Over the years, GMAT instructors will tell you that they hear common refrains from our students and friends.  As I think about the past years of teaching, I have compiled a list of three of the most common pitfalls my students at Kaplan and personal friends have experienced while they are prepping for the GMAT.

Pitfall 1:  Studying Only GMAC Material

Kaplan loves the GMAC.  We believe that they do an excellent job of creating consistent, unambiguous, and challenging GMATs year after year.  However, as we review the books published by the GMAC, I’m concerned that the questions (while past GMAT questions) don’t reflect the truly difficult questions that students will encounter on Test Day.  The book is a must read (Kaplan actually buys our students a copy!);  however, if a student only uses the Official Guide as preparation for the test, the student will likely not experience the questions that result in a truly high score.

Pitfall 2:  Focusing on GMAT Content (at the Expense of Everything Else)

GMAT content is imperative to learn, memorize, and understand.  Some individuals have even gone so far as to make flashcards of the content areas.  (Area of Triangle = ½ bh, circumference of a circle: 2pr, etc.)  These equations are important but they won’t translate into points on test day.  Why? You MUST make them actionable!  The equation for the area of triangle is only important when you know that you have to use the formula to find the answer to the GMAT question.  The GMAT isn’t testing your ability to memorize formulas – they are testing your ability to identity the moment and situation when you have to USE the equation.  In order to practice this, take full-length Computer Adaptive Tests and quizzes.

Pitfall 3:  Thinking a Book will Solve It

It won’t.  Many individuals prepare very well by using a book.  However, it isn’t the book that causes their success – it is their diligence.  A book is a collection of questions and information on content.  You have to take this knowledge and apply it to a real GMAT CAT Test.  Studying with a book will get an extra 20 or 40 points on test day.  However, like everything in business, you get what you pay for.  Be careful not to put too much stock in a book.

Using my finely honed investigative skills, I’ve been able to obtain the results from Kaplan’s most recent survey of 260 business school admissions officers, including many from the most selective schools.  Of course by “investigative skills” I mean I simply asked for them.

Here’s some of the juicier tidbits:

51% of admissions officers stated that the number of applicants reporting they are unemployed has increased. In the past, being unemployed was commonly considered a blot on an application, but today’s economic reality seems to be changing that.

Among the 76% of schools that currently don’t accept the GRE as a substitute for the GMAT, almost 9 out of 10 reported that they most likely will not consider changing their policy.  So much for the GRE’s plans for world domination.

Slightly more than one quarter of officers surveyed reported an increase in applicants directly from college. That suggests that the outreach efforts of some schools to expand the number of direct from college students is having some impact, but at this point it’s not particularly widespread.

And finally, when asked what one factor would most be considered an application killer, 44% of the officers said a low GMAT score, by far the most common response. By contrast 27% said a low GPA,  and 10% said a lack of work experience.  For all the discussion from admissions officers that they take a holistic approach to every application and that no single factor is more important than any other, it remains wise to approach the GMAT very seriously.  Because evidently, that’s what admissions officers do.

Keep in mind that when reviewing an application, admissions officers first assess whether they believe a candidate can succeed academically.  And while the overall quality of the application can help bolster the board’s confidence in a candidate’s capabilities, the GMAT sticks out like no other data point.  Even your grades can be considered somewhat subjective because admissions officers factor in the reputations of schools, the rigor of coursework, and the possibility of grade inflation.  The GMAT, whatever your feeling about it, remains the purest objective measure in the application.

So there you have the survey feedback from admissions officers.  In my next post, I’ll share what I heard directly from them at the World MBA events I participated in recently around the country.

Last time I talked about anticipation stress and how it can impede your prepration for the GMAT.  But you’ve conquered that kind of stress, done a great job studying and made it to test day.  Congrats!  On test day, there is a chance that you might experience one of the following three situations:

1) Get stumped on a question
2) Lose focus
3) Start to panic

If you get stumped on a question, don’t spend an unnecessary amount of time on it.  Think about employing a guessing strategy and move on.  Good test takers realize that everyone misses a point here or there – they have to get the MOST points, not all the points.

If you start to lose focus, you must get it back as soon as possible.  There are a couple tricks you can employ to regain focus – one, skip the question.  This is a good strategy if you lost focus because the question is difficult; however, it isn’t a great strategy if you are tired or distracted.  If you lose focus because of something going on in the testing room, raise your hand and engage the proctor.  The testing room should be quiet and free from distractions.  The proctors are there to enforce this decorum.  If you lose focus because of general test anxiety, close your eyes, put your head down on the table, or just look away.  Do something to change your focus from what is on the screen.  You have the time to take 20 seconds and breath deeply, disconnecting from the environment for a short period of time.  Doing this will help control the adrenaline in your system and put the situation in perspective.

If you start to panic – stop.  Actually, if you employed the techniques above, you shouldn’t even come close to panicking.  Panic comes from letting your anxiety and adrenaline get out of control.  In this situation, make sure that you pull back away from the screen for a few seconds and take a couple breaths.  In the worst-case scenario – you may need to raise your hands and leave the testing room (this is permissable – but you won’t get your time back) and grab a drink of water.

The key to a great test day performance is to know thyself.  If you start feeling that the adrenaline and anxiety are building up, pause.  Think about your breathing, skip the question, or find a way to take a very short break.  The GMAT tests your ability to answer quantitative and verbal questions and it also tests your ability to deal with stressful situations.  Don’t let it beat you.  You have prepared well, so keep your cool and fight for the score you deserve.