GREMasterEMPOWERRichC

Hi aliishaq, I'd like to know a bit more about your timeline and goals: 1) What is your goal score? 2) What resources have you been using during your studies? 3) When are you planning to apply to Grad School? 4) Do you know which Schools you plan to apply to? If you're not feeling 'ready' to take the GRE, then you might want to consider pushing back your Test Date. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi vkainth, Since your GPA is just 'ok', and your Grad School focus is going to be Computer Science, the Schools would likely want you to have a higher GRE Quant Score (although you might get accepted with your current scores if you have a strong enough OVERALL application). As such, retaking the GRE would likely help your applications a great deal. You can also research each School (through their websites), so that you can get a better sense of how your GRE score compares. 1) How long did you study for your first attempt? 2) What resources did you use? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Jack Sparrow, Do you know which Schools/Programs that you plan to apply to? If you do, then you should be able to research the individual websites and find the information that you're looking for? If you cannot find it, then I suggest that you contact the Schools directly and ask. They'll likely be happy to answer any (and all) questions that you have about attending the Program. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi doctor-to-be, What was your actual GRE Score (including the Quant and Verbal scores)? How did your Official Score compare to your practice MST scores? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi historyspace, If you have Professors and Administrators telling you that your GRE Score won't hurt your overall application, then I'd side with their opinions (as opposed to asking a website full of strangers what they think). Academically-speaking, the GRE won't be a "plus" on your application, while it will likely be for other applicants. Thus, you really have to make sure that the rest of your OVERALL application is strong AND that you present yourself properly. You might be a strong applicant right now, but if enough people also apply who appear 'better' (because of a stronger GRE score or some other factor), then you won't necessarily get an invite. You seem to understand the need to retake the GRE though, so the next question would be: WHEN do you think you would do that? Sometime soon (while the materials/concepts are still 'fresh') or later on (when you would have to start from scratch? The GRE is a predictable, standardized Test, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. It just sounds like you haven't used the proper training materials yet. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi alphabet, Since you're talking about some highly-competitive Schools, you would likely find it beneficial to work with an Admissions Expert on your applications. In that same way, you're ultimately asking Admissions questions, so seeking out the advice of those Experts would be a good idea regardless. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Machelonga, A month is not a lot of practice time, so you might end up having to adjust your plans a bit. That having been said, it's important to define your goals, so that we can come up with the best Study Plan for your situation: 1) What is your goal score? 2) What Schools are you planning to apply to? 3) What are the average GRE Scores for each of those Programs? As brown_eyed_girl has suggested, you should download the free practice materials from www.gre.org and take one of the practice MSTs. Be sure to take the FULL Exam (including the Essays), so that we can get a sense of your current strengths and weaknesses. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Science_Girl_, While you've self-identified 'hard/convoluted' Quant questions as a problem area, that is NOT enough to explain the Q155 that you've scored. It's far more likely that 'your way' of approaching the Quant section is what's costing you points. If you can't score above that level, then you're going to have to make some adjustments to how you 'see' (and respond to) the GRE. 1) What resources have you used so far during your studies? 2) When would you plan to next take the GRE? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi UmmF, To hit your goal score, you're going to have to make some significant improvements to BOTH your Quant and Verbal Scores. Since you weren't able to get to that higher level studying on your own, you're likely going to need a GRE Course of some type (either Guided Self-Study or instructor-led). Given everything that you've described, I think that you would find the EMPOWERgre Total Score Booster Study Plan to be quite helpful. Most of our Clients can complete that Study Plan in under 2 months, so it should fit your timeframe. We have a variety of free resources at our website (www.empowergre.com) that you can use to 'test out' the Course before you set up a full Account. If you have any additional questions, then just let me know. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Jolie717, With a 4.0 AWA score, you shouldn't run into any problems (most Programs 'want' a 4.0 or higher, so you're almost certainly fine to apply). Your GPA and Verbal Score are fantastic (and far overshadow the AWA). As such, if you're not interested in raising the Quant score, then you should stick with your current GRE score. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi PhdApplicant311, I responded to the post that you linked (above). GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi PhdApplicant311, GRE questions often require a bit of 'flexible' thinking on the part of the solver (the GRE is a critical thinking Test, after all). Sometimes questions come with 'twists' that have to be accounted for. Here, we're asked for what 'MUST be true' which really means "which of the following is ALWAYS TRUE, no matter how many different examples you come up with?" This is similar to a QC in that coming up with one TEST is probably not going to be enough to get you to the correct answer. Here, the 'twist' really measures the 'thoroughness' of your thinking. After you come up with your first TEST (A is positive, B is negative), you have to think about the OTHER possibilities (your next TEST was A is negative, B is negative). Etc. For Roman Numeral questions, it's also really helpful to pay attention to the 5 answer choices - they're often designed to help you avoid having to do some of the math. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi rayyylife, How did you score on your recent GRE? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi UmmF, From what you've described, your studies were inconsistent and 'book-heavy.' Many Test Takers have trouble scoring at a really high level when studying in this way, so some big adjustments to your study routine are going to be necessary. As such, you'll likely want to invest in some new non-book resources. 1) What is your score goal? Do you have an idea of what score would make you a competitive applicant at the Program(s) you're considering? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi UmmF, I'd like to know more about your studies so far and your deadlines: 1) You say that you studied for 6 months, but what was your 'routine?' How many hours did you study during a typical week? Did you have a consistent schedule or did you just study when you had the time? 2) What practice resources did you use? 3) What are the application deadlines for the Programs that you're considering? Thankfully, the GRE is a predictable, standardized Test, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi MiaSay, The Verbal section of the GRE is just as predictable and standardized as the Quant section is, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. You will probably have to adjust how you think about the Verbal section though, and you'll have to practice some new Tactics. 1) When are you planning to apply to Grad School? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi ladyjane, If the 50th percentile is the goal, then you have to look at the Quant section of the GRE in terms of 'trades' - there are going to be some questions that will be too hard for you, but that's okay - you won't need to get them correct to score at the 50th percentile. So your goal should be to quickly 'trade' them away - dump/flag anything that looks too difficult and spend the bulk of your time on the questions that are 'gettable.' If you can nail the questions that you're capable of answering correctly, then you can hit that score goal. You just need the necessary time and 'calm' to do the work that is required. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi StrongTackle-BacarySagna, One of the amazing 'tools' that you can take advantage of on Test Day is the 'flagging' feature - which allows you to flag a question so that you can come back to it later. "Trading" all of that time to try to answer 1 question at the cost of not answering 4-5 others is a TERRIBLE trade. You have to be mentally prepared to quickly-guess-and-flag any prompts that seem to tricky for you, so that you can maximize your performance on each section overall. If you're not mentally 'comfortable' with that idea yet, then that is something that you'll need to work on. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi futureslptobe, 18 Schools is really too many. The process of applying to (and ultimately attending) Grad School requires a big investment of time, money and energy on your part, so you really should make sure that the Schools in question really are a 'good fit' for your personality and goals. The process of creating an effective application also takes time, so crafting 18 strong applications (and not just 'cut & pasting' the same application 18 times) is too much work (considering that in the 'best case' scenario, you would receive 18 acceptance letters and you'll still end up choosing just 1 School to attend). To start, you should try to narrow down your list based on whatever variables you deem to be most important (cost, location, alumni, Program reputation, etc.). You might also have to retake the GRE to strengthen your chances at getting in. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi PhdApplicant311, The Quant section of the GRE is consistent and predictable, so you CAN train to score at a higher level. While a certain amount of the 'work' that you have to do in that section is technical (formulas, calculations, etc.), a BIG part of scoring at a high level in that section is in the Tactics that you can use and the patterns that you spot (and can take advantage of). Since you have an EMPOWERgre Account, I suggest that you work through all of the Stage 1 Lessons - I bet that you'll find the Quant section to be considerably easier after doing so. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi StrongTackle-BacarySagna, By your own description, if you barely studied the first time, then we don't have much information on what you need to focus on to improve. While taking a FULL MST (including the essays) will give us some data to work with, taking lots of practice MSTs is probably not going to provide the solution that you're looking for. If you continue to handle the Quant section in the same ways that you did before, then your score will likely stay the same. 1) Do you have the flexibility to push back your Test Date? 2) When are you planning to apply to Grad School? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Filmguy80, If you trust what your Professors have to say about Admissions, then have you considered running your overall application by them and asking for their suggestions? I would suspect that you'd get far more pointed advice by taking that route (compared with asking a group of faceless strangers here). GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Gana123, Since your Quant score is right around the 90th percentile, you've put together a solid performance in that section. However, you should do a bit more research into the individual Programs that you plan to apply to, so that you can get a sense of how your GRE score 'matches up' with the data from past incoming classes (and whether you really have to improve your Verbal score or not). Considering the ease with which you should be able to schedule the GRE, why is it that YOUR next available Test Date isn't until December 1st? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi PattiJeane, Since the original post in this thread is 2 years old (and the original poster hasn't visited the site in 1.5 years), you might not get the exact response that you're looking for. We can talk through your situation though: 1) Do you know which Schools/Programs you plan to apply to? 2) What deadlines are you currently facing? 3) What was your Overall GRE Score? GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich

Hi Elvidi, The other posters in this thread have hit on an important aspect of learning - it's often easier to learn a concept if you can watch (and hear) someone talk you through it. As such, taking a 'book-heavy' approach to studying the Quant section might be hurting your chances of improvement. By extension, you will likely benefit by using a computer-based resource (with video explanations). We have a number of free practice resources at our website (www.empowergre.com) that you will probably find quite helpful. GRE Masters aren't born, they're made, Rich