The problems that you must complete in the GMAT are usually easier than you may expect. What makes it a challenge is the time you must complete all of the questions in. With less than two minutes to spend on each question, no matter how difficult it may be or what category. However, you don’t have to stress over it as there are ways you can prepare for this, giving yourself a little extra time on the harder questions if needed.

When practicing, time yourself. This will get you used to the feeling of being under pressure when it comes time for the real test. It doesn’t matter if you are solving a single problem or a group of 15, using a timing tool like the following will help you get ready:

• GMAT Toolkit for iPhone and Androids
• Forum Timer
• Walker’s stand-alone GMAT Timer

Pause after Reading:

Once you have read a question, try to pause or a moment. This is especially important on the math questions, pause for five seconds. This gives you time to think about the problem and possibly an easier way to solve it than just trying to go at it right away. By pausing for a few seconds you may avoid mistakes you would have made if you relied on reflexes, remember to use that thing called a brain as well.

 

Avoid Guessing Multiples:

You should avoid guessing multiple answers in a row. If you are running out of time, just solve every other problem rather than guess the last several. The following link allows you to view what happens if you guess multiple problems in a row and get them wrong: gmat-prep-software-analysis-and-what-if-scenarios-146146.html

 

Know When to Throw in the Towel:

You should never, under any circumstances spend over 3.5 minutes solving one question. If you have already spent 3 minutes on a question and you haven’t been able to solve it, begin thinking of a different approach, or as a last resort guess. Either path you choose, make sure you choose it before the 3.5 minute mark as even 3.5 minutes is going to put you under more pressure against the clock, and try to limit this to one time per section.

Don’t rely on the timing to go as planned, prepare yourself just in case you hit a roadblock. You may come to a section with questions that are more time consuming or several in a row that slow you down. By preparing for this, you can be more flexible when the time comes. To prepare, plan on being stuck, freaked out and even panic. You should avoid all of them, but have a backup plan just in case.

 

Overcoming Timing Trouble:

Do you have trouble when it comes to timing? Then have a little fun and experiment to find which method works best for you. Say you are taking a test and you come across a challenging question, if you are not able to answer within two minutes, you should move on. I once took a test like this, and I guessed the answer when pressed for time due to harder questions. The results of my test that day were possibly the lowest I had ever gotten, but it provided me time to get done early and allotted more time for the more challenging questions.

An alternative method is to take an “untimed” test. There are some software simulations available that provide this type of testing. It allows you to take your time on the questions. At the end you will be able to see how much time you need to finish without being under pressure.

 

Avoid Looking at the Clock:

You shouldn’t spend time looking at the clock or timer, this causes lost time. You should only look at the timer a couple times during the 75 minutes, this helps reduce the pressure of not finishing in time, and gives you at least 30 seconds of additional time. Instead, split the test into sections: 12 questions complete, 45 minutes to go; 25 questions complete, 20 minutes to go; 37 questions complete, 1 minute go to.

This method is focusing more time on the beginning of the test, by putting in as much time as possible for the first 15 questions. This is because it’s more likely this is where you will need additional time or possibly even get stuck. By using a GMAT Prep test or other type of practice test you can learn what time allocations work best for you.

Last, but not least – avoid leaving any questions unanswered. For each unanswered question, your score is reduced by 3 percentile points (confirmed by GMAC).

 

Expert Timing Strategies:

Know your stuff by heart, including: square roots, percent values, powers, and fractions. Automatically knowing these will help save you time during the math section. For more information, go here: http://gmatclub.com/forum/what-arithmetic-should-i-memorize-80128.html

If you come across a challenging question and you’re having issues solving it, consider this a happy moment as you must be on the right path and doing great. Don’t freak out, just pause a few seconds and think of an uncommon way to solve it.

Once you have read a question, reviewing the answer choices may help. Use these thought processes: How far apart is the distribution (how precise should the calculations be), and tricks that could help with answers.

Short Expert Question Approach:

1. Read the question, then pause for five seconds to consider the answer options.

2. Try to use any of the techniques you have learned to solve answers quicker.

3. This is optional, but you can read the setup a second time, then write down the information required for the question.

4. Avoid missing important information at the start of a question, a common mistake in CR’s and Math sections.

5. When the test as you stressed out over time, remove your focus from the test and look at something else, such as the floor or table. This will help you regain the confidence and give your mind a moment to relax.

6. Know by heart how to solve any math problem, such as probability, arithmetic, word problems and so on.

7. Prior to taking the real test, take many practice tests using AWA. Remain realistic and know what your limits are, and how much time you can give each question.

 

Strategies for Verbal Timing:

In the verbal section, you will have to create a timing strategy of your own because the time it takes on the various questions will vary based on your abilities such as reading speed, proficiency, grammar skills and so on.

On your down time, take a piece of paper and draw a grid for 5 to 10 questions. Use this grid when it comes to harder questions and when you have eliminated one of the answer choices, mark it down on the paper. This will benefit you near the end of this section as the brain wears down and is not functioning at 100%.

For the SC section, you should make a checklist of different grammar mistakes that you tend to overlook. Say you have issues with run on sentences, plurals and modifiers, add these things to the top of your checklist. This reminds you want to look for when you’re not sure. To learn more on making the checklist, go here: distribution-of-sc-questions-strategy-85636.html

Study the following so you know them automatically: Scope, Inference, Assumptions, and Conclusions. Knowing these can help you save several minutes, if not more on the GMAT. It can even help increase your verbal score. A bunch of the answer options are generally focused around being within or outside of scope, and this is also true for RC’s and CR’s. They also use inference, assumptions and conclusions to help create questions, and even traps. This is why knowing these inside and out will benefit you, so train your Scope ear by using the OG/Official questions.

Keep in mind that the guidebooks also give the strategy that is going to provide you with best method to taking the test. All of the strategies provided are similar, so you should follow them step by step for the best results. If it states you should re-read a question, then do it. If it states to first read the question, then do it. People try to cheat the system and get done faster, but it only ends in sub-par and inconsistent scores.

 

Strategies that worked best for me:

CR: First read the question, then write the type on scratch paper: S for strengthen, W for Weaken, A for assumption and so on.

Once you’ve read the passage, re-read the question and try to answer without looking at the answer options. This may be the best tip I’ve found, once you have the answer you simply look for it in the list and move on.

SC: The quickest way to get through these is to decide on the error simply from reading it, then find it in the answer options. This can be quicker than analyzing each answer and then choosing.

RC: Paraphrase the paragraphs, then make your notes on scratch paper so you will remember what it was without having to go back and look.

Take time to read the first and last sentences of every paragraph and consider why it was located there. What’s the author trying to express? Are there any errors with them?

Don’t go back to the previous content, if you take time to read it carefully, this will save you time in the future and the best way to get through the RC.

Reading thousands of pages prior to taking the verbal section is a strategy I have found works best for me, it:

• Helps read faster, this helps with all areas
• Helps comprehend larger content volume, helps with the RC sections
• Helps train you to find errors during the SC’s
• You’re learning, so you’re not so boring in conversation

You should not spend too long on Idioms, they’re not emphasized within the newer versions of the GMAT, but you should have knowledge of the more common Idioms to help with understanding the content.

If you’re an international student, be sure you understand what every word means. If you come across a word you are not familiar with, write it down on paper including the word, the definition, and an example showing how you found the word. This is time consuming, but it also helps you remember what each of the words mean once you are done.

Short Verbal Question Approach:

Sentence Corrections (SC)

The strategy I used myself was to take 45 seconds per SC. I would read the question, then identify what the issue was, imagine the correct text and then pick the right answer. Using this method I was able to get through these questions in about 30 to 45 seconds. However, I did need to take up to 1.5 minutes on about 20% of the questions to identify the issue. It was more common on questions where A was the correct answer.

Critical Reasoning (CR)

I averaged 1.5 minutes per question in the CR section, some I was able to knock out in 30 to 45 seconds, and others took around two minutes.

Reading Comprehension (RC)

Everything was leading to the area I knew I would have my biggest challenge, reading comprehension. At this point I knew I needed to allot myself 1.5 minutes x 14 for the CR’s, and 45 seconds x 15 for the SC’s. This would give me 10 minutes for each passage. I knew this would give me plenty of time to read the passage, and identify the errors. I was able to spend 5-6 minutes reading over each passage without being pressured with time, and then 1 minute for each question. During the Verbal section I didn’t track time between questions, but would make notes on the time I started the RC passage, and made sure not to spend more than the 10 minute interval on each one.