I first took the GMAT in 2015 after self-study only and received a 680. I was not satisfied with the score but wanted to wait until I was 100% sure I needed to attend business school before retaking. I decided to apply to b-school in 2017 and signed up to do a group prep-course from February-April 2017. The course was most helpful in that it gave me a syllabus and road-map for studying and kept me honest by assigning homework each week. The actual course was helpful for problem solving strategy but a majority of my learning came during homework time. I made it over the 700 hump and almost to my ultimate goal of 720. I ended up being accepted to all three business schools I applied to in Round 1 and don't think I could have without the course.

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I recently completed my Manhattan Prep Live GMAT Course with Pedro Ledesma and I highly recommend it for anyone seeking to score 700+. Manhattan Prep’s value proposition is that they combine amazing in-person teaching with by far the most useful and helpful online trove of materials. Furthermore, the structured nature of their curriculum is incredibly helpful in breaking up the daunting task of studying for the test into manageable pieces. I could not be happier with my experience and my results, and with the increasingly competitive nature of MBA admissions, I highly encourage any prospective MBA candidates to use Manhattan Prep to attain the best GMAT score possible.

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I had not taken a standardized test in ten years, nor had I really done any quantitative work since my freshman year of college. My first practice GMAT reflected that; I didn't finish the quantitative portion at all and scored a 640 overall. By the end of the Manhattan GMAT class, I was scoring mid to high 700s on my practice tests, and scored a 760 the second time I took the actual test. I had a rough week the first time I took the test, just a few days after the end of the class) and was not satisfied with my score, so I retook it after studying the class materials for another month, focusing in on my weak points. It is a very comprehensive, well-structured, and effective program. If you need a thorough review, take this class, do the recommended homework assignments, and use the practice tests to identify specific types of problems where you are weak.

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I ended up taking the Manhattan GMAT course twice -- the first time online and second time in person with Pedro in DC. When I originally signed up, I was okay with the fact that Manhattan wasn't one of the companies that reimbursed you if your score went up. After all, they're not the ones taking the test and the books are probably more important than the work.

The online course was alright, but not my preferred method of instruction. One of the teachers (Stacy Koprince) was really good and the other was just alright, but I wasn't as serious about the GMAT I needed to be and I'm not sure how much the online course helped. The problem-based course format got me some practice but I didn't leave lessons feeling like I learned strategies for problems I hadn't seen before. They demonstrated how to answer the questions in front of us, but there was little discussion of how to translate that to new problems in the times required by the GMAT.

My score stayed even with my diagnostic of 640 (.

The in-person course was a different experience. I really liked Pedro who was engaging and sarcastic, which fits with my learning style. He was excellent at answering questions from the class and there was more discussion about the mindset for tackling new problems in the time allotted by the GMAT. Just as importantly, the talent level of the class was high and I learned from them as well! The class was still problem-focused, but more engaging and helpful overall.

In the end, I got a 710 (40Q, 47V) with 5.5 on AWA and 7/8 on IR.

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