awells27

I think I used 3 GRE words for my first essay and two for my second. I would generally avoid contractions.

You would be on dangerous ground if a female, or any prof concerned with gender bias, graded your paper. You could definitely devote one paragraph to the problem of "most." We are told that no bias goes into grading these essays, but judging by my history of paper grades, I would contend that position.

Yes, there is a correct way to evaluate an argument, but the argument or assumptions can never legitimately be proven as correct. The scenarios are too vague and, to put it bluntly, stupid. A simple way to summarize the assumptions is that further research is required to determine their validity. We are basically arguing the same thing from different directions. In the analyze an issue section, however, what I'm saying is clearly important. My essay prompt was that the main goal of history is to teach leaders that people are basically the same in both past and present. This is a ludicrous prompt, and no one will truly know if people are more the sameor more different. SO I simply said that in some instances people are the same and in some instances they are different. I gave two paragraphs for each position. It does not matter that my argument was legit, but only that I critically engaged with the topic with positions and examples. I try to offer ideas like "social control," centralization of power, gender bias, etc - all legit concerns - since I assume that most professors lean left. This was a dangerous gamble on my part, but it paid off.

http://www.religion.ucsb.edu/wp-content/uploads/islamic.pdf

Some people get caught up in whether they are actually right respecting what they write. That does not matter. This section is about identifying implicit assumptions and demonstrating how they either support or debunk the argument. The same holds true for the first section. Whatever position you take, defend it well, identify how the opposition may sometimes be partially correct, and provide examples.

1. Intro is an improvement, as it provides historical context. List, however, the skeleton of your argument within the intro. "I would generally contend with the above argument on the following grounds: physical strength represents a misleading criterion of usefulness; several women have proven equal to men in vital vocational fields; women have achieved success in the military, a field often presupposing physical strength and stamina; and, finally, concerns over maternity leave are overstated. 2. Your transition from paragraph 2 to 3 is just such a connecting strategy that graders look for. Combine paragraph 4, however with paragraph 3, since the examples all relate to each other. "There isn't a dearth of such examples of ultra-successful women" sounds awkward. Something like, "Such examples of successful women abound." 3. Conclusion: "most of the objections don't apply to most of the fields." = too vague. rather, "Most common appeals to female ineffectiveness prove inapplicable to the majority of vocational fields." Also, DON"T FORGET TOO PROVIDE THE POSITIVE IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIETY, GIVEN YOUR POSITION. Why is the world represented by your view of women a better one for both ourselves and our children? Also, in a position as faulty as the one given you, if you can find even a bare instance where it is warranted, it helps. My problem here, however, is that the odds of a liberal grader is greater than a conservative one, so you run the risk of annoying them if you even hint at patriarchy.

1. Intro: "implicit" or "underlying" probably works better than "subtle" when characterizing assumptions. Also, since there is bias toward longer essays among the graders, you might list the underlying assumptions in your intro paragraph. You can then say something such as, "To the degree these assumptions prove unwarranted, there will be a corresponding decrease in the validity of the pet food company's argument. Now you have already established how your middle paragraphs will proceed. Remember, you're not being graded according to how correct you are; you're graded according to how you evaluate an argument. 2. First assumption attack: Make sure the end of your paragraph states something such as, "If the sample, upon further investigation, turns out large enough to be representative of the company's entire inventory, then the pet food company's argument merits further consideration." In other words, allow for the argument, however faulty, to have a possibility of being plausible. 3. Second Assumption Attack: This paragraph is strong. 4. Third assumption attack: This is strong, but you'll improve by writing something such as, "If, however, the regulatory agency approving such chemicals has long been cited by veterinarians and chemists as the most reputable and reliable regulator of pet food products, then the company's argument grows stronger." Once again, allow for conditions supporting the pet food company. 5. You need a fourth assumption attack, time permitting. Four body paragraphs, if well written, work better than three. 6. Your summary is good. Here is an example of avoiding a state of being verb. "isn't justified in " changes to "lacks justification for" . This avoids the double negative of this sentence as well. Style: Try as best you can, however, within the evil time constraints, to use as more active (rather than passive) verbs and action verbs (rather than state of being verbs). "There are various subtle assumptions throughout the argument. If they aren't warranted," becomes "Various underlying assumptions guide the argument, and if they prove unwarranted, . . ." You understand the assumption attack strategy very well. Don't worry about repeating in your conclusion what you said in your intro. As long as you rephrase it, hopefully the person grading you will sign off on a good grade because they are overworked anyway. I would spend as much time as possible reading brief academic essays, just so good writing style sinks in.

Doesn't ETS give all the prompts on their website? If that's so, I would just look over them and make sure there's none that bewilder you. When is your test? Do you have time to write one essay per day until test day?

I would think so. It was well thought out and organized. I have no idea what kind of creatures, however, are grading these essays. Chances are you have to really hope you get a reasonably-minded grader. That is why I hesitate to predict grades. Maybe people who got between 4-5 could comment on this thread about how their essays were compared to the one above. My interest in over-critiquing it is to help maximize their score on game day.

1. The intro paragraph should be set within the context of competing views of education. I would think that starting it in the 1st person is risky, depending on who grades it. You might appeal, in an issue like this one, to the contemporary conflict in education between (1) more inductive forms of learning - that is, alternative orientations that question the institutional bias of education that serves power structures; and (2) the more formal views of education that standardize what all students should learn and, knowingly or unknowingly, serves larger institutions of power. You have now established a larger context. Then you can state your position and at least three areas of support for your position. For example, "Formal education overlooks unique needs of individual learners, emphasizes quantity of knowledge over quality, and oftentimes reinforces institutional power structures that promote racism, sexism, and materialism. In your case, you can list rote memorization, passive obedience, and the lack of creative learning in your introduction, so the reader knows what is to come. 2. Now you have three topics through which to explain in more detail, giving examples for each case. For rote memorization, your examples are good, but the more real-life the better. The topic of passive obedience is a good one, but make sure you acknowledge the importance of obedience in the classroom, but that if it is purely out of conformity it can be damaging. Again, nuance is the key. The position about creative learning is fine, but again, can you come up with an example of someone who is brilliant that received a creative education from an early age? Or perhaps a recent study that supports your position? 3. Your brief paragraph about formal education's positives is on the right track - you do need one paragraph that acknowledges the other side - but I would not use the 1st person. List, for example, a few positives about formal education, and then state how its modification could actually enhance a foundation that is not totally flawed. Nuance! If you can cite an example, such as total immersion in the study of languages as a compliment to formal foreign language grammar study, you will do well. 4. Your conclusion should not say "conclusively." "In summary" sounds a bit better. Simply do a search for good conclusion openings. Also, present in your conclusion the ramifications of what you are proposing and how society benefits from it. 5. The more active voice the better. For example, switch "The latter of these views is a result of a formal education system" to The latter view results from a formal education system, . . . . Hope this wasn't too harsh.

harangue = high frequency GRE word

Since apps are submitted electronically, most schools just care about their deadline. Most admit committees want to view the entire pool of candidates in order to make a decision. This at least is what I have heard from my own professors who consider MA and PHD admits in competitive programs. If you submit your transcripts, LORs, and any other required material before you retake the GRE, your app will be almost finished by that time.

This is definitely not a fair test, so the more you practice the better it will get. By all means seek advice from others as well who have gotten at least a 5 score. Finally, if you have not read through Barons latest GRE book and the Manhattan book covering the AW, pay close attention to their instructions, which are expanded versions of what I just pointed out.

Stop the madness. What if this, what if that? The fact you won't get the 5lb book because you have enough to do already is evidence of not trying to do everything in your means to improve your score. What will you do if you're in a PHD program and you're asked to teach one semester when you are buried in research? You need as many types of GRE type questions to do under timed conditions as possible. Stop blaming others, even if they are partly to blame. If it is too much to prepare correctly for the GRE before apps are due, consider turning in apps next year. If you are set on this year, do the ultimate sacrifice and stop pondering what could go wrong.

I would be hesitant to grade the essay numerically, as it might mislead you unfairly, and because I hear the graders are very inconsistent and rushed. However, I did get a 6 on the AW, and the comments I'm giving you reflect the strategies I adopted in my own essays. 1. You need to provide context in your introductory paragraph. You might set the issue within the age old debate between religious moralists and rational thinkers, utilitarians vs those who attempt to legislate morality, or even secular humanists vs biblical literalists, or even Creationism vs evolution. Relate the context to the current debate between secular humanist and religious moralist views of education. Whatever you do, have your intro paragraph a bit longer through the supplying of context. 2. GRE graders apparently appreciate nuance, so you need to have at least one paragraph where the opinion your are arguing against could be at least partially true. For example, you could appeal to a few universally accepted moral principles that should be inculcated in children from a very young age. 3. Your paragraphs need to connect with each other. let the last sentence flow more into the first sentence of the next paragraph. You did this once with the notion of fallacies leading into Ad Hominem attacks, although "a common fallacy" sound a bit better than "not uncommon." 4. When you chastise fundamentalists, you can pick up extra points by acknowledging that their actions are often motivated by an authentic desire for what is good, but that they have not been taught the basic abilities of discernment that good logical reasoning can provide. In other words, be careful not to vilify the opposing side. Being sympathetic toward their argument while exposing its problems is a good way to show nuance. Also, in this paragraph YOU HAVE TO PROVIDE EXAMPLES! If you simply state that a phenomenon exists without providing a real life example, such as the bombing of abortion clinics, stoning of a heretic, or even the 911 attack, you will lose points 5. Your conclusion should provide implications for the future. What will our educational institutions produce through logical instruction and what type of society would you envision? If you learn to follow the 5 steps above, your grade should improve. There are tons of essay prompts available, so feel free to post another essay. You're off to a good start.

The previous post is worth reading a second time, as I would have sacrificed a few math points to get a higher verbal score. Actually, for a student without a masters degree, a 4 on the writing is not out of the ordinary. I can help you with formatting your essay and how to practice, as you continue preparing for the test again. Meanwhile, like Anne 00 said, find out what percentile ranges in each category your admissions committees are normally looking for. For God's sake, get that 5lb book already, as multiple people on this forum have attested to its usefulness. And for verbal, if you combine Magoosh, Kaplin online practice sets, and Barons 6 GRE tests book (their online is questionable), your score should improve. Everyone's suffering right now, I have 8 SOPs to complete, a massive writing sample, and professors I have to keep reminding about my LORs. Sometimes it takes 2 years to get all this together so hang in there.

What is your field? On the PHD level, most programs look for a 4 or higher. If you are applying for a Masters degree, your other scores are fine for middle tier, which makes the writing score unfortunate. If you are in any writing intensive program, I would do a retake. Then again, if you are a non-native English speaker, this could weigh in on admissions decisions. Need more information about what degree you are seeking and what schools you are applying to.

This is where I disagree. I found that many of the critical skills I learned on the masters' level were poorly represented on my particular GRE exam, at least on the second section. If adaptive degree of difficulty means convoluted sentences and trick questions, these are just the types of skills that many professors would consider useless, yet for some reason some of them weigh the test significantly in admissions decisions. I actually thought some of the Kaplin and Barons practice tests, while not totally representative of the real test I saw, provided more interesting reading sections and more academic TCs and SEs. Just to give you an example, the PHD admissions committees at my school, if they have admitted say 4 students into the program, often decide funding according to the AW score and a few other measures. My essay prompts were: "The purpose of history is to teach leaders that people are essentially the same in both the past and present," and "Park A should provide more benches to compensate for decreased public use, since Park B has more benches and shows increased public use." What a great way to determine funding!

Are you a non-native speaker? If this is the case, I would get a tutor, and I would take the test again, as your scores are lower than 50th percentile in Q and V. If you are a native speaker, I would retake the test again anyway. I do not test well, so I had to study all summer just to get acceptable scores. If you are in Irvine, you live in a heavily populated area and should have options for what tutor to select at what price.

I wouldn't trust any of them, since the test can seem so much different on test day (either easier or harder), but I would err on the side of the ETS test. ETS practice tests are probably slightly easier than test day, but the main thing is being a good test taker and not stressing under pressure.

LOL, it just means, if you have been preparing, that you're not good at standardized tests. My friend at Fuller Seminary got lucky. He bombed the GRE, but he applied during a year lacking a competitive pool of applicants, and the rest of his application was strong. Now he is in the third year of his PHD in Old Testament texts and languages, and he has already published and presented at Society of Biblical Literature seminars. No other PHD student in the program can touch him, although I'm sure after his GRE scores had some people thinking he could never do PHD work.

That's what the stats said for Duke and Princeton. Maybe I just assumed Yale would be the same. I'm not taking that evil test again; it could go worse next time.

Well, now I feel better about not contacting certain places. I agree with what was said about having your advising professor tear apart your SOP a few times. Both my faculty advisers are on PHD committees for my seminary, and they believe its crucial they go over my SOP a few times to ensure it has the correct balance between specific emphasis and broad perspective. They say the SOP is often a rite of passage into the next round of consideration.

Do not assume that you are not fit for graduate school. That is the worst thing you can do. You would not be the first one to struggle with the GRE, a test that is totally biased against non-native speakers. I would definitely get a tutor who can monitor your progress under timed conditions. Also, if the GRE continues to be a problem, consider applying to schools in Europe or Canada, which I believe, someone correct me if I'm wrong, oftentimes do not require the GRE. Please feel free to ask any other questions, since your future is important.

Get the 5lb book. Then go to Barnes and Noble with a computer, grab Kaplin off the shelf, use codes in book to download digital version of Kaplin GRE, use ten practice verbal sets for practice and any practice tests. Read technical essays in scientific journals, mags, books, etc. Read scholarly essays in Humanities injournals, mags, books, etc.