So lets start with the country of dreams, the United States of America. One of the main reasons I chose to discuss about this country is because I am myself pursuing my studies here. I made it to this country with the help of few friends and acquaintances without the help of consultants. And believe me anyone can do it. You just need patience and hard work.
In my last post I discussed about the standard tests. Well some more info on that. There are two ways to crack them ( I am excluding TOEFL for now). You either take tuition or prepare by yourself. Your self-esteem should not get hurt if you decide to take classes. All these tests are very different from how exams work in India. These tests are CAT i.e. Computer Adaptive Tests. They adapt to the way you answers thew question. It increases or decreases the difficulty of questions as you answer them. The main idea is to get somewhat a Bell Curve sort of thing, so most of us should expect to get average scores. Coachings have experience with the pattern of the tests and could guide you well. On the other hand the effort should come from your side too. Attempt as many mock online tests as you can before going for the final test. That is the key to success. Expect to get 100 marks less on the Final test from the average score that you have been getting on the mock tests. For example: You used to get 720(GMAT scale) on the mock tests, expect 620-660 on the real test.
TOEFL could be largely prepared by yourself until and unless you suck at English. Indians are blessed with good English and getting a Barron's with the CD and some moderate practice is enough to get 100+ score on the TOEFL. But if you don't have confidence with it again, don't hesitate to go for a coaching.
In my next post I will discuss about the material you need to study for various exams. Till then ...HAPPY SLOGGING!
