3 Shortcuts to Studying For The GMAT Faster
Everyone wants to know what the fastest way to prepare for the GMAT is. There are undoubtedly things you would rather be doing than preparing for the GMAT and you want to get weeks and months of test prep over as quickly as possible. I understand where you are coming from, but sadly there is no secret tip to mastering the GMAT overnight. However, there are a few tricks you can use to stay ahead of the pack and make your prep time more efficient.
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Study in blocks
Let me be blunt, cramming and all-nighters do not work. Sleep deprivation destroys your ability to remember and recall information. You are far better off studying in blocks rather than wasting your time staying up until the crack of dawn staring at information that you will not retain. Set up your study blocks by rotating content from different sections throughout your day. For example, spend an hour practicing sentence correction questions, take a quick break, and then resume studying by practicing data sufficiency questions for the next hour. Rotating content and materials not only helps keep your brain focused longer, but it also will allow you to study for longer periods of time before burning out. -
Focus on question types not specific answers
The questions that you face on testing day will not be the same ones that you have seen in your practice materials. Rather than getting hung up on one particularly tricky question, take a look at the big picture. The questions on the GMAT are never the same, but the fundamental question types do not change. With this in mind, it is far more important to understand how to approach the GMAT’s question types than it is to master any one specific question on the practice exam. A large part of preparing for the GMAT is learning the strategies to deal with the traps found in the GMAT’s playbook. -
Don’t rush yourself
I know that this is an article about how to study faster so this tip may feel out of place, but hear me out. The last thing you want to do when you take the GMAT is to try to rush through problems. When you intentionally attempt to hurry more than necessary, you begin to make mistakes that you would not have made otherwise. To make matters worse, it takes far more time to go back and figure out where you made the mistake and fix it than it does to simply give the problem the time it deserves in the first place. Approaching each question with a deliberate and attentive mindset saves you time in the long run.
GMAT prep may not be the most exciting way to spend your day, but if you want to go to business school, it is essential to achieving your dreams. Have you found any tips which helped you make the most of your study time? If so, share them in the comments below!
