David Mahler Reviews

I completed the 9-week Manhattan Prep GMAT course with Dave Mahler, and I must express my utmost gratitude for the experience. Dave's teaching prowess, coupled with the vibrant class environment he cultivated, made my GMAT preparation not only effective but also enjoyable.

The 9-week course served as a solid foundational introduction, and Dave's expertise shone through as he navigated us through intricate GMAT concepts and strategies. As someone with rusty math skills, I found the math foundations and test strategies explored in the class to be concise and immediately applicable.

Following the course, I decided to enhance my preparation further through private tutoring with Dave. This decision turned out to be invaluable. Dave's insight into the nuances of GMAT, coupled with his ability to explain complex concepts and strategies, was truly exceptional. He was able to diagnose my flawed test-taking strategies and, through private lessons, sharpened both my quant and verbal reasoning skills.

Beyond his instructional abilities, what sets Dave apart is his unwavering optimism and encouragement. Throughout the entire process, he proved to be a firm supporter, making it evident that he was genuinely invested in my success. This personalized approach not only bolstered my confidence but also created a supportive learning environment.

In conclusion, I wholeheartedly recommend Dave Mahler as a GMAT instructor. Whether you are starting with the 9-week course or seeking private tutoring, his expertise, encouragement, and personalized approach make for an exceptional GMAT preparation experience. Thanks to Dave, I not only improved my GMAT score but also gained invaluable insights that extend far beyond the test itself.

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I took the 9-week Manhattan Prep course with Dave, and in addition to his top notch teaching, the class environment he fostered also made the time more enjoyable. Overall, Manhattan Prep's UI was very good and the strategy guides were as well. I had never taken the GMAT before and no familiarity with test, and scored in the high 500s on my first Manhattan Prep CAT. After the class, which was a great foundational intro, I began tutoring with Dave. His insight and ability to explain concepts and strategies were excellent, and he always knew the right leading questions to ask. Dave helped me fine tune my processes, time management, and strategy execution, and I scored a 710 on my first real GMAT. Just a month later, after only focusing on the areas that Dave helped me identify, I nailed my target score of a 730. I am thrilled with my improvement and I cannot recommend Dave highly enough!

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I took the 9-week course with Dave Mahler in New York and had a great experience. I had already taken the GMAT once before, but did not get my desired score and decided that the best way to improve would be to sign up for a class. Dave was very helpful through the entire process and made the course really engaging (not an easy task for a 3-hour evening weekday slot). Even more impressive is how attentive Dave has been (and continues to be) even after my official time with the course has concluded - he has offered to continue helping me by analyzing my CAT exam scores and hop on phone calls to help talk through ways to improve. Thanks to Dave and the staff at Manhattan Prep for the helpful study materials and personalized instruction

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When I started my GMAT journey, I scored a 490 on my first Manhattan CAT. I was certainly not one of those "Score a 740 in 20 days" stories. In David's Manhattan prep class I learned all of the ground-up framework necessary to understand the GMAT and strategize how to conquer it. Equally as important, as the COVID-19 crisis emerged, David and Manhattan prep made the transition to online learning seamless. At this point David and I had started private tutoring and he was able to give me a structured workload with followup meetings to keep me on track. As I continued to advance, David and I dug deeper into different strategies to tackle the toughest questions while reinforcing the framework that was built in the beginning. After scoring a 680 GMAT on my first run, there was no panic and David refocused my approach to improve on my weakest sections. The results speak for themselves and on my second go, I scored a 740. I am over the moon with my score and how far I've come, and I can not thank David enough for his help and guidance!

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I took both the in-person 9 week course as well as a few supplemental in-person tutoring sessions with Dave Mahler (instructor for both).

The course was a great introduction to the proper approach to each section and topic matters as well as best practices. The books are well-written and there is a wide range of basic through advanced material for everyone. Dave did a great job managing students' different levels of comfort with each topic and is a very engaging teacher. He cuts through a lot of the BS and makes sure that his students are focusing their time on the most important topics. Dave was also generous with his time, both before and after class as well as offering to answer one off questions or review practice test scores with all his students via email. My score went from an initial 660 up to 700 following the class when I had to take some time off from studying due to work commitments.

I engaged Dave for some top-up tutoring a few weeks later and he helped me diagnose a few key process areas that were deflating my score as well as teaching me new techniques to help with problematic content areas. He was also great about providing tailored follow-up problems that helped reinforce the areas covered each session for extra practice. Following a few one on one sessions with him I was able to bump my score to 740 and couldn't be happier with my decision to use MGMAT for my prep.

From the instructors to the online portal for tracking assignments and all of the excellent content, Manhattan Prep definitely went the extra mile to help its students succeed.

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I participated in David Mahler’s ten-week Manhattan Prep GMAT course in Spring/Summer 2018. Following an initial practice exam score of 590, I scored a 760 on my first and only GMAT sitting in July.



Having not been acquainted with the exam format or any official GMAT resources, I selected Manhattan Prep as a familiar service with a positive reputation in New York and among my undergraduate classmates. I completed my undergraduate degree in 2014 and am applying this fall to MBA programs for matriculation in Fall 2019. I considered the GMAT to be an unpredictable and time-consuming first step in the admissions process. I knew I needed to prepare strategically, given my time constraint, which justified the course investment.



For me, the robust course materials and carefully organized curriculum were critical for achieving a high score. The strategy guides necessarily walked me through a massive variety of content I hadn’t encountered since high school. Infamously, this content represents only half the battle. The GMAT also tests strategy and decision making, and, in my experience, emotional composure. Rather than separating the content from these components, the strategy guides themselves incorporate these challenges throughout. For example: I found the importance of strategy selection during the Quant section to be remarkable. Solving a problem with even the most refined “textbook” technique is frequently penalized by way of time. As the curriculum advances through Quant subjects, the books reiterate alternative (or “shortcut”) strategies in their different applications. Only purposeful practice with several strategies and, more importantly, review of that practice, can bolster one’s ability to select efficient strategies or cut bait when necessary. Not only do the Manhattan Prep strategy guides cover content with digestible pace and organization, they immerse that content in strategy and in the context of agile decision-making. While it is impossible to benchmark, I think the strategy guides alone enabled me to score in the 700-720 range (a far cry from where I began). The books are ordered, which helps organize studying and makes them less daunting to approach. For those on a budget and/or not local to New York, the materials are a rich resource on their own and well worth the investment.



In order to score those additional 40-60 points (it’s all relative), I believe the in-person class to be worth the incremental investment. Research the instructors and consult the online reviews. I had an exceptional and memorable experience with David Mahler, whose instruction was as effective as any college professor I can remember. While I chose Dave because we shared an Alma Mater and he recorded a 790 GMAT, I believe online reviews such as this one testify to his talent and led many of my classmates to choose his course. I’ll begin there: my section was fully booked with ~12 students as opposed to a section with four or five students that I addended as a make-up. All things equal, the smaller section was surprisingly less productive than the larger. The smaller headcount did not come closer to resembling a tutored course—if there is even one other student the curriculum cannot be tailored to you. The increased individual attention only caused the instructor to check in with each student before proceeding to the next practice question or topic. Class is not about solving individual problems—there are too many to address. Rather, as Dave emphasized, a class succeeds if it can polish your study and review process. You must prepare mostly on your own. As a person that struggles with self-regimen, I needed Dave’s guidance to “work smarter” and accomplish as much as possible with the little time I had. Dave held us accountable in our coursework. There was no passing his class, as his objective was to nudge us as close to our potential as was possible in ten weeks… you are not evaluated by your instructor. I performed well on the problems in class, but this was not a barometer of my ability relative to my classmates. It was an opportunity, each time, to recognize areas of improvement and consider better strategies. I got careless and made silly mistakes. Dave did not hesitate to knock me down a peg and I never once felt like I “passed the test”. There was always a critique to be made and a weakness to recognize in future problems, when exams don’t break for discussion, when there are 20 problems ahead, when review is no longer a luxury. Dave was able to challenge every person in the room at once, facilitating discussion and holding attention. It was masterful instruction and it was a blast.



The GMAT is a terrific test. I don’t believe it can be conquered, but I know that it can be whittled down to a more manageable feat. Believe it or not, that process can be fun. No exam, including the GMAT, can print an objective assessment of your intelligence. The GMAT doesn’t try to do this. It anchors itself in 30-60-90 right triangles and comma splices and proceeds to test your decision-making and composure. But it doesn’t do this mysteriously—there’s tape on its schemes that you mustn’t break down yourself. Manhattan Prep has done it for you. I can’t imagine approaching the GMAT without being coached on its tricks. It is my enthusiastic recommendation that any prospective MBA student prepare for the GMAT with David Mahler and Manhattan Prep. The cost was a large investment for me, and provided an overwhelming return, which feels pretty good.

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Got my target 720 score after approx 4 months that comprised self study, Manhattan Prep's 9-week course on Wall street Manhattan (David Mahler was our instructor), and private tutoring (also with Dave Mahler). I started with a 590 Manhattan Prep GMAT practice test. Quite frankly, I could not have managed the 720 without Manhattan Prep.

1. The 9-week course: This was a great start for me as my math skills were very rusty (haven't touched math since high school and my day-to-day work doesn't require the use of any meaningful quant skill - I'm a lawyer). The math foundations and GMAT test strategies explored in class were concise and immediately helpful. Dave Mahler was our instructor - I highly recommend him for the clarity with which he explains tough concepts (particularly Data Sufficiency and Critical Reasoning). FYI the 9-week course comes with the full suite of Manhattan Prep Books, which were all great - concise, clear, and effective - no verbiage which is good for busy professionals.

2. Private tutoring: After the 9 week course, I spent a couple of weeks wrapping up the GMAT OG and then I took a real GMAT test. Bombed it. I decided I needed more targetted tutoring, so I splurged on the private tutoring (8 lessons in total). This was worth every penny. Dave diagnosed my flawed test-taking strategies, and his private lessons sharpened my quant and verbal reasoning skills. These lessons were challenging but crucial to my success on the test - he would often ask me to explain my thought processes WHILE I solved tough problems (DS, PS, SC, CR), and this invariably forces you to think critically about every single step in your own problem-solving process. Every step in my problem-solving process was critiqued and improved upon. As important, Dave was extremely optimistic and encouraging throughout this whole process. He was a firm supporter and you feel that he's invested in your success.

TL DR: Manhattan Prep's 9 week course and private tutoring are both very strongly recommended. Manhattan Prep's books are very strongly recommended. Dave Mahler is very strongly recommended.

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Got my target 720 score after approx 4 months that comprised self study, Manhattan Prep's 9-week course on Wall street Manhattan (David Mahler was our instructor), and private tutoring (also with Dave Mahler). I started with a 590 Manhattan Prep GMAT practice test. Quite frankly, I could not have managed the 720 without Manhattan Prep.

1. The 9-week course: This was a great start for me as my math skills were very rusty (haven't touched math since high school and my day-to-day work doesn't require the use of any meaningful quant skill - I'm a lawyer). The math foundations and GMAT test strategies explored in class were concise and immediately helpful. Dave Mahler was our instructor - I highly recommend him for the clarity with which he explains tough concepts (particularly Data Sufficiency and Critical Reasoning). FYI the 9-week course comes with the full suite of Manhattan Prep Books, which were all great - concise, clear, and effective - no verbiage which is good for busy professionals.

2. Private tutoring: After the 9 week course, I spent a couple of weeks wrapping up the GMAT OG and then I took a real GMAT test. Bombed it. I decided I needed more targetted tutoring, so I splurged on the private tutoring (8 lessons in total). This was worth every penny. Dave diagnosed my flawed test-taking strategies, and his private lessons sharpened my quant and verbal reasoning skills. These lessons were challenging but crucial to my success on the test - he would often ask me to explain my thought processes WHILE I solved tough problems (DS, PS, SC, CR), and this invariably forces you to think critically about every single step in your own problem-solving process. Every step in my problem-solving process was critiqued and improved upon. As important, Dave was extremely optimistic and encouraging throughout this whole process. He was a firm supporter and you feel that he's invested in your success.

TL DR: Manhattan Prep's 9 week course and private tutoring are both very strongly recommended. Manhattan Prep's books are very strongly recommended. Dave Mahler is very strongly recommended.

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I got my target score of 720+ thanks to Manhattan Prep, and highly recommend the MP program to anyone who is seriously considering applying to a top b-school. I say this for a few reasons:
1) The resources and course content are unparalleled, and very well structured. You start the process by taking a practice test that immediately pin-points your strengths vs areas that may need improvement, and then track your progress by taking more exams throughout the course.
2) The content is carefully curated, and is structured in a way that makes the classes effective without being overwhelming. The MP problem sets enable you to absorb content in the most efficient way.
3) The online interface is well designed and easy to use. Whenever I saw other interfaces friends were using, I was always thankful I decided on MP.
4) The instructor that I had (David Mahler) was amazing. He was intelligent, personable, always prepared, and a great teacher. He was diligent in answering emails, and always made himself available to students.
5) On top of the classes, Manhattan Prep offered a ton of events with top MBA programs which really helps when you get to the application stage.

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Really enjoyed my course with David Mahler. My first practice exam was in the 500's range and I ended up with a 770. Even though I could have studied alone, the course itself added great structure, with amazing advice / techniques from David. Then of course, Manhattan Prep has amazing materials / practice tests etc. which get you to an advanced level.

Overall, I recommend the course for anyone, no matter what level they are on the test, unless you're in a particular rush or require individual attention. The structure of going to a weekly course is particularly helpful and the weekly assignments keep you on pace and on track.

Thanks a lot David!!!

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