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Trying to figure out when you should take the GMAT and how to fit studying into your schedule can be stressful. Manhattan Prep instructor Elaine Loh explains how to organize your study process to succeed. 

How long do I need to study for the GMAT? When will I be ready? How much time per week should I invest?

These are questions I get over and over and over, particularly from students who have not started studying yet. They are usually trying to figure out whether or not they can manage class, and they are on the verge of a mild freak-out.

You want the quick, bullet-point answer?

Okay, here you go. We offer a nine-session class (typically once a week), and we say you will probably want two to three weeks after the class to finish studying. That is assuming that you do all the homework, and that is also assuming that the homework takes you five to ten hours to complete between sessions.

Now, here is the longer answer that you are not going to like.

I cannot answer those questions for you. Like, at all. Everybody is different, and there is no magic bullet, one-size-fits-all plan to studying for the GMAT. I can make a prediction for you based on your current life schedule and your previous academic habits. But what it really comes down to is this: how much do you want it? Seriously. That is the number one determining factor of how long it will take. If you are not sure that you want to go to B-school, and you are just checking out your options, chances are, you will drop out of class. Truly. It happens all the time. And that is okay! But why invest a lot of time, money, and effort toward something that you maybe would give a three on a scale of one to ten? If that is you, that is cool. Stop reading now and go grab a latte with all the money you will save from not taking the class at the wrong time. We will be here for you when you are ready.

If, however, you know you want to make this life change, here are some questions to help you figure out when you will be ready:

Do you have a full-time job?

If so, it is going to be relatively harder for you to find time and energy. Therefore, it will take you longer to study. For example, you might study after work two to three times a week for an hour and a half, and once on the weekend. You must give yourself days off—from both work and studying—or you will burn out. You might end up needing several months after class is over to catch up on homework and feel ready.

Have you not done math since 11th grade?

If you are out of college and you have not done math for a while, it will take you longer to study. You will need to invest a lot of time up front learning foundational math skills. What I do not recommend is trying to study math on your own first before enrolling in a class or getting a tutor. I have seen people do that a million times, and 990,000 of them end up giving up and not taking the GMAT at all. (Figure out that percentage as a quick math check!) Math is too overwhelming and, frankly, too complicated to teach yourself! You need someone to guide you even more at the beginning. Once you have your foundation, you can work on it on your own. But that will take time.

Do you have family obligations?

Kids? Friends? Relationships? Refer to question #1. Life takes time and energy, so again, it will take you longer to study. But the good news is that these people who take your time and energy can also give you time and energy, through their love and support. Make sure you tell the right people what you are doing and how they can help. Very often, family members and friends do not even know what a challenge it is to go from a 560 to a 720, so they do not understand what you need. Spell it out for them. Set your study schedule and have them help you stick to it! And on the flip side, do not tell those family members or friends who will not actually support you. You know who those people are. Just be ready to sidestep them for the next few months.

Now, if you do not have a job, are independently wealthy, are a math genius, and do not have any obligations that eat up your time—tell me how you did that, because clearly, I am living the wrong life! The truth of the matter is that most of you reading this will answer yes to one (or more!) of these three questions, so take heart that you are all in the same boat. Thousands of people manage to find the time to study and do well on the test every year, and you can be one of them. Take the anxiety you feel about finding that time, and channel it into creating a study schedule that is realistic and that you can stick to. If you are not sure how to do that, start here. Know that the road will be at least several months long, possibly even a year long. And that is okay. But go into it with realistic expectations. This will be hard, and it will take a while. But if you really want it, it will be worth it.

Are you applying to business school this year? If so, you can enroll in one of our free business school workshops, which are offered both online and in person in major cities across the country!

Note: Professor Clayton Christensen passed away on January 23, 2020.

Many MBA applicants feel that they are purchasing a brand when they choose a business school. However, the educational experience you will have is what is crucial to your future, and no one will affect your education more than your professors. Today, we focus on Clayton Christensen from Harvard Business School (HBS).

With research interests in the areas of technology management and innovation management, Clayton Christensen (MBA ’79, DBA ’92) joined the HBS faculty in 1992, after having cofounded CPS Technologies (where he was chairman and president) in 1984, working as a consultant for Boston Consulting Group (1979–1984), and serving as a White House Fellow (1982–1983). He is currently the Kim B. Clark Professor of Business Administration at HBS. Christensen designed HBS’s “Building and Sustaining a Successful Enterprise” course, an elective that shows students how to manage a successful company using theories of strategy and innovation to better understand which tools may be effective in various business situations. Students address such questions as “How can I beat powerful competitors?” and “How can we create and sustain a motivated group of employees?”

Christensen is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including The Innovator’s Dilemma: The Revolutionary Book That Will Change the Way You Do Business (Harvard Business Review Press, 1997), The Innovator’s Solution: Creating and Sustaining Successful Growth (Harvard Business School Press, 2003), Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns (McGraw-Hill, 2008), How Will You Measure Your Life? (HarperBusiness, 2012), and Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice (HarperBusiness, 2016). In 2007, Christensen and two of his co-authors founded the Christensen Institute (originally the Innosight Institute) based on their research. He still serves as chairman of the organization’s board of directors.

Christensen received an Extraordinary Teaching Award from the HBS Class of 2010 as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award. In both 2011 and 2013, Thinkers50, a ranking released every two years by the consulting group CrainerDearlove, named Christensen the World’s Most Influential Business Thinker, and in 2015, he received an Edison Achievement Award for his contributions to the field of innovation.

For more information on the defining characteristics of the MBA program at HBS or one of 16 other top business schools, please check out our free mbaMission Insider’s Guides.

Drawing on our experience in preparing countless clients for their MBA interviews, we at mbaMission are proud to release our updated series of Interview Guides, which now covers 17 individual top-ranked schools for the 2019–2020 admissions season! The guides feature valuable information about the programs’ interview processes, notoriously difficult questions, and past applicants’ experiences.

To help you understand what to expect in an interview with your target school and prepare accordingly, each mbaMission Interview Guide provides the following useful details:

• Insight into what the school is evaluating and hoping to gain from the interview
• An explanation of the school’s approach to interviewing (self-scheduled or invite only, blind versus comprehensive, etc.)
• Lists of the school’s most common questions and themes
• Past applicants’ firsthand accounts of their interview experiences
• Tips on preparing for and responding to common question types
• Help in formulating compelling questions of your own
• Advice on managing the entire interview process, from scheduling to thank you notes

Download the guides free of charge to ensure you are ready to rock your interview! 

And for even more targeted interview prep, try our Individual Mock Interview Sessions (starting at $650), including our one-of-a-kind offering, the HBS Mock Interview and Post-Interview Reflection Support ($850). For even more targeted interview prep, learn more about our HBS Intensive Interview Simulation (starting at $2,500) with veteran HBS interviewer Devi Vallabhaneni, and our Wharton Team-Based Discussion Simulations ($525). 

Last but not least, don’t miss our “Interview Workshop” webinar at 8:00 pm ET on Monday, October 28, 2019, hosted by mbaMission Senior Consultant Rachel Beck. During the session, Rachel will help prospective MBAs understand the types of questions that may be asked to best prepare for interviews. Space is limited–register for free today! 

Harvard Business School

The official deadline for Round 1 Harvard Business School (HBS) applicants is drawing near: September 4, 2019. Once you submit your HBS application (and breathe a sigh of relief), the waiting game for the interview invitation begins.

Predicting exactly what questions you will be asked in your HBS interview is impossible, given the dynamic nature of the meeting and the school’s individualized approach, but this does not mean you cannot prepare to navigate the interaction effectively and increase your chances of leaving your desired impression.

Join us for our new “Decoding the HBS Interview” Workshop, hosted by mbaMission Founder/President Jeremy Shinewald and mbaMission HBS Interviewer in Residence Devi Vallabhaneni (HBS Class of 1997, former HBS Admissions Board Candidate Interviewer).

In this 60-minute workshop, you will learn:

• What makes the HBS interview so different from all the other business school interviews
• The philosophy behind the HBS approach
• How to prepare for the interview

Coming out of the session, you will have a much better sense of what to expect in your HBS interview and how to prepare for it so you can approach your interview with competence and confidence. Space is limited. Reserve your spot today.

Before you attend the webinar, what do you need to know? Drawing on her six years as an interviewer at HBS, Devi Vallabhaneni shares a few helpful tips:

Feeling Nervous

Feeling your nerves kick in is totally normal, but would you believe that every time I interviewed an HBS prospect, I was just as nervous? You might find that hard to imagine, but it is the truth! I felt like I owed each and every interviewee the courtesy of bringing my best to them, really getting to know them, and working just as hard as they had to arrive at the interview. So, first things first, know that the person on the other side of your HBS interview is eager and sincere in wanting to know the real you.

Know Your Story Cold

Your story should be within you, right? Well, maybe you wrote about your love of Chinese cookery in the personal section of your resume, but since then, you have not given another thought to the last cooking class you took—which, by the way, was a good story two years ago! Although I was never specifically trying to find weak spots in interviewees’ stories, I would sometimes start by asking about interests and hobbies they had listed that sounded interesting, so I just might have asked you about your Chinese cooking. Before your interview, refresh your familiarity with your entire application, even the parts you think are trivial.

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