Your first session focuses on understanding your current level, goals, and learning style. A tutor will likely review your diagnostic test results (or administer one), identify which sections need the most work, and create a personalized study plan. This foundation helps ensure your remaining sessions target exactly what will move your score forward.

The Quantitative and Verbal Reasoning sections challenge most test-takers, but for different reasons. Many students struggle with pacing on Quant—managing time while solving complex problems—while Verbal often trips up students on reading comprehension and inference questions. A tutor can diagnose whether your issue is conceptual understanding, test-taking strategy, or time management, then address it directly.

Most students benefit from 8-12 weeks of focused preparation, though your timeline depends on your starting score and target score. If you're aiming for a top business school, expect more intensive study than if you're targeting a specific program threshold. A tutor can create a realistic timeline based on your goals and help you stay on track with consistent, strategic practice.

Practice tests are essential—they're the best way to identify weak areas, build test-day stamina, and refine your pacing strategy under real time pressure. Most students should take 4-6 full-length practice tests throughout their prep. A tutor can help you interpret your results, spot patterns in your mistakes, and adjust your strategy between tests for continuous improvement.

Test anxiety often stems from uncertainty about what to expect or lack of confidence in your preparation. Working with a tutor helps build genuine confidence by familiarizing you with every question type, teaching you proven strategies, and practicing under timed conditions repeatedly. Many students also benefit from learning specific techniques like strategic guessing, time allocation methods, and mental reset strategies between sections.

Look for tutors with strong GMAT scores themselves, proven experience helping students improve, and deep knowledge of test structure and strategy. The best tutors understand not just the content but the reasoning patterns the GMAT tests, and can adapt their teaching to your learning style. Varsity Tutors connects you with expert tutors in Charlotte who have demonstrated success preparing students for business school.

Group classes move at a fixed pace and cover standard material, but every student's weak areas are different. Personalized 1-on-1 instruction lets a tutor focus entirely on your specific challenges—whether that's Data Sufficiency questions, sentence correction, or time management. This targeted approach means you spend study time where it matters most, leading to faster and more significant score improvements.