Best way to study for the GRE

[lily_]

Ok, so this is a bit premature, but after this application season I feel that I should definitely look into raising my GRE score to something more competitive. Granted, it may be a year to a year and a half before I tackle it again, but it's always good to be prepared.

So I'm asking the forum what is your preferred method? Which method brought you the most success? Are those classes worth the $1,000 to raise your score? Has anyone ever taken them and actually raised their score (and I mean REALLY raised their score...over 100 points on each portion)?

I know there is a lot of debate over the validity, importance, and ethics of the GRE, but I'm not really interested in that discussion for this post. Simply, what's the best study method, what's proven to work, and what's a rip-off.

Thanks!

Edited March 4, 2010 by lily_

[scyrus]

It's hard to say because I obviously don't know anything about how you did previously, or your background, but I would say that the GRE is mostly mental. You probably already know everything you need to know about the Quantitative section in terms of actual knowledge, now it's just a matter of practicing to get faster(either by recognizing how to solve the problem or actually performing the required operations) and spot where you most frequently make errors so you'll be more aware of them during the actual test.

For the Verbal section, if you start learning 5-10 words a day now, by the time you take the test you'll have significantly improved your vocabulary without stressing too much in a short period of time. Other than that, some light refreshment on strategy for both sections the month prior to the exam should really be all you need.

My 2 cents anyway =)

[bgav]

I studied a ton over the summer. Barron's and Kaplan make good sets of flash cards and all the companies make decent books. I bought like 6 or 7 books and just worked through them.

[peppermint.beatnik]

I improved my GRE score by 100 points on one section, and 170 on another. I improved my AWA score by 1.0.

I took a Kaplan "Live-Online" course, for 5 weeks. I studied for another month. Taking a lot of practice tests helped endurance wise, since it's a long test (and I have a short attention span!)

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

I raised my score by 120 points in the verbal, and 110 in the quant. - studied intensively with the following (I was mostly concerned with the verbal - the fact that I raised my quant by 120 points was an unexpected added bonus):

Cracking the GRE - Used as a general guide and practice, and familiarized myself with the exam. Also used their online support materials (4 practice tests, and a lot of practice questions).

Barron's essential 800 words for the GRE - went through 10 groups of words a day. Then went through 6 root groups a day.

Kaplan's Advanced Verbal - Used it only AFTER was done with all the verbal in Cracking the GRE.

Vocaboly - went through many groups of words a day with this software. It was very helpful.

ETS's practice tests.

I raised my verbal from 600 to 720, and my quant from 560 to 670. AWA went up from 3.5 (I really blew it off the first time) to 5.0 (acceptable. I should have gotten a 6.0, I think, but then again, they may have not liked my 17th century examples hahahah).

I think the basic idea is understanding how the questions are asked and the BEST answering strategies for you. For me, in Verbal, the best answer strategy was - to know the answer. I.e. - learn a LOT of words. Practice on analogies (I wasn't that great at "getting" the relationships between the words even if I knew what they were, initially). Practice the harder reading comps (those with the tricky, misleading questions).

For the quantitative section - I reviewed basic geometry rules (i.e. how to figure an area of a circle) - I'm already decent at algebra. Otherwise, I closed my eyes, did the best I could, and prayed .

[Grad00000000]

I used ANKI for my vocab flashcards, which can be downloaded FREE and it is FANTASTIC!!! I rarely see anyone mention it elsewhere. I got a 99th percentile score on my vocab, and I do think ANKI contributed to that.

Another good free website for practise questions is: http://www.number2.com/exams/gre/companion/preview/index.cfm?s=0

Other than that I just worked through a couple of books. I wish I had tried 'Score-it-now' a little earlier than the day before the test, because I think it gives good insight into how the computer marks essays, and what they are looking for.

[ebaronov]

Another good free website for practise questions is: http://www.number2.c...w/index.cfm?s=0

I remember that site, I have almost 500 words mastered there

I agree that using flashcards is the best way to learn new words. I used this http://www.amazon.co...7724661&sr=8-1. It is a box with 500 flashcards, each word has a definition, sample use in sentence (very important) and synonyms.

[Kate]

I created some online vocabulary flashcards to study for the GRE Verbal section and they really helped me a lot (my verbal score went up 200 points to the 99% percentile). Since it took me so much time to make them, I figured I would make them "public" and I thought you all might find them useful.

http://www.thekatesp....com/dictionary

There are two versions of the flashcards: public and personal. Anyone is allowed to use the public version, and the flashcards will test you on some of the most common vocabulary words found on the GRE Verbal test. In the (free!) personal version, you have the ability to create and save your own mnemonics, example sentences, connotations and synonym/antonym lists. All the features are listed on the features page and you can create your (free!) account on the registration page.

There are almost 600 words in the database, which I got from the two books I bought for my test prep. I want to add more words and add more features, but it would be great to get feedback from users first. I'm just doing this in my spare time (which I now have, now that my grad applications are submitted!) and this is just a beta version, but I'll try to do what I can as far as "user support," etc.

Hopefully some of you might find it useful!

Edited March 4, 2010 by Kate

[lily_]

Lily,

You realize that if you wait "a year and a half," you are going to have to take the new, revised GRE and thus current strategies for taking the test would be utterly moot. Decide first if you are going to retake the GRE before 2011. You could take the safe route and study for the old test as you currently have all the info on it or take a gamble and hope the new format works to your favor. Otherwise, there is no point to your question since nobody here has obviously had any experience with the new test format and question types.

For the record, the ETS has stated that "changes include a new 130-170 scoring scale, the elimination of certain question types such as antonyms and analogies, the addition of an online calculator, and the elimination of the CAT format of question-by-question adjustment."

I've read the article on the changes on the GRE, however they have claimed that they will make changes before and not much has happened, so depending on what happens I will make my decision then. Obviously, studying the vocabulary and quantitative exercises even for the current version would not be a bad idea regardless. You will still need to know both for the updated version.

I also understand that the scoring range will be different, and that may mean different strategies for studying. So, if I don't end up taking it by year's end I'll simply re-evaluate in 2011 when and if they make the changes.

However, I think it's best to be prepared either way, and looking for feedback on what was successful for others won't hurt even if they do change the exam.

PS. I edited this because I hit "enter" prematurely, not because I misused any GRE vocab words.

Edited March 4, 2010 by lily_

[lily_]

I created some online vocabulary flashcards to study for the GRE Verbal section and they really helped me a lot (my verbal score went up 200 points to the 99% percentile). Since it took me so much time to make them, I figured I would make them "public" and I thought you all might find them useful.

http://www.thekatesp....com/dictionary

There are two versions of the flashcards: public and personal. Anyone is allowed to use the public version, and the flashcards will test you on some of the most common vocabulary words found on the GRE Verbal test. In the (free!) personal version, you have the ability to create and save your own mnemonics, example sentences, connotations and synonym/antonym lists. All the features are listed on the features page and you can create your (free!) account on the registration page.

There are almost 600 words in the database, which I got from the two books I bought for my test prep. I want to add more words and add more features, but it would be great to get feedback from users first. I'm just doing this in my spare time (which I now have, now that my grad applications are submitted!) and this is just a beta version, but I'll try to do what I can as far as "user support," etc.

Hopefully some of you might find it useful!

Thank you so much! I will definitely be using them!

[lily_]

I improved my GRE score by 100 points on one section, and 170 on another. I improved my AWA score by 1.0.

I took a Kaplan "Live-Online" course, for 5 weeks. I studied for another month. Taking a lot of practice tests helped endurance wise, since it's a long test (and I have a short attention span!)

What was the "Live-Online" course like?

[lily_]

LOL. The Irony.

You are looking for feedback on what was "successive" for others? On what was "consecutive, in regular succession without gaps"? Really? You aren't in second grade anymore. You mean "successful." Get it right.

Maybe this is why you didn't do too well the first time. Just saying.

Ok, you got me, again.

I'm not going to respond to you any longer. You are pretty rude most of the time. I've been polite, and I don't want to get in a flame war, I don't think this is the place for it. Feel free to comment about how this makes me a baby, or ill-equipped for graduate study. It's an online forum, no admissions committee is going to read this, and there is such thing as a typo. We don't all suffer from excessive Type A personalities, and thank goodness, I'd hate to see what your blood pressure is like.

[JerryLandis]

Something to keep in mind when using these flashcards is that writing things out is a great way to learn them better. Whenever I have made flashcards for studying in the past, the actual act of making them has always really helped me, almost as much as using the flashcards itself has. So I'd avoid simply using online flashcards or book-based vocabulary lists. Obviously you should make use of those resources, but transferring the info by hand onto your own flashcards can really help lodge the information deeper into your brain.

I also intend to re-take the GRE, but am going to be absolutely SWAMPED for the next year (not exaggerating, I hope I don't have some kind of nervous breakdown!) and cannot foresee any possible time to take the test. I really hope it doesn't change first, since I'm accustomed to the present format!

[prolixity]

Whoa, you guys are way proactive. I didn't bother studying beyond flipping through the practice exam sent when I signed up for the subject test.

[lily_]

Something to keep in mind when using these flashcards is that writing things out is a great way to learn them better. Whenever I have made flashcards for studying in the past, the actual act of making them has always really helped me, almost as much as using the flashcards itself has. So I'd avoid simply using online flashcards or book-based vocabulary lists. Obviously you should make use of those resources, but transferring the info by hand onto your own flashcards can really help lodge the information deeper into your brain.

I also intend to re-take the GRE, but am going to be absolutely SWAMPED for the next year (not exaggerating, I hope I don't have some kind of nervous breakdown!) and cannot foresee any possible time to take the test. I really hope it doesn't change first, since I'm accustomed to the present format!

Yeah, I'm not sure if I'm going to retake it or not. I got a 6.0 on the AW. My LOR writers said that my GRE scores are fine, even though they are only in the 1200s. However, the new test covers essentially the same material minus the analogies and antonyms, and adding a calculator to the quantitative section, and allowing you to go back and change answers, which may make it easier rather than the CAT version now.

[Kate]

Something to keep in mind when using these flashcards is that writing things out is a great way to learn them better. Whenever I have made flashcards for studying in the past, the actual act of making them has always really helped me, almost as much as using the flashcards itself has. So I'd avoid simply using online flashcards or book-based vocabulary lists. Obviously you should make use of those resources, but transferring the info by hand onto your own flashcards can really help lodge the information deeper into your brain.

I also intend to re-take the GRE, but am going to be absolutely SWAMPED for the next year (not exaggerating, I hope I don't have some kind of nervous breakdown!) and cannot foresee any possible time to take the test. I really hope it doesn't change first, since I'm accustomed to the present format!

I totally agree. The actual process of making my online flashcards and spending so much time just looking at the words/definitions as I made the program is probably what helped me the most. However, I still hope someone finds my flashcards useful! (They allow you to make up your own sentences and mnemonics!)

[joops]

Yeah, I'm not sure if I'm going to retake it or not. I got a 6.0 on the AW. My LOR writers said that my GRE scores are fine, even though they are only in the 1200s. However, the new test covers essentially the same material minus the analogies and antonyms, and adding a calculator to the quantitative section, and allowing you to go back and change answers, which may make it easier rather than the CAT version now.

Hi there. Do you know when this new test is going to come out, and where I can information on it? Thank you!

[BrandNewName]

I remember that site, I have almost 500 words mastered there

I agree that using flashcards is the best way to learn new words. I used this http://www.amazon.co...7724661&sr=8-1. It is a box with 500 flashcards, each word has a definition, sample use in sentence (very important) and synonyms.

yes! my partner and i spent two days studying and learning all of these words before the exam. during practice exams i was scoring in the high 500s/low 600s -- after learning these cards there were one, maybe two words on the whole exam that i didn't know: got a 710.

[mushpuddle]

http://www.urch.com/forums/forum.php

best forumz evaaaaaaar (for GRE)

[mostlygoo]

I studied intensively for about 4 weeks, mostly on the quantitative side. (I was planning to apply to English M.A. programs but hadn't taken any math courses in like a hundred years.) The prep book -- I think it was Barrons, but I loaned it to a friend and now I'm not sure -- had good review coverage of all the material, and more importantly focused on the "type" of questions: not just subject matter, but how the questions would be worded, traps to avoid, and so on. Since I always have done well with tests, I tend to rush in and get over-confident. Instead I decided to slow down and pay attention. I still crammed a lot into 4 weeks of studying, but I was impatient to take the test...

I did pretty well, though when I finished with the quantitative section I was convinced I'd done horribly because the questions just got impossibly tough at the end and I lost confidence. But overall I think it worked out well.

Except for the AW section. I got a 4... and I don't think I've ever been as surprised by a test score. It never even occurred to me that I should prepare for the AW section, not after years of writing and analysis. But somehow I did awful, even though I left the test center thinking I'd nailed it. (Never think "I nailed that" after you take a test. Even if you think it, don't think it.)

[<3Brains]

I have no experience personally with test prep courses or tutors. I have worked for test prep companies, though, and have definitely seen scores go up on these tests by more than 100 points per section. This is relative, though. It's easier to get from 500 to 650 than 650 to 800. If you have the money, I think the best way to guarantee improvement is a tutor who knows what they're doing. The big test prep companies offer these, and they even offer different levels of tutoring (regular, master, elite, etc.) with different levels of guarantee.

If you want to stay cheap, you can't beat studying vocab words! There are huge lists for free online That's all I did, and it worked wonders for my verbal score.

[souslespaves]

If you can get a good teacher, I think the Kaplan class is worth it. Having their computer practice tests is also a huge plus. I went from 1390 on the first diagnostic (640V/750Q on the paper test) to 1580 (790 on both sections) on the real thing. I religiously the Kaplan flashcards, memorized all of Essential Words for the GRE (Barron's Essential Words for the GRE), and various other websites that other people have mentioned. Outside of class, I probably spent around 60 hours studying for the test over the course of a 2.5 months.