Manhattan Prep Private Tutoring

really appreciate Dan Bernstein's help! He made my GMAT score improve significantly (by 200 points) in only two months. I don't think I was able to get into my dream school without his mentoring. He was really good at listening to my concerns and pointing out the issues and directions for me very effectively. More importantly, he was also great at encouraging me during the most difficult time. He was not only dedicated in the class but also very responsive after class when I wrote his emails. I was very lucky to have Dan as my GMAT tutor! I would highly recommend you to try him as your GMAT tutor.

After speaking with several of my friends who were in business school, I decided to utilize Manhattan GMAT for my preparation. I participated in a 9-session in-person prep course (not with Paul) and ended up getting a 700 on my first real GMAT attempt. Although I was happy with my first score, my ultimate goal was to get at least a 730. A look at my split showed there was room to improve in verbal. So for the next month, I dedicated most of my time and efforts toward improving on the verbal section. Unfortunately, when I took the exam a second time, my verbal score decreased and I ended up with a 660.

With time not on my side (due to applications) and feeling a bit lost, I decided to sign up for online private tutoring sessions with Paul through Manhattan GMAT. As a former prep course participant, I was entitled to the cheapest rate for tutoring hours, meaning I could pay as I go while taking full advantage of bulk package pricing.

Before signing up with Paul, I thought studying with an in-person tutor would be best, but I quickly realized how much more convenient and effective the online interface was. Additionally, it enables you to record/playback all your sessions.

From my first session with Paul, I could tell I made a great decision. He was able to identify key weaknesses in my approach and taught me new methodologies and practices that enabled me to be more efficient with my time and energy. Paul's lessons and explanations were always clear and informative. After eight 2-hour sessions, I took the GMAT again and got the score I was hoping for: 730 (big improvement in verbal).

What I enjoyed about working with Paul, aside from him being a GMAT genius (he scored a 790), was his humility and positive attitude. He was very pleasant to work with and is an all-around great guy. If you get the opportunity to work with Paul, know that you will be in good hands.

I had already been working with a tutor before meeting with Ryan, and decided to make a switch after making very little improvement and receiving a less than desirable first score. I can say quite positively that I would not have received the 720 without Ryan. All GMAT tutors know the material and can explain it, but that is not what made the difference for me. Ryan was able to pin-point my weaknesses in quant almost immediately, and was able to explain critical concepts in a palatable way. Most importantly, he did not allow me to stay in my comfort zone. He did not just explain a concept and ensure that I could repeat it back to him, but insisted that I be able to explain the reasons why it made sense. Even though it was sometimes painful, he made sure I learned these critical concepts forward and backward. I would (and have) recommend Ryan to anyone who needs an extra push and personal attention. I am extremely grateful for Ryan's help and could not speak highly enough of his talent as a tutor.

I started working with Mark after taking the Manhattan Prep 10 week course and scoring well below my goal (650 with goal of 700). After this, I decided to invest in private tutoring and started working with Mark Sullivan. I took the GMAT again, and scored 720 thanks to Mark (47 quant, 41 verbal). He quickly diagnosed my weaknesses, and then provided a clear plan to hit my goal. He focused on the biggest hitting items / content areas and devised a plan that I could manage with a full time job.
Outside of providing excellent tutoring services during my paid sessions, Mark was always available to respond to emails and provide feedback on practice tests. I never felt like I was ?on the clock? ? if we ran slightly over the time allotment, I didn’t feel that he was rushing to end the session. Mark was really a source of positivity and made me feel confident going into the test.

Very highly recommend Mark for anyone needing personalized tutoring!!! Just wish I’d started working with him from the beginning.

After I took the GMAT four times, I saw my score go from a 670, to a 600, to a 660 to a 680. I wanted to break into the 700-club. After exhausting nearly every book, website, CAT exam, I turned to the experts. Daniel is an incredible tutor. Daniel showed me that it isn't enough to simply do the problem and then review the ones you get wrong. Take the time to reflect on the problems and ask questions such as: What could I have done differently? Should I have skipped? On the math section, aside from helping me get a better grasp on the material, Daniel helped me develop a plan of which problems I should skip. Giving the time constraints, this proved invaluable.

I think where Daniel added the most value was for Verbal. Remember, the GMAT is beatable! Man made it, man can beat it. Daniel showed me the tricks of the trade when it came to issues such as parallelism and how to spot those tricks, something that is very important when you get to the higher-level verbal questions.

In addition to going over problems, Daniel also had me do targeted sets and make up my own problems. This type of teaching definitely helped push me over the hump. Now I am riding high on a 750. I know that Daniel is too humble to take the credit, but he deserves all of the credit and then some. He is a great teacher and really helps break down the material into digestible pieces all while rewiring your brain to really learn how this test is made.

I would recommend Daniel to anyone is having trouble getting over the 700 hump.

Best of luck!

While I was initially hesitant to hire a private tutor due to the cost, I can wholeheartedly say that time with Daniel Fogel is worth every penny. Daniel explained even the most complex of topics in a simple and digestible manner and also was fantastic at incorporating humor into his sessions. Moreover, Daniel was unbelievable at identifying my weakness areas and he expertly prescribed a very specific set of work for me to do each week. Daniel was always mindful of my goal to break a 700 and having him encourage me to continue pushing by taking CATs and completing tailored material was an absolute difference maker. Daniel shared numerous unique tips and tricks and he shed light on test-taking strategies just as often as he helped me bridge my content gaps in both verbal and quant!

I highly recommend working with Daniel based on his upbeat attitude, strong background in test taking, friendliness and passion for wanting to help others succeed. Daniel was always flexible with appointments and ensured that each session was recorded with detailed notes so that I could allude back to his points! Additionally, Daniel made himself available at almost all hours to ensure I was making progress and comfortable with my weekly assignments.

Daniel helped me push my score from a 680 to a 720 and I could not be happier! Daniel had me work hard and dig deep but there is no doubt in my mind that I would not have attained my dream score if I had never committed to the 2 months of sessions with Daniel.

Got my target 720 score after approx 4 months that comprised self study, Manhattan Prep's 9-week course on Wall street Manhattan (Dave Mahler was our instructor), and private tutoring (also with Dave Mahler). I started with a 590 Manhattan Prep GMAT practice test.

After the 9 week course, I spent a couple of weeks wrapping up the GMAT OG and then I took a real GMAT test. Bombed it. I decided I needed more targetted tutoring, so I splurged on the private tutoring (8 lessons in total). This was worth every penny. Dave diagnosed my flawed test-taking strategies, and his private lessons sharpened my quant and verbal reasoning skills. These lessons were challenging but crucial to my success on the test - he would often ask me to explain my thought processes WHILE I solved tough problems (DS, PS, SC, CR), and this invariably forces you to think critically about every single step in your own problem-solving process. Every step in my problem-solving process was critiqued and improved upon. As important, Dave was extremely optimistic and encouraging throughout this whole process. He was a firm supporter and you feel that he's invested in your success.

TL DR: Manhattan Prep's private tutoring is very strongly recommended. Dave Mahler is very strongly recommended.

Without Manhattan Prep and specifically, my private instructor Elaine Loh, I could not have broken through the 700 barrier. I owe my entire 720 (Q49, V40) to Elaine's guidance, tutoring, and her holistic way of teaching. Content is not the sole focus of Elaine's teaching; of course, content is important up to a certain point, but your style of studying and mentality are equally important. Elaine put a huge emphasis on error logging and having a positive and relaxed mindset, and I can honestly say that these two things probably made the biggest difference in my studying.

After I started error logging and becoming more "mindful", upon Elaine's suggestion, my practice scores shot up exponentially. Just for reference, I began my GMAT journey at 600!

More so than her awesome way of teaching, Elaine is just really darn knowledgeable about the GMAT. The way that she is able to clarify points of confusion in a very clear and concise manner is not something that just any smart person can do! She also taught me certain strategies that were very helpful to ultimately succeeding on the GMAT.

All in all, as you can see, I am a huge fan of Elaine and Manhattan Prep. While I can't speak for other instructors, I certainly have no doubts that Manhattan Prep is a top-notch company. If you are struggling with the GMAT, I would highly recommend Manhattan Prep and Elaine Loh!

I completed 10 hours of private instruction with Dan Patinkin upon the enthusiastic recommendation of a personal friend, who had in turn been enthusiastically recommended by both of her MBA bosses. I would like to keep the enthusiastic chain of recommendation momentum going!

Obviously, everyone's results will vary depending on what their strength and weaknesses are, and their individual learning styles. So I'll just keep this to my personal experience.

I began studying for the GMAT in August of 2017. I work in non-profits and studied the liberal arts; the last time I did math was AP Stats in high school and I never took anything more advanced than Algebra 2. Thinking about standardized testing, let alone math, still makes my heart race.

From the get-go, I knew my work with Dan would be pretty much exclusively dedicated to quant, and that's partially why it was important to me to spring for personal tutoring rather than a class. Wouldn't have made sense to spend my precious time and money practicing verbal, since I desperately needed extra support with math.

Manhattan's attention to detail, and that of Dan specifically, helped me transform over the space of a few short months. Don't get me wrong, you have to work a lot.... like 10-15 hours per week for 4+ months... but for me, the hardest part of studying has always been knowing exactly WHERE to focus my efforts, and that's what Manhattan/Dan took care of for me.

So all I had to do, thanks to his help, was.... practice.

At one point, I scored a 490 on a practice test and CRIED. I am proud to say that last month, I sat for my very first (and final!) GMAT in December 2017 and scored a 720 -- 46 Q (WAY above my target) and 44 V!

I wouldn't have been able to make a fraction of these gains -- let alone keep my cool -- if it weren't for Dan's insight, generosity, and encouragement.

Thank you!

I was very lucky to have studied with Keith from Chicago. I initially met Keith through the Manhattan GMAT class pack in which he was the instructor, and later took a few private classes with him to improve my understanding.

Overall, Keith is a very efficient and to-the-point instructor. I was quite confident in math but was making unnecessary mistakes so Keith pinpointed it to exactly where it was and provided CUSTOMIZED study plans for me based on my goal and schedule. As for verbal, he was instrumental in teaching me how to read and answer the question.

My first practice test was in the 600, and with the help of Keith and many hours of hard work, I increased a score of 100+. I would highly recommend Keith to any student who would like to learn and achieve a good score.

Manhattan GMAT also offers one of the best online platforms. It syncs up with the book and the explanations really helped me understand why an answer was right, and better yet, why other answers were wrong. In addition, you can use the report feature to see your overall performance and area of improvement. I would recommend taking a GMAT course with Keith through Manhattan. Thank you Keith!

I was beyond thrilled with my outcome after working with Dan. If you're willing to put in the work and the time, he'll get you where you want to go. Over the course of four months, I went from a 620 (35Q, 41V, Princeton Review Practice Test) to a 770 (48Q, 48V, Official GMAT). I worked with Dan for 12 hours total, and about 150 hours on my own. I was astonished by how well Dan knew the material - he seemed to have hundreds of questions committed to memory and knew exactly which one to throw at you when. I felt like I was in incredible hands. I also really appreciated that Dan was conservative about how much time we were spending together (minding my budget) and that he was generous with his time between sessions if I had questions via email. After I finished up with Dan, I passed him along to my best friend, and she saw an equally sizable leap between her initial and final scores. I put a lot of faith in Dan as a guide and I am so glad that I did. Highly recommend working with him.

I highly recommend Chris Gentry to anyone in the Atlanta area looking to take the GMAT or looking to improve score. I achieved a 90 point swing over the course of three months, which I attribute greatly to Chris's help during our weekly hour-long sessions.

Learning about different GMAT-tailored test-taking strategies, learning how to manage time crunch more effectively and different approaches to common 700-800 level questions I feel made the difference for me. Getting this score was way above my expectations when I started the process, and I decided to apply to an additional three top-5 schools as a result.

I highly recommend working with Graham. Working with him, I was able to raise my score 40 points in just about 2 months. Not only did Graham help me with tips and tricks for math, but he did it with a calm demeanor that helped with my stressed-out GMAT nerves. Graham was relaxed as he told me to focus on studying smart, rather than just grinding away for hours. Taking his advice, I succeeded and made myself a lot less miserable in the process. I would definitely work with Graham again.

Manhattan Prep is a great GMAT prep program. I was working full time in a busy job that was travel intensive...the online accelerated course was wonderful. It fit into my busy schedule, and really helped me to improve my score. I supplemented the course with a few private tutoring sessions with Logan Thompson...he was extremely patient with me and extremely thorough in his explanations. Logan helped me improve my over all score by 100 points, and boost my verbal score to the 98th percentile. Logan was a life saver! I am now applying to schools that were initially out of my reach. Thanks Manhattan Prep!

Logan is a great teacher! He helped me improve my score from a 570 to a 710. Before reaching out to Logan for private tutoring, I had studied from the Manhattan books. However, it was Logan who helped me understand how to tackle problems, and how to avoid common GMAT traps. He taught me how study and review wrong questions. He was very encouraging through the entire process, always believing in me. He was very accessible, and would always respond to my emails. After our tutoring sessions were over, he would follow-up with me, making sure I was making good progress. I would really recommend Logan!

I started with a 3-month class-style course with Manhattan prep. It was an online course with 4 hours of class per week. This was great as I managed to cover all the required topics and brush up on my skills. After completing this course I did the GMAT and scored a 640 (Q52, V76). Although my basics were in place, I definitely wasn't happy with this score and knew I could do better!
MPrep offered a free post course assessment (PCA) (which I did prior to the test) and then they also offered a free post exam assessment (PEA). This PEA helped me tremendously by pointing out specific areas I should focus on to bring my score up to a 700. I went on to take 3 hours of private tutoring with the same instructor who did the PEA. I then did the test again 5 months after the first test and this time my score went up by 100 points to a 740!

The PEA and private tutoring were gold! I would seriously recommend them in order to be able to put all your energy and effort towards specific topics which can actually help bring your score up instead of wasting time on trying to get the 'high-hanging fruit'.

My 3-month course instructors were Eric Garthoffner and Pedro Ledesma who were very thorough and kept me committed to a regular study schedule. My PEA and pvt tutoring instructor was Chris Gentry - he was phenomenal and continued to stay in touch much after my sessions ended and right up till the day I gave the second test with constant motivation and prep tips.

I would highly recommend Manhattan Prep as a resource to prepare for one's GMAT.

Good Luck!

-Komal
740 (Q77, V96)

Despite a lot of serious studying on my own, my previous attempt to crack 700 was unsuccessful, but I couldn't pinpoint why. I had a few visits with Keith, each of which were excellent in two different ways:

First, Keith had no issue narrowing in on my areas of weakness, and he provided highly focused and specific tips on how I could improve. The advice he provided was actionable both while studying and while taking the test.

Second, Keith's calm attitude and demeanor allowed me to believe that the test was not as daunting and intimidating as I'd made it out to be in my own head. He had a highly effective way of boosting my confidence so that when I went into the test, I felt that, as long as I trusted my studying and remembered the advice Keith had provided, I would do well.

Ultimately, with Keith's help, my score increased from a 690 to a 730 - a score I was absolutely thrilled to include on my business school applications. I should also note that Keith is very friendly, very accommodating and communicative, but still ensures that meetings are efficient so that all relevant material can be covered within the allotted time.

I highly recommend taking private tutoring sessions with Chris Gentry. Chris provided very helpful tips on test strategy - i.e. which problems you should focus on and which problems are not worth your time. Chris analyzes your practice tests / performance and provides very specific feedback on how to focus your studies. Lastly, and in my opinion most important, Chris was a constant source of positive feedback. Prepping for the GMAT can be a stressful endeavor, and Chris helps remove the stress and anxiety associated with both preparation and test day itself. Chris helped me boost my score from the mid 600's to breaking the 700 mark.

Highly recommend Manhattan for GMAT prep. Books are comprehensive, and the tutoring was personalized, insightful, and data-driven (cheers to Ryan Jacobs). Reached my target score in record time and got into my school of choice.

On the first attempt, I scored 710 on the GMAT but I felt it wasn't enough for the schools I was aiming for. In order to address my weaknesses in specific areas and strengthen my concepts, I opted for the 10 hour private tutoring session by Manhattan Prep. My instructor Josh understood my strengths and weaknesses from day 1 itself and provided me with the best strategies to go forward with during preparation and while giving the exam. The approach he suggested me to use while solving critical reasoning questions made a lot of difference in my verbal score. He also helped me understand the concepts in quant that I was struggling with such as divisibility and number properties by giving me ample number of difficult problems to solve. The Manhattan Prep Strategy Guide books and the practice exams were extremely helpful as well in understanding concepts especially sentence correction rules though the quant section on the practice exams was a little tougher and can demoralize oneself at times. But all in all it the course is an excellent way to give yourself that push and reach higher scores.

I am so glad to be able to write this. It has been a long yet rewarding 10 months. After 1st gmat fail (420), I used Mprep self- interact and improved and got (500) in my 2nd time. I came across a website and the author shared his experiences of taking the Gmat 5 times and the final push was having a great tutor. At first, I was hesitated because I had a poor in person tutor before my 1st gmat and got a 420. I asked myself, am I going to try an online tutor? That was the best decision of my whole gmat journey and worth every penny. I was paired with Mark Sullivan for a post exam assessment and his positive tone and enthusiasm about GMAT were exactly what I needed after my 2nd attempt. Therefore, I asked him if he could private tutor me.

Mark was very diligent and knowledgeable. I told him about my bad experiences with my previous tutor so he quickly shared his tutoring way with me. Mark couldn’t tutor me in July because of his previous engagement, but he clearly wrote down assignments and articles for me before our 1st session in August so that I can start preparing. I knew then that I picked the right tutor.

Mark and I had 6 sessions together, he was always on time and wouldn’t mind staying a few extra mins if I have questions at the end. During our sessions, he was always positive and encouraged me all the time. That was very important to me because I have felt quite beating down after 7 months of rigorously studying. During our sessions, Mark focused on strategies that will help me improve my score, he taught me very useful skills such as how to correctly review error log, gave me drill sheets that will improve certain content area, assign readings that help me with mental strength in preparation for the gmat (gmat is such a mental game in a way), timed set to stimulate exam mode, creating goals for each session and each prep test, etc,.. Mark was very knowledgeable and always willing to answer my questions.

In addition to his tactics on the strategies, Mark’s positivism and encouragement made a HUGE difference on me. GMAT journey could be very lonely and under pressure, having Mark always on my side and showed me support was very crucial to my mental strength. He did not only teach me the skills but he taught me the importance of belief and positivism. I recalled I got a 570 on my last gmat prep 10 days before my 3rd attempt. I immediately sent an email to Mark with all my analysis and asked him should I postpone my exam since I only got a 570. He replied me within hours and said that he think I should go for it because I can and said the prep result was a reference only. We then had our last session, and he sent me 2 more encouraging emails prior to the BIG day and asked me to have confidence walking into that exam room because he knew that I can do this.

My goal was to get a 600 and I ended up getting a 670 (Q 44 V 38)! From 420-670, and I can’t thank Mark enough for teaching me the right way to deal with the Gmat and for believing me all the ways even when I doubt myself! If you are thinking of a tutor, Mark is definitely the right guy! Thank you Mark from the bottom of my heart.

Signing up for 10 hours with a Manhattan Prep private tutor also gets you all of their books, the Official Guide, 6 CATs, interactive online classes, and the secretly important GMAT Navigator question analyzer. Each of those elements is extremely helpful.

In addition to being the man, Jayson Beatty was extremely helpful in nailing down the tough concepts and providing strategy and feedback. He helped to prioritize my focus and time and guided me to a good score on the GMAT (770). I give Jayson the highest praise.

All of the resources MGMAT provides can be extremely helpful if you invest in using them. Having a GMAT resource like Jayson is most helpful if you work on problems and concepts the rest of the week and come with questions. Having 1000s of pages is only helpful if you read them with focus and don't let yourself ignore things that you don't understand. Overall, Manhattan Prep gives you everything you could need to get a great score, and it's up to you to make the most of it. Manhattan Prep GMAT was absolutely fantastic for me, and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

This was my first tutor-pupil relationship, ever. I found Joe to be flexible and responsive - both of which are supremely important in a work-GMAT balancing act. He knows his stuff inside and out, and is a great guy. I took a diagnostic completely cold and scored a 610; I ended up with a 720 on GMAT #1. Highly recommend.

Thanks, Joe and Manhattan Prep!

Dmitry Farber was an exemplary tutor. He was very flexible with his schedule, and extremely well-prepared for our sessions, such that if I didn't have any specific material that I wanted to review, he was prepared with a full lesson as a backup. He is the absolute KING of metaphors, and you'll realize this if you work with him. But more importantly, he was incredibly understanding, has unlimited patience, and truly cares about drilling the knowledge into his students, rather than showcasing his intelligence. Meanwhile, it was obvious in our sessions that he is brilliant, but able to break down complex concepts in the simplest of ways to understand. I was unique in that I was ALMOST at the score I wanted when I first met with Dmitry, but he was able to give me 750+ score level advice and guidance, put together a study plan for me, and give me the tools so that in the end I was able to score above my initial target score. I would highly recommend Dmitry to anyone considering a private tutor, and I only wish I'd started working with him earlier. He's not only an outstanding tutor, but a great guy who cared about my success almost as much as I did.

Trust me, paying that $250/hour for Chelsey, especially if you are just under 50 points away from your goal score, is totally worth it. I was struggling with quant - pretty much scored the same every practice exam for 2 months, then 3 hours with Chelsey, my score went up 50 points (in quant alone) within 3 weeks.

Chelsey zeros in on both your strengths and weaknesses and designs a study plan specific to your needs. I think she pretty much knows every single GMAT problem out there and can pick out specific problems that you need to practice. She's practical and to the point. I also feel that Chelsey sincerely cares about her students!

Briefly - I could not be more pleased by my experience with Joe Martin and Manhattan Prep. I was under significant timing pressure, with only one month to prepare for the GMAT, and was blown away by how much I was able to improve though my private tutoring work with Joe.

Joe's instruction, combined with the Manhattan Prep resources, were invaluable in helping me develop test taking strategies for both the quant and verbal and rebuild the math skills that I had neglected since high school.

I was ultimately able to achieve a score that would have been at the very highest range of my expectations when I began this process, and I could not be more satisfied with my experience and outcome.

The short version: Joe is a gifted, enthusiastic, and patient teacher who helped me improve my score by over 100 points in less than two months of weekly tutoring sessions. Working with Joe made a top-tier MBA program a possibility for me. Work with him. Period. You won't regret it.

The long version: I'm an older candidate who graduated from a liberal arts school and hadn't touched math in nearly 10 years. I took Manhattan Prep's 9-week course and subsequently spent several months studying fundamental math concepts with a different tutor. Despite my efforts, I became frustrated by my progress and Manhattan Prep suggested that I work with Joe.

The difference was night and day. Joe is as humble as he is brilliant and clearly takes pride in helping his students succeed. During our first session, he listened to my concerns, asked pointed questions, and created a structured game plan that struck a balance between content review and test taking strategy. It was apparent that Joe not only has a masterful understanding of GMAT concepts and content, but is also a natural teacher who clearly enjoys working through the material with his students. For example, when I struggled with a problem, Joe would patiently think of different ways to explain the concept until I understood it. I started noticing improvement in my scores within weeks of working together, and was thrilled when I earned a 660 on my first official exam. (That might not sound very impressive to you GMAT snobs out there, but I started at a 410, so that's a victory in my book.) I truly can't recommend him enough; it's an investment that will definitely pay off.

My assigned tutor with Manhattan GMAT was Mark Sullivan. I was impressed with his knowledge of the GMAT and recommended strategies to succeed. He made himself readily available and provided great resources to help me during our time. His e-mails were informative and always useful.

I didn't see improvement initially with my private tutoring but after a few sessions I began to gain some traction and improve my performance on my practice exams. He served as a great motivator to me when I wanted to quit, and he was able to talk me into sticking with it.

Unfortunately when it came to taking the exam, I saw no difference in my score on the Quant or Verbal section. Needless to say, after spending thousands of dollars on private customized tutoring I was pretty disappointed. As a result, I can't recommend this service to friends. I take responsibility that I may not be the brightest kid and one who has always struggled with formalized testing.

Mark was confident that if I were to retake the GMAT in a month I would be scoring where I was on my practice exams prior the exam (upper 600s). Fortunately for me, I was able to land a great consulting position shortly after taking the GMAT exam but that meant I was unable to get back in and take the exam when that tutoring was fresh.

I decided to sign up for Manhattan GMAT because my sister used this program and had great results.

I took the 9-week session and the depth that Ron Purewal explains each question helped me understand the core fundamental of each problem and alternative ways to solve a problem. The prep material that Manhattan provided was also very complete and had tons of practice problems for review.

After the 9-week course, I signed up for private tutoring with Jake Nicholson. He helped me develop a systematic approach to each problem, which allowed me to avoid careless mistakes and to logically think through each problem, no matter how complex it was.

My 1st practice test score from not knowing anything about GMAT was in the mid-500's. From my 1st official GMAT to my 2nd, I improved my score from 680 to 720. I am very happy with my score and highly recommend Manhattan GMAT for anyone who is preparing for the GMAT!

Brian is an amazing teacher: he is not only extremely personable but also great at keeping the content fun and interesting. He does a great job at teaching the tricks of the trade, a lot of which there isn't time for in the online course. If you're looking to beat the GMAT, look no further than Brian Birdwell! Thanks B!

Avi Gutman and Manhattan GMAT are excellent. Avi is exceptional at what he does. Great teacher, explains concepts clearly, understands the strengths/weaknesses/challenges of each student and has well-articulated blog posts that explain tricky concepts.

Whether as a course or private tutoring, I would recommend Avi and Manhattan GMAT to anyone taking the test.

I would highly recommend MGMAT to anyone wanting to score in the 700's. I first took a Veritas Prep class, which was fine, it helped me get a 680. As I continued to study though, I felt like I plateaued; I wasn't able to further improve on my practice tests.

Soon after I took the test I bought the MGMAT books and started studying on my own. I started to improve again as I feel I learned the content of the test material much better. MGMAT has the best content of any GMAT test prep I've come across. Other companies largely just teach tips and good guessing techniques, as opposed to how to actually understand the content on the test..

Along with using the MGMAT materials I also met with Kyle Widdison, a Manhattan private tutor. He was fantastic. He really listed to my concerns and tried to understand what was holding me back. He's very down to earth and pragmatic. Kyle helped me focus my study efforts very quickly and I started to see immediate improvement. Not only did he help me understand the test material better, he helped me to have a better mental game while taking it. After meeting with him and studying with the MGMAT materials I boosted my score to a 720.

I purchased the MGMAT materials second-hand and pursued a self-study strategy.

I was stuck between 700 and 720 on all my practice exams, but was hoping to get into the mid-700s. Enter Marc Fienberg. I thought a 1-hour private tutoring session would really help me go to the next level in my scoring. I was paired with Marc, who was a great instructor. He asked me beforehand (via email) what I was struggling with and what I thought I needed. While private tutoring costs as much as a 1st year associate at a top law firm, the money was well spent for me. Marc was able to quickly talk me through my struggles and give me concise, helpful tips that I used during the remainder of my study time and the actual exam.

On test day, I ended up getting higher than I got an any of the ~7 practice exams I ever took.

I took the Manhattan GMAT course prior to taking the GMAT for the first time, and even after 9 weeks of diligently following the course syllabus, I didn't feel prepared for the test. The class simply did not provide me enough time to focus on my weakest areas. So before taking my next GMAT, I opted to get a tutor (Marc Fienberg) to focus solely on the math section. Marc quickly zeroed in on my strengths and capabilities and offered tailored instruction and advice accordingly. I would highly recommend a tutor (and Marc) to any student who is very strong in one area but weaker in another. This way, you don't waste your time covering material that you already perform well on.

Note that Dan also teaches regular classes but I opted for the private tutoring due to my unpredictable work schedule.

Dan is the best teacher I have ever had in my entire academic life. Through high school and college I've never had such a great teacher. I recommend him 100%

It goes without say that Dan is brilliant but what is exceptional about Dan is that he is also a great teacher. A lot of times a smart person doesn't always make a great teacher because they have a hard time understanding how you can not understand something that to them is so simple. This is NOT the case with Dan. He was super patient and was able to help me through every hard problem. He is such a great and experienced teacher that he was able to find exactly what I wasn't understanding and break down the problem to teach me the fundamentals that I probably never properly learned in high school.

Dan has an amazing background including having spent some time as a school teacher and it shows. It's one thing to be able to ace the GMAT it's another to have the skills to teach. Dan has both.

There need to be more teachers like Dan.

With Dan's help my score went up about 200 points and I broke 700.

Hi,

As I benefited from other users' reviews, I would like to pay the favour forward and write my own review of the GMAT Prep companies that I used and specifically of Manhattan GMAT.

First, the Manhattan GMAT (MGMAT) Strategy guides are the best resources to study from, regardless of your preparation level and of your knowledge. These books have provided me with the foundations for all of the concepts tested on the GMAT. The material is comprehensive and covers everything. The end of chapter problems in the strategy guides not only allow you to practice what you have learned but also provide you with the confidence that you need in your studies. I went over these guides many times until I understood all of the concepts well.

Second, the MGMAT CATs are the most accurate tests and the most representative of the actual GMAT compared to the other available resources. I have done practice tests from Veritas, Knewton, and GMAT Prep. The Math is harder on the MGMAT CATs than on the actual GMAT. For the Verbal section, I read a lot online that MGMAT CAT Verbal part is easier than the actual GMAT Verbal part. I do not agree with this assessment. The actual GMAT Verbal may seem harder due to the additional stress associated with the actual test experience. I definitely recommend the MGMAT CATs as practice to anyone who is aiming for high 600s or 700s score.

Third, Stacey Koprince at MGMAT is an excellent teacher and a great motivator. When Stacey stresses in online forums and to her personal clients to do ALL parts of the GMAT CAT when practising at home, she is spot on. One of the main things that I changed and that as a result helped me improve my score by 30 points (670 to 700) was the stamina that I built by doing the AWA and IR sections every time I did a practice test. Furthermore, Stacey is excellent at identifying the weaknesses of students. Each one of us knows what his/her weaknesses are but we sometimes attribute greater weight to improving certain weaknesses while completely ignoring other weaknesses. For example, I was always keen on practising Math question in order to improve my Math knowledge. However, to do well on the GMAT is to learn when to skip a question that tests an acknowledged weakness of yours in order to save time and preserve your mental energy for the questions when the GMAT actually tests your stronger areas. Stacey drilled this point in me and she was right in doing so. For example, I am much stronger in Verbal (hitting 90% plus in practice tests) than in Math. On the actual GMAT, I got this crazy combinatorics problem. I remembered Stacey's advice at that point and simply guessed on the question. This in turn helped me focus my mental energy and my time on the remaining Math questions and on the Verbal part.

Finally, my greatest improvement had been in Sentence Correction (SC). I feel like once you have a good grasp on the rules tested, it actually becomes fun to solve SC questions on the GMAT. As is widely agreed on the GMAT online forums, MGMAT SC guide is an amazing tool to use to improve your SC performance. The book organizes the information in a very elegant way and the end of chapter problems are really good practice. However, Knewton's SC lessons are very very good as well. If you study SC from MGMAT and Knewton then you'll for sure be hitting over 90% in Verbal provided that your CR and RC are decent (70% to 80%).

I owe Stacey Koprince and Manhattan GMAT a lot. They were tremendously helpful and really aim on developing personable relationships with their clients. I asked Stacey to call me for a few minutes before I started the GMAT and hearing her confidence-instilling words really helped me focus my attention on doing well in the test.

Thanks Stacey and Thanks Manhattan GMAT!

Good luck to Everyone!

My tutor was awesome. I'm really happy after spending 6 hours with him. I was scoring in the 640-690 range before meeting with my tutor. I knew I needed to work on Quant, as that was my main weakness. I was scoring in the roughly 50th percentile, while my verbal was upwards of 90th. I was able to improve a lot of basic skills just by talking through the difficult quant sections and problems, particularly percents.
Ultimately, after a few hours I was able to bring my quant score up to a solid 44. Not the most incredible showing, but I don't have a quant background and this was about as far as I felt I could go with a tutor. My overall score didn't change, but my quant skills went up and I intend to take the GMAT again.
So, my view is this: the Manhattan books are great and second to none, but only do tutoring if you have a solid base or feel you learn better with 1:1 attention. The tutoring helped mostly with tweaking my understanding of the process -- not actually teaching me the basics. If you have a strong base, I'd recommend tutoring or a class through Manhattan!

Robert helped me to pace myself for the test. His tips helped me not to get caught up on high level questions and to move on.

We went through my test exprience and discovered improvement opportunities with regards to timing.

Also, he answered some very specific question, which I still had after going through every possible question from all kinds of books (Manhattan, Kaplan, Official Guide), such as inequalities with absolute values on both sides.

If you are happy going through the study material on your own (I DO!), and you want the final push in getting the score you want, it is worth it to ask for 1-2-1 tutoring. I think I only had 2 sessions - so it wasn't more expensive than a 10-weeks course.

Hope this helps,

Y

I purchased private tutoring from Manhattan GMAT and was paired with Brett Beach-Kimball. Before engaging in online tutoring I had attempted to study on my own and was stuck hovering around the 640 mark. After 8 hours of tutoring from Brett, I took the GMAT and scored a 730. I found the online classroom easy to use and navigate. I must admit, I was skeptical at first as I am very much not a computer guy, but the forum worked well. Brett's strongest attribute as a teacher is his ability to explain problems in multiple ways. Whenever I would have difficulty with a particular problem or concept, Brett would ask me to talk him through my thought process on tackling the problem. Brett made his recommendation on how to approach similar problems in the future based on my thinking and learning style, and did not try to force a "single solution" model on me, which was quite beneficial.
Brett and I also worked together to create a solid game plan for the month leading up to the GMAT. His recommendations were spot on and enabled me to perform at my peak on test day.
The out of session work assigned by Brett on a weekly basis proved invaluable at preparing me for test day. When we started together I was having to rush through the last 7 or 8 questions on the quantitative section. On test day I was able to finish to quantitative section with ten minutes to spare.
It is important to note that in order to maximize time and money (as the tutoring is pricey, but well worth it) you must spend ample time in between tutoring sessions to practice sets and drills. Brett and I met every Monday night for two hours. Between sessions, I usually studied for at least an hour on weeknights and 3 hours on week ends.
Brett is a true professional. I would recommend him to anyone seriously looking to improve their GMAT score and is willing to put in the extra time to do so.

Manhattan identified my weakest quant areas (through a practice test) and provided me with additional practice material and strategy tips to improve those areas. Overall, I improved 20 percentile points.

Sarah Ryan was a great teacher, able to guide me when I had lost direction. She made things as clear as possible and showed me a better and more effective way to study.

She helped me determine a strategy to perform well on the GMAT, given my level of existing preparation. She also spent a lot of time reassuring me and trying to build my confidence - probably the most important determinant of my performance!

I liked the Manhattan books as well, much more rigorous than competitors. As they say, they focus on rules and concepts, rather than guessing strategies. The general info (Getting Started with GMAT) and articles on time management on the manhattangmat website were very useful as well.

I started prepping for the GMAT with Manhattan GMAT's 9 week course with Gregg. The curriculum was great but I didn't have enough time to dedicate to studying. When I finally had time to be serious, I reached out to Gregg for private tutoring.

Gregg is very knowledgeable about the GMAT. He clearly communicates techniques and methods that are effective once you adopt them. He is able to quickly pinpoint your weaker areas and offers great recommendations on how best to approach studying. Having him in my corner provided a great confidence boost that enabled me to improve my score from the 500 range to 720. The journey was tiring but Gregg made it more manageable and ultimately, successful. Thank you, Gregg!

A friend of mine referred me to Manhattan GMAT because he said it was geared toward people who have aggressive GMAT goals. I signed up for the self study so that I could review the materials on my own time. After completing the basic course content and taking a couple practice tests I signed up for private tutoring with Andrea. Andrea helped me to develop a game plan to address my weaknesses. We spent a significant amount of time in our sessions reviewing the problems. We discussed the logic behind the problem and practical strategies for eliminating certain answers if time is running short. Additionally Andrea provided tactical tips about how to prepare for the test: how many practice exams to take, when to take the final practice test, when to stop learning new content, etc. Originally I had planned on taking the GMAT two times. But, MGMAT and Andrea helped me to exceed my goal on the first attempt, allowing me to focus on the rest of my application. I would highly recommend Manhattan GMAT and Andrea to anyone who wants to do well on their GMAT. Thank you!

I've taken 10+ hours private tutoring with MGMAT instructor Dmitry Royter

Overall attitude and strategy

Dmitry didn't seem interested in improving my score. I think that he just didn't care. As no guarantees on improvement are offered by MGMAT he was sure that he will receive the money anyway. He didn't try to figure out my weak points he just helped me to solve some difficult problems. May be I'm wrong, but I think that when you pay 200$ an hour it's not just for solving some tasks. I can find solutions to most of the difficult tasks on line for free. I have completed several CATs and asked to give me some feedback on them for several weeks, but haven't received any clear answer. Just - "you are doing fine"...
Even though I'm not satisfied with Dmitry's attitude I must say that he is friendly and polite.

Tactics
Dmitry was good at explaining some tasks. Mostly CR part. His SC explanations were weak and usually unclear. I've received no new info in math.

To summarize, I consider my experience almost complete money and time loss.

My practice test scores were nowhere near where I wanted nor reflective of my ability.

Abby and Manhattan GMAT made all the difference and I got the 700 score I wanted.

Working with Abby was an excellent experience and I feel I made real progress because of her skills and dedication to the process. Abby tailored her teaching process to my unique needs and coached me not only on the tested topics but helped mold and develop my studying and testing skills. It not just about knowing the subject matter but everything including studying and how to take the test. Abby has it all nailed.

The Manhattan GMAT materials were extremely well done and provided a great resource for my preparation. The online recorded classes let me review material at my own pace. Enjoyable and well done. I especially liked the Manhattan GMAT Official Guide Question and Answer explanation utility "Archer".

I just took my GMAT and scored a 750 (Q49, V42). This was a pretty amazing feat for me considering I scored only 560 my first time taking the GMAT (and that was after taking Veritas tutoring and a Princeton Review Class!)

Only by sitting down with the Manhattan GMAT books and really learning the content contained in them was I able to get into the 700 range. Then, when I was consistently scoring in the 90+ percentile, Manhattan tutoring got me my 750 and into the 98th percentile. I recommend trying to get Sean Murphy in D.C. if he is available. He is a superb teacher and pretty much a genius. He'll show you exactly what you need to do to get the score you want.

If you want a 700+ on the GMAT, use Manhattan GMAT. PERIOD!!!

I did private online tutoring through Manhattan GMAT and was extremely satisfied with the experience. The online classroom was easy to navigate and the tutor was amazing. We had a brief call before the first tutoring session to discuss my strengths and weaknesses and what exactly wanted to achieve with the tutoring sessions. The sessions were extremely organized and Horacio taught me specific techniques for different types of questions. Horacio was incredibly helpful, patient and most importantly, knowledgeable. I would strongly recommend the online private tutoring sessions and ask for Horacio if you can!

I believe Manhattan GMAT is the best test prep company. I have experience with Knewton and Kaplan as well. Knewton is much cheaper but only online.

My big issue was test anxiety and I had to deal with that on my own. For any test anxiety cases (like my own), I would suggest this video.
The first time i watched it my heart was pounding and by the 80th time i was totally fine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kK-QuuZeuw

- Teacher was effective at focusing on my weaknesses first
- very motivating
- Good at analyzing past practice exams

I've encountered many teachers and tutors throughout my schooling and Ron is by far the best. No joke!

During my sessions with Ron I learned more valuable information and techniques than any course or self study program. Ron was able to diagnose my problems with the GMAT during our very first session by just watching how I solved the problems and seeing which problems I typically missed. The way that he is different from other instructors is that other instructors would have looked at my weaknesses and just told me to do more problems in those areas and go back and re-read the concepts in the workbooks. Instead, Ron gave me new techniques/tips to apply in those weak areas but more importantly he stressed his TAKEAWAY philosophy (just search the forum for takeaways)

Additional things I learned were a throwaway list, time management, alternative quant solving techniques, DS techniques, CR techniques, test day stress management, etc. For someone like me who had plateaued, Ron's help was helpful in taking me to the next level.

Also, as others have mentioned, he creates a comfortable setting in which its more of a dialogue than getting lectured at. He is simply awesome! Try to take a class with him and/or private tutoring.

I’ve had 3 different tutors, so I think I can offer a unique perspective because I’ve seen what others have to offer. I know that many people have already said great things about Ron and I agree with them . What makes Ron so good?

He knows his material, and not just his material but theories, ideas, and methods that go far beyond the material.

Besides having excellent credentials, he’s been teaching standardized testing for years, and I’m talking over a decade or more. He takes a holistic approach to studying. I don’t know of any other teachers who can talk about the Stanislavsky method and the biological effects of stress and how all of it can be related to GMAT studying.

He makes even the complex simple by offering easy-to-grasp analogies and explanations

If you want a good example of this, you can check out his Thursdays with Ron video where he explains factors. He gives a good story to help understand the concept by using the story of two robbers.

He simplifies and streamlines

If there’s a more effective way than formulas and textbook methods, he’ll show you. At the same time, he won’t dismiss other methods. He’s not trying to replace tools in your tool box. He’s trying to give you a wider variety.

He’ll tell you directly if you’re wasting your time on a certain method or theory

I memorized a lot of formulas and Ron would tell me whether it was useful or simply a waste of time. If you look on a lot of the forums, you’ll find that many times people are using overly complex theories to solve problems, and if you’re doing this, Ron will tell you.

He focuses on the essentials

If you’re spending time learning something that isn’t going to help you on the test, he’ll tell you.

He has a philosophy

He has a method and an overall set of ideas that guide him and if anyone’s ever taught professionally, they’ll understand how important this is and how the best teachers have this.

He'll refocus your attention

There are many times where one may be doing a problem and wonder, ?Is this a 700 level problem?? Ron will tell you that it's not the level, but what you take away or learn from a problem that's important.

He’s responsive and explains everything until it’s understood

Anytime I had a question, he always responded in a timely manner with an excellent detailed response.

The first two hours with Ron was worth more than all the time I spent with 3 different tutors. That’s no exaggeration.

You can get a good idea of his teaching style if you see some of the Thursdays with Ron videos on MGMAT, but I will say that you should bear in mind that he’s working in a small time frame with a high number of students so if he moves a little quick, realize that in a tutoring session, this won’t happen. He always gives good explanations and is extremely responsive even when you email him. I think his active role and thorough answers in other forums such as this one should demonstrate his dedication and interest in helping people. I’ve never seen Ron give a short, general explanation to a specific question. You’ll know what I mean if you look at his posts. I always search for his posts either here or on the MGMAT site because I know that he'll provide a thorough answer.

Even if you don’t have the $1,000 to spend on tutoring, I’d say that if you want to self-study, you should definitely try to find $430 to invest in a two hour session with Ron. I know that $430 is almost the cost of enrollment for some prep companies, but Ron can easily save you time and wasted effort by telling you exactly what you should and shouldn’t be focusing on. There are a lot of excellent forums and websites that offer study tips and information, but it can be difficult to navigate the massive amount of info floating around. By learning from Ron, you’re gaining so much more than quant or verbal knowledge ? you’re gaining an overall understanding of the GMAT and the best methods to effectively study for it.

I found MGMAT to be really exceptional. When I went to see Dave for private tutoring, I had already taken a Princeton Review course and tried using some Kaplan books for self-study. I found both the online and printed materials offered by MGMAT to be of excellent, if not far superior quality, to the others I had used to date. Dave, my tutor, was affable and patient. He identified some glaring gaps in my approach and helped me figure out a study plan that was effective and made sense. I have other friends who have used MGMAT and they have all had similarly positive experiences. MGMAT is definitely a high-end boutique when it comes to the prep centers out there however, I couldn't recommend them more highly.

While I have this review labeled under private tutoring, I also invested in two courses and one math bootcamp provided by Manhattan GMAT ("MGMAT"). Below I will highly my opinion on various aspects of my experience.

The Materials: MGMAT's materials are incredible. They aren't incredible because they teach you a ton of "short-cuts" they are effective because they teach you material from the foundation up to the advanced skills necessary to earn a top score. Quantitative material is broken up into books seperated by topic. There are exceptional practice problems that were created by the master instructors at MGMAT who sat through the exam and identified (to the extent it's possible) how to formulate problems of similar difficulty levels as on the real exam. For the Verbal concepts there are also books broken out into topical area. In addition to these excellent resources there are the official guides that come along with the purchase of any course with MGMAT. These books are packed full of REAL questions that were once part of the live exams administered to MBA hopefuls on the GMAT. I have looked at other review materials and while many companies have 1 or 2 great aspects, MGMAT wholistically has the best materials.

The Instructors: The instructors are in one word - OUTSTANDING. They should be for the hoops they have to jump through just to teach at the company. Rigorous interviews and presentations must be made, hopeful instructors are thrown into classroom simulation before being hired and forced to answer tedious questions that mimic what students will be like. Only those that can remain composed and actually convey the material effectively are granted the opportunity to teach students.

My experience with the instructors was an absolute pleasure. Kara Thornton taught my first class and was patient when students of various levels asked questions that ranged the spectrum from intermediate to difficult. I was a student that had trouble with intermediate to mid-range quantitative problems and I never at any time felt like I did not belong. The instructors encouraged me and acted as if they were my biggest fan during the process. Problems in class are solved step by step and devoid of short-cuts where mistakes can be made.


Tutoring:
I dealt with Abby Pelcyger for my one on one tutoring. I cannot emphasize enough how tutoring made the difference for me. In the context of one on one tutoring Abby went over every practice exam and real exam I had taken (more than 10+ practice exams and 5 real GMAT exams) to understand my patterns, my weakenesses, and my strengths. Abby then build a custom plan tailored for my needs which were extremely weighty. At the time I had 3 weeks to prepare for the GMATs before Memorial Day weekend. I was on the waitlist at Cornell for 5 months already and new it would be my last chance to get over the hump.

Abby taught me time management strategies that helped me mentally to get over the pressure and guilt of skipping a problem too difficult for myself. My three weeks and 15+ hours spent with Abby were some of the best dollars I ever spent.

The only thing I would have done differently is I would have hired Abby and utilized private tutoring earlier in my process.

RESULTS: I took the GMAT once before becoming acclimated with MGMAT and 5 times afterwards. My score before MGMAT was 530, after the first course I jumped to a 610. There were a few hiccups on the next exams. After private tutoring I scored a 680 and was removed from the waitlist.

MGMAT helped me gain access to the school I wanted and changed my life forever. I am grateful for their team and highly commend their expertise to any prospective MBA applicant.

My math score went from 29th percentile to 73rd percentile. My verbal went from 73rd to 91st. The books are terrific and the tutors are fantastic. Personally I used my tutor strictly for quantitative purposes but my verbal score went up just by doing the homework. I highly recommend this course for anyone who has been away from math since high school. They go through the basics and the tutors quickly realize your general ceiling to create the most effective approach.

I scored a 530 on my first diagnostic and I'm hoping to get a 700+ on my exam!