Score improvement depends on your starting point and effort, but most students see meaningful gains within 4-8 weeks of consistent, focused preparation. If you're scoring in the 30-40 range (out of 51), reaching 40-45 is realistic with targeted work on your weakest question type. Tutors work with you to diagnose exactly where you're losing points, then use practice tests and retrieval practice to build mastery—this focused approach typically yields faster results than self-study.

Your first session focuses on assessment and strategy. Expect to discuss your target score, timeline, and current strengths/weaknesses, then dive into a diagnostic practice test section or review of recent practice problems to identify patterns in your mistakes. From there, tutors create a personalized study plan that prioritizes the highest-impact improvements for your goals—whether that's mastering argument structure, improving reading speed, or nailing grammar rules.

The key is strategic reading, not faster reading. Rather than trying to absorb every detail, GMAT Reading rewards you for identifying the main idea, author's tone, and argument structure—then using those to answer questions. Tutors teach you to map passages efficiently, recognize common question patterns, and avoid re-reading traps that waste time. With practice and feedback on your approach, most students find they can cut their per-passage time by 1-2 minutes while maintaining or improving accuracy.

Critical Reasoning feels unpredictable because the arguments cover unfamiliar topics (science, business, philosophy), making it easy to second-guess yourself. The real skill isn't understanding the topic—it's identifying the logical structure: what's the claim, what's the evidence, what's assumed? Tutors break down the question types (strengthen, weaken, assumption, flaw) so you recognize patterns, then use spaced repetition with practice problems to build automaticity. Once you see the logic structure clearly, the topic becomes irrelevant.

GMAT Sentence Correction tests a specific subset of grammar rules—not everything English teachers taught you. Rather than memorizing rules, tutors focus on the most frequently tested concepts: subject-verb agreement, parallelism, modifier placement, and verb tense logic. The strategy is to eliminate obviously wrong answers first, then use process of elimination on the remaining choices. With targeted practice on high-yield rules and consistent feedback, most students see rapid improvement in this section.

Practice tests serve two purposes: building stamina and diagnosing weak areas. Early in prep, take full-length tests to understand pacing and identify which question types trip you up most. Then use targeted drills on those specific areas before taking another full test. Tutors help you analyze your practice test results—not just your score, but why you missed questions—so you're learning from every attempt rather than just repeating the same mistakes.

Test anxiety often stems from uncertainty—not knowing what to expect or doubting your strategy. Tutors reduce anxiety by building confidence through repeated exposure to question types, clear decision-making frameworks, and realistic practice under timed conditions. You'll also develop a pacing strategy that feels sustainable, so you're not racing through passages or second-guessing answers. When you know exactly what to do on test day, anxiety becomes manageable.