The GMAT doesn't have to be a nail biter. (photo by c r i s)

Jen Rugani is one of Knewton’s top GMAT teachers.

Do you bite your nails? Chew on pencils? Forget to the check the subject and verb on sentence correction questions? All of these are bad habits, but only one will affect your GMAT score. Test-takers tend to make the same grammar mistakes over and over again; learn to recognize—and avoid—these common traps and pitfalls.

1) Ignoring the Subject and Verb

It’s one of the biggest, most basic rules of grammar: If it doesn’t have a main subject and main verb, it’s not a sentence. More importantly, the subject and verb are the potential home of numerous SC errors, including subject-verb agreement, sentence fragments, clause connection and more. Many test-takers head straight for more complicated issues and overlook an easy subject-verb mistake that can knock a few answer choices out of contention. In a gourmet meal, perfect side dishes don’t matter if the main course is burned. Think of the subject and verb as the meat (or vegan substitute) of a sentence, and check them first.

2) Overlooking Redundancy

The GMAT loves concision and clarity; it is a mistake to repeat yourself and say the same thing twice. Did you see the redundancy in the previous sentence? If so, you are ahead of the curve! The vast majority of test-takers miss simple redundancy errors, so be extra vigilant in watching out for them. Look for quantity words:

Redundant: The price dropped by a 30% decrease.

Awesomely concise: The price dropped by 30%.

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When the text starts to blur, use these tips to stay on track (photo by mr. wright).

Jen Rugani is one our amazing teachers at Knewton, where she helps students rock their GMAT prep.

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If taking the GMAT is like running a marathon, then the Reading Comprehension passages are like a set of steep hills in mile 24. They’re dense, complicated, boring pieces of text that test your stamina and focus as much as your comprehension. After powering through the AWA and math sections, it’s easy to arrive at the first reading comp passage and start to zone out – your eyes are still on the screen, but you’re re-reading the same sentence over and over again without taking in any of the meaning. At Knewton, we call this “glazed eyes” syndrome, and it can be a major time-sucker on the verbal section.

So how do you make it up the hill and power through to the finish line? There are some concrete steps you can take both now and on test day to avoid glazed eyes and stay focused on the passage.

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