you.

In this guide, I’ll give you an in-depth look at one of the best selling GMAT prep books out there: Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017. First, I’ll talk about what makes a good GMAT prep book. Second, I’ll give an overview of the Kaplan GMAT review book, including what’s in the book and how much it costs. Next, I’ll talk about the pros and cons of the Kaplan GMAT book. Then, I’ll help you decide whether or not this book is the right one for you. Finally, I’ll tell you how to get the most out of the Kaplan GMAT book if you choose to purchase it.

What Makes a Good GMAT Prep Book?

As I mentioned before, there are many different types of GMAT review materials out there. You want to make sure that you’re spending your time and money on a useful resource that’ll help you achieve your GMAT goal score. Keep these factors in mind as I’m reviewing Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017 and as you’re assessing different types of GMAT prep material.

#1: High-Quality Practice Questions

Good GMAT test books need to have high-quality practice questions, because practice questions are the most important part of your GMAT prep. You’ll use practice questions to test out new skills and to see your strengths and weaknesses regarding GMAT content.

The best quality GMAT prep questions are ones from the real GMAT, which have exactly the style and content that you’ll see on test day. You should use as many real GMAT questions as possible in your prep.

The next best kind of GMAT prep questions are those that closely emulate the style of content of what you’ll see on the GMAT. When considering a prep book, you should assess the quality of its practice questions to make sure they are accurate representations of what you’ll see on test day.

#2: Full-Length GMAT Practice Tests

Taking a full-length GMAT practice test is one of the most important parts of your GMAT prep, as practice tests can help you determine how you’re progressing towards your GMAT goal score and provide feedback on the content areas you’re struggling with and doing well on.

A good GMAT prep book offers you access to full-length, computerized practice tests so that you can measure your progress in an environment that simulates test day content and conditions.

#3: Effective Ways of Teaching Strategy and Content

Test books need to have comprehensive, clear, and detailed explanations of test-taking strategies and test content. The point of these books is to help you learn, after all!

Good GMAT prep books have clear review sections that help you build your skills in a concise and simple way. They should offer in-depth answer explanations to help further your knowledge.

#4: Online Components

The GMAT is a computer adaptive test. You’ll take the GMAT on a computer, which means that preparing for the GMAT using a computer will help you feel ready for test day.

A good GMAT prep option will have a computerized component that you can use to prepare. You’ll be able to access online content, such as practice questions, video explanations, and full-length tests.

Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017

Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017 costs around $25 on Amazon and includes access to 1,200+ practice questions, six full-length practice tests (5 CATs, one paper), and a 200 question online question bank, among other features.

Kaplan GMAT Premier assumes that you know nothing about the GMAT, so it starts by breaking down the format and scoring of the GMAT, as well as discussing what it means that the GMAT is a computerized adaptive test.

For the quantitative and verbal sections, the Kaplan GMAT book starts by giving an overview of the section and reviews the types of content seen in it, before discussing the specific question types in each section and offering strategies for solving them. The quant and verbal sections both offer short explanations of different content areas you’ll see tested on the GMAT, such as algebra, for the quant section, or verbs, for the verbal section. In these content review sections, the Kaplan GMAT review book gives a basic explanation of the content and then applies it to the GMAT, specifically, explaining how that content area will appear on the test. The Kaplan GMAT review provides a more generalized overview of the AWA and IR sections, focusing more on strategies for tackling these types of questions, than on developing an understanding of the content.

In general, the questions provided by the Kaplan GMAT review are designed for average scoring test-takers. While Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017 advertises that it has 1,200+ practice questions, not all of them are GMAT-style questions. Many of those practice questions are more generic questions that are designed to help you practice different content areas (such as a question that demonstrates Pythagorean theorem or the misuse of a comma). While these practice questions are helpful for learning content, they don’t reach the depth you need to master the more complicated GMAT questions.

The Kaplan GMAT book is a solid option for test-takers who are looking to gain an average number of points (50 – 100) or score between 550 and 700 on the GMAT. Overall, the content reviews, while present, aren’t particularly robust and the test-taking strategies are fairly average. If you’re looking to really boost your score, you’ll either need to purchase a different review book or supplement the Kaplan GMAT review with another test prep book.

Pros of Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017

Understanding the pros and cons of a GMAT test prep book can help you decide whether or not this is the test prep book for you. First, let’s look at some of the pros of Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017.

#1: Access to Six Full-Length GMAT Tests

The Kaplan GMAT book offers you access to six full-length practice tests. Five of those tests are computer adaptive, which means that they will help you prepare for the computer adaptive GMAT you’ll take on test day.

#2: Lots of Online Content

Similarly, the Kaplan GMAT book gives you access to a lot of online content. You’ll be able to create online banks and access video lessons and other demonstrations in online platforms.

Online content is great because it prepares you for the computerized nature of the GMAT. Online content is also highly portable, since you can access it easily from any web-enabled device.

#3: Hefty Integrated Reasoning Section

The Kaplan GMAT review has one of the most in-depth looks at the integrated reasoning section available. Clocking in at 49 pages, the Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017 breaks down the integrated reasoning section and offers reasonable strategies for how to solve IR questions.

As the IR section becomes more important to schools, learning about how to solve these questions is more and more important as well.

#4: Affordable Price

The Kaplan GMAT book is only $25, which makes it affordable for test-takers who are wary of the high prices of Manhattan Prep or Veritas Prep guides.

Cons of Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017

While the Kaplan GMAT book is a solid test prep guide, it does have a number of flaws. Consider these cons before you purchase the guide.

#1: Doesn’t Go Deep Enough to Get You to a 700+ Score

While the Kaplan GMAT review does a comprehensive overview of the content you’ll see on the GMAT, it doesn’t go into great depth. You can consider the content in the Kaplan GMAT Review a refresher of what you might’ve learned during high school or college. The Kaplan GMAT Review gives you a brief explanation of complicated verbal and quant concepts and only presents easy to medium difficulty GMAT-style questions. This review will help you achieve a solid 600+ score, but if you’re looking to get a score of 700+, you’ll likely need access to harder questions and more in-depth content review and strategies.

#2: Typos and Errors

There are a number of typos and errors in explanations littered throughout the Kaplan GMAT book. These errors can be distracting and confusing, particularly if they are part of an answer explanation.

#3: Access to Online Content Expires

One of the biggest pros of the Kaplan GMAT book is its online content. However, access to that online content expires after six months. If you’re buying a used book, you want to consider when the book was purchased, because you may not still have access to the online content. Similarly, if you’re purchasing a new book, but planning to study over a period of time longer than six months ,you’ll need to re-purchase your online content halfway through.

How Can I Get The Most Out of Kaplan GMAT Premier?

Planning to purchase the Kaplan GMAT review book? Here’s how you can make the most of your purchase.

#1: Use Kaplan GMAT in Conjunction With GMAT Official Guides

If you decide to purchase the Kaplan GMAT review book, I would highly recommend also purchasing the GMAT Official Guides, which have access to real, retired GMAT questions in the form of online question banks and practice tests.

Supplementing your Kaplan GMAT review book with the GMAT Official Guides will cut of one of the biggest cons of the Kaplan GMAT review: lack of access to difficult, GMAT-style practice questions.

#2: Supplement With Official Practice Tests

Similarly, you should use the official GMAT CATs in order to practice real, retired GMAT questions when you take your full-length practice tests. As I mentioned previously, using real, retired GMAT questions is one of the best ways you can prepare for the GMAT. You can get access to two free official GMAT CATs simply by downloading GMATPrep software. You can also get access to up to six official CATs by purchasing the GMAT Official Guides.

#3: Supplement With In-Depth Guides

If you’re looking to really boost your score, you can consider purchasing content-specific guides that’ll help you achieve a higher score. For instance, if you want to do well on advanced quant concepts, consider purchasing Total GMAT Math by Jeff Sackmann, which will help you master those advanced quant concepts that the Kaplan GMAT book simply doesn’t cover.

Should I Buy Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017?

Kaplan GMAT Premier 2017 provides a solid review for test-takers who are looking to develop a broad understanding of content on the GMAT. The Kaplan GMAT review book provides a large-scale overview of the topics seen on the GMAT, without really drilling into a lot of depth about the content and question types you’ll encounter.

If you’re looking to make an average score improvement of between 50-100 points and to achieve a goal score of somewhere between 600 and 700 points, Kaplan GMAT Premier is a solid test book for you. It covers many of the content areas seen on the GMAT, and offers a good number of GMAT-style practice questions.

However, if you’re looking to really boost your score (e.g., make an improvement of 100+ points or score above 700), you’ll likely need to supplement the Kaplan GMAT review book with other test prep resources that go into more depth about the content and strategies you’ll need to master.

What’s Next?

Considering purchasing the Manhattan GMAT Prep series? In our in-depth look at Manhattan Prep’s GMAT Review, we assess the guides for their accuracy, strengths, and weaknesses. Make sure you read this guide before you decide to purchase the books!

Looking for a GMAT Prep book, but not entirely sure which one to buy? We’ve got the guide for you! Our guide to the best GMAT prep books breaks down the best GMAT prep books money can buy for a number of different categories, including best overall book, best verbal review, best quant review, and more.

Online prep more your style? In our guide to online GMAT prep, we list the best question banks, apps, flashcards, video tutorials, and more that you can use to take your GMAT prep onto the Internet.

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