The Graduate Track:
GRE & GMAT coaching
Merv Academic can help ease your way through the most dreaded part of the graduate application process: the entrance exams. With nearly 20 years experience preparing aspiring graduate students for the GRE, GMAT, and other exams, I’m happy to work with you on every aspect from concept review to strategy while we work together to develop an effective study plan to help you manage your time efficiently.
To find out more, click the button below, or scroll down if you would like to read a little more about each of these exams and Merv Academic’s approach to tutoring them!
In-person tutoring available in Boston, Newton, Brookline, and surrounding areas, online tutoring available everywhere!
One-on-one, package, and group rates available. Find out more here:
(There are, of course, many other graduate exams out there — e.g. LSAT, MCAT, and a number of others. While Merv Academic prioritizes the GRE and GMAT at the graduate levet, please ask if an exam that you’re interested in is not listed here. If it’s not something I personally teach, perhaps I can recommend someone who can!)
GRE Prep
The GRE is the gateway exam to many, many graduate programs in the US and abroad. It’s quirky, frustrating, and sometimes intimidating, particularly when you’re just starting out. But it’s a rite of passage, and with some targeted studying, you’ll get a handle on it.
There are a few factors that tend to terrify GRE test-takers (usually needlessly). One is that you may not have seen some of those math concepts in years! Another is that some of the test questions are—to use a GRE vocabulary word—arcane. Byzantine, even. Not sure what those words mean? Look ‘em up! (Vocabulary comprises a full 50% of the GRE verbal section—best get started!)
The good news is that there are a number of strategies that can make the test much more familiar and relatable. The math will come back! And the vocabulary review will be good for you!
If you haven’t taken any real or practice GREs yet, I highly recommend taking a diagnostic test. Two of these are available for free from ETS (with additional ones available for purchase)
You’ll need to sign up for an account, and ETS is a bit of a clunky site. But it’s a good resource.
Have a look here.
GMAT Prep
The GMAT is familiar to many aspiring MBA students in the US and around the globe. Accepted at over 2,000 universities, the exam is a well-known management “rite of passage” — it also has a way of scaring the hell out of people when it really doesn’t need to.
What makes the GMAT intimidating, particularly for people who may be less familiar with the exam, is its unique mix of opaque questions, convoluted wording, and universally despised questions about things like probability and A machines that process B projects in C hours. But the good news is: these questions ALWAYS show up, they NEVER change, and a bit of strategy, practice, and familiarity will go a long way in helping you through.
If you happen to be a mid-career business professional considering an Executive MBA program, there is also a kind of “stripped-down” version of the GMAT called the Executive Assessment. This exam is basically a 90-minute GMAT, but without any geometry, and while online resources specific to the EA are very limited, any available GMAT material (and there is a lot of it out there!) will be very useful.
I’m here to help you excel on both of these exams, and I would be happy to meet with you for a consultation to discuss a tutoring program that will be effective for you.
Two free GMAT tests are available here.