I haven't taken that particular test, but I've taken the GRE. You should get ahold of study guides with practice tests, and work out problem after problem after problem in each section, and I think it would also help for you to do some challenging reading.
Or, is there a Princeton Review or anything like it near you?
I'll be interested in seeing what thoughts and questions you have as you proceed with the studying.
I'm actually taking a four week course in November at Cal State Long Beach (they charge about a third of what Kaplan does).
I've been prepping on my own for the past month or so at this point (working my way through the most comprehensive book Kaplan publishes, as well as a couple of workbooks on both Quantitative and Verbal). With the plan I've mapped out I'll probably have logged close to 150 hours of prep time by test day.
I'm not overly concerned about the verbal; I've regularly been scoring above 90% correct on every set of practice problems I've done across the various categories. Quantitative is more of a concern. I was never a great math student (aside from statistics), and while there isn't anything beyond 9th grade algebra and geometry on the test, this is still stuff that I haven't done in around 15 years and there's a pretty broad range of areas the test covers, so having to familiarize myself with all of it is a bit daunting. The test also (naturally) doesn't present the questions in the most straightforward way, so it's really a pain in the ass to learn to spot the patterns that tip off what they're actually asking for.
If I have any major concern right now; it's mainly to wonder if I'm just pushing myself too hard when I'm not taking the test until December and I'll also be going through close to 24 hours of classroom instruction to supplement what I'm doing on my own. I have a general outline of how I'm planning to structure my studies week to week, but I kind of wonder if I'm just trying to take on too punishing of a pace with this and whether or not that will end up affecting how well I ultimately assimilate the subject matter.
kis123 said:
Are you getting a standard MBA or are you choosing a specialization? If you're doing this for work, it might be better if you choose a specialization? If you don't already have a job lined up, it may be better for you to consider a specialization because a standard MBA are a dime a dozen in today's workplace. Trust me, I know this from experience the hard way.
All the programs I'm looking at offer field concentrations, though I haven't given extensive thought as of yet to what I'd want to focus on.
The primary reason I'm doing this is for my current job; my role's been developing in a certain way and I'm wanting to augment it. If a great opportunity came up, of course I'd consider it, but I like my job, I like the company itself, and they take reasonably good care of me compensation-wise. So, I'm not really looking to switch right now; I'm more interested in adding value to the company I'm currently with.