Manhattan Prep - You CAN Do It!

MAN! Where to begin.. My GMAT journey took about 8 months from my first practice test. Initially, I struggled getting over the mental hump to really commit to studying for this test, which meant hanging up distractions for a bit. I took my first 'cold' GMAT in late October, 2020, and after scoring in the high 500's, I knew I needed outside help if I was going to get into my top schools. The first thing I did was go to my local Barnes and Noble store and picked up the latest GMAT Official Guide hoping I could get away with drilling practice questions over and over again. I did this for a while, an hour or two a day for a few weeks before I took my second Practice GMAT and scored LOWER! My quant scores were high, but my verbal scores fell, and I felt that is where I needed the most help. Feeling defeated, I ended up asking my peers of their methods, and that is when I started looking into Manhattan Prep. I would like to preface that my quant scores were strong, and I could manage a lot of 700+ level questions, but in contrast, my verbal needed a lot of work. What I was searching for was something that could sharpen my quant skills and possibly accelerate my timing, but most importantly, I needed a foundation for verbal.

I ended up enrolling in the 9-session Manhattan Prep course with Mr. Vollmer in November, and I got exactly that. The classes were fun, the classmates were engaging, and Mr. Vollmer made the whole experience really great. I was able to ask all the questions I wanted and I learned a lot from my classmates asking questions as well. I was very detailed in my note taking, and I concluded the course feeling very good about the foundation I had in verbal.

Immediately after the conclusion of the course, I took my first real Official GMAT Online. I do not recommend the online version, as my computer crashed while they were trying to send the test over and I ended up taking it 2 hours after my scheduled time and doing horribly. I took this hit as a growing experience because I knew that the computer issues were a huge reason for my poor mindset going into it. Obviously, this was probably an anomaly, and I am sure this is typically a great way to take the test; I just had some bad luck.

I studied a few more weeks, and took the test in person, I ended up scoring in the low 600's, and this was my lowest point in this whole process. I had put in the time, I have taken the course, and I studied for weeks after the conclusion of the course only to score far less than what I expected of myself and what my practice tests suggested I could get to.

"Just one more time" is what I told myself. I studied relentlessly for an extra couple months, doing well over 1,000 practice questions between GMAT Practices tests, tests and questions provided by Manhattan Prep, and the Wiley site that you get access too if you have the Official GMAT Guide. FINALLY in the last week of April, I took my last test. I ended up scoring in the high 600's which was where I needed to be to get into my first choice program at UofM Ross. It was with a lot of perseverance, a killer application/essays, an excellent recommendation, and a GMAT score that fell within the school's range, I was able to be admitted.

In conclusion, I would not have scored as high as I did if it wasn't for Manhattan Prep and Mr. Vollmer helping me get the basics down for verbal. I would highly recommend them. What worked best for me is knowing what my strengths and weaknesses are before enrolling, and really focusing on where I needed help. Mr. Vollmer got me there and I am beyond thankful for the opportunity to pursue a Masters Degree at Ross, and I couldn't have done it without his engaging lessons!