rageofanath

I skipped several years between undergrad and even THINKING about grad school and it was both good and bad.
Good in the sense that leaving undergrad, I was pretty lost as to what kind of program I even wanted to look for. My senior year was extremely busy and stressful and I had no time to even think about grad school, much less make headway on researching and applying to programs. I feel that if I had rushed into a program at that point I may have made a mistake, as looking back now I can see that my career path as a whole is unconventional so I am very happy I didn't jump into a grad program. I also had student debt that I wanted to start paying off, and wanted to get a sense of what life was like outside of academia so by the time I got back into it, I'd be actually interested in doing things like going to class and studying, which I was NOT anymore. Now, I have experienced a lot of 'real world' stuff so academia is more 'in context' for me, and I'm a better student than ever before because of the perspective I gained. I also taught a bit so getting experience from the other side of the lectern where I was not just a TA but 100% in charge of everything from creating a syllabus to arranging field trips helped me to re-evaluate the student experience and how to approach academic problems. 
But the bad... I really only intended to take maybe 3 years off, max. I'm currently on year 5 and just started the application / search / research / GRE process, so it will probably be 6-8 years after undergrad before I start when all is said and done, and by the time I complete a degree I will be over 30. This pushes things back a lot, and keep in mind the short time off could end up being a lot longer due to all kinds of life circumstances. It can be harder to get back into 'student mode'. You might end up putting down roots that are harder to tear up than you think, and not WANT to move across the country or to another continent for school. Any life landmarks you want to hit (marriage, house, dream job, kids, dog, 401k, picket fence) will get pushed around with the delay. Not to say some of those things can't happen in grad school or around it, just not everyone wants to juggle those things, so you have to decide what's important to you and what you can and want to handle. This is especially true if grad school for you is a PhD and not a Masters'. 
Some people hit the point I have and don't go back. Keep in mind that "a year off" may end up being more than that.

I skipped several years between undergrad and even THINKING about grad school and it was both good and bad.
Good in the sense that leaving undergrad, I was pretty lost as to what kind of program I even wanted to look for. My senior year was extremely busy and stressful and I had no time to even think about grad school, much less make headway on researching and applying to programs. I feel that if I had rushed into a program at that point I may have made a mistake, as looking back now I can see that my career path as a whole is unconventional so I am very happy I didn't jump into a grad program. I also had student debt that I wanted to start paying off, and wanted to get a sense of what life was like outside of academia so by the time I got back into it, I'd be actually interested in doing things like going to class and studying, which I was NOT anymore. Now, I have experienced a lot of 'real world' stuff so academia is more 'in context' for me, and I'm a better student than ever before because of the perspective I gained. I also taught a bit so getting experience from the other side of the lectern where I was not just a TA but 100% in charge of everything from creating a syllabus to arranging field trips helped me to re-evaluate the student experience and how to approach academic problems. 
But the bad... I really only intended to take maybe 3 years off, max. I'm currently on year 5 and just started the application / search / research / GRE process, so it will probably be 6-8 years after undergrad before I start when all is said and done, and by the time I complete a degree I will be over 30. This pushes things back a lot, and keep in mind the short time off could end up being a lot longer due to all kinds of life circumstances. It can be harder to get back into 'student mode'. You might end up putting down roots that are harder to tear up than you think, and not WANT to move across the country or to another continent for school. Any life landmarks you want to hit (marriage, house, dream job, kids, dog, 401k, picket fence) will get pushed around with the delay. Not to say some of those things can't happen in grad school or around it, just not everyone wants to juggle those things, so you have to decide what's important to you and what you can and want to handle. This is especially true if grad school for you is a PhD and not a Masters'. 
Some people hit the point I have and don't go back. Keep in mind that "a year off" may end up being more than that.

I mostly get bouts of 'regular' clinical depression, but the seasons affect me a lot. I read about the summer SAD symptoms last fall and they fit. I'm going to keep a close watch this summer now that I know what to look for, but last year I was trying some more general self-care and found a few useful things.
Symptom: appetite loss
I really don't eat a lot during the summer, especially as it gets hot and humid. That's a real problem for depression since less food = more depression symptoms guaranteed. Last summer I tried to find "light" foods that I could eat and get my nutrients without getting nausea, or that wouldn't be too hard to force myself to eat -- but also things that are easy to prepare so that I wouldn't fall into the "cooking is too hard because hard / eat something junk / don't get good nutrition / depression / cooking is too hard because depression" cycle So I ate a lot of salads, fish, fruit, and eggs. Poaching a fish is really simple, I just put salt and lemon on something super mild like haddock or cod (real cheap where I live) then put it on top of a salad. The other thing I ate a lot of was chicken salad, I got a good waldorf chicken salad recipe so its mostly apples + chicken with cranberries. I could prepare a huge bowl and it would last the week basically. The other thing I found that works is liquid calories. I can always drink, but I can't always eat, so loading up what I drink with fruit, protein, milk, etc, helps counteract the fact that a normal breakfast (... lunch... and dinner) is completely repulsive in the summer.
Symptom: weight loss
I'm underweight, so this is a big problem (can't afford to lose more than ~1-2 lb) and it compounds with appetite loss. Last summer I tried to work out more, I went to the gym to lift weights, then drank a full glass of lactose free chocolate milk right after. That stimulated my appetite enough that I didn't lose a lot, mostly compensated for by increased muscle mass. I had a bad winter and didn't work out (too lethargic + hibernation/sad mode + gre prep) so I'm going to start that up again now that finals are over.
Symptom: sleep problems
UGH still working on this one. I'm just getting into that stage now. I can feel my 'natural' sleep cycle creeping later as it stays light longer. I haven't found a solution to this one except to just wait it out or try to make those hours productive by reading or artmaking. I've also gotten good at figuring out which energy drinks don't make me sick. Anyone who has insight on this...
Symptom: regular depression symptoms + anxiety
Getting into nature as much as possible helps. I also tend to throw myself into work to fight the symptoms so I usually make a few good art pieces / writings and teach adjunct summer classes. Adjuncting in the summer is GREAT. The kids are always good and I get inspired to go home and work, which staves off the crushing hopelessness and anxiety and replaces it with good nice things. I hope this helps you in the summer, too. The biggest problem I have is commuting into the summer classes since tired driving is pretty dangerous, hopefully I can get afternoon classes set up this year.
So yeah, that's based on last years' "I want to feel better in the summer" experiments, this year I'll be targeting it even more towards SAD symptoms.

(If you only want the key takeaways, read the bolded sections)
Hey everyone, I’m Albert Liang. I’m the founder and, as of writing this, do-most-everythinger for PassEdge Test Prep, a startup I recently launched (10 internet points to the first one to guess what it focuses on). I know that for lots of people, the reading section of a big standardized test tends to be the hardest to do well and improve on, and though there are plenty of other tips a strategy posts all over the interwebs, I thought I’d throw in my two cents.
Self-aggrandizing but mandatory credibility stuff: 2400 SAT, 35 MCAT. Historically, Critical Reading/Verbal Reasoning/Whatever It’s Called has always been my easiest section, and I get asked lots of questions about it because it’s the most conserved section across basically every standardized test in the USA. When people asked me about my methodology when taking a CR section, my answer has always been “I just… kinda do it?” Clearly not the deep insight they were probably looking for.
When people asked me how I got so good, the answer is simple: From elementary school up until middle school, I was one of those kids who always had their face buried in a book. Most of it was fantasy of either the magical or the scientific type, and though I loved every second of it, it’s not exactly a strategy I’d recommend to concerned grade schooler parents because a) a social life was something I read about but never actually had and your kid is in grade school let them have their childhood. Anyway, the point is that I had done so much reading when I was younger that I did a lot of the comprehension stuff unconsciously. Again, probably not very helpful.
Since then, though, I’ve given it a lot of thought, and having to write actual reading comprehension sections has given me some unique insights in how the “other side” thinks. Because I decided to get into this particular test prep niche in order to help people, I figured I should probably share my strategies and insights with you guys. So without further filler text, here are my…

 
Thoughts on the Reading/Verbal Section


 
1.      1) Understand what the section requires of you (and what it will do to you)

I believe that the reason many find reading comp to be the most difficult section of the test is because it’s actually testing two very different things at the same time: your logical thinking and interpretational skills. Almost every question will test one, if not both, of these skills, so in order to score well, it’s critical that both of these skills be strong.
Additionally, because of the high-pressure environment of the standardized test, it isn’t enough to be good at these skills in a casual setting. You have to be good at them under stress, as well - “We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training” and all that (Archilochos). I’m not saying that you should do practice tests in a tub full of poisonous spiders or in a sketchy back alley at night (although if you do so and survive, the actual test day will probably seem relaxing in comparison), but you definitely want to try and replicate actual testing conditions as much as you can when you practice, including the stress. For some, added stress is not necessary at all, but for others it may very well be. Timers work, but are an imperfect substitute, so feel free to experiment with more extreme ways of inducing anxiety… as long as they’re safe. Possible ideas include having your friends text you while you’re unable to answer but can still hear the notifications, leaving younger siblings in your room while you practice, and telling yourself you’re not stressed out for the test. I’m  not saying you should do this for every practice session since it would be very draining, but it would be a good idea to do some “stress testing” every once in a while.

It’s always good understand how stress affects you and planning for that so it doesn’t wind up biting you hard come test day. It can be as simple as controlling your breathing to as nuanced as analyzing the mistakes you tend to make as your stress increases. Maybe you tend to second-guess yourself more when the pressure’s on, or maybe you tend to make more silly mistakes because you misread the question itself because you were panicking slightly. Knowledge is power, and the more you know about

 
2.      2) Interpretation: Read things. Lots of things. Maybe even all of the things?

This is repeated so much that it’s trite, but it’s still the best thing anyone can do to improve their interpreting abilities. For reasons I’ll go into, many questions benefit from being able to accurately “feel” out key aspects of an article from a quick read-through. This ability is really difficult to teach, but it’s crucial to develop it since many questions on the test rely on it. As an example, misinterpreting “dry” tone for an “annoyed” one could skew your answers towards the wrong set of connotations. I don’t know of any better way to develop your ear for this stuff other than reading lots of things.
However, it’s important not to read just for the sake of reading. Forcing yourself to read things you find uninteresting will not only burn you out, it will lessen how much benefit you’re getting from the reading. To truly enhance comprehension, you need to really engage with the material, and the best way to do that is to read what you find interesting. That way, you’ll naturally read deeper into the material, and eventually picking up significant details and thematic through-lines will become second nature. Fiction tends to be especially good at cultivating this, since no author worth their salt can resist symbolism or character development.
That being said, try to choose reading material close to the kinds of things you’ll find on the test. It doesn’t have to be exactly the sort of thing you’d find on the test, but stuff like tabloids and technical manuals are probably going to be of limited value.
If your preferred reading somehow doesn’t include scientific studies, Olde Englishe texts, and/or absurdist literature, be sure to read some every once in a while. Yes, they can be dull, opaque, angsty, pretentious, really hard, or all of the above, but they’re some of the best things to sharpen your reading skills on because they’re so difficult – usually much more than the actual test.
Studies test your analytical skills, your attention to detail, and your ability to endure what actual science reads like without falling asleep.
Old stuff is often verbose, excessively florid, and uses far too many words to say something that really could’ve been said much more succinctly and with much greater clarity if the author had only bothered to not write in such an infuriatingly winding, parallely-structured, adverb-y way with words that may or may not have ever existed. Basically, if you can follow sentences like the former, then you’re doing well. It can also help develop your ability to get a working understanding of individual characters, since sometimes they act like they’re on a stage or something.
Absurdist literature is just flat-out difficult to understand because it can be so vague. This really helps with the inferencing, since a lot of the time that’s what’s required to even begin to understand some of the stuff that happens. If you are able to fully understand Joyce’s Ulysses, not only will you probably be set for all reading comps ever, you probably have a tenured professorship at an Ivy League waiting for you.
Studies can be found on Google Scholar, old stuff on Project Gutenberg, and absurdist lit online or at your local library – Kafka, Sartre, and Camus can be good places to start. All of this is free, which is the best price for most things you have to buy.
Finally, if you have someone to discuss the stuff you’ve read with, talk to them. There’s nothing like talking with someone else (or a bunch of someone elses) about things you’ve all read and found interesting. Often, they can tease out little things that you may have missed and give alternate perspectives to your own, which is a great way to improve your own skills. It’s also fine if you (respectfully) disagree with them about something, because…

 
3.     3)  Logic: You should approach the passage as if you have to debate it

Because in a lot of ways, that’s what you’re doing. Every answer choice is a potential argument, and your job is to choose the best one.
Of course, one could argue that it’s more like an interrogation: You’re forced to answer questions against your will, often with very little advance notice of what the subject matter will be on, and if you mess up there will be severe consequences. “Debate” is more header-friendly, though, so let’s go with that.
What does this mean?
It means that the reading comp section is actually one of the most logic-oriented sections on the test. The most important part about a debate isn’t making statements, it’s being able to prove what you said is true. The same is true for the test. You have to know what can and can’t be said given the information in the passage, including being able to know what kinds of logical leaps you can – and more often than not, can’t – make. In fact, the test is often easier than a real debate, since you don’t have to make up and defend your own position, and you know that at least one position is correct at all times. It’s often healthier for your ego, too, since in this case your opponent won’t poke holes in all your flawed arguments and insult your intelligence, parentage, and upbringing.

And you know what the best part is? There is never an answer on the test that can’t be directly proven by something in the text. This is important, so I’ll repeat myself louder: Every single correct answer is supported by the passage. If there’s only one piece of advice you should take away from this section, it’s this. Everything you need to answer a given a question is placed right in front of you.
Just keep in mind the corollary to the above bolded statement: there will never be a correct answer in the section that requires outside knowledge. Like I said, all the information you need to answer the question is in the provided passage. One of the answers may be factually correct, but if the fact is never brought up in the passage, then that answer is not the correct answer to the question. Sorry.
So, with that said, what’s the best way to improve your argumentative reading skills? Though you could go whole ham and start studying up formal debate and argument structure, the more reasonable approach would just to adopt a far more exacting and nitpicky mindset when answering questions that require you to think logically, which are usually inference questions. I’ll go over this in more detail later, but know that in general, the most conservative answer that still answers the question adequately is generally the correct one.

 (To be continued in future posts. Don’t worry, there’s a lot more I want to talk about)

It depends. I've taken 3 courses so far as a non-degree seeking student at the university I work at, where I'm currently seeking admission.
The first two were a few years ago as a "special student" program. It was made clear in the admissions material to the program that it is not considered a 'back door' into the school and you should not take classes through that program with the intent of applying for a degree after. At the time I was not seeking admission to the school so that was not my intention of taking the courses. I took the courses for credit and have a transcript as a result.
However I am now working with one of the professors I took a course from. My admissions goal is to get into his lab as a grad student rather than the, well, "unusual" situation I'm in now. The third class I'm currently enrolled in as a tuition assistance student -- I am working at the university enough hours a week to qualify for low cost courses for credit, though its non-degree and not in a program. The tuition assistance program does not have this stipulation. In fact, it says in the pamphlet if you later get admitted, you can transfer previously taken credits toward your degree.
It is hard to say whether this work will improve my admissions chances as a direct result of the grades I received, or if the admissions committee will look at the fact that I did special student a few years ago and have it look like I'm trying to use the trojan-horse method despite what the admissions packet for non-degree said, and have that count against me. I'm going to get at least one letter of recommendation from the coursework though, as well as a transcript with credit on it. If my current goals are not viable and I choose to apply to a different school, the letter, transcript, and credit gained will be very valuable.
I can't say I recommend taking courses for non-credit, especially if you're paying for them. Auditing a course (taking it for noncredit) doesn't always require you to do everything the other students do, so it also is not proof of your current abilities and often doesn't mean anything to an admissions committee. Usually auditing students don't even get a grade. Taking non-degree courses with the goal of being admitted might hurt you if that school specifically advises that you don't do that, but it might help you if you're using it to gain contacts, network, and build a higher level transcript. 

Actually I got a few 3rd root questions on the GRE, and they were in different sections so they couldn't have all been "research" questions.
My last math class was high school precalc in 2006 so I went from diagnostic tests giving me 148 to getting a 160 (something like 76%?) a few weeks ago. I did a lot of prep -- basically nothing but math prep for about 3 months. I also couldn't afford more than one book so I had to deal with what the local library had. I spent $20 on test prep. As far as accuracy, it's hard to say which books were the most accurate. For me it was volume of math problems in general and learning "tricks" to shorthand some of the problem types, as well as saving all the quant comp and graph questions for last since they're easy to get into a calculating rut and waste time. (especially if the answer is D on a quant comp and you don't see it right away)
So I used:
Princeton: The math problems are SUPER easy compared to the ETS stuff but if you're not scoring high right now its a good first book. I used their "average pie" on the test multiple times and it's a really good trick to see the solution fast. I also used some of their estimating, if you're not writing and just thinking - move on, and "which answer should I plug in first" strategy suggestions among a few others. Their Math Workout was the only book I purchased, and I bought it on impulse the day I decided I'd take the test and didn't research it versus its competitors. I got the whole "general" book from the library and its a lot of the same ; a bit too easy but good intro material if you weren't a STEM major. 
Barrons: Not a huge fan but it was useful to just get the extra practice. It was harder than Princeton but easier than ETS + GRE in general.
Peterson: Did one problem set and returned it, happy I didn't pay for it. I don't know how accurate the questions are but they don't do a good job explaining how they got their solutions, especially for someone who was trying to relearn stuff like "dividing fractions."
Magoosh: Loved the few practice problems they let you do for free, seemed pretty accurate, but I couldn't afford the $100 season pass.
Khan Academy: The ETS site links Khan Academy with the "topics covered" page. I used it to practice my basic arithmetic / algebra, memorize geometry formulas, and practice combinations and permutations. It's not accurate at all to GRE questions since it doesn't even try to mimic them, but for brushing up on questions like "find the area and/or perimeter of this fairly straightforward geometric figure" its excellent. It was easier for me to practice this stuff outside of GRE context since Khan Academy doesn't try to trick you and hide that its actually a 45-45-90 triangle. So you can practice just the math. I started this after I finished all the problems in the Princeton book so I skipped any section that wasn't relevant or was going into more detail than necessary.
Kaplan: Signed up for their free practice test (ie sales pitch). Not accurate. There was a significantly higher percentage of the "hard / rare" problems like combinatorics. On the GRE I only saw a handful. I didn't do that well on their practice test but I had done enough prep by that time to see that the test they gave was not representative.
ETS: Everyone was saying "if you want to know what's on the test, go straight to the source", so I did, but not until the end. The ETS book is awful at explaining anything but accurate in terms of difficulty. I wouldn't recommend this book to learn from if you haven't had math in a while, but I would recommend it if you're scaling up the difficulty. There's a lot of stuff in there that I didn't see on the test, but its hard to say what they put in year after year. I also found the practice tests harder than the real test, I was scoring 155-158 usually... even got 152 on one of the powerprep practices. Despite that I got my highest score on test day. 
I borrowed this book from a friend who was going to take the GRE but decided against it, but it might have been worth paying for if I had to.
Manhattan: Couldn't afford it, library didn't have one. Can't comment on how good they are, but not a huge fan of the 6 volume, $20/each thing, though from what I've read they sound worth it... and fairly accurate...?
SAT/GMAT: I read this advice but didn't have a chance to try it out. I had more than enough GRE practice problems and general math. 
 
 
So yeah, I agree. No company really writes accurate questions. I think for me using a lot of companies helped because it meant that I wasn't stuck in one, inaccurate way of doing things. I also did a lot of basic math drilling that isn't strictly tied to GRE to try and decrease the amount of time per problem, since the goal is an average of 1.75 minutes / problem speed is #1. I actually aimed for 1.6 min/problem to give more wiggle room and allow plenty of time to click "review" and see what I had flagged.
I think it's a big mistake to simply pick up one GRE prep book and be done with it, unless you've got a math based undergrad and just want to figure out the problem format.

Mmm, I have a different opinion. Two things.
One, the best MBA programs practically require their students to have gotten some work experience - usually at least 2 years - after college. There are many reasons for that. The business school curriculum is structured in a way that students with business experience benefit the most from coursework. Also, an MBA is a degree that prepares you for higher-level positions; few people want to hire an MBA with no work experience. With only three years of undergrad you also presumably have had less time to acquire internship and part-time work experience. So I'd plan to work for a few years before graduate school, especially for an MBA - at least two but ideally 3-5.
Two, I would not plan to go to a graduate program and try to play a sport. I would say if you want to use up your eligibility, spend an additional year in undergrad. Graduate school is time consuming. It's a lot of work. And you should be spending your time doing things that will increase your chances of launching your career after the program. Graduate professors will be much less tolerant of you having to miss a class because you are away at a tournament. And there's a lot of group work in business programs.