Jump to content

Kaplan GRE prep advantages?


donnay

Recommended Posts

I have taken the prep course before but I didn't do so well on the GRE. (Its kind of my fault, because I was already accepted into a Masters program and I basically stop studying for the GRE and blew it.)

was the class helpful? did you learn a lot from it? it's expensive so i want to investigate more about it before i invest into it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Like I said, I really am not the one to ask since I screwed up on the GRE (The grad school did not require a GRE Score and I just wanted to see how the test was like. However, in my mind it depends on how you learn. Do you learn better if someone is showing you how to go through the problems. The books they use are all similar to each other. (I have copies of Kaplan, Princeton, etc.)

Edited by mike218
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The classes are designed to provide students with a structured way of learning. If you think you can be motivated to learn on your own, you will do fine just using prep books. You just need strong grasp of the vocabulary words and math fundamentals (Alg I and basic geometry) to do well in GREs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The classes are designed to provide students with a structured way of learning. If you think you can be motivated to learn on your own, you will do fine just using prep books. You just need strong grasp of the vocabulary words and math fundamentals (Alg I and basic geometry) to do well in GREs.

Thank you and mike too. Your information are very helpful! I decide not to take it and just study by myself =)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I took it and really liked it. I enjoy being in a classroom setting, and it's nice to be able to ask an instructor questions if necessary. If you end up not liking your scores after studying by yourself, I definitely recommend paying for the class. The guarantee is a nice incentive to do all the work too. If you don't increase something like 200 pts from your base score, you get a full refund. You have to do a lot of work, but I think it's worth it. You get what you pay for.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My take on these courses is that there is a market for them. Some people simply need the kind of coaching provided.

However. (You knew that was coming.) And I don't mean to be mean. How good of a student is someone going to be in grad school if they couldn't figure out how to pass the GRE on their own? I realize the GRE measures, basically, your ability to take the GRE, but the test's other significant utility is that it's merely a research problem. "How do I get the best score I can on this?" You SHOULD be able to do well on your own, assuming you have enough time to prepare and don't get panicky about standardized tests (if you do tend to panic, then maybe the program's worth it for just that reason).

As I recall, the ads for these place go something like this: Sylvia Student took a sample GRE and got 640. Then she took OUR course and took another sample GRE, and this time, she got 720.

How much of that increase would have occurred ANYWAY as Sylvia took test after test on her own?

One error I see a lot of people do in these things is to take a lot of practice tests under timed conditions. BIG mistake. First, taking a lot of full tests is time-consuming and can burn you out. Remember learning to drive? Did they take you out onto the highway during a blizzard? "Okay kiddo. It's your first lesson. Drive with your knee while you peel back the lid on your coffee and watch out for that semi that's about to cross the divider and kill us all." No. You learner dumb-ass things. Check the rear-view mirror. Never give a cop the middle finger. Start slow, build from there.

If you're already doing a 95% success rate on one type of problem, you can only gain a 5% improvement. Pfft. Everyone wants a perfect score. You're not going to do that (unless you are very smart, very lucky or both). There's no bonus for getting one section completely right. This isn't a video game. Also, because you don't see any significant improvement while testing the stuff you're already good at, you can tend to stagnate and despair. (Oh, darn, I'm still missing two or three on these logic problems. I've studied for weeks, and I'm only up to 97% on these. I'm never going to get the hang of the rest of this. I'm so stupid.)

Take the first test under timed conditions. Fine. Now you have a benchmark.

Take the second test section by section over several days. Work each problem to the utmost of your ability (note when you start and end each question). Grade the second test. How does it compare, section by section, to the first test? If you did crappy in one section for BOTH tests, you have just identified what you have to focus on. If you did crappy on the first test in one section but much better in the same section on the second test, all you need to do is work on your speed. Speed almost always will improve by drilling, so that should be easy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree that it's not as necessary as people often make it out to be. What I did for the GRE (and the SAT and the PSAT way back in the day) was to get a big review book that had a bunch of sample questions and practice tests (with answers explained). I don't think I ever did it while simulating timed conditions (which, for the GRE in particular, would have been a bit of a waste of time because I took the real one in the computer-adaptive format and actually ended up having a lot of time to spare); I just did some if I felt like it when I had free time (longish bus rides are good for this, because the bus is one of the few things more boring than the GRE questions :lol:). Then I read the explanations of the answers I wasn't as sure about and/or got wrong.

There are some things that you just have to get used to (like when the question consists of a single word, with some other words as choices, they always want you to pick the antonym, not a synonym; I also had to re-memorise some geometry formulas that I hadn't had to use since taking the SAT), and doing some practice questions now and then over the month or two before the exam was certainly enough for me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm a Kaplan GRE instructor, and I'll say that the benefit you'll get from the course really depends on what your initial strengths and weaknesses are on the GRE. For example, if you have strong math fundamentals but are just having difficulty completing the GRE given the time constraints, you may be best served just doing a lot of practice tests. If you're having more difficulty figuring out the correct approach to problems/having difficulty with more fundamental concepts in mathematics, the course can give you strategies/methods that will be helpful to most applicants. Verbal section improvements tend to be smaller, as a lot is dependent on how many words you know/your command of grammatical structure, but there are verbal strategies that can get you an extra 30-40 points or so on the margin. Additionally, what others have said about the benefits in terms of providing external motivation is definitely true for many people; I know a lot of people who planned to practice a lot by themselves for the GRE, ended up not doing so, and achieved poorer results than they were capable of.

One thing that's unambiguously useful, though, is Kaplan's online system, which identifies your strengths and weaknesses after each practice test, and allows you to do focused quizzes on the material you're weakest with.

For the record, my GRE score was Q: 800 V:740 A: 5.5

Edit: I'll also add in response to Milo that whether or not you should focus on doing tests under timed conditions also depends a lot on your initial point. In general, I would say use separate problems/quizzes for learning the fundamentals, and use the timed tests to get used to the GRE/practice getting the timing right. For a lot of people, spending too much time or too little on certain types of questions can be the difference between a 720 and an 800 for them, especially if they don't finish the test (something which is penalized more than getting the wrong answers.)

Edited by RWBG
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I took Kaplan and I really connected with the program. I have friends who took it and hated it. I knew I was going to have a hard time with the GREs and I planned accordingly. I took an in person course from Oct. '09-Jan.'10 and then studied EVERY DAY until my test date of Sept. 1st '10. My first practice test was about 850 and my first (and only) GRE score was 640 V 670 Q 4.5 A. For most schools in my field that is a strong score and I ended up getting multiple funded offers. I attribute that, in part, to my GRE scores. Kaplan isn't for every student but the money I spent came back to me thirty fold in scholarships.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Kaplan's GRE prep course is a good choice for many applicants for two reasons:

(1) They are the leader in the test prep industry with a strong track record of getting folks into grad school.

(2) They offer a higher score guarantee, so you know that you'll get a return on your investment.

Their flagship service -- GRE Advantage On Site -- is not for the faint of heart. It's an 8-week course totaling 20 hours of classroom sessions plus assignments. The price tag is approximately $1,200, but you should contact your local Kaplan center to find out more about pricing.

Good luck with your application!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kaplan's GRE prep course is a good choice for many applicants for two reasons:

(1) They are the leader in the test prep industry with a strong track record of getting folks into grad school.

(2) They offer a higher score guarantee, so you know that you'll get a return on your investment.

Their flagship service -- GRE Advantage On Site -- is not for the faint of heart. It's an 8-week course totaling 20 hours of classroom sessions plus assignments. The price tag is approximately $1,200, but you should contact your local Kaplan center to find out more about pricing.

Good luck with your application!

One more point--If you're targeting a score in the top 1-5%, you may be better off studying alone or paying for one-on-one tutoring. Kaplan's course and the question banks are good preparation, but they are not designed for test takers striving for perfect scores and complete mastery of the materials. Even if you would benefit from Kaplan's course, you may not have the financial resources. In that case, I would recommend picking up some self study guides. Barron's has an excellent GRE book that contains questions that are at the more difficult end of the spectrum, and Kaplan has excellent vocabulary flashcards. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

I'm taking a GRE Advantage course on-site and I feel that it's helping to guide my studying a lot. Mostly, I appreciate the instructor for helping me look at the same problem from different angles. The GRE doesn't really reward smarts, but rather strategics. So she's been helpful. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how much I will benefit because I"m taking my exam shortly after the last course date. I say after taking the 2 month course, give yourself a month to practice problems on your own.

Let me know if you want any more explanation!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I took the course after taking the GREs on my own. In my opinion the verbal coaching was the same as the book (and not as good as my favorite book). They cannot tell you much more than learn the words. I had never had a problem with the logical aspect. The math extra lessons were great though. It increased my math score (it became a WOW score) but at the same time I blew the verbal . I got my money back. At the end it dd not matter i did not send these scores .

Anyway the classes were fun. I think Kaplan is good for math because there are a lot of tricks and shortcuts there, and some classroom refreshing can be refreshing. Verbal? , you cannot get around learning the words imho, and you can do that with any book.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use