GMAT Test-Taking Tips & Today's Expert: Veritas Prep

I'm Diana Jordan with MBA Podcaster. I'm working on an upcoming show about the GMAT. I have interviewed five experts who have been giving me their advice on how you can improve your GMAT score.

The fifth of five experts on this topic is Brian Galvin of Veritas Prep. Galvin is given to visual examples. He mentions the guy whose car broke down on the day of the test, and he had to sprint. Sweating, then chilled by the air conditioning, the GMAT test-taker finally calmed down after he realized he was nailing the answers because he was so well-prepared.

Then there's what not to do. Galvin says one student decided to stay in a hotel the night before her GMAT. And, since she'd heard that salmon was great brain-food, she dined at an all-you-can-eat seafood restaurant. Her plans got upended when she got food-poisoning and spent much of the night and the morning of the test day puking. The lesson here, Galvin says, is stick with your normal routine. Eat what is familiar to you. And do what is familiar -- for example, if you usually workout at night -- do it.

And that brings me to another one of his great stories. Galvin says he's a marathoner. Much like the GMAT test, in a marathon you log hundreds of miles -- or hours -- practicing, so by the time you get to test day or the day of the marathon, and you get out there, with the timer about to start..recognize that you've already done the hard part. And, that, he says, should give you confidence!

On the upcoming show, you'll hear from experts from PowerScore, Manhattan GMAT, Kaplan and Knewton. The finished show should be posted in a few weeks at MBA Podcaster.

(Updated! Listen to the completed show here: http://www.mbapodcaster.com/MBA_MoreInfo/gmat-test-taking-tips.asp?iEpisode=77)