I’ve taken the GMAT twice. The first time was to get into the Master of Information Systems Management program at BYU, and the second was to get into HBS (which didn’t happen, at least not the first time around). The first time I didn’t study at all. Not one bit. Since BYU had a “best score wins” policy, I figured I might as well take it once, and then if I didn’t do well enough I could retake it after studying a bit. I walked in and got a 630, which was good enough to get into the MISM program, and that was that. Applying for HBS made me nervous enough to actually study. Plus it had been some time since I had taken any math classes, so I knew I was a bit rusty in terms of the analytical portion of the exam. I used the Princeton study guide, which I checked out from the library. Total cost = $0. It was quite helpful, and I got a 710 the second time around, which was about five years after the first time. In 3-5 years I’ll be taking the GMAT for the third and hopefully final time. I only missed one question on the verbal portion, so I’m not worried about that. But despite spending most of my time studying the quantitative side of things, I ended up in the 58th percentile. And that’s where I start wondering if taking one of these GMAT prep courses would be worth it.
What do you think? Have you had experiences positive or negative with GMAT prep courses? Please share, and feel free to name names and link links.
I had a similar experience. I took my first practice exam in summer 2004 without ever studying and got a 550. I decided to enroll in an intensive online Kaplan course for 8 weeks and took the GMAT that fall scoring a 670 (I think it was 93%V and like 60%Q).
I called Kaplan and told them that I wasn’t satisfied with the program, so they extended my online access. I bought a few other books and studied intensively again for five weeks during the following spring (focusing WAY more on the quantitative). I scored a 760 (99%V and 90%Q).
My impression? You can DEFINITELY learn the GMAT and remedy your lop-sided score. If you learn better in a classroom, take that option. The online version worked great for me but it requires more discipline.