当前位置: >>>>
Nobody Knows the Difference
特别声明：本栏目内容均从网络收集或者网友提供，供仅参考试用，我们无法保证内容完整和正确。如果资料损害了您的权益，请与站长联系，我们将及时删除并致以歉意。
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
School 1)volunteers don’t get paid money, but sometimes we receive special gifts. One morning, just before Christmas vacation, I was selling tickets to our grade school’s last evening performance of The Nutcracker. The evening before had been a 2)sellout. People had lined the walls of the 3). Some had even 4)peeked in from outside to watch the show.
One of my customers that day was a parent. “I think it’s awful that I have to pay to see my own child perform,” she announced, 5)yanking a wallet from her purse.
“The school asks for a voluntary 6) to help pay for scenery and costumes,” I explained, “but no one has to pay. You’re welcome to all the tickets you need.”
“Oh, I’ll pay,” she 7)grumbled. “Two adults and a child.”
She 8)plunked down a ten-dollar bill. I gave her the change and her tickets. She stepped aside, 9)fumbling with her purse. That’s when the boy waiting behind her emptied a pocketful of change onto the table.
“How many tickets?” I asked.
“I don’t need tickets,” he said. “I’m paying.” He pushed the coins across the table.
“But you’ll need tickets to see the show tonight.”
He shook his head. “I’ve already seen the show.”&&
I pushed the pile of 10)nickels, 11)dimes and 12)quarters back. “You don’t have to pay to see the show with your class,” I told him. “That’s free.”
“No,” the boy insisted. “I saw it last night. My brother and I arrived late. We couldn’t find anyone to buy tickets from, so we just walked in.”
Lots of people in that crowd had probably “just walked in.” The few volunteers present couldn’t check everyone for a ticket. Who would argue, anyway? As I’d told the parent ahead of this boy, the donation was voluntary.
He pushed his money back to me. “I’m paying now, for last night,” he said.
I knew this boy and his brother must have
into the back of that crowd. And being late to boot, they couldn’t possibly have seen the whole show. I hated to take his money. A pile of coins in a kid’s hand is usually carefully saved 13) money.
“If the ticket table was closed when you got there, you couldn’t pay, I reasoned.
“That’s what my brother said.”
“Nobody knows the difference,” I
him. “Don’t worry about it.”
Thinking the matter was settled, I started to push the coins back. He put his hand on mine.
“I know the difference.”
For one silent moment our hands bridged the money.
Then I . “Two tickets cost two dollars.”
The pile of coins added up to the correct amount. “Thank you,” I said.
The boy smiled, turned away and was gone.
“Excuse me.”
I looked up, surprised to see the woman who had bought her own tickets moments earlier. She was still there, purse open, change and tickets in hand.
“Why don’t you keep this change,” she said quietly. “The scenery is beautiful, and those costumes couldn’t have been cheap.” She handed me a few dollar bills, closed her purse and left.
Little did that boy know that he had given us both our first gift of the Christmas season.
1) volunteer [vClEn5tiE] n.
2) sellout [sel-aut] n.
3) auditorium [C:di5tC:riEm] n.
5) yank [jANk] v.
6) donation [dEu5neiFEn] n.
[5grQmbEl] v.
8) plunk [plQNk] v.
[5fQmbl] v.
[5nikEl] n.
12) quarter [5kwC:tEr] n.
13) allowance [E5lauEns] n.
点击收听单词发音&&
n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂
参考例句：
The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。
vi.偷看，窥视；n.偷偷的一看，一瞥
参考例句：
Larry takes a peek out of the window.赖瑞往窗外偷看了一下。
Cover your eyes and don't peek.捂上眼睛，别偷看。
n.捐赠，捐献，捐助；捐赠物
参考例句：
She made a personal donation to the fund.她以个人名义向基金会捐款。
Then next big donation of musical instruments came from Germany.第二笔音乐乐器的大型捐助来自德国。
vi.抱怨；咕哝；n.抱怨，牢骚；咕哝，隆隆声
参考例句：
I don't want to hear another grumble from you.我不愿再听到你的抱怨。
He could do nothing but grumble over the situation.他除了埋怨局势之外别无他法。
n.镍，（美国和加拿大的）五分钱
参考例句：
Nickel can be used for making coins.镍可做成钱币。
May I have a nickel?能给我五分钱吗？
n.（指美国、加拿大的钱币）一角
参考例句：
A dime is a tenth of a dollar.一角银币是十分之一美元。
The liberty torch is on the back of the dime.自由火炬在一角硬币的反面。
squeeze（挤压）的过去式与过去分词
参考例句：
freshly squeezed orange juice 鲜榨橙汁
They squeezed too many people into the small room. 他们把太多的人塞进这间小房间里。
n.津贴，补贴，零用钱
参考例句：
My monthly allowance is 50 yuan.我每月的津贴是50元。
I have to work to earn my allowance.我非得工作挣零用钱。
a.确实的，深信的
参考例句：
He spoke in a calm, assured voice. 他冷静自信地说。
The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说
参考例句：
They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
vi.笨拙地用手摸、弄、接等，摸索
参考例句：
His awkwardness made him fumble with the key.由于尴尬不安，他拿钥匙开锁时显得笨手笨脚。
He fumbled his one-handed attempt to light his cigarette.他笨拙地想用一只手点燃香烟。
本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交，仅供参考，部分栏目没有内容，如果您有更合适的内容，欢迎分享给大家。
------分隔线----------------------------GMAT Prep Course Yields Legendary Investment Return | The GMAT Pill Study Method
GMAT Prep “Better Than Kaplan GMAT” | $179 Investment Yields $50,000 MBA Scholarship For This Non-Native English Speaking Student
Legendary Story: Kang speaks out on how he discovered GMAT Pill on BusinessWeek and turned his $179 investment in the GMAT Pill Verbal course into a $50,000 MBA scholarship and a 760 Total GMAT score.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version . You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
While no one should expect a payoff like this one, it’s true that an investment of $179 for this non-native English speaker helped him score a $50,000 scholarship to the MBA program where he was originally waitlisted.
Mr. Kang Cao is a proud GMAT Pill student who was waitlisted at his MBA program–most likely because of the imbalance of his verbal and quant score on his GMAT–despite a strong overall score of 690.
He fits the typical profile of an engineer who wants to pursue the MBA degree because he wants to transition to the business side of things. He has a strong quant background, but as a non-native English speaker, his weakness is in the verbal area.
For those of you who have read this article on
in the 680+ GMAT score range, you’ll know why Verbal is important. From an admissions officer viewpoint, the verbal score is even more important for quant-oriented engineers who want to show business schools they are not just good at numbers.
The GMAT Pill works–even for non-native English speakers like Kang!
Transcript:
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Hello, everybody! Today at .
We have Mr. Kang Cao.
Who recently did very well on the GMAT exam as a result of retaking his GMAT?
Not only got off the waitlist for his .
But was awarded a half tuition scholarship.
Hello, Kang are you there.
Student (Kang):
Yeah! I am here.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
So Kang why don’t you introduce yourself a little bit?
Tell us about a little bit about your background and how you got started with taking the GMAT.
Student (Kang):
My name is Kang Cao.
I grew up in China.
I got my bachelor and master degree in china and five years ago, I came to United States to presume my PhD degree.
I have been working for a manufacturing company here in Illinois for about two years.
The reason why I just wanted to go for an MBA study because I wanted a career switch. For three years of engineering experience I wanted to learn something about the business side, how to run the business.
So that’s the reason why I joined for the MBA study.
Student (Kang): My first GMAT attempt was in last November.
I scored 690 on my first attempt.
Actually I was pretty satisfied with my first attempt.
I again plan to .
Recently I was waitlisted by a school.
Then I begin to think about how to get off the waitlist.
The first thing that came to my mind is to .
I thought about how do I study this time because the first time I didn’t spent too much time it.
Student (Kang): The only two things I use for my first GMAT was the official guide and GMAT prep course, with the GMAT prep software, official software.
I went through the official guide and did a couple of practice exam and then took the real test.
I didn’t do very well on the verbal section.
I did quite well on the quant part.
Where should I get maybe some quant for my GMAT second attempt?
I looked at different options.
I read few post on the .
That’s where I came across the GMAT pill method?
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So you found about GMAT Pill through .
Student (Kang): Yeah!
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So you actually fit the profile of a typical candidate with an engineering background, very strong background actually…you score very well in the quant section.
Somewhat expected with somebody with the strong quant background…A strong engineering background.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): And here nobody knows what the real reason is for your being wait-listed. But at first glance it would appear that being waitlisted is due to the fact that your verbal score is not exactly in balance with your quant score.
Even though you had a very strong quant.
In fact you probably only got one wrong or maybe just omitted one quant question.
That’s probably what prompted you to retake the exam, when you were on the waitlist.
Student (Kang): Yes I did very well on the quant section first time.
But this verbal section 32 was not very good.
I think that might be one of the factors that I have been waitlisted by the school.
So the second time actually I try to think how to improve my verbal score.
But I looked at different options including some major prep courses.
But eventually I chose GMAT pill study because of two reasons.
Student (Kang): First I have a full time job.
So I only like 2 to 3 hours every day give for my studies.
So I want to study my GMAT within a relatively short amount of time.
Unlike some other major prep courses.
The GMAT pill study method really focuses on the fundamentals that one needed to know…That’s exactly what I was looking for…so that’s one of the most important reasons I chose GMAT pill study.
Student (Kang): Second I think that GMAT pill study method is very flexible in terms of the learning needs.
I did very well in the quant section.
I just don’t want to take many quant courses.
I just wanted to focus on the verbal part.
I can use it, just chose by either the verbal, quant or both section in the GMAT pill study method.
I think that’s very flexible.
It is more affordable to me compared to many other courses.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Right! That’s great you actually mentioned a couple of good points in there.
Accessibility, flexibility and affordability.
Being in a full time job, having access to
without making that long trip to the local Kaplan center, say, just to get some tutoring in.
Definitely the online version helped you prepare more efficiently, given your limitation in time and also flexibility being able to purchase only the portion of the exam that you are interested in.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): I think with lot of the other programs.
You purchase one section.
You actually wouldn’t be allow to purchase one section.
You would have to purchase the entire program for $1000.
Whereas with GMAT pill you get only one section.
Obviously the last factor affordability.
You spent a total of…how much?
Student (Kang): $175 for the verbal.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Very little compared to what you probably be paying for other courses, that may or may not have gone to where you are right now…
Student (Kang): I looked at several courses like Manhattan GMAT and Knewton.
I found out legal queries like two months of study.
I think it’s too long for me.
I just wanted to improve my chance off getting off the waitlist.
I can’t wait like for two months of studying.
By the time they’ll have the decision already.
So I chose GMAT pill study because it focuses on the part of nothing, just very very essential things that one needs to know in order to raise the GMAT score.
Student (Kang):
I found it’s a very efficient way of studying GMAT.
You really focus on the essential and fundamental thing, especially for the verbal part.
So I would like to share some of the experience in my verbal study using the GMAT.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Let’s go into the detail.
Let’s dive deep into the details.
What exactly did you experience?
How was your experience?
How long did you take to go through the material?
Student (Kang): I start up my GMAT pill study with the .
I found this 10 core framework extremely useful because it helped me understand what exactly test point is in a sentence correction question.
So for example is the testing apple to apple comparison is the testing the agreement.
As long as I can identify what the question is testing, I can quickly get rid of testing incorrect choices as possible.
Student (Kang):
So this is very important because in the real test.
The time is very limit for each question.
So you want to get rid of the incorrect choices of possible.
So I found this skill is very important and help me a lot during my second GMAT attempt.
So another very useful skill I learned from the 10 core framework, is how to tackle a long and complex sentence. This is called cutting the fluff.
Student (Kang): So it helps me, enable me to grasp the structure of a sentence.
So it helps me increase my reading speed during the real test.
So I think this are the most important thing.
I think it helped me, boost my verbal score.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So these are your strategies that you were not previously using. And GMAT Pill kind of opened this up…
Student (Kang): It helped me a lot.
During my first GMAT attempt.
So especially the sentence correction part.
I think I didn’t do very well on the sentence correction part.
The first time because I was not sure about even just one single question, during my first test.
I don’t know which one is correct, which one is wrong.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Especially being international student, non English native speaker.
Student (Kang): Especially for some long complex sentence.
A lot of things that’s maybe unrelated to the test points.
I spent a lot of time upon reading those parts.
After learning the 10 core frames that works I know how to just get rid of those things in focus on the structure of the sentence?
That has been really helpful.
This is just one pick for my study experience.
I created and excel spread sheet, with each the 10 core frame listing and the column.
Student (Kang): Then I tried to just went through the official guide the sentence correction question.
Tried to analyze those questions using the 10 core frame.
And then just categorize those questions according to these rules.
I found this is very useful.
Then I tried to add those questions to different categories according to these 10 rules.
When I just do more and more… I will stop process.
I become more sensitive when I see this question.
So it has been very helpful.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
That’s a very good strategy.
To analyze the official guide question.
Sub-segment them into these core frameworks.
Obviously the official guide already does that…They label them differently…they use like rhetorical construction and whatnot.
How would you compare, what you did versus, what the official guide does as default option.
Student (Kang): I think for me for the GMAT, the 10 core frameworks is more efficient.
Basically you can just get rid of some of the unrelated or wrong answers.
Maybe within like you are demonstrating in a video.
Maybe within 10 seconds, 20 seconds.
You have 1 or 2, maybe 2 left and really want to focus on those two and try to identify some other things, using the other rules.
I think it’s much more efficient.
Especially as you get more familiarized with the thought process.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
So how long would you say it took you to learn this new thought process?
Student (Kang): First I went through your video, the 10 videos of the core framework.
I watched the 600-700 level practice questions.
These videos further helped me in consolidating the core concepts.
Showed me how to use these rules to solve the real sentence correction question.
Basically I think after watching all those 600-700 level practice question, one should be very confident and very familiar with these core frameworks.
Student (Kang):
That’s the reason I say that this method is very efficient.
So I think maybe within a week.
You can actually get a very good feeling about how to solve the sentence correction question.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Okay, good so for you it took you one week to basically really understand it and internalize it.
Then do well on actual questions.
Student (Kang): Right.
That’s the sentence correction part and another thing I found is really useful is that critical reasoning part.
I think your method is very kind of innovative. Previously I do this kind of question just reading the paragraph.
Just trying to think how this underlying logic works.
It’s not very efficient.
I sometimes got confused by the long paragraph.
Your method I can draw a simple logic diagram based on a given argument and this approach actually helps me visualize the underlying logic as I read through the question.
Student (Kang):
So for example basically just try to draw a diagram, logic diagram.
Based on the argument and then try to read the question.
Sometimes you want to just build the bridge across different elements or sometimes just break the elements according to the question.
That really helps me understand the underlying logic.
At first it sounds that we draw diagram, according to the paragraphs, maybe a little bit time consuming.
But as long as I get familiar with this entire process.
It actually saves me time.
It actually help you solve the questions correctly.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): How long would you say “it took you to fully grasp that concepts”?
Student (Kang): I watched the 600 level questions.
I think that was the first week.
Then I just watch the 700 level questions at just the week before my actual test.
I didn’t spend as much time in the sentence correction on this part.
But it looks very well.
It also was very efficient, this process.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So it sounds like all in all…you had your score.
You are schedule to retake the exam.
You are on the wait list.
Then you decided to enroll with GMAT pill and then you started watching the videos roughly around two to three weeks.
Student (Kang): Within 4 weeks actually.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Within 4 wks? Okay so basically following the GMAT one month study plan.
It’s really solidifies your understanding…I would even bet that if you were to take the exam even a little bit earlier, you probably could have still done well.
Student (Kang): I found this GMAT study is really efficient compared to many other prep courses.
I think I will definitely recommend this program to my friends.
I know some of my friends are planning to .
So probably I would recommend to them.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Very good and congratulations on your half tuition scholarship.
How does it feel to have such a huge financial strain taken away?
One day you are on the waitlist.
The next day you literally got a phone call from the admissions office.
Is that right the day after…?
Student (Kang): I was very excited from 690 to 760.
This 70 point increase means like 50K dollars.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): $50,000.
That’s very good.
Student (Kang): I am really excited.
This school they really emphasize, put a lot of emphasis, on the GMAT score, especially you got to have a balance between the verbal and the quant.
They don’t want people with a very high quant but there verbal.
So that’s the reason why I try to .
I did very well, got off the wait list. Almost immediately the second day, didn’t know…I did very well on the GMAT and they just gave me a call and said join in.
I am very excited.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Well, I am very happy for you and I wish you the best for your future success.
Very glad we are able to help you get there.
Congratulations again!
So everyone, that is Mr. Kang Cao.
He will be pursuing his MBA, with a half tuition scholarship, after taking his exam from 690 to 760.
Congratulations again and we will talk soon.
Student (Kang): Thank you!
Legendary Story: Kang speaks out on how he discovered GMAT Pill on BusinessWeek and turned his $179 investment in the GMAT Pill Verbal course into a $50,000 MBA scholarship and a 760 Total GMAT score.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version . You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
While no one should expect a payoff like this one, it’s true that an investment of $179 for this non-native English speaker helped him score a $50,000 scholarship to the MBA program where he was originally waitlisted.
Mr. Kang Cao is a proud GMAT Pill student who was waitlisted at his MBA program–most likely because of the imbalance of his verbal and quant score on his GMAT–despite a strong overall score of 690.
He fits the typical profile of an engineer who wants to pursue the MBA degree because he wants to transition to the business side of things. He has a strong quant background, but as a non-native English speaker, his weakness is in the verbal area.
For those of you who have read this article on
in the 680+ GMAT score range, you’ll know why Verbal is important. From an admissions officer viewpoint, the verbal score is even more important for quant-oriented engineers who want to show business schools they are not just good at numbers.
The GMAT Pill works–even for non-native English speakers like Kang!
Transcript:
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Hello, everybody! Today at .
We have Mr. Kang Cao.
Who recently did very well on the GMAT exam as a result of retaking his GMAT?
Not only got off the waitlist for his .
But was awarded a half tuition scholarship.
Hello, Kang are you there.
Student (Kang):
Yeah! I am here.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
So Kang why don’t you introduce yourself a little bit?
Tell us about a little bit about your background and how you got started with taking the GMAT.
Student (Kang):
My name is Kang Cao.
I grew up in China.
I got my bachelor and master degree in china and five years ago, I came to United States to presume my PhD degree.
I have been working for a manufacturing company here in Illinois for about two years.
The reason why I just wanted to go for an MBA study because I wanted a career switch. For three years of engineering experience I wanted to learn something about the business side, how to run the business.
So that’s the reason why I joined for the MBA study.
Student (Kang): My first GMAT attempt was in last November.
I scored 690 on my first attempt.
Actually I was pretty satisfied with my first attempt.
I again plan to .
Recently I was waitlisted by a school.
Then I begin to think about how to get off the waitlist.
The first thing that came to my mind is to .
I thought about how do I study this time because the first time I didn’t spent too much time it.
Student (Kang): The only two things I use for my first GMAT was the official guide and GMAT prep course, with the GMAT prep software, official software.
I went through the official guide and did a couple of practice exam and then took the real test.
I didn’t do very well on the verbal section.
I did quite well on the quant part.
Where should I get maybe some quant for my GMAT second attempt?
I looked at different options.
I read few post on the .
That’s where I came across the GMAT pill method?
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So you found about GMAT Pill through .
Student (Kang): Yeah!
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So you actually fit the profile of a typical candidate with an engineering background, very strong background actually…you score very well in the quant section.
Somewhat expected with somebody with the strong quant background…A strong engineering background.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): And here nobody knows what the real reason is for your being wait-listed. But at first glance it would appear that being waitlisted is due to the fact that your verbal score is not exactly in balance with your quant score.
Even though you had a very strong quant.
In fact you probably only got one wrong or maybe just omitted one quant question.
That’s probably what prompted you to retake the exam, when you were on the waitlist.
Student (Kang): Yes I did very well on the quant section first time.
But this verbal section 32 was not very good.
I think that might be one of the factors that I have been waitlisted by the school.
So the second time actually I try to think how to improve my verbal score.
But I looked at different options including some major prep courses.
But eventually I chose GMAT pill study because of two reasons.
Student (Kang): First I have a full time job.
So I only like 2 to 3 hours every day give for my studies.
So I want to study my GMAT within a relatively short amount of time.
Unlike some other major prep courses.
The GMAT pill study method really focuses on the fundamentals that one needed to know…That’s exactly what I was looking for…so that’s one of the most important reasons I chose GMAT pill study.
Student (Kang): Second I think that GMAT pill study method is very flexible in terms of the learning needs.
I did very well in the quant section.
I just don’t want to take many quant courses.
I just wanted to focus on the verbal part.
I can use it, just chose by either the verbal, quant or both section in the GMAT pill study method.
I think that’s very flexible.
It is more affordable to me compared to many other courses.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Right! That’s great you actually mentioned a couple of good points in there.
Accessibility, flexibility and affordability.
Being in a full time job, having access to
without making that long trip to the local Kaplan center, say, just to get some tutoring in.
Definitely the online version helped you prepare more efficiently, given your limitation in time and also flexibility being able to purchase only the portion of the exam that you are interested in.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): I think with lot of the other programs.
You purchase one section.
You actually wouldn’t be allow to purchase one section.
You would have to purchase the entire program for $1000.
Whereas with GMAT pill you get only one section.
Obviously the last factor affordability.
You spent a total of…how much?
Student (Kang): $175 for the verbal.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Very little compared to what you probably be paying for other courses, that may or may not have gone to where you are right now…
Student (Kang): I looked at several courses like Manhattan GMAT and Knewton.
I found out legal queries like two months of study.
I think it’s too long for me.
I just wanted to improve my chance off getting off the waitlist.
I can’t wait like for two months of studying.
By the time they’ll have the decision already.
So I chose GMAT pill study because it focuses on the part of nothing, just very very essential things that one needs to know in order to raise the GMAT score.
Student (Kang):
I found it’s a very efficient way of studying GMAT.
You really focus on the essential and fundamental thing, especially for the verbal part.
So I would like to share some of the experience in my verbal study using the GMAT.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Let’s go into the detail.
Let’s dive deep into the details.
What exactly did you experience?
How was your experience?
How long did you take to go through the material?
Student (Kang): I start up my GMAT pill study with the .
I found this 10 core framework extremely useful because it helped me understand what exactly test point is in a sentence correction question.
So for example is the testing apple to apple comparison is the testing the agreement.
As long as I can identify what the question is testing, I can quickly get rid of testing incorrect choices as possible.
Student (Kang):
So this is very important because in the real test.
The time is very limit for each question.
So you want to get rid of the incorrect choices of possible.
So I found this skill is very important and help me a lot during my second GMAT attempt.
So another very useful skill I learned from the 10 core framework, is how to tackle a long and complex sentence. This is called cutting the fluff.
Student (Kang): So it helps me, enable me to grasp the structure of a sentence.
So it helps me increase my reading speed during the real test.
So I think this are the most important thing.
I think it helped me, boost my verbal score.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So these are your strategies that you were not previously using. And GMAT Pill kind of opened this up…
Student (Kang): It helped me a lot.
During my first GMAT attempt.
So especially the sentence correction part.
I think I didn’t do very well on the sentence correction part.
The first time because I was not sure about even just one single question, during my first test.
I don’t know which one is correct, which one is wrong.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Especially being international student, non English native speaker.
Student (Kang): Especially for some long complex sentence.
A lot of things that’s maybe unrelated to the test points.
I spent a lot of time upon reading those parts.
After learning the 10 core frames that works I know how to just get rid of those things in focus on the structure of the sentence?
That has been really helpful.
This is just one pick for my study experience.
I created and excel spread sheet, with each the 10 core frame listing and the column.
Student (Kang): Then I tried to just went through the official guide the sentence correction question.
Tried to analyze those questions using the 10 core frame.
And then just categorize those questions according to these rules.
I found this is very useful.
Then I tried to add those questions to different categories according to these 10 rules.
When I just do more and more… I will stop process.
I become more sensitive when I see this question.
So it has been very helpful.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
That’s a very good strategy.
To analyze the official guide question.
Sub-segment them into these core frameworks.
Obviously the official guide already does that…They label them differently…they use like rhetorical construction and whatnot.
How would you compare, what you did versus, what the official guide does as default option.
Student (Kang): I think for me for the GMAT, the 10 core frameworks is more efficient.
Basically you can just get rid of some of the unrelated or wrong answers.
Maybe within like you are demonstrating in a video.
Maybe within 10 seconds, 20 seconds.
You have 1 or 2, maybe 2 left and really want to focus on those two and try to identify some other things, using the other rules.
I think it’s much more efficient.
Especially as you get more familiarized with the thought process.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
So how long would you say it took you to learn this new thought process?
Student (Kang): First I went through your video, the 10 videos of the core framework.
I watched the 600-700 level practice questions.
These videos further helped me in consolidating the core concepts.
Showed me how to use these rules to solve the real sentence correction question.
Basically I think after watching all those 600-700 level practice question, one should be very confident and very familiar with these core frameworks.
Student (Kang):
That’s the reason I say that this method is very efficient.
So I think maybe within a week.
You can actually get a very good feeling about how to solve the sentence correction question.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Okay, good so for you it took you one week to basically really understand it and internalize it.
Then do well on actual questions.
Student (Kang): Right.
That’s the sentence correction part and another thing I found is really useful is that critical reasoning part.
I think your method is very kind of innovative. Previously I do this kind of question just reading the paragraph.
Just trying to think how this underlying logic works.
It’s not very efficient.
I sometimes got confused by the long paragraph.
Your method I can draw a simple logic diagram based on a given argument and this approach actually helps me visualize the underlying logic as I read through the question.
Student (Kang):
So for example basically just try to draw a diagram, logic diagram.
Based on the argument and then try to read the question.
Sometimes you want to just build the bridge across different elements or sometimes just break the elements according to the question.
That really helps me understand the underlying logic.
At first it sounds that we draw diagram, according to the paragraphs, maybe a little bit time consuming.
But as long as I get familiar with this entire process.
It actually saves me time.
It actually help you solve the questions correctly.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): How long would you say “it took you to fully grasp that concepts”?
Student (Kang): I watched the 600 level questions.
I think that was the first week.
Then I just watch the 700 level questions at just the week before my actual test.
I didn’t spend as much time in the sentence correction on this part.
But it looks very well.
It also was very efficient, this process.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So it sounds like all in all…you had your score.
You are schedule to retake the exam.
You are on the wait list.
Then you decided to enroll with GMAT pill and then you started watching the videos roughly around two to three weeks.
Student (Kang): Within 4 weeks actually.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Within 4 wks? Okay so basically following the GMAT one month study plan.
It’s really solidifies your understanding…I would even bet that if you were to take the exam even a little bit earlier, you probably could have still done well.
Student (Kang): I found this GMAT study is really efficient compared to many other prep courses.
I think I will definitely recommend this program to my friends.
I know some of my friends are planning to .
So probably I would recommend to them.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Very good and congratulations on your half tuition scholarship.
How does it feel to have such a huge financial strain taken away?
One day you are on the waitlist.
The next day you literally got a phone call from the admissions office.
Is that right the day after…?
Student (Kang): I was very excited from 690 to 760.
This 70 point increase means like 50K dollars.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): $50,000.
That’s very good.
Student (Kang): I am really excited.
This school they really emphasize, put a lot of emphasis, on the GMAT score, especially you got to have a balance between the verbal and the quant.
They don’t want people with a very high quant but there verbal.
So that’s the reason why I try to .
I did very well, got off the wait list. Almost immediately the second day, didn’t know…I did very well on the GMAT and they just gave me a call and said join in.
I am very excited.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Well, I am very happy for you and I wish you the best for your future success.
Very glad we are able to help you get there.
Congratulations again!
So everyone, that is Mr. Kang Cao.
He will be pursuing his MBA, with a half tuition scholarship, after taking his exam from 690 to 760.
Congratulations again and we will talk soon.
Student (Kang): Thank you!
Legendary Story: Kang speaks out on how he discovered GMAT Pill on BusinessWeek and turned his $179 investment in the GMAT Pill Verbal course into a $50,000 MBA scholarship and a 760 Total GMAT score.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version . You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
While no one should expect a payoff like this one, it’s true that an investment of $179 for this non-native English speaker helped him score a $50,000 scholarship to the MBA program where he was originally waitlisted.
Mr. Kang Cao is a proud GMAT Pill student who was waitlisted at his MBA program–most likely because of the imbalance of his verbal and quant score on his GMAT–despite a strong overall score of 690.
He fits the typical profile of an engineer who wants to pursue the MBA degree because he wants to transition to the business side of things. He has a strong quant background, but as a non-native English speaker, his weakness is in the verbal area.
For those of you who have read this article on
in the 680+ GMAT score range, you’ll know why Verbal is important. From an admissions officer viewpoint, the verbal score is even more important for quant-oriented engineers who want to show business schools they are not just good at numbers.
The GMAT Pill works–even for non-native English speakers like Kang!
Transcript:
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Hello, everybody! Today at .
We have Mr. Kang Cao.
Who recently did very well on the GMAT exam as a result of retaking his GMAT?
Not only got off the waitlist for his .
But was awarded a half tuition scholarship.
Hello, Kang are you there.
Student (Kang):
Yeah! I am here.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
So Kang why don’t you introduce yourself a little bit?
Tell us about a little bit about your background and how you got started with taking the GMAT.
Student (Kang):
My name is Kang Cao.
I grew up in China.
I got my bachelor and master degree in china and five years ago, I came to United States to presume my PhD degree.
I have been working for a manufacturing company here in Illinois for about two years.
The reason why I just wanted to go for an MBA study because I wanted a career switch. For three years of engineering experience I wanted to learn something about the business side, how to run the business.
So that’s the reason why I joined for the MBA study.
Student (Kang): My first GMAT attempt was in last November.
I scored 690 on my first attempt.
Actually I was pretty satisfied with my first attempt.
I again plan to .
Recently I was waitlisted by a school.
Then I begin to think about how to get off the waitlist.
The first thing that came to my mind is to .
I thought about how do I study this time because the first time I didn’t spent too much time it.
Student (Kang): The only two things I use for my first GMAT was the official guide and GMAT prep course, with the GMAT prep software, official software.
I went through the official guide and did a couple of practice exam and then took the real test.
I didn’t do very well on the verbal section.
I did quite well on the quant part.
Where should I get maybe some quant for my GMAT second attempt?
I looked at different options.
I read few post on the .
That’s where I came across the GMAT pill method?
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So you found about GMAT Pill through .
Student (Kang): Yeah!
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So you actually fit the profile of a typical candidate with an engineering background, very strong background actually…you score very well in the quant section.
Somewhat expected with somebody with the strong quant background…A strong engineering background.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): And here nobody knows what the real reason is for your being wait-listed. But at first glance it would appear that being waitlisted is due to the fact that your verbal score is not exactly in balance with your quant score.
Even though you had a very strong quant.
In fact you probably only got one wrong or maybe just omitted one quant question.
That’s probably what prompted you to retake the exam, when you were on the waitlist.
Student (Kang): Yes I did very well on the quant section first time.
But this verbal section 32 was not very good.
I think that might be one of the factors that I have been waitlisted by the school.
So the second time actually I try to think how to improve my verbal score.
But I looked at different options including some major prep courses.
But eventually I chose GMAT pill study because of two reasons.
Student (Kang): First I have a full time job.
So I only like 2 to 3 hours every day give for my studies.
So I want to study my GMAT within a relatively short amount of time.
Unlike some other major prep courses.
The GMAT pill study method really focuses on the fundamentals that one needed to know…That’s exactly what I was looking for…so that’s one of the most important reasons I chose GMAT pill study.
Student (Kang): Second I think that GMAT pill study method is very flexible in terms of the learning needs.
I did very well in the quant section.
I just don’t want to take many quant courses.
I just wanted to focus on the verbal part.
I can use it, just chose by either the verbal, quant or both section in the GMAT pill study method.
I think that’s very flexible.
It is more affordable to me compared to many other courses.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Right! That’s great you actually mentioned a couple of good points in there.
Accessibility, flexibility and affordability.
Being in a full time job, having access to
without making that long trip to the local Kaplan center, say, just to get some tutoring in.
Definitely the online version helped you prepare more efficiently, given your limitation in time and also flexibility being able to purchase only the portion of the exam that you are interested in.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): I think with lot of the other programs.
You purchase one section.
You actually wouldn’t be allow to purchase one section.
You would have to purchase the entire program for $1000.
Whereas with GMAT pill you get only one section.
Obviously the last factor affordability.
You spent a total of…how much?
Student (Kang): $175 for the verbal.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Very little compared to what you probably be paying for other courses, that may or may not have gone to where you are right now…
Student (Kang): I looked at several courses like Manhattan GMAT and Knewton.
I found out legal queries like two months of study.
I think it’s too long for me.
I just wanted to improve my chance off getting off the waitlist.
I can’t wait like for two months of studying.
By the time they’ll have the decision already.
So I chose GMAT pill study because it focuses on the part of nothing, just very very essential things that one needs to know in order to raise the GMAT score.
Student (Kang):
I found it’s a very efficient way of studying GMAT.
You really focus on the essential and fundamental thing, especially for the verbal part.
So I would like to share some of the experience in my verbal study using the GMAT.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Let’s go into the detail.
Let’s dive deep into the details.
What exactly did you experience?
How was your experience?
How long did you take to go through the material?
Student (Kang): I start up my GMAT pill study with the .
I found this 10 core framework extremely useful because it helped me understand what exactly test point is in a sentence correction question.
So for example is the testing apple to apple comparison is the testing the agreement.
As long as I can identify what the question is testing, I can quickly get rid of testing incorrect choices as possible.
Student (Kang):
So this is very important because in the real test.
The time is very limit for each question.
So you want to get rid of the incorrect choices of possible.
So I found this skill is very important and help me a lot during my second GMAT attempt.
So another very useful skill I learned from the 10 core framework, is how to tackle a long and complex sentence. This is called cutting the fluff.
Student (Kang): So it helps me, enable me to grasp the structure of a sentence.
So it helps me increase my reading speed during the real test.
So I think this are the most important thing.
I think it helped me, boost my verbal score.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So these are your strategies that you were not previously using. And GMAT Pill kind of opened this up…
Student (Kang): It helped me a lot.
During my first GMAT attempt.
So especially the sentence correction part.
I think I didn’t do very well on the sentence correction part.
The first time because I was not sure about even just one single question, during my first test.
I don’t know which one is correct, which one is wrong.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Especially being international student, non English native speaker.
Student (Kang): Especially for some long complex sentence.
A lot of things that’s maybe unrelated to the test points.
I spent a lot of time upon reading those parts.
After learning the 10 core frames that works I know how to just get rid of those things in focus on the structure of the sentence?
That has been really helpful.
This is just one pick for my study experience.
I created and excel spread sheet, with each the 10 core frame listing and the column.
Student (Kang): Then I tried to just went through the official guide the sentence correction question.
Tried to analyze those questions using the 10 core frame.
And then just categorize those questions according to these rules.
I found this is very useful.
Then I tried to add those questions to different categories according to these 10 rules.
When I just do more and more… I will stop process.
I become more sensitive when I see this question.
So it has been very helpful.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
That’s a very good strategy.
To analyze the official guide question.
Sub-segment them into these core frameworks.
Obviously the official guide already does that…They label them differently…they use like rhetorical construction and whatnot.
How would you compare, what you did versus, what the official guide does as default option.
Student (Kang): I think for me for the GMAT, the 10 core frameworks is more efficient.
Basically you can just get rid of some of the unrelated or wrong answers.
Maybe within like you are demonstrating in a video.
Maybe within 10 seconds, 20 seconds.
You have 1 or 2, maybe 2 left and really want to focus on those two and try to identify some other things, using the other rules.
I think it’s much more efficient.
Especially as you get more familiarized with the thought process.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
So how long would you say it took you to learn this new thought process?
Student (Kang): First I went through your video, the 10 videos of the core framework.
I watched the 600-700 level practice questions.
These videos further helped me in consolidating the core concepts.
Showed me how to use these rules to solve the real sentence correction question.
Basically I think after watching all those 600-700 level practice question, one should be very confident and very familiar with these core frameworks.
Student (Kang):
That’s the reason I say that this method is very efficient.
So I think maybe within a week.
You can actually get a very good feeling about how to solve the sentence correction question.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Okay, good so for you it took you one week to basically really understand it and internalize it.
Then do well on actual questions.
Student (Kang): Right.
That’s the sentence correction part and another thing I found is really useful is that critical reasoning part.
I think your method is very kind of innovative. Previously I do this kind of question just reading the paragraph.
Just trying to think how this underlying logic works.
It’s not very efficient.
I sometimes got confused by the long paragraph.
Your method I can draw a simple logic diagram based on a given argument and this approach actually helps me visualize the underlying logic as I read through the question.
Student (Kang):
So for example basically just try to draw a diagram, logic diagram.
Based on the argument and then try to read the question.
Sometimes you want to just build the bridge across different elements or sometimes just break the elements according to the question.
That really helps me understand the underlying logic.
At first it sounds that we draw diagram, according to the paragraphs, maybe a little bit time consuming.
But as long as I get familiar with this entire process.
It actually saves me time.
It actually help you solve the questions correctly.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): How long would you say “it took you to fully grasp that concepts”?
Student (Kang): I watched the 600 level questions.
I think that was the first week.
Then I just watch the 700 level questions at just the week before my actual test.
I didn’t spend as much time in the sentence correction on this part.
But it looks very well.
It also was very efficient, this process.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): So it sounds like all in all…you had your score.
You are schedule to retake the exam.
You are on the wait list.
Then you decided to enroll with GMAT pill and then you started watching the videos roughly around two to three weeks.
Student (Kang): Within 4 weeks actually.
GMAT Pill (Zeke):
Within 4 wks? Okay so basically following the GMAT one month study plan.
It’s really solidifies your understanding…I would even bet that if you were to take the exam even a little bit earlier, you probably could have still done well.
Student (Kang): I found this GMAT study is really efficient compared to many other prep courses.
I think I will definitely recommend this program to my friends.
I know some of my friends are planning to .
So probably I would recommend to them.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Very good and congratulations on your half tuition scholarship.
How does it feel to have such a huge financial strain taken away?
One day you are on the waitlist.
The next day you literally got a phone call from the admissions office.
Is that right the day after…?
Student (Kang): I was very excited from 690 to 760.
This 70 point increase means like 50K dollars.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): $50,000.
That’s very good.
Student (Kang): I am really excited.
This school they really emphasize, put a lot of emphasis, on the GMAT score, especially you got to have a balance between the verbal and the quant.
They don’t want people with a very high quant but there verbal.
So that’s the reason why I try to .
I did very well, got off the wait list. Almost immediately the second day, didn’t know…I did very well on the GMAT and they just gave me a call and said join in.
I am very excited.
GMAT Pill (Zeke): Well, I am very happy for you and I wish you the best for your future success.
Very glad we are able to help you get there.
Congratulations again!
So everyone, that is Mr. Kang Cao.
He will be pursuing his MBA, with a half tuition scholarship, after taking his exam from 690 to 760.
Congratulations again and we will talk soon.
Student (Kang): Thank you!
Verbal Questions:
Quant Videos:
"Zeke Lee is the "98th %ile in 2 weeks" guy from Stanford who teaches MBA candidates how to think efficiently on the GMAT and how to study less and get a better score"
Get The FREE Newsletter
GMAT Tips- Popular Articles
Help & Support
Learn More
If you need any kind of assistance or guidance please email us at:
GMATTM is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admission CouncilTM. The Graduate Management Admission CouncilTM does not endorse, nor is it affiliated in any way with the owner or any content of this web site.}