Manhattan Prep GMAT Course Reviews

I went to first trial classes from two companies and chose to move forward with Manhattan Prep. Not only do they have the best reputation, I preferred their class for two reasons: 1) Right off the bat, the class was very structured so I felt like I was in the hands of experts and any Manhattan class would be consistent in delivering the results that they are known for. 2) The actual classroom was set in a Manhattan office specifically designed for the course complete with projector, wipe board, and individual answer flip cards stations for us to do practice problems as a class. On top of all of that, I had the best instructor ever. Elaine Loh is SUPER smart and encouraged everyone to participate and share their thought processes, which helped me see different (and most of the time, faster) ways to do problems, which is SO crucial on the actual GMAT. She was also always willing to help and always thorough with her explanations and advice. I would definitely recommend the 9-week course, especially with Elaine!

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Keith and Manhattan Prep were instrumental in my preparation for a successful GMAT score. Every week we learned new tips and tricks to help master how to take the exam that I am sure I would not have picked up otherwise. Keith is a great instructor who actively tries to make sure everyone in the class is understanding the problems we are working on at that time. Also, the general breadth of resources the course comes with are invaluable. The online homework tracking tool helped me not only perfect my timing, but also easily track how I was doing and where improvement was needed. The Manhattan Prep practice exams, combined with the GMAT practice exams, are more than enough in that respect. I definitely believe this was worth the money!

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The GMAT class I took with Mark was wonderful. I thought it would be terribly dry, but Mark kept us engaged, despite it being for 3 hours on Wednesdays after a full day of work. My quant score improved dramatically and he gave us great insight into some of the tricks in mastering the test. Mark was always available to answer questions via email and provide practice CAT analysis.

The course itself was very good. The syllabus made sense and the content built on itself over the nine weeks. Overall, I highly recommend this course. I couldn't have hit the 700+ mark in 3 months without it!

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My experience with Manhattan was great, especially for the quant section. My tutor Keith is very experienced and knows the material really well. He is also very personable. Setting up the post course assessment with him was easy. Manhattan's proprietary tests are also helpful. The quant section on those tests is brutal, but good for training you to manage the pace. I would not fret too much if you are not getting perfect scores in the first 2 attempts with the Manhattan practice tests. Gradually i did see my performance improve. If you are a working professional like I am, i highly recommend the course. It did really really hold me accountable.

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I highly recommend Manhattan Prep if you're looking for help with the GMAT. I was on a time crunch, and MPrep was extremely helpful and flexible in getting me set up with a tutor really quickly. When timing didn't work out with my initial tutor, the team got me set up with Logan right away.

Logan was an awesome tutor - he really took the time to find out what I was looking for and what my opportunities to improve were. We were able to work on my weaknesses to improve my Quant score by 9 points in a little over a month. Logan's background in mindfulness was super helpful in settling some of my nerves with the test - which I think was the key to hitting the 700 mark.

Most importantly, Logan made studying fun. I always looked forward to our sessions, it never felt like I was forcing myself to study. I think that was key to helping me hit my target score.

If you're looking for one-to-one tutoring - I would definitely recommend Logan!

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I took the Manhattan Prep course in late February with Laurel as my instructor. It was overall a really helpful experience! Not only did it force me to set aside some time to study every week, the content and strategies discussed during the course were quite helpful. It was helpful to also take the course with others and see that we were all making some of the same mistakes. My score jumped around 80 points from the initial test to when I actually took it. Laurel was a fantastic instructor and was able to answer some truly obscure questions we threw her way. She made herself always available for questions and concerns, which was appreciated!

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After getting an abysmal score on my first GMAT CAT, I realized i would need a more structured program that forced me to sit down and actually get into a routine. Ceilidh Erickson was an AMAZING instructor. She helped us understand that the GMAT is not just a test, but rather a game of logic and time management. She had incredible time saving techniques and proved their applicability with real GMAT problems.

While the 9 sessions may not be enough for some people (like me), I think the biggest benefit is that it forces you to get into a routine. Working and studying is not the easiest combination, so getting into a routine and making studying when you get home almost an addiction is how you're going to improve and ultimately hit your target score. After the 9 sessions and countless hours of applying all of what Ceilidh taught me, I finally cracked 700+ and hit my target score (which was a full 130 points above my first diagnostic CAT exam).

Only con: expensive

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Manhattan GMAT did a wonderful job in preparing me for the exam. There is a large amount of work involved. I spent roughly 10-20 hours per week studying the course material and working on practice problems. The practice exams are as close of simulations to the real exam as I have experienced. They broke down problems into molecular detail and really made sure that you understood what strategies you should employ and how to arrive at the correct solutions. This course is a must if you want to be successful on the GMAT for the verbal, quant, and IR section.

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To start, my GMAT journey was a relatively long one. I graduated from college early, summa cum laude, PBK and thought the GMAT would be a walk in the park.. a quick month of study and off to that 700. NOPE.

I took a practice test blind from the official GMAT website and scored a 500. I thought the world ended. I bought the official guide books and started doing my research into prep courses. Another month of self study and i scored a 520. Clearly this wasn't going very well.

After my research, MGMAT came up with the best reviews... for good reason. I decided to do the live online because I worked during the week and didnt want to jump back in the car on the weekends to commute to class.

The course is excellent... For 3 hours, every sunday, Birdwell and a rotating second teacher would literally walk myself and the other students through official guide problems, break them down into their cores, and show not only HOW to tackle every question type but WHAT each question type is really trying to test. All of a sudden, i saw the quant patterns on DS. I saw what CR questions were really asking. Now, match the weekly break down with a good 15 hours of self study a week based on a study guide the MGMAT folks worked up. Plus the 12 guide books which you should read cover to cover as they helped me tackle question types i had been clueless on only weeks earlier.

I only took 2 CATS during my course (which were 560 and 600) so i saw improvement but i was getting really nervous. My goal was always 680.

I started to take the other four CATS, the two official GMAT CATs and repeat all the OG qs and the official GMAC question pack. I set a test date for end of July and my course had ended mid june. So with 6 weeks, I needed to increase 100 points. I was not convinced it was possible. BUT all those tricks MGMAT taught in the course (not to mention how to tackle timing issues, pacing and nerves on test date), ended up becoming muscle memory on the CATS.

With one week to go, I stopped looking at all GMAT related stuff and just cleared my head. I went into the test center and cruised through the test... MGMAT (and their CATs) OVER PREPARED me. The test was certainly hard, but the Quant seemed easy to handle, the verbal seemed very approachable. I held my breath as i hit "see scores" and a 710 popped up.

I will say this, that score would not have been possible without MGMAT!

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I found the Manhattan Prep test books and the overview of the GMAT that my instructor provided to be very helpful. I personally got more out of the books and the first class than I did the remaining eight classes, but everybody learns differently and I have a more independent learning style. That being said, my instructor (Keith) was great. He was supportive, patient, and encouraging. Even if I didn't find the class to be particularly helpful, I think access to an instructor is invaluable. If nothing else, purchase the Manhattan Prep Test Books and work through them on your own. I can't emphasize how helpful and manageable they were.

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