Looking for an affordable tutor in NYC

Question

Hey all,

So I took the GMAT in January, and got a 640. I'd like to take it again on December 11th.

The first time around, my preparation time was minimal. All self study - bought the Manhattan GMAT Guide and only got through the roadmap, fractions and decimals, algebra and word problems. Didn't do any verbal prep.

I'd like to get a tutor to help me hone in on my problems and study effectively within the minimal time I have. But its crazy expensive! The one I'm looking at now is $200 per hour, and he suggests two hours of tutoring per week until the end of December (he recommends taking it later, but I'd like to be able to get it out of the way earlier since I waited until January last year and it **** me over enough that I couldn't put together a good application)

I'd like to spend around $1000 or less total.

Any recommendations? If you live in the NYC area and can recommend a tutor that you've actually used (please, if you are a tutor, don't message me) that would be great. If you recommend I continue self study, let me know. Just interested in experiences and recommendations from people who have actually taken the GMAT or are studying for it.

Thanks!

bb · Answer

New York is a pretty prolific place for Tutors and GMAT-related services. 
I have not used anyone myself but i know Optimus Prep has affordable tutoring options. You can give them a try; you can also keep an eye out on Craigslist and meet for a 30-min free session in starbucks or something like that but you would have to do the weeding out and shortlisting the options.

I have done self-study and it works. You would move faster with a tutor, obviously, but you can also combine the two options (you don't have to have the tutor teach you every week. They can be there once a week for an hour to address your questions, assess your progress, and make other comments/suggestions, so even $1K may get it done if you have 4-5 one-hour sessions).

wendella1 · Answer

Thanks bb! I'm trying to figure out if I'm just using the tutor as a crutch because I am having trouble working up the discipline to put serious effort in.

I just had a phone consult with someone who charges $200/hour. He said he can work with me to develop a 5 hour plan, but I'm wondering if I should just suck it up and wait until I actually hit a wall before hiring a tutor. I mean I haven't even covered the course material yet.

That said, I'm really having trouble focusing this time around, unlike last time. There's a lot going on in my life.

bb · Answer

1. There have been thousands (and millions) of people who have done Self-Study. Many people here did it because courses were not available, feasible, or we were the kind of people who just thought they knew better :lol

2. Similar to how the fitness works - you can sign up for a gym membership or you can hire a personal trainer or you can work out in a class. It is really up to a person. You can get to the same result, it just depends what gets you there better/faster and with least pain. Depends on what your priority is. If tutoring is the option you feel that works best for you and you can afford it then go for it. No reason to wait until you get lost (most people who are lost don't realize it until they are really really lost). It will give better results and better ROI if you start sooner than later, esp if you do have a lot going on. An appointment with tutor can keep you honest and disciplined and not slacking.

3. So if you feel you would do best with a tutor - I would start now while the time is on your side. Let them develop a plan for you to study on your own and then you can always bug them and ping them. I would negotiate a free set of "emails" or "texts" you don't want to wait a week to ask them a question. That would be silly.

4. If a person charges $200/hour - that's top of line what MGMAT and Veritas Prep charges, I would want to make sure they are top notch. Again, i don't know if a $100/hour tutor for 10 hours is better than a $200/r for 5. I would probably ask for references and ask their previous clients how long they studied and it is realistic to get help in 5.

5. What you are buying is confidence, expediency, strong shoulder, and experience. You are not buying knowledge when you are hiring a tutor. All of the info is out there. It is in the books and you can get it. All a tutor can help you with is get it faster, and focus in the most important things and stay on track and on schedule.

Ultimately many roads to the same place. Tutor is the shortest one but you pay for the time/stress savings.

wendella1 · Answer

Thanks!

The person I just consulted with is GMAT Compass:

https://www.yelp.com/biz/gmat-compass-manhattan

He's recommending a two hour meeting just to assess my strengths and weaknesses and put me on a plan (after having me do a diagnostic on my own). I'm wondering if I should just do that and then go back as needed. $400 is a lot to me (I take the bus everywhere) but I can definitely say I've wasted more than $400 before.

According to Veritas Prep, they only have full on packages for private tutoring starting at $2950 for 12 hours. Unless there's a hourly program I'm not aware of. Manhattan GMAT is $255/hour.

HanoiGMATtutor · Answer

Good point! Do you know how these sets are usually priced? I've realized that there needs to be a limit to my time spent outside tutoring hours.

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