Practice scores vs. real scores

[amlobo]

I'm about to start studying for the GRE and was wondering if anyone had at least anecdotal information on how practice test scores correlate to real scores? Are practice tests easier... harder... or pretty representative of the level of difficulty of the actual exam?

I took a practice test as a "baseline" before I start studying in earnest and found it to be easier than I had expected, so it has me worried that maybe practice tests aren't a great indicator...

[emmm]

I had the hardest time getting myself to sit down and take a practice test under "as-close-to-real-test" conditions as possible. Instead, I tried doing sections in the (parked) car, waiting for kids, etc. My scores weren't great, but I knew the conditions were abysmal for test taking. Eventually, I just signed up for the GRE early to get a "baseline" to determine how much work I had to do to score well enough -- I decided not to retake :-)

Edited May 29, 2012 by emmm

[Physwimic]

I took several practice tests. The one supplied by ETS was, in my opinion, close to the real test. Kaplan, as is to be expected, had two practice tests. The first was harder, and the second easier than the real test. I believe most prep books do this so you work through the book and then feel confident going into the test.

[MakeYourself]

The ETS practice test was quite accurate for me and I wrote the test 2 times. The Kaplan scores were all over the place for me and didn't really correlate with my real scores.

[englewood]

I took two practice tests - one was an ETS practice test and the other was in a test prep book I found in my school's library. Both were pretty much in the neighborhood of my actual score, and I personally found the practice tests to be pretty well representative of the actual difficulty of the GRE.

[amlobo]

Thanks, everyone. I just want to make sure I'm being realistic in my "goals" for the GRE. I got around 95th percentile on math and verbal in the practice, but it was not the ETS one. Maybe I'll take the ETS after a bit of studying to give myself a better idea of where I can aim to score.