I worked with Tara for 1-month and saw immediate progress in my abilities. Tara is an effective GMAT tutor because he has thoroughly studied the test. One thing I struggled with prior to working with Tara was identifying what is actually being tested. I would just do the problems, get some wrong, get some correct, and then move on. Tara emphasized an error log and thinking about why I got something wrong, which really helped me. Tara helped me move my score from 42 to a 47 on the Quant section. His insights to Data Sufficiency questions were worth at least 2 of the 5 points that I added, bringing my combined score to a 710. read more

I was applying to Executive MBA programs and had decided to take the Executive Assessment(EA) instead of the GMAT. The EA is an alternative that many schools are using, but there isn't as much info and test techniques as there is for the GMAT. I purchased the official study material provided by GMAC. Still, after taking the EA, I found that the material and practice tests weren't as accurate a portrayal of a real exam as I had hoped, especially for the Quant section. After receiving my scores from the first exam, it was clear I'd need to retake the test and needed some help brushing up on my quant skills. I interviewed several companies that promised an increase in my score, but none took a personable approach until I found Tara. Tara took the time to understand what I needed, my history, and where I wanted my score to end up to get into one of my top choice schools. I didn't have a lot of time before my next exam, so Tara focused on my weaknesses, and we worked almost daily up until exam day. He shared many short-cuts and tricks to help get to the root of the question and eliminate the "noise." He provided many reference notes and made sure that I genuinely understood before moving to the next topic, always encouraging along the way. He is amazingly flexible as he was able to work about my schedule and meet early in the mornings. With Tara's help, I was able to increase my quant score high enough to get into one of my top choice business schools, and I would recommend Tara to anyone! read more

Tara is the man! If you need help on GMAT quant, you won't find anyone better. After studying for 6 months on my own I needed help...fast. I had taken the GMAT once and my score was nowhere near what I needed for my target schools. I read Tara's reviews and was excited to find a personal tutor in Chicago. When I found out he would be doing the sessions over Skype I was skeptical, but I ended up really enjoying the interface. I came away from each session with pages of useful notes and examples to reference. Given my time constraints, I needed an action plan and that's exactly what Tara provides. He breaks down the different types of questions and problem solving strategies to help you navigate the test. The strategies he teaches go far beyond the books/materials available through the major companies and his methods are tested and proven. I did 10 one hour sessions and improved my GMAT score by 50 points - all improvements in the quant section. Tara was very flexible with scheduling time to meet and always responsive if I had questions in between sessions. He also provided some helpful advice the day before the test without charging me extra. I seriously can't thank Tara enough. read more

If your goal is to succeed on the GMAT or a serious standardized test, my biggest piece of advice is: use Tara. I started my MBA application process with the lofty goal of being accepted by a highly selective business school. Unfortunately, my first GMAT practice exam put me nowhere near the range of most applicants to those schools (620). On top of that, I was a philosophy major in undergrad, so I knew the questions about my quant skills could potentially be major marks against me for the business school admission committees. To that end, I realized that a huge portion of their assessment of my quantitative skills would come from the GMAT. As such, doing well became very important to me. Again, I did not have a math background and was scoring well below my goals on practice tests. To help me, I figured I needed someone who knew the GMAT inside and out and someone who had succeeded on it before to show me how to be most successful. I looked online and found stellar reviews for Tara, and called him that day. He was very flexible with timing, and as I worked full-time, was willing to meet me at nights to help me prepare. Between working full-time and taking grad school classes, I told Tara that I only had time for 6 1-hour sessions, once per week. I told him that I was scoring between 41 and 42 on the quantitative section and asked him to honestly tell me if I could significantly improve that score in 8 weeks. Tara told me he would help me work as hard as I was prepared to work to achieve the highest score possible. With his encouragement I decided to really put in some time studying and signed up for six sessions with him. 15 minutes into the first session I already could tell what a game changer Tara was going to be. Within those first few minutes he had assessed my quantitative knowledge and figured out where the holes in my capabilities were. By the end of an hour, he had written out 8+ pages of clear notes and strategies that proved invaluable in my prep for the GMAT. These were not the typical rules that books take you through in 500 pages, where you waste time re-reading strategies you already know-- these were clear, concise, pragmatic strategies that helped fill gaps in my knowledge that were directly applicable to individual GMAT questions. Most of what I saw were rules and techniques that I had never even heard of before, but that helped me on GMAT questions. That night, after one session, my GMAT practice already felt significantly easier. Each week Tara would focus on several of my weaknesses, using a combination of lecturing, doing practice problems together, independent practice work, and taking actual tests together to help make sure I would be comfortable with any sort of question the GMAT could throw at me. And every week, for all six weeks, I left with a packet of new strategies that gave me ways to attack problems that I had previously thought I would never be able to answer. Tara offered simple techniques that allowed me to answer supposedly hard questions quite easily. I could feel my progress accelerating as I became excited for the date of GMAT. Tara was so thorough in his teaching of number properties and strategies to use on any and all GMAT questions, that by the end of my studying I had trouble finding questions that I no longer knew how to do. Through all six weeks, he continued to give me new tricks and knowledge that I had not previously had. Throughout our lessons, I came to view Tara almost as a super computer-- I could not find a question that gave him any trouble at all, or that even caused him a moment of hesitation. And yet despite this intellectual prowess, not once did he seem condescending, arrogant or judgemental of my significant quantitative shortcomings. To the contrary, he was quite disarming and actually a lot of fun to work with. He was very supportive and continued to give me confidence as I got closer and closer to the big day-- he was just a genuinely cool guy. I actually chose to meet a final time with Tara the week before my GMAT, and once again he gave me about 6-7 new strategies, 5 of which I used exactly as they were taught to me on the test 10 days later. When the day of the test arrived, I spent the hour before the test reading through Tara's notes for the 100th time. I was nervous, but as soon as I actually began the test, the nerves dissipated as, question after question, I kept going back to strategies Tara taught me. I found myself, on almost every question, going back to an explicit strategy we had covered together. I could not believe my results: an 8 on Integrated Reasoning, and a 49 Quant. Combined (with a 44 verbal) it was a 760 overall score (99th percentile), far above my target score. Looking back I know this was a direct result of my work with Tara. I am very appreciative and incredibly thankful for Tara and the time we spent together, and I could not recommend him more strongly! Thank you for everything Tara! read more

I worked with Tara for several weeks this past spring on GMAT math, which culminated in a 770 GMAT score (99th percentile: 49Q / 45V). I'm writing this review because I am pleased with my score, and believe that Tara is directly responsible for the good results, as I had been scoring in the high-600s / low-700s on practice tests prior to working with him. A few points I'd like to touch on: 1) Intellect - Tara is, hands down, one of the smartest people I've ever met. He is so quick with numbers, which was very helpful while we were going through the hardest GMAT math problems. He has an advanced science degree from University of Chicago and is quantitatively solid. 2) Ability to teach difficult concepts - during the actual GMAT exam, especially toward the end of the quantitative section (where the questions are the very hardest if you're getting the earlier ones correct), there were 7 or 8 questions where I remember arriving at an answer and thinking "wow, this is exactly how Tara taught me to do it," or "I'm glad that Tara taught me that shortcut." The time we spent together definitely contributed to my ability to get some of the hardest GMAT questions right. 3) Dedication / alignment of interests - one of the things I worried most about when finding a tutor was whether the individual would have my best interests at heart. From the beginning, Tara was highly invested in my success. I'd get text messages from him (at random times) with photos of GMAT problems and solutions that would be similar to the ones we had gone through during our sessions - they would include helpful tips and "here's another way to approach it if you get stuck" type commentary. It is clear that Tara takes immense pride in his work, and he's always thinking about you, even outside of your sessions. He also spent lots of time outside of class looking through specific questions that I had emailed him in advance. Also, he sent me messages of encouragement and helped me manage some of the emotional / psychological aspects of the test as well. He clearly had an intrinsic urge to help me do well. 4) Personality - I know this might not seem immediately relevant to some folks, but I also want to note that Tara is humble, ­­understanding, and patient. He has a very cool / calm / collected demeanor, which makes him very easy to work with. Despite the GMAT being a horror of an exam, I always looked forward to our sessions. He's also open-minded about how you arrive at your answers - I've found that some tutors try to force you to do problems their way, but Tara takes the time to figure out how you approach the problem, and then gives an objective critique of your approach (often, he has a much faster way that he can show you). He is very easygoing and low-ego. I took the Manhattan GMAT course a few years ago, and have done a bunch of Manhattan and Official Guide problems, with lots of spinning my wheels and no real improvement. Tara added direction and structure to my studying, and taught me how to approach the toughest math problems. I took a lot of time deciding which tutor I wanted to work with, and I'm very glad that I went with Tara. I think this is some of the best money I've ever spent, and it was completely worth it. I unconditionally recommend Tara. Happy to discuss this further if anyone is on the fence or has any questions at all. Feel free to shoot me a message at coliou2 @ gmail. Good luck! read more

Tara was excellent to work with! Under his tutelage, I raised my GMAT score by 40 points and was able to break the 700 barrier. Tara adapted his lessons to suit my needs and helped me zero in on the areas where I was leaving points on the table. Communicating through skype wasn't an issue at all - Tara has all the tools to make remote sessions as good as in-person. I highly recommend Tara to anyone looking for an edge on the GMAT! read more

Tara is an amazing tutor and an even better coach throughout the GMAT journey. I worked with Tara for 2-3 months prior to my exam. I held off on writing my review until taking the exam; needless to say, here I am & satisfied with my results! I was able to improve my score by +90 points. I decided to get a tutor when I realized my work schedule was too time-consuming & I couldn't effectively study on my own. It's one thing to read concepts & memorize materials, but true understanding & application of those materials is what I needed to succeed. After doing plenty of online research, it was clear that Tara was the highest-rated tutor & the right fit for my needs. Tara went above & beyond to ensure I was succeeding. I was pessimistic at times, especially after completing practice tests & feeling frustrated with the results. Tara went through my results with me & helped me identify patterns in my errors & overall testing strategy. He provided reassurance & even an emotional level of support that helped re-instill the confidence I needed when walking into that exam. He even texted me before my test to help calm my nerves & prepare me; he is truly a caring tutor and really wants to see his clients succeed. I would highly recommend Tara to anyone considering a tutor; I wouldn't have achieved my score & improvement without him! read more

Tara helped me increased my GRE verbal for nearly 10 points in only two weeks. As a foreigner that English is not my best suit, Tara organized a structure in solving verbal problems efficiently even for non English speakers like me. His approach is very strategic and organized. Tara also has lots of shortcuts for the quant section and it helped out a great deal in saving time. It was easy to schedule with him as he has been very flexible - I could usually get a time in on the next day or even the same day. I would definitely recommend Tara for those who are struggling or in need of a head start for either GRE or GMAT. read more

Tara is the "star" tutor in every sense of the word! I had taken the GMAT twice before and received poor scores each time. At this point, I was desperate and knew I needed help. After reading reviews for many private tutors and companies in numerous websites, I decided to give Tara a call since he had both the best and the largest number of reviews online. He was very helpful with my questions and accommodating with my schedule. In addition, his tutoring rates were also more reasonable than other tutoring programs of comparable level. I worked with Tara for about a month before taking the GMAT. With his guidance, I was able to gain sufficient knowledge and the necessary confidence to get the score I needed for graduate school. I got 80 points higher than my previous test and surpassed my target score by 50 points. Originally, my target was relatively low. However, after assessing my skills in the first session, Tara strongly encouraged me to aim for a higher score and kept reminding me every session that I could do it. My test taking strategies were obviously faulty, but he put all his heart into fixing my bad techniques and teaching me new methods that I had not seen in the books. He also trained me to comfortably finish the test on time, a task I could never accomplish before. I would highly recommend Tara to anyone taking the GMAT, especially if they need help mostly in the quantitative section as I did. read more

To anyone who wants to dramatically improve their ACT score, I HIGHLY recommend Tara. After spending countless hours with tutors who were only a little help to me, I was able to find the best tutor I've ever come across. Not only was Tara able to help and teach any subject I had difficulty with (PreCalc and Algebra), he also gave me the confidence and inspiration I truly needed in order to succeed. His patience and communication is the best when it comes to tutors. My ACT Score was the difference between getting into my dream school or spending the next two years of my life at Community College. After meeting with Tara twice a week for several months, I aced the ACT and got accepted to San Diego State University. I am extremely thankful and fortunate to have a tutor like Tara and I guarantee he will help you SUCCEED MORE than you ever thought you could. read more

Tara is a great GMAT coach - what's most important is his dedication to the student above all else. I was struggling with quant and reached out for help - he helped set up a structure for my learning and gave me all the necessary tools I needed to succeed. Most importantly, he gave me MOTIVATION - every time I felt I couldn't do it, he pushed me to believe in myself and deliver. Thanks to him, I got an amazing GMAT score with an improvement of 60points, and got admission to multiple M7s and T15 schools with a sizeable amount of money. I could not have done it without his support! read more

I had a fantastic and very successful experience working with Tara in my preparation for the GMAT. I had taken the Veritas Prep course before and had been studying for ~4 months before I started seeing Tara. My best live GMAT score at the time was 610. I had been scoring 660 on practice tests consistently but on test day I couldn't seem to put it all together. . so after a collapse on my 3rd GMAT exam I decided I needed to make a change. I started researching GMAT tutors and Tara stood out in particular so I reached out and he was very helpful/prompt in responding. I worked with Tara multiple times over a 2 week period in preparation for another swing at the GMAT. There were a lot of holes/gaps in my quant capabilities, which is why my scores were fluctuating so much. . so working with Tara over those 2 weeks helped me fill in those gaps, improve my floor, and greatly increase my confidence going in to test day. I not only increased my floor with Tara, but he helped explain in very fine detail how to go about solving some of the far more challenging problems as well - things I had never really considered prior. Additionally, he does a great job with general test taking/timing strategies, as well as teaching & explaining the core math skills required to excel on the GMAT. Test day #4 finally arrived and it was the most confident I felt going into any exam, and was ecstatic to see that I scored a 720!! Tara was instrumental in my 110 point improvement and for anyone serious about excelling on the GMAT and getting into a top tier business school, Tara is an easy choice. read more

Tara is absolutely the best. With his help, I improved my GMAT score 140 points and was admitted to Harvard Business School! I began my GMAT preparation with a Manhattan GMAT online class and MGMAT workbooks. I even added a MGMAT private tutor (who was 3x more expensive than Tara), but I still couldn't crack the test. I then searched for help elsewhere and was fortunate to find Tara, who was the highest ranked tutor on every online forum I visited. With his help, I developed the skills, and more importantly, the confidence to tackle the GMAT. Tara is patient, thoughtful, and adaptive -- and he creates a customized approach for each student. I am proud to call Tara a friend. He is truly the best in the business. read more

Quick Update: OMG I got into the University of Chicago! This was not a possibility without Tara's help. Thank you Tara!

My experience with Tara was remarkable. I worked with him 3-4 weeks before my exam, and my improvement was monumental despite such a short period of time. Prior to working with Tara, I was studying on my own, completely the wrong way. The strategies and methods that Tara taught me helped tremendously. I got a 48 on the Quantitative score, an improvement of 12 points compared to my practice exams. Without Tara's help and flexibility, I definitely would not have gotten this score. There was never a question or a problem that Tara did not know how to do. His aptitude and dedication to this craft is extraordinary. I strongly recommend anyone taking the GMAT to work with him! read more

Tara is more than just a fantastic tutor, he is a total GMAT coach. My GMAT experience spanned 2 years and 4 tests. My goal from the beginning was to earn at 700 or better on the GMAT in order to be a competitive b-school candidate. I scored a 640 on my first test and 650 on the second and third tests. I was about to accept that I wasn't going to hit my goal score but decided to give it one more shot. I was referred to Tara by a close friend and found every minute of our tutoring sessions valuable. Tara is a very patient tutor who will break down very complex topics like combinations and permutations into easy to understand steps that give you the fundamentals to tackle every problem. One of my favorite things about working with Tara was the examples he provided. He came up with problems on the spot that were realistic to what you would see on the GMAT. And, when I say Tara is a coach, I mean he is aware of your overall GMAT goals. I was performing fairly consistently on math, but my verbal score as a native English speaker was not as high as it could be. He advised that I spend a bit more time with verbal to get my overall score up. Thanks to Tara's incredible quant tutoring and holistic coaching, I grew my score from Q40 V37 to Q44 V44 and scored a 710 on the exam. He helped me grow my score by 70 points and I so appreciate his time and patience with me throughout the process. read more

I cannot recommend Tara highly enough for GMAT quant tutoring! Tara and I worked together over a period of ~6 weeks and I improved my score by 100 points! Tara not only showed me important, time saving techniques, he also helped reinforce some of the more basic math concepts that I had not been exposed to in quite some time. He is flexible with scheduling lessons and incredibly efficient with the time you spend together. He takes detailed notes that you can utilize for review after each lesson and also provides pages and pages of practice problems. If you need help on quant, go with Tara! read more

Tara was a fantastic GRE tutor. I took the GRE three years ago (before I met with Tara) and scored a 159 on the quant section. After ~6 sessions with Tara, I was able to raise my quant score by 8 points. Tara has rules of thumb that are incredibly useful for improving mental math and test-taking speed. I ended up scoring: verbal: 163 quant: 167 writing: 5.5 With Tara's help, I was admitted into the following PhD programs: UCLA Anderson School of Management, Behavioral Decision Research Columbia Business School, Marketing NYU Stern, Marketing Haas Berkeley, Marketing Carnegie Mellon, Social and Decision Sciences 5 STARS all the way! read more

Worked with Tara for a couple weeks on my ACT. He helped me improve my ACT score in each subject by 3-4 points and I was able to get into the engineering program at UIUC. With my old score, I definitely would not have been able to get into the engineering program and I might be stuck studying something that I did not enjoy. He is excellent in all the subjects of the ACT, and I would not be where I am today without his help. He is intelligent, nice, and incredibly patient. I would definitely recommend his help. Thank you so much Tara! read more

I reached out to Tara after unsuccessfully working with a different GMAT tutor in the prior month. During our first meeting, Tara explained a handful of strategies unique to the GMAT that immediately helped me improve my score. Additionally, Tara adequately prepared me for the algebra, geometry, probability, etc. questions that I had not seen since high school. Before meeting Tara, I was scoring in the low to mid 500s. After just a few sessions, I was consistently in the 600+ range. I give Tara full credit for my 110 point increase between my first and second test scores. Not only was he very helpful with the substance of the test, he was also very flexible and never had any problems with scheduling. I highly recommend Tara for any standardized testing. read more

I would unequivocally recommend Tara for those looking for help in preparing for the GMAT, particularly for the Math section. I found Tara through a friend and I was impressed with his knowledge of not only the types of questions, but his breakdown of strategies in cutting down time and practicing. He's clearly prepared, has taken the test several times and knows all of the materials on the market. I would suggest utilizing the sessions to really target concepts that you don't understand and bringing in specific questions to talk about -- but Tara is always prepared to cover a new topic in each session. I am a current first-year at the University of Chicago Booth (Full-time) and I know Tara was a part of getting me there! read more

I had taken the GRE before, but I needed to improve my score in the Quantitative section in order to get into my desired schools. Tara was incredibly helpful, super reliable, and helped me improve both my math AND writing score (he literally gave me 5 pointers on writing and my score shot up). I am now a student at the University of Chicago's Harris School of Public Policy (I also got into Georgetown, Michigan, and Texas). I would recommend Tara to anyone looking to improve their GRE/GMAT scores. read more

Tara was a godsend as a tutor! I had taken a Kaplan course to prep for the GMAT, improving by 10 points from my diagnostic exam to the real exam after 3 months. Unsatisfied with my score, I reached out to Tara to help improve my weak points. After only 8 sessions, Tara helped me to improve my score by 90 points and I was subsequently accepted in the Kellogg Part-Time MBA program at Northwestern. Couldn't have done it without him! read more

Tara is where it is at! I hate any and everything quantitative related; mainly because my joy in life is to just sit and look out the window (probably shouldn't have went to business school then huh?) Tara continuously worked with me even when I know he wanted to strangle me and scream, "stop looking out the window and work on these permutations!" In the end, you put in the work because Tara is working hard to get YOU where YOU want to go. He's beyond brilliant, patient and very committed. If you need a tutor for an exam and/or guidance on homework, call this guy and call him fast. read more

Tara is a fantastic tutor. He is extremely patient and explains things very simply. He was very effective at helping me further comprehend the material for the GMAT. Further, he introduced time-saving methods that I found very useful on the test -- every second matters. I would highly recommend him to anyone seeking additional help in preparing for an exam. read more

After reading all Tara's positive reviews on a tutoring website, I decided to contact him for GMAT/GRE tutoring. I'm so glad I did! During our first session, he determined a great plan for the next few weeks. Tara was always patient and made unfamiliar concepts easy to understand. I struggled with some foundational quant concepts, and Tara was able to explain them very clearly. I'm now happily completing my MBA at the University of Chicago, and I couldn't have done it without Tara. He isn't just an excellent tutor, he's also great to be around - always friendly and easygoing. Thank you, Tara! read more

After completing a GRE prep course at Kaplan and showing little to no improvement, I knew I needed some extra help. I then found Tara who was not only extremely flexible but was also able to pinpoint my specific areas of improvement. After meeting regularly for just over a month and a half, he raised my overall score by almost twenty points in addition to teaching me basics in math that I had either entirely forgotten or never mastered. Because of his instruction and guidance, I was admitted to my top school of choice. I would highly recommend him to anyone looking to improve his or her skills or preparing for a graduate test. Tara is incredibly knowledgeable and deeply dedicated to the success of his students. read more

I cannot have better things to say about Tara and his tutoring services. Like many, I have been studying for the GMAT for the past 6 months. I used an in-person prep course, self-studied, and used test prep books, all of which were unsuccessful in raising my score. After reading Tara's reviews on Yelp, I decided to give it one last shot and set up an initial consultation. Right away, I could tell that Tara would have a very strategic way towards teaching me how to approach the problems in a way I would understand. We set a target score and met each week for 8 weeks. Tara's patience and encouragement was what kept me motivated & I was amazed when I achieved my target quant score on a practice exam after the first two weeks of our sessions. I just took the GMAT this weekend, and I got the best score I have ever received, exceeding the initial target I had set. I know I couldn't have done it without Tara, so I would highly recommend him to anyone looking to succeed on the GMAT. Thank you, Tara!!! read more