Brian is both a phenomenal tutor and a phenomenal person. His approach to tutoring his students is…read moreunique in that he does not drill into quantitative or grammar heavy rules, forcing you to learn difficult math and complex sentence structure, but rather relies on testing strategies that are become intuitive as you work with him. I was able to hit my target GMAT Score after several months of working with Brian because I could be strategic and pliable on complex questions, number pick and look for patterns when required, and even make educated guesses in a matter of seconds to narrow down especially hard problems into a 50/50 shot. In addition to his fantastic study approach, Brian is just a good guy. Wow no one enjoys studying, Brian would make every session entertaining, keeping me motivated and eager to continue the work. I always felt as though he was just invested in my personal process as I was myself. While I'm incredibly happy with the results from using Reason Test Prep as a tutor, I'll genuinely miss my weekly sessions. Could not recommend Reason Test Prep any more!!!!

If you're reading this, you're likely deciding on choosing a GMAT tutor. Fair warning: I am going…read moreto heap praise on Brian Prestia. So much so that you might doubt the authenticity of this review. If you have any doubts about Brian, the GMAT, my story--anything--I encourage you to message me. I am the kind of person that the GMAT chews up and spits out. I am not a great test taker. I'm not even a good test taker. At best, throughout academia, my success has been equal parts hard work and luck. Beyond that, to say that "I'm not good at math" is akin to saying "the US hasn't had the best response to Covid"--it doesn't even begin to detail how bad the situation actually is. When I took a cold GMAT in February of this year, I got a 630: Q39, V35. I took a ManhattanPrep class, which didn't really help much, but by April, I understood a) how the GMAT worked and b) if I wanted to score above 700, I'd have to invest considerable time and resources. In that light, I found Brian on Yelp and we had our first meeting in early April. Outright, if you went to school in the American school system, Brian is very likely the best tutor for you. There are courses out there, like TTP and Magoosh, that walk you through every nook and cranny of the GMAT quant section algebraically. I know because I tried both courses. Unless you went to school in India, China, or are naturally outstanding at algebra, it is wholly unnecessary to re-learn and master algebra for the GMAT. It's also, I can imagine, incredibly time consuming (at least moreso than the 3-4 months I spent studying). The GMAT is a reasoning test, not a math test, and it rewards people who understand how to play the game. Brian shows you how the game works, what the GMAT is looking for, and most importantly, provides structure and sense to an otherwise unstructured, frustrating process. Brian is immensely patient, and he's adept at sensing where weak spots are. His approach to verbal is smarter and easier-applied than every other approach I've seen in other courses. If I could have created a GMAT tutor in a lab, it would come out looking a lot like Brian. I studied like a crazy person, and each session with Brian helped crystalize my learning. In my last few practice tests leading up to the real thing, I was consistently scoring Q50. That's a sentence I never thought I would type. Q50 is reserved for robots and weird kids with social issues that smell like cheerios and go to math camp. Or so I thought. Come test day, I got a Q49, V40: 730. A 100 point increase. Again, I don't believe I'd be typing that sentence if I hadn't worked with Brian. What's crazy is that I'm taking it again, because I know I can score higher than that. The GMAT has been my life over the past few months. I've read so many threads and posts from GMAT takers that would benefit from Brian's approach. If you can put in the work, and you have the time and resources to do so, Brian is the best option out there.