Would I benefit from a GMAT tutor?

Question

I took a diagnostic exam and scored very very poorly (almost too embarrassed to say the score). However, I will say my biggest weakness is definitely Quant and I/R. I take the actual exam the second week in October and don’t know if I should hire a tutor or just try and self teach.

Score-
Verbal: 31
Quant: 27
I/R: 4

Score-
Verbal: 31
Quant: 27
I/R: 4

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi Jdevinee123,

I’m glad you reached out, and I’m happy to help. Before providing specific advice, I’d like to learn more about your situation with the GMAT. I have some questions:

1) Have you taken only one practice GMAT?
 
2) Please describe how you have been studying. For how many hours a day and for how many months? What resources have you been using?
 
3) To what programs will you be applying? What are the deadlines for these programs?
 
4) By when would you LIKE to take the GMAT? By when MUST you take the GMAT?
 
5) For how many hours a day, on average, can you study between now and your next GMAT?

6) What is your GMAT score goal?

Once I learn a bit more about you, I can provide some detailed advice.

Alos, you may find it helpful to read this article about  how to score a 700+ on the GMAT .

Jdevinee123 · Answer

1) Have you taken only one practice GMAT?
 - Yes

2) Please describe how you have been studying. For how many hours a day and for how many months? What resources have you been using?
 - I just began studying yesterday (which was AFTER I took the diagnostic exam) - I’m using the Kaplan GMAT Premier book and reading each section/chapter and then doing the practice problems along the way. I plan on studying for at least an hour and half for 5 or 6 days a week until the day of the exam.

3) To what programs will you be applying? What are the deadlines for these programs?
I’m applying to get my Masters in Accountancy at several schools. My goal of this is to get the knowledge and credit hours to take the CPA exam

4) By when would you LIKE to take the GMAT? By when MUST you take the GMAT?
I’m scheduled to take the GMAT on Oct 13, 2018. That is when I MUST take it.

5) For how many hours a day, on average, can you study between now and your next GMAT?
1.5 to 2 hours at most

6) What is your GMAT score goal?
600

Posted from my mobile device

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Jdevinee123,

To start, many Test Takers are unhappy about their initial practice CAT Test scores, but you really shouldn't be. That result is just a measure of your skills right now - and you're going to be learning and honing those skills over the coming weeks and months. Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores; your timeline gives you just 7.5 weeks of study. While you could potentially improve a great deal in that time, you will have to be efficient with your studies to hit 600. Studying just 10 hours a week might not give you enough time to learn (and properly practice) everything that you will need to know to hit your Score Goal, meaning that you might need to plan for more study time each week or push back your Test Date.

Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

1) What are the exact application deadlines for the Programs that you plan to apply to?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Jdevinee123 · Answer

I’m trying to get my applications in as soon as possible because of timing issues in my personal life, but the official due dates aren’t until January 2019.

I understand I probably will not be able to reach my goal of 600 without more time or a longer period of studying. I could pay to push the exam date back, but was trying to avoid the extra costs.

Posted from my mobile device

GMATPill · Answer

Tutoring can get pricey though there are many benefits including customization and opening your eyes to a new way of seeing a question.

If you're looking for a more cost-effective solution, online courses can often accomplish many times more at a fraction of the cost. Each course takes a slightly different approach - and what works for one person may not work for you. So explore around to see which approaches resonate with you.

We take a "thought process" approach - with expert demonstration videos that show the thinking process that goes on in an expert's head as they think through a test question.

Here is a Google Sheet with links to OG SC video explanations showcasing our style:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing

As an example, you can try to watch through a few walkthroughs here:
https://www.gmatpill.com/sentencecorrection/og/q007.mp4
https://www.gmatpill.com/sentencecorrection/og/d35.mp4

This is a great resource from which to practice and also to hear an expert's perspective when thinking through test questions.

We also look at core types of questions -- such as distance/rate questions. And we do multiple variations of that core question -- perhaps two trains are moving away from each other, then towards each other -- what if they're moving at an angle? What if they start at different times? Sounds like a lot - but once you identify all that is possible and you practice those -- then there will be minimal surprises during the test.

We encourage you to explore some of the success stores of GMAT Pill-ers at:

https://www.gmatpill.com/testimonials

---and get additional GMAT Practice at our online question bank, which has 1,000+ practice questions available free. A paid account is required to view all of our excellent video explanations.

Focus, focus, focus,
https://www.gmatpill.com

GMATbuster92 · Answer

There is nothing to worry about , practice regularly and you will score good in actual GMAT.

DavidTutorexamPAL · Answer

The good news is this: October is still a ways away, meaning you still have plenty of time to change where you are at. 
Tutors are indeed one possible way to go, but not the only one. Here are a few quick thoughts on the different ways one can study: 
-  Private tutoring  makes sense if we need a very high score and an individual study plan, and especially – if we have extra money to spare in order to get additional attention and feedback or to spend more time on certain areas. Putting cost aside, even the best private tutors only know what they see in the few questions that you’ve solved in front of them. 
- regarding  books , the OG is a must. aside from that, I wouldn't base my studies on books. the gmat is a computer adaptive test, while books are neither of those things. 
-  A classroom based GMAT Course 
makes sense if you feel comfortable in a classroom setting, your budget is very high, you are self-motivated and don’t have big gaps in your knowledge that need special attention, and your schedule can accommodate a course that meets at a specific time every week. However, as every GMAT student knows, the real work happens back at home, outside the classroom, when you practice and try to figure out solutions by yourself.
-  online courses  allow us to choose our own time and place. However, many of these are videos of a power point presentation showing the course material followed by a bulk of practice questions.
-  Live online courses  are also an option. These have a similar experience to the old fashioned GMAT class except you watch the tutor through a screen. When taking an in-person or live-online course we should make sure that we will have enough face time.
- Exampal (my company) has a different type of course,  online computer assisted customised learning . This uses personalised machine learning to monitor thousands of students, and provides you with the approaches that proved most efficient for each given question.
- one other point: even if you decide you only want a tutor, through examPAL, you can get 4 or 8 sessions with our expert tutors, for a lot less than it would take you to just get the same amount of sessions elsewhere. Check us  out  -

ask me any questions  here  if you have any!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Jdevinee123,

While it sounds as if you're dealing with some issues that are complicating your studies, you have to remember that there is NO benefit to 'rushing in' an application if it's not strong enough to earn you an invite to that School. If the School's Admissions Committee does not thing that you are a fantastic applicant, then you will likely be wait-listed or rejected.

The cost to push back your Test Date (even if it's just a few weeks or a month) is just $50 - and that is considerably less than the $250 you would have to pay to take the GMAT again if you don't hit your Score Goal on the first try.

It's also important to remember your REAL Goal in all of this: to get into your first-choice Business School. You might want to take a day to think about how best to make THAT Goal happen - because it sounds like your current goals are more about trying to attempt all of this quickly and cheaply.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Would I benefit from a GMAT tutor?

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