How to Speak and Write Correctly

Product Description

Similar Products:

The Official Guide for GMAT Review, 12th Edition

Amazon.com Review

Top Myths About the GMAT®

Myth – If I don’t score in the 90th percentile, I won’t get into any school I choose.

Fact – Very few people get very high scores.

Fewer than 50 of the more than 200,000 people taking the GMAT test each year get a perfect score of 800. Thus, while you may be exceptionally capable, the odds are against your achieving a perfect score. Also, the GMAT test is just one piece of your application packet. Admissions officers use GMAT scores in conjunction with undergraduate records, application essays, interviews, letters of recommendation, and other information when deciding whom to accept into their programs.

Myth – Getting an easier question means I answered the last one wrong.

Fact – Getting an easier question does not necessarily mean you got the previous question wrong.

To ensure that everyone receives the same content, the test selects a specific number of questions of each type. The test may call for your next question to be a relatively hard problem-solving item involving arithmetic operations. But, if there are no more relatively difficult problem-solving items involving arithmetic, you might be given an easier item.

Most people are not skilled at estimating item difficulty, so don’t worry when taking the test or waste valuable time trying to determine the difficulty of the questions you are answering.

Myth – You need very advanced math skills to get a high GMAT score.

Fact – The math skills questions on the GMAT test are quite basic.

The GMAT test only requires basic quantitative analytic skills. You should review the math skills (algebra, geometry, basic arithmetic) presented in both The Official Guide for GMAT® Quantitative Review, 2nd Edition, and in The Official Guide for GMAT® Review, 12th Edition, but the required skill level is low. The difficulty of GMAT Quantitative questions stems from the logic and analysis used to solve the problems and not the underlying math skills.

Myth – It is more important to respond correctly to the test questions than it is to finish the test.

Fact – There is a severe penalty for not completing the GMAT test.

If you are stumped by a question, give it your best guess and move on. If you guess incorrectly, the computer program will likely give you an easier question, which you are likely to answer correctly, and the computer will rapidly return to giving you questions matched to your ability. If you don’t finish the test, your score will be reduced greatly. Failing to answer five verbal questions, for example, could reduce your score from the 91st percentile to the 77th percentile. Pacing is important.

Myth –The first 10 questions are critical and you should invest the most time on those.

Fact – All questions count.

It is true that the computer-adaptive testing algorithm uses the first 10 questions to obtain an initial estimate of your ability; however, that is only an initial estimate. As you continue to answer questions, the algorithm self-corrects by computing an updated estimate on the basis of all the questions you have answered, and then administers items that are closely matched to this new estimate of your ability. Your final score is based on all your responses and considers the difficulty of all the questions you answered. Taking additional time on the first 10 questions will not game the system and can hurt your ability to finish the test.

Myth – I need to speak US English in order to do well on the GMAT.

Fact- Essay grading is not affected by dialect of English. Questions on the GMAT are evaluated to ensure they are fair for all examinees, whether in the US or around the world.

Read more...

Similar Products:

New GRE 2011-2012 Premier with CD-ROM (Kaplan GRE)

Product Description

New GRE 2011-2012 Premier with CD-ROM is a comprehensive package that includes a book, CD-ROM, and online companion with in-depth strategies, test information, and practice questions to help students score higher on the new GRE Revised General Test. New GRE 2011-2012 Premier with CD-ROM is fully updated and revised with 75 percent all-new content covering the revised and expanded Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical Writing Assessment Test sections, including 50 percent new practice questions and brand new strategies for each of the new question types.

New GRE 2011-2012 Premier with CD-ROM features:

• 6 full-length practice tests (1 in the book, 5 online)
• 400 practice questions and answer explanations on the CD-ROM
• A detailed overview of the test changes
• Key strategies for all New GRE question types
• Details and practice sets for the Verbal and Quantitative sections
• Diagnostic tool in end-of-chapter practice sets for even more targeted practice
• Advice for the graduate school application process

Similar Products:

Barron's New GRE, 19th Edition (Barron's GRE)

Product Description

Similar Products:

The Best 376 Colleges, 2012 Edition (College Admissions Guides)

Amazon.com Review

What is The Princeton Review and how long have you been doing this book?
The Princeton Review is an education services company headquartered in Framingham, MA with offices all over the country and abroad. Our company was founded in 1981 to help students prepare for the SAT. Now we are known for our test-prep courses for scores of tests, plus our books, website, tutoring and online programs. Over the years we have helped millions of students research, apply to, get in to, and pay for college and graduate school. The Princeton Review also owns the Penn Foster Education Group, a global leader in online career and vocational education headquartered in Scranton, PA.

We've published our annual "Best Colleges" book since 1992. The Best 376 Colleges is our 20th edition. One of more than 150 Princeton Review books published by Random House, this title is one of our most popular. What makes it different from all other college guides is that it's based on our college student survey which is the largest and longest ongoing survey of its kind: we ask college students to rate their schools and report on their experiences at them. We surveyed 122,000 students for this edition of the book. No other college guide has this much campus and student feedback about schools.

Why "376" colleges?
"Best 375 Colleges" might sound catchier. But The Princeton Review doesn't start from a catchy number, then add or subtract schools to fit it. The number is based on how many schools annually meet our criteria for "best."

How do you pick the colleges for the book?
First, we choose schools based on our analysis of their academics. We review data that we annually collect from about 2,000 schools via an administrator survey that has more than 80 questions. We also get reports from our staff across the country who visit hundreds of colleges a year, plus our 28-member National College Counselor Advisory Board (you'll find their names and affiliations listed in the book), and independent college counselors who give us valuable opinions and suggestions about schools for the book.

Second, we look at what students we've surveyed candidly tell us about their campus experiences. That matters a lot to us, as it would to applicants visiting a school and those that can't get to the campus for a visit. Any college we consider adding to the book must allow us to conduct surveys of its students.

Third, we work to keep a wide representation of colleges in the book by region, size, character and type. Only about 15% of the nation's 4-year colleges are in it.

Which college is best overall?
We don't think one school is best overall. We don't believe hierarchical ranking lists are useful, especially those that rank schools only for their academics. In fact, we think they are counterproductive, as every school under the #1 school must be considered "lesser" academically, down the line, and that's just not so.

All 376 schools in this book are academically outstanding: they all offer a great education. But they differ widely – as do the academically outstanding students who attend them. It's not hard to find an academically great school in this country. What's hard is finding the academically outstanding school that will be a best-fit school for you.

What are your ranking lists based on?
Our multiple rankings lists are based entirely on data we gather in our student surveys. We report 62 ranking lists – each naming the top 20 colleges (of the 376 in the book) in a specific category. We think our lists -- along with other info in the book's college profiles -- offer applicants and parents a broader base of input to find and successfully apply to the schools best for them than one hierarchical list based on one aspect of the college.

What's new in this year's edition of the book?
We added six schools to this edition: Five are in the U.S.A.: Champlain College (Burlington, VT), Christopher Newport University (Newport News, VA), Portland State University (Portland, OR), Roanoke College (Salem, VA), and the University of Houston (Houston, TX). One is in Ireland - National University of Ireland, Maynooth (Co. Kildare, IRE). This is the first time we have included a school outside North America in the book. We have had two Canadian colleges in it for many years: McGill University (Montreal) and the University of Toronto.

We also added a new ranking list category, "Best Health Services," which, to our knowledge, is the first list of its kind. It reports the 20 colleges at which students most highly rated their school's health center facilities and services.

Of course, all of the school data in the book is updated. We reach out directly to our contacts at the colleges to collect that info and we update all statistics in our school profiles every year. We also give every college the opportunity to review, fact check and report to us any incorrect information in their profile before our book goes to press.

What is the difference between the college rankings and the college ratings in your book?
That's a great question as people often confuse rankings (which are lists) with ratings (which are scores).

Our Princeton Review college rankings are lists of schools in 62 categories (in rank order: 1 to 20) based entirely on our surveys of students attending the schools in our annual "Best Colleges" book. The survey asks students to rate their own schools on dozens of topics and report on their campus experiences at them. Our ranking lists include "Professors Get High Marks," "Best Campus Food," and "Major Frat and Sorority Scene."

Our Princeton Review college ratings are scores on a scale of 60 to 99 that we tally for schools in up to eight categories that appear on college profiles on its site and college guidebooks. The ratings are based primarily on institutional data we collect from the schools' administrators. Our rating categories include Academics, Admissions Selectivity, Financial Aid, Fire Safety and Green.

What advice do you have for students applying to colleges this year, and for their parents?
We asked this question of last year's applicants and parents (nearly 12,000 people in all) who completed our 2011 "College Hopes and Worries Survey."

Their most common advice? Two words: "START EARLY." We saw this over and over in their comments. One parent noted," I wouldn't wish the last few weeks we've had on anyone." Another said, "Start the whole process a year earlier than you think you need to." One of our favorite tips from a student this year was, "Take a deep breath and let your parents help. They may actually know something."

We echo that wise advice. And with best wishes to this year's applicants and their savvy (if anxious) parents, we offer these additional tips:

For students:
1. Work hard to get good grades and good test scores. They are important both for getting in to colleges and getting financial aid from them. Take as many AP courses as you can. Admissions officers like to see you've taken challenging courses, plus high scores on AP exams can earn college credits, thus saving on tuition.

2. When winnowing your hit list of colleges, don't make the mistake of picking schools only by their academic reputations. Get information about the campus culture, the student body, the town, the majors offered.

3. Never cross a school off your list because of its sticker price. More than 70% of students get financial aid and with aid it can cost less to go to a private or expensive school than a public or inexpensive one.

For parents:
1. Relax. There are hundreds of great colleges out there and the majority of students get into their first or second choice college. Be as supportive as you can of your child, and when it comes to dealing with the schools, let your child make the calls and write the letters, etc.

2. If you are hoping to get financial aid, learn all you can about the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) well before you begin filling it out, ideally months before. The FAFSA is a form all aid applicants must submit and your /your child's answers on it are used to determine your "EFC" (Estimated Family Contribution) – that's what the colleges will expect you "pay" out of the family coffer. Our annual book, Paying For College Without Going Broke, has detailed information on this and is the only annual guide that gives people line-by-line advice specifically on completing the upcoming year's FAFSA form.

Similar Products:

Essential Words for the GRE (Barron's GRE)

Product Description

Similar Products:

The Official Guide to the TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM, Third Edition

Features

Product Description

The official guide from the makers of the TOEFL to ensure your exam success!

The Official Guide to the TOEFL® iBT is the leading guide to the most widely accepted English-language proficiency test in the world--the TOEFL test. Written by ETS, the makers of the test, this book includes two real full-length TOEFL tests for practice, as well as explanations of every section of the test and information on what is expected of you for every speaking and writing task. You will learn how to construct your answers and integrate the four skills needed to demonstrate academic English-language proficiency: reading, listening, speaking and writing. The accompanying CD-ROM provides on-screen interactive versions of both real TOEFL tests in the book, just like the one you will encounter on test day.

Similar Products:

Barron's TOEFL iBT Superpack

Product Description

Similar Products:

Cracking the TOEFL iBT with CD, 2012 Edition (College Test Preparation)

Product Description

Similar Products:

Kaplan TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM

Product Description

The TOEFL iBT tests your abilities in Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking. Kaplan’s TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM presents the most important language skills and strategies you need to succeed on this test. The TOEFL is required worldwide for international students who want to study abroad.

Kaplan’s comprehensive guide gives you exactly what you will need to get ready for test day, including:

• 4 full-length practice tests on CD-ROM with detailed answer explanations
• Focused practice for each section of the test
• Listening practice on CD-ROM, with complete transcripts in the book
• Exclusive score-raising tips and strategies for each language skill: Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking
• Effective study tips for advanced ESL students

World Leader in Test Prep and Admissions

Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions has helped more than 3 million students achieve their educational and career goals. With 185 centers and over 1,200 classroom locations throughout the United States and abroad, Kaplan provides a full range of services, including test prep courses, admissions consulting, programs for international students, professional licensing preparation, and more.
Read more...

Similar Products: