Don’t Prefer Classes for GMAT? Here are the Advantages and Disadvantages

The GMAT is one of the most competitive exams attempted by candidates to secure admissions in the top B-schools of the world. Though the syllabus comprises basic high school level concepts, it is crucial to be well prepared for the exam to achieve desired scores. It is therefore recommended that you invest sufficient time for the preparation. Most of the students attempting the exam are working professionals like you, and hence may require extra assistance to prepare for the exam. So before you sign up for the coaching classes, let us learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of attending these online classes.

Advantages of Preparing Without Classes

• Comfort – You will be able to learn from the comfort and safety of your home. You will not have to worry about commuting long distances to attend classes. With the current pandemic situation, it is prudent to study from home instead of attending classes and risking exposure.
• Cost-effective – Learning by yourself means you don’t have to spend any money on coaching classes. You will save expenses on travel, study materials, etc.
• Convenience – You no longer have to worry about missing classes since you will be the one who decides when to study, in what order to study, and how much time to study. You will also have no distractions or disturbances while studying.
• Flexibility – You will have the flexibility to form your study plan as per your requirements. You can customise it according to your strengths and weaknesses. Ensure to stick to the study plan so that you don’t miss out on any of the important topics in the syllabus. It also helps you to track the progress which you have made with your preparation.
• Access to unlimited study materials – There is an abundance of study materials available online which you can access instantly. Another advantage of using study materials online is that they have the latest updates. You can also access several mock exams online which will help you get familiar with the exam pattern, give you an estimate of the score range you are likely to achieve, and assist you with understanding your strengths and weaknesses.

Disadvantages of Preparing Without Classes

On the other hand, there are many disadvantages to preparing for the GMAT without any coaching classes as well. Let us look at a few of them below.

• You may not have a structured study plan without any expert assistance which you will have with coaching classes.
• You will not be able to interact with your peers and gain different perspectives about the admission process. You also won’t have a chance to network with other students who also aspire to secure admits at the universities you are applying to.
• As already mentioned, coaching classes have experienced instructors who have trained several batches of students. These trainers will be able to provide valuable inputs and share shortcut techniques to solve questions more quickly. You may lose out on all this if you choose to prepare on your own.
• Most coaching institutes offer personalised study plans as per your strengths and weaknesses. They also offer plenty of sample questions, mock exams, and a plethora of study materials to help with your preparation. They ensure these are from credible sources which may be difficult if you opt for studying on your own.
• Finally, all good coaching institutes provide admission consultancy services to help prepare your – SOP, LOR, CV, essays, etc. These play a significant role in your admissions. It will certainly be a laborious task to prepare all of these documents without any assistance.

So as you can see from the above article there are plenty of advantages if you opt to study on your own for the GMAT exam. However, as each coin has two sides there are several disadvantages too. You will need to make an informed decision so that you can reach your target scores and secure admissions at the universities you have shortlisted. It is imperative that you diligently begin your preparation once you have decided on the date of your exam. Since you are preparing on your own, ensure to keep a check on the progress which you have made regularly so that you can complete all the topics of the syllabus on time.

Good Luck!

X