My GMAT journey started on October 2018.
Based on the recommendation from a friend I started by following the Beat the GMAT's 60-Day Study Guide. As suggested in the plan, my initial approach was to learn the content through the OG, supplement it with the free GMAT Prep Now Videos available (free videos aren't available for every topic) and then solving topic-related problems from the OG. Unlike many people, my Verbal performance was already quite sound so I decide to start with Quant.
After 6 months of following this self-study approach, I realised that it wasn't really working for me - I was spending too much time and energy on raw math, memorizing formulas and trying to understand the OG's super mathy explanations but I didn't see much improvement in my performance, consistently scoring between 560 and 590 in every practice test I took.
That's when I decided to go for an online prep course and found EMPOWERgmat in one of the forums.
After completing the 3-day trial period, I ended up choosing this plan for several reasons:
1) I really enjoyed the instruction style - more than simply focusing on the questions, EMPOWERgmat gets you to use the most effective approach to get the right answers in the shortest amount of time
2) They use official problems but teach you how to solve them using EMPOWER tactics, which I found a lot more useful than the explanations on the OG
3) It is one of the most affordable programs out there but you can still customize it to your needs by choosing from one of the several study-plans available
I completed their 2-month study plan and finally took the GMAT on July 2019, scoring 690 (Q41 V42). I credit it all to EMPOWERgmat!
Their syllabus is based on a tactical approach and Rich and Max do a great job at preparing your for what GMAT really is - a critical reasoning test. Their videos are easy to follow and show you how to effectivelly solve both Quant and Verbal problems from all difficulty levels. Also, the course teaches you a valuable skill - how to triage the questions that are too hard to too weird and that would make you waste precious time and ultematelly hurt your score. Finally, the syllabus also includes a few podcasts that cover the physical and psychological tactics needed to become a true "GMAT assassin". I have always struggled with test day anxiety but after following their advice I arrived at the test center feeling calm and confident - I think that is crucial if you are looking for a high score.
Overall, I highly reccomend EMPOWERgmat to everyone who is looking for a strong and proven strategy to beat the GMAT. Studying for the GMAT is not easy, but if you take everything Rich and Max teach you to heart I promise the hard work will pay off!
Based on the recommendation from a friend I started by following the Beat the GMAT's 60-Day Study Guide. As suggested in the plan, my initial approach was to learn the content through the OG, supplement it with the free GMAT Prep Now Videos available (free videos aren't available for every topic) and then solving topic-related problems from the OG. Unlike many people, my Verbal performance was already quite sound so I decide to start with Quant.
After 6 months of following this self-study approach, I realised that it wasn't really working for me - I was spending too much time and energy on raw math, memorizing formulas and trying to understand the OG's super mathy explanations but I didn't see much improvement in my performance, consistently scoring between 560 and 590 in every practice test I took.
That's when I decided to go for an online prep course and found EMPOWERgmat in one of the forums.
After completing the 3-day trial period, I ended up choosing this plan for several reasons:
1) I really enjoyed the instruction style - more than simply focusing on the questions, EMPOWERgmat gets you to use the most effective approach to get the right answers in the shortest amount of time
2) They use official problems but teach you how to solve them using EMPOWER tactics, which I found a lot more useful than the explanations on the OG
3) It is one of the most affordable programs out there but you can still customize it to your needs by choosing from one of the several study-plans available
I completed their 2-month study plan and finally took the GMAT on July 2019, scoring 690 (Q41 V42). I credit it all to EMPOWERgmat!
Their syllabus is based on a tactical approach and Rich and Max do a great job at preparing your for what GMAT really is - a critical reasoning test. Their videos are easy to follow and show you how to effectivelly solve both Quant and Verbal problems from all difficulty levels. Also, the course teaches you a valuable skill - how to triage the questions that are too hard to too weird and that would make you waste precious time and ultematelly hurt your score. Finally, the syllabus also includes a few podcasts that cover the physical and psychological tactics needed to become a true "GMAT assassin". I have always struggled with test day anxiety but after following their advice I arrived at the test center feeling calm and confident - I think that is crucial if you are looking for a high score.
Overall, I highly reccomend EMPOWERgmat to everyone who is looking for a strong and proven strategy to beat the GMAT. Studying for the GMAT is not easy, but if you take everything Rich and Max teach you to heart I promise the hard work will pay off!
