Tutoring is a new experience for many people, so below you’ll find answers to the questions and concerns I most commonly hear.
How are tutoring sessions structured?
- Because the tutoring is ultimately dictated by your needs, a “normal” session will vary, based on your background and goals. A typical session will consist of content instruction, homework review, and a preview of what we will cover in the next lesson. As the test draws closer, the tutoring becomes increasingly individualized as we cover official computer-based practice tests and address the content areas appropriate for the score you’re seeking to achieve.
How many sessions will I need?
- Many students interested in tutoring ask this question, but, unfortunately, there’s no easy answer. I’ve tutored some students for 3 hours and some for 40. The fact of the matter is that it depends. If you’re looking to score a 330 but are starting at 300, you’ll need a lot more tutoring than someone looking for just a 10-point jump. If you’ve never touched a GRE book, but are looking to get into a top-flight PhD program, you might need to some heavy-lifting both with your tutor and on your own. Ultimately, the number of sessions we have together will be a function of your proficiency with the content on the exam, the score you’re looking to achieve, and the amount of time remaining before you take the exam. To give you a very rough estimate, most students who come to me without prior preparation require about 20 hours of tutoring. On the other hand, students who have already prepared for the exam or who only have a couple weeks to prepare might just do 6 hours. Feel free to contact me, and I’ll give you an honest estimate of what I’d consider sufficient.
What materials do you use?
- Now that I’ve completed my book, we will use many of the chapters and problem sets that I’ve developed to address your trouble areas. In addition to my book, I try to focus as much as possible on official materials published by ETS (the makers of the GRE). In our tutoring, we’ll use ETS’ “Official Guide to the Revised General Test” and their officially-published online CATs. In addition to these materials, we will sometimes use certain outside resources that I consider most relevant for your situation.
What kind of score improvement can I expect?
- The GRE is a tough exam, and large improvements only come with a serious commitment of time and effort. I’ve seen students improve by as much as 30 points after taking a Kaplan course and by as much as 35 points after our initial diagnostic, but these kinds of improvements require serious work. I have a great track record of improving people’s GRE scores (click here to see comments from real clients), and I make sure that the tutoring and your assignments are done as efficiently as possible. But I tell all my students that large improvements are often a matter of teamwork: my customized instruction coupled with the student’s willingness to work diligently on the assignments at hand.
Can you provide references?
- Sure. I’d be happy to get you in touch with former clients of mine. You can also check out my testimonials page to see what previous clients thought of my work.
Do you offer group tutoring?
- Yes. If two or three friends are seeking individualized attention at a lower cost, group tutoring often gets you the best of both worlds. When I do group tutoring, I do emphasize that all the students should be starting out at a comparable level. Otherwise, the individualized element of the instruction will be diluted.
Where do sessions take place?
- Weekday sessions take place at my private office in Manhattan, on 34th and 5th. Weekend sessions are held in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.