While the Coronavirus has definitely thrown a curve into summer plans for many students, some industrious students are finding a way to prepare for their future anyway. I was particularly happy to hear that one of our College Sage recent college graduates has already used his early summer to ace the GMAT! Here’s what you need to know about preparing for the GMAT. If you’re a recent college graduate and your summer plans have gone awry, you can still use your time wisely to position yourself for academic and professional success. Here are two ideas:
Study for the GMAT or other graduate school tests or certifications
I initially decided to take the GMAT as a way to prepare for the future. I’m still unsure where/when I’ll go to business school, but since GMAT scores last for 5 years, I thought that taking the exam would be a productive way to spend my time in quarantine. Overall, I spent a little over one month, 3-4 hours a day, studying for the test. I was fortunate enough to have time to focus solely on test prep between college online graduation and the start of my job in July - were I to take the GMAT under normal circumstances, I definitely suggest at least a couple months to prepare to avoid cramming or feeling rushed.
In order to make my study time efficient and worthwhile, I bought the 2020 Official GMAT Guide ($30) as well as a Premium Subscription to Magoosh’s GMAT Prep ($249). The Magoosh Prep course is not cheap, but for people who want to stick to a dedicated study plan, I definitely recommend it. The questions are challenging, the explanations are straightforward, and the video lessons cover every topic and trick that you might see on the test. I chose the Magoosh course over Kaplan’s or Manhattan’s prep courses based on a recommendation from a coworker, and the study plans Magoosh provides helped keep me on track throughout my prep time.
Overall, if you’re willing to take notes on the videos, work through the practice questions, and follow the study plan, Magoosh’s prep course is an incredibly helpful tool. I think the course is worth the money, and with a 750 GMAT score, I’m excited to see where I end up in a few years.
Quick Notes:
1. Watching the Magoosh videos at 1.25x or 1.5x speed can be helpful if you feel like you can still understand the information (really do take notes though – it helps)
2. Don’t forget to take the free GMAT practice tests out there! The GMAC website offers two for free and Manhattan Test Prep has one as well.
3. The Magoosh and Manhattan practice tests felt harder than the official GMAT practice tests, so take them seriously but don’t stress too much about your scores
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