![\"GMAT](\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/gmat\/files\/2020\/03\/image-gmat-header-6monthStudySchedule.jpg\")
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This post was updated in 2024 for the new GMAT.<\/strong><\/p>\n \nIf you have six months to spend on GMAT prep, you\u2019re in great shape to get your best possible score. Magoosh has crafted the following 6-month GMAT study schedule to guide you through the lessons, practice tests, and materials you\u2019ll need to get the highest possible score on test day. In other words, we\u2019ve put together the only 6-month GMAT schedule you need!\n<\/p>\n \nYou should dedicate 1.5\u20133 hours a day, 4\u20135 days a week to study over the next six months. Not feeling like 6 months is the right fit for your timeline? Check out Magoosh\u2019s other GMAT study schedule options<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \nThis plan contains a tremendous amount of instructional material and hundreds of high quality practice questions! As you follow the schedule, you will be working through a large portion of the questions available to you in the Magoosh product. However, this schedule is not designed for you to complete all<\/em> the questions in the Magoosh GMAT pool. Here\u2019s why:\n<\/p>\n \nBut what if you want to do more practice in Magoosh than is assigned each week? That\u2019s definitely doable! Just be aware that the fewer “new” questions remaining in the Magoosh pool, the higher the chance of getting a repeat question on a practice test. And if you exhaust the entire Magoosh pool, then only repeat questions will be available even in Custom Practice. The upside though is that working through questions more than once is a highly effective study strategy.\n<\/p>\n \nIf you follow this schedule to the letter, after you reach the end of 6-months, you will have the option to continue working through the remaining Magoosh questions.\n<\/p>\n \nIf you\u2019re really keen to do extra work, but don\u2019t want to exhaust Magoosh practice questions before you reach the end of the schedule, we recommend using the O.G. question bank for practice beyond each week\u2019s assignments.\n<\/p>\n Advanced Students<\/strong> <\/a><\/p>\n \nSix months is a great period of time in which to prepare for the GMAT. In fact, we often recommend that students with shorter timeframes consider extending them to six months! It\u2019s the Goldilocks of time frames: Short enough that you\u2019ll remember what you\u2019ve learned, long enough for you to learn it!\n<\/p>\n \nWith that said, it can be overwhelming if you have other time commitments, like a job or family obligations. As mentioned, this six month study plan assumes you have 1.5\u20133 hours a day, 4-5 days a week to study.\n<\/p>\n \nIf that doesn\u2019t sound like you, don\u2019t worry! If you have the hours but not the days, consider distributing the work for the week over the days that you do have.\n<\/p>\n \nOn the other hand, if you have the days but not the hours, get through as much of the material in the six month GMAT study schedule as you can, but know that you may need to extend this plan by a month or two to get the maximum benefits.\n<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n \nBy studying for six months and giving your brain all that time to learn and assimilate, you are giving yourself a huge advantage! If you follow all parts of this plan diligently, you will encounter all the information you need for an elite score. How well you do will depend on everything you bring: How quickly you learn, how deeply you remember, how well you assimilate and integrate, how astutely you discern connections and patterns, how diligent you are, how conscientious you are, and how dedicated you are.\n<\/p>\n \n<\/a><\/p>\n \nThis is a 24-week plan. Six calendar months are typically closer to 26 weeks, so if you actually have six calendar months to prepare, that\u2019s great. If you have a wedding or a camping trip or something in the middle, you could just skip a week, and do it later. Alternately, following the plan straight through would leave you more time for the recommended review at the end of the 24 weeks.\n<\/p>\n \nKnow that you are empowered to rearrange this schedule as best suits your needs. Even though the plan is laid out for you week-by-week, with suggestions for how to break up your days of study, these are just suggestions!<\/em> You can move more work to the weekends to free up some weeknight evenings! You can squeeze everything into a couple long days of work during the week! Feel free to rearrange the week\u2019s work in whatever way makes the most sense for you.\n<\/p>\n \nAlso, as much as possible, get enough sleep during this six-month period. REM sleep plays an important role in encoding long term memory, and in an eight hour period of sleep, the last hour has the most REM. If you are getting seven hours\/night instead of eight hours\/night, you are depriving your brain of one of its most powerful systems for learning and remembering.\n<\/p>\n \nCaffeine and energy drinks will keep you feeling awake if you don\u2019t get enough sleep, but they don\u2019t do bupkis to replace the lost opportunity to encode more information into long term memory.\n<\/p>\n \n<\/a><\/p>\n \nHere are our recommendations for resources that will provide you with test-like practice:\n<\/p>\n \nA Premium subscription to Magoosh<\/a><\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nMagoosh\u2019s Complete GMAT Guide<\/a>: This comprehensive web-based guide gives you a quick and useful overview. You\u2019ll see how the GMAT is designed and scored, what skills it tests, how to find and use the best GMAT prep, and how to study for each test section.\n<\/p>\n \nGMAC\u2019s\u00a0GMAT Official Guide\u00a0<\/em>(OG)\u2013The newest edition of the e-book and online question bank is here:\u00a0OG 2023-2024<\/a>. If you are going to buy a new guide, get that one. Want a paper copy? Check out this link<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n Word to the wise: Don\u2019t write in the official guide or any prep books<\/strong>. Do all your work on separate paper or on a computer. You will want to keep the books clean, so that later, if you need to look at a problem again, it is still fresh and unmarked.\n<\/p>\n \nThe OG Verbal Review 2023-2024<\/a>, the OG Quantitative Review 2023-2024<\/a>, and the OG Data Insights Review 2023-2024<\/a>. These links will take you to the e-book and online question banks available from the Exam Prep<\/a> section of mba.com. You cannot go wrong if you use materials produced by the folks who write the exam.\n<\/p>\n \nGMAT\u2019s additional official practice exams<\/a>, which are now entirely digital.\n<\/p>\n \nThe\u00a0Magoosh GMAT Math Flashcards<\/a>. If you happen to see a deck for plane geometry concepts, remember to skip those since those concepts are no longer tested on the GMAT.\n<\/p>\n \nIf you\u2019ve exhausted the OG and Magoosh materials, another credible option is\u00a0Manhattan’s All the GMAT book set<\/a>. It is an excellent prep source. (Don\u2019t write in these books either!)\n<\/p>\n \nAn Error Log<\/a>. Not sure what\u2019s up with an error log? The link at the beginning of this sentence will walk you through the benefits and provide you with access to a Free template<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \nNote:<\/strong> The GMAT underwent major changes in 2023. So, you might be wondering what to do if you have prep materials that were produced for older versions of the GMAT. Good news! You can absolutely keep and use those older materials; however, there are a few topics and subject areas that you should skip if you do choose to use older materials. Here\u2019s what you should leave out:\n<\/p>\n \nThe Magoosh mobile app for your iPhone or Android<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nThe two online forums:\n<\/p>\n GMAT Club<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Beat the GMAT<\/a>\n<\/p>\n These are great places to ask questions about anything GMAT related, or simply to check out the discussions and see how others are preparing.\n<\/p>\n \nOutside reading material: You may already have a habit of reading. But if you do not, it would be good to make it a regular practice. While you don\u2019t need to be an expert in all <\/em>world affairs, it\u2019s important for the GMAT to have a\u00a0general sense\u00a0of the business world.\u00a0If you are a non-native English speaker, it is absolutely crucial that you develop a habit of reading<\/strong>. For a non-native speaker struggling with the Verbal section, we strongly recommend reading for at least an hour a day every day, an hour over and above any GMAT-specific preparation.\n<\/p>\n \nRead the\u00a0Wall Street Journal\u00a0<\/em>and\/or the business section of respected newspapers such as the\u00a0New York Times<\/em>\u00a0and the\u00a0Washington Post<\/em>.\n<\/p>\n \nForce yourself to read articles discussing topics with which you are unfamiliar. Read periodicals, such as the\u00a0Economist<\/em> and\u00a0Bloomberg Businessweek<\/em>; the\u00a0Economist<\/em> is a particularly sophisticated source and it would be good to read this at least a few times a week. These business sources are often also a good place to practice reading graphs.\n<\/p>\n \nOf course, if you already are in the habit of doing challenging reading on your own, then by all means, continue reading what you want.\n<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n \nOG<\/strong>\u00a0= the GMAC Official Guide\n<\/p>\n \nQR<\/strong>\u00a0= Quantitative Reasoning, the multiple-choice math questions\n<\/p>\n \nVR <\/strong>= Verbal Reasoning, which is broken down into the following two question types:\n<\/p>\n \nRC<\/strong>\u00a0= Reading Comprehension verbal question\n<\/p>\n \nCR<\/strong>\u00a0= Critical Reasoning verbal question\n<\/p>\n \nDI<\/strong>\u00a0= Data Insights questions\n<\/p>\n \nDS<\/strong> = Data Sufficiency, which is a type of DI<\/strong> question\n<\/p>\n \n<\/a><\/p>\n \n*Most of the lessons included in this schedule are only available to Magoosh students\u2014sign up here for a free trial<\/a>!\n<\/p>\n \nGo to\u00a0the test-maker\u2019s website<\/a>, and read all about the GMAT. Click on each of the Quick Links on the sidebar of that page to explore the exam structure, content, and to check out a few sample questions.\n<\/p>\n \nIn Magoosh, watch the following videos:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nGMAT Focus Introduction: all seven videos in this section\n<\/p>\n Gmat Focus Intro: Quantitative Section<\/a>\n<\/p>\n GMAT Focus Intro: Verbal Section<\/a>\n<\/p>\n GMAT Focus Intro: Data Insights Section<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Computer Adaptive Testing<\/a>\n<\/p>\n GMAT Focus Scores<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Pacing, Skipping, and Guessing<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Gmat Focus Intro: Test Day<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nNOTE<\/strong>: You might find the content in Magoosh videos super easy or very challenging. Some folks will find the verbal information obvious and the math hard-going; other folks will have the reverse experience. If the material is relatively easy for you, feel free to click to the end and simply read the summary. If the material is new to you, take notes on what you are learning, and if possible, watch that video a second time.\n<\/p>\n \nWatch the following videos:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIn Quantitative Reasoning (QR), watch the following General Math Strategies videos and complete the associated practice quizzes:\n<\/p>\n Intro to GMAT Math<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Mental Math: GMAT Estimation<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Mental Math Estimation<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Mental Math: Dividing by 5<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Mental Math: Dividing by 5<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Mental Math: Doubling and Halving<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Mental Math: Doubling and Halving<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Mental Math: Squaring Shortcuts <\/a>\n<\/p>\n Number Sense<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Number Sense<\/a>\n<\/p>\n The use and Abuse of Formulas<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Learn From Your Mistakes<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nNOTE:<\/strong> Whenever a video contains sample questions, make sure to pause and complete the questions thoroughly as the videos instruct.\n<\/p>\n \nNOTE II:<\/strong> After most Magoosh questions is a text and\/or video explanation. If you got the question right, just skim the text summary of the video to verify you understand it. If you got the question wrong, watch the video explanation right away. If you don\u2019t understand a question after reviewing the text and video explanations, email us at Magoosh.com. Due to a high volume of questions, please allow up to 48-hours for a response.\n<\/p>\n \nGetting questions wrong at the beginning may be frustrating, but remember that you are playing a \u201clonger game\u201d: the point is not instant success at the beginning, but building deeper\u00a0understanding overtime. Remember to add all incorrect questions to your error log!\n<\/p>\n \nLet\u2019s talk about using the GMAT\u2019s OG Online Question Bank for practice <\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIf you\u2019ve purchased access to the OG\u2019s online question bank, you\u2019ll also be able to set up custom practice sessions. Although, in its current form, you don’t have a ton of options; you can choose the question\/section type and level of difficulty etc…\n<\/p>\n \nThis is what you\u2019ll see: \nFeel free to set up these practice sessions in whatever way is most appropriate for your prep. However, we recommend using OG practice to expose you to a random mix of topics within the different test sections. Doing so is based on the\u00a0philosophy\u00a0that you want your practice to prepare you for the random mix of topics that you will experience on test day–you want to get used to that!\n<\/p>\n \nBy the way, purchasing a paper copy of the OG will still grant you access to the online question bank.\n<\/p>\n \nOG Mixed Practice:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nNOTE:<\/strong> As soon as you do a batch of OG questions, correct them right away and review any available explanations. If you got the question right, you need only skim the explanation to verify that you got it right for the right reason. If you got the question wrong, read the explanation and take notes in your error log on what concepts or what aspect of the question you need to understand better.\n<\/p>\n \nIn\u00a0Magoosh GMAT Math Flashcards<\/a>:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nReview the cards in the Algebra deck. Spend about 5-10 minutes a day each day with these cards.\n<\/p>\n \nReview:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIf you have not done so as you worked through the questions, be sure you review all the practice questions you\u2019ve attempted this week.\n<\/p>\n \nRemember to add any that you missed to your error log. Be sure to note why you missed the question: misread it, careless error, didn\u2019t know the content, etc\u2026\n<\/p>\n \nWatch the following videos:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIn QR, watch the following 12 videos under Arithmetic and Fractions and complete the associated practice quizzes:\n<\/p>\n Properties of Real Numbers<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Positive and Negative Numbers<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Positive and Negative Numbers<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Mental Math: Addition and Subtraction <\/a>\n<\/p>\n Positive and Negative Numbers II<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Order of Operations<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Order of Operations <\/a>\n<\/p>\n Intro to Decimals<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Intro to Decimals<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Multiples of 10<\/a>\n<\/p>\n More on Scientific Notation <\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: More on Scientific Notation<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nWatch the following videos:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIn Verbal Reasoning (VR), watch the following 6 videos under Reading Comprehension\n<\/p>\n Intro to Reading Comprehension <\/a>\n<\/p>\n Approaching the Passage<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Understanding Structure<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Dissecting the Passage<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Approaching the Questions<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Answer Choice Traps<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nMagoosh Custom Practice: <\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIn QR, watch the following nine videos under Arithmetic and Fractionsand complete the associated practice quizzes:\n<\/p>\n Intro to Fractions<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Conversions with Fractions and Decimals<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Fraction Properties I<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Fraction Properties I<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Comparing Fractions I<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Comparing Fractions II (Advanced)<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Operations with Fractions<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Fraction Properties II<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Quiz: Fraction Properties II<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nOG Mixed Practice:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nReview:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nIf you have not done so as you worked through the questions, be sure you review all the practice questions you\u2019ve attempted this week.\n<\/p>\n \nRemember to add any that you missed to your error log. Be sure to note why you missed the question: misread it, careless error, didn\u2019t know the content, etc\u2026\n<\/p>\n \nIn\u00a0Magoosh GMAT Math Flashcards<\/a>:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nReview the cards in the Fraction, Ratios, and Percents deck. Spend about 5-10 minutes a day each day with the cards from this deck and the previous deck (Algebra).\n<\/p>\n \nAs a reminder, be sure to incorporate Outside Reading:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n \nDo half an hour of sophisticated reading of your own choosing each day. Keep in mind the recommendations made above. If you are a non-native English speaker who is considerably weaker in Verbal, we strongly suggest reading for an hour each day.\n<\/p>\n \nIn VR, watch the following four videos under Critical Reasoning:\n<\/p>\n Intro to Critical Reasoning <\/a>\n<\/p>\n Dissecting an Argument <\/a>\n<\/p>\n![\"6](\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/gmat\/files\/2012\/02\/3-month-GMAT-study-schedule-CTA-button.png\")
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What you can do if you find that this schedule is too much or not enough for your individual study needs:<\/h3>\n
\nIf you are already feeling pretty confident in your knowledge of the format, concepts, and question types that you will encounter on the GMAT exam and feel that you will not need a lot of the foundational lessons and practice built into this schedule, check out our advice on Modifying a Schedule for Advanced Students.<\/a>
\nNon-Native English Speakers<\/strong>
\nThe GMAT is a tough exam even for those who grew up immersed in an English-speaking environment. For many non-native speakers or ELL students, the level of vocabulary and sentence complexity of the GMAT poses an even greater challenge. For advice on how to alter or supplement this schedule, especially if you are struggling with the Verbal Section, check out our post, GMAT for Non-Native English Speakers.<\/a><\/p>\nTable of Contents<\/h2>\n
\n
Getting Started<\/h2>\n
Is 6 months enough time to study for the GMAT?<\/h3>\n
Will This Six-Month Plan Help Me Score over 645?<\/h3>\n
How to Use This 6 Month GMAT Study Plan<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Essential Study Materials<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Optional Materials<\/h4>\n
Abbreviations<\/h3>\n
6 Month GMAT Study schedule<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
Week One<\/h3>\n
\nDay 1: Diagnostic Test and Review
\n<\/h4>\n\n
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\nDay 2: GMAT Basics
\n<\/h4>\n\nDay 3: Quantitative Reasoning Basics
\n<\/h4>\n\nDay 4-5: Mixed Practice & Review
\n<\/h4>\n
\n![\"Custom](\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/gmat\/files\/2012\/02\/Screenshot-2024-05-30-225019.png\")
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6 Month GMAT Study Plan: Week Two<\/h2>\n
Week Two<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
\nDay 1: Quantitative Reasoning
\n<\/h4>\n\nDay 2: Verbal Reasoning
\n<\/h4>\n\n
\nDay 3: Quantitative Reasoning
\n<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n\nDay 4-5: Mixed Practice & Review
\n<\/h4>\n\n
6 Month GMAT Study Plan: Week Three<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
Week Three<\/h3>\n
\nDay 1: Verbal Reasoning
\n<\/h4>\n