The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is conducted by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) to shortlist students for admission in various colleges worldwide. Keeping the difficulty level in mind, GMAT can be tough to crack for someone who is not preparing in a structured manner. During the preparation phase, one must include a GMAT mock test in the study plan, as it plays a very important role in clearing the GMAT with a good score. Read on the blog to know the benefits of GMAT mock tests, when a student should start attempting them, and other important details.
Importance of GMAT Mock Tests in the GMAT Exam
The candidates who are preparing or considering preparing for the GMAT mock are one of the key tools to be successful. Here is why GMAT mock tests are important for the GMAT exam:
- Understanding of exam pattern: Giving mock tests will help you understand the exact exam pattern of GMAT Focus Edition, which, in turn, will be helpful to plan your study routine.
- Time management: GMAT mock tests will give you a real exam feel, and you will understand where and how you are going wrong in terms of time. Which section needs to be done in what time, when to skip the question, and all of these questions will be easily answered.
- Help to Identify Strength and Weakness: Mock tests help students to understand which section or chapter is their strength and which part they need to work on. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses is important to score well in the exam.
- Improves Accuracy and Speed: With time, mock tests help you to work under pressure, which in turn will improve accuracy. And with time constraints, candidates will be able to improve their speed.
- Error Analysis: After the mock tests are over, you need to do the analysis and understand where and why you went wrong. Whether it was just guesswork, a detailed solution will help to gather more information about one question.
- Higher Chance to Improve Score: Slowly and gradually, with accuracy and speed, your score will also improve. You need to work on the mistakes that you have made and solve the questions from that area to improve in it.
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When Should I Start Taking GMAT Mock Tests?
Though the timings depend on the students or their understanding of the syllabus and topics, but if you are just starting off to prepare for the GMAT, here is a timeline you can follow about the GMAT mock tests:
- After learning the concepts: Once you have covered a small chunk of chapters in any section and have covered fundamentals, you can start with topic-wise mock tests. GMATPoint provides an amazing question bank where you can practice a lot of questions from all the sections of the GMAT exam.
- Midway through preparation: By this time, you will have a good understanding of almost half the syllabus of all the sections, and you can start with sectional mock tests.
- Regularly during preparation: Never stop giving mock tests, as it will improve confidence and help to understand how to approach time management planning, and get a better understanding of the difficulty level of the exam. Ideally, one should attempt 1 mock test every week in the beginning, and gradually increase the number of mock tests, be it a full-length mock or a sectional, as per the need and bandwidth.
- Closer to Exam: Focus on the detailed solutions, and attempt at least two mocks on a weekly basis. Don't take it easy, and strictly attempt in one go to have a real exam experience.
- Final Week: Try not to attempt many mock tests; rather, rely on them for revision, like reading the detailed solutions, and focus more on the wrong or unattempted questions.
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How Many GMAT Mock Tests Should I Take?
The number of mock tests depends on the bandwidth you have; try to include mock tests in your study plan accordingly. To understand the exam pattern and level of questions, 8-10 mock tests should be enough. Ideally, 8 to 10 mock tests are enough to build stamina and have an understanding of time management. The quality of the mocks also matters; choose the mocks that are close to the actual GMAT exam in difficulty level.
1-2 mock tests weekly should be fine when the exam date is around 2 months away, and then manage as per your calibre and time. But always remember, keep quality over quantity, and analysis plays the key role. You can solve one mock, but do the proper analysis and always understand the detailed solutions, especially the wrong or unattempted questions.
Read More: How to Analyse a GMAT Mock Test?
