The GMAT Verbal Reasoning section is one of the most challenging parts of the exam for many students. It tests your ability to analyze written material, evaluate arguments, and correct sentence structure. With the right preparation and strategies, you can significantly improve your score. Here’s a guide on how to excel in the GMAT Verbal Reasoning section.
1. Understand the Verbal Reasoning Format
The GMAT Verbal Reasoning section consists of 36 multiple-choice questions, which are divided into three categories:
- Reading Comprehension (14 questions)
- Critical Reasoning (12 questions)
- Sentence Correction (10 questions)
You have 65 minutes to answer all 36 questions, so time management is crucial.
2. Practice Reading Comprehension
Reading Comprehension questions are based on passages that range in length from 150 to 400 words. The goal is to assess your ability to understand the main idea, supporting details, and the author's tone or purpose.
To improve your performance in Reading Comprehension:
- Practice reading dense academic texts in a variety of subjects (e.g., business, science, and humanities).
- Focus on identifying the main idea of each paragraph.
- Take notes while reading to help you remember key details.
- Pay attention to the structure of the passage, as this will help you understand how the ideas are organized.
3. Strengthen Critical Reasoning Skills
Critical Reasoning questions assess your ability to evaluate arguments, identify flaws in reasoning, and make inferences. These questions require you to analyze short arguments and select the most logical answer.
To improve your Critical Reasoning skills:
- Practice identifying the main argument in each passage.
- Focus on understanding the structure of the argument—what are the premises and the conclusion?
- Learn how to identify common flaws in reasoning (e.g., assumptions, overgeneralizations, and weak analogies).
- Practice eliminating answer choices that do not directly address the question.
4. Master Sentence Correction
In Sentence Correction questions, you will be asked to identify the best way to improve a sentence’s grammar, clarity, and logical structure. You need to understand common grammar rules and sentence structures to succeed in this section.
To improve your Sentence Correction score:
- Review grammar rules, including subject-verb agreement, parallelism, modifiers, and pronoun usage.
- Focus on clarity and conciseness. Remove unnecessary words and phrases to make the sentence clearer.
- Eliminate answer choices that introduce grammatical errors or awkward phrasing.
5. Take Practice Tests
Taking full-length practice tests is essential for understanding the pacing of the GMAT Verbal Reasoning section. It will help you develop a sense of how much time you need for each question type and improve your test-taking strategies.
At Amourion, we offer GMAT Verbal Reasoning preparation courses in Dubai, with customized lessons to help you improve your reading comprehension, critical reasoning, and sentence correction skills.
Call 055 166 5437 or visit www.amourion.com for more information.