Practice GRE scores vs. real GRE scores

[erckle]

Focused around 90% of my time on quant practice. The entirety of my verbal practice was that Magoosh vocab app. But to be honest I do not think I absorbed much.

I did Magoosh math questions, and the advanced questions in the 5lb book.

Practice tests:

Manhattan 1 : Q 166 V 164 (around 3 weeks before test)

Powerprep 1: Q 170 V164 (2 days before test)

Manhattan 2: Q168 V164 (quant mistake was a really badly written question, which is not an issue you get on actual test).

 

Actual GRE: Q 170 V 165 (unofficial scores, but from what I gather they shouldn't change).

 

I did not notice the second math section being that much harder at all. Math was around the same level as Powerprep and Manhattan. I thought GRE verbal was a bit easier than the practice tests I did.

[Clinpsyc01]

How do the paper practice tests in the ETS official guide compare to the real thing? I know the paper-based tests are different since they aren't adaptive, but are they less accurate than, say, the Manhattan tests?

I scored much higher on the ETS paper tests than a few of the Manhattan tests... Like, 169 V 161 Q vs. 161 V 158 Q. I'm hoping that the ETS ones are closer to the actual GRE, and that Manhattan's verbal is unreasonably hard  I guess I'll have to take the power prep tests to see! 

[erckle]

On 6/21/2016 at 2:05 AM, hsrnl said:

How do the paper practice tests in the ETS official guide compare to the real thing? I know the paper-based tests are different since they aren't adaptive, but are they less accurate than, say, the Manhattan tests?

I scored much higher on the ETS paper tests than a few of the Manhattan tests... Like, 169 V 161 Q vs. 161 V 158 Q. I'm hoping that the ETS ones are closer to the actual GRE, and that Manhattan's verbal is unreasonably hard  I guess I'll have to take the power prep tests to see! 

I did not do the ETS paper tests, but I found the actual GRE verbal to be slightly easier than the Manhattan tests (around 2 points in my case as I was getting around 163 on Manhattan Verbal but got 165 on actual test).

[wishsong]

Just got back from the testing center and created an account to contribute to this thread (it helped keep me sane in the last 2.5 weeks of studying). To preface, I primarily needed a good Verbal, so I didn't really take the Quantitative sections very seriously. Also I agree with above posters on the difference between Manhattan/Magoosh and the real exam's Verbal sections -- Manhattan tends to sprinkle a lot of esoteric vocab on its practice exams and there are some fine logical discrepancies between Manhattan/Magoosh and the actual test. It's hard to quantify but it was much harder for me to determine why one answer choice was better than the other in Manhattan/Magoosh than it was on the real test. To be fair, though, I got that perception pretty early on so it might have been partially self-fulfilling.

Anyway, for future test takers: don't be too alarmed if your Verbal scores are somewhat low on Manhattan/Magoosh tests! Trust the ETS tests, as everyone else has said. At the same time, it never hurts to prepare with something more difficult but I suggest moving to ETS before your actual exam so you can get a feel for the amount of inference you might need.

Manhattan Average (out of 6): 163 V

Magoosh (only took two tests, exclusively verbal): 163 V, 164 V

ETS Book #1 and #2: 166 V

PowerPrep #1: 164 V 163 Q

PowerPrep #2: 168 V 157 Q

 

Real Test (Unofficial scores -- they better not change!): 167 V 160Q

[summer2016]

Just took the test today.

Powerprep 1:  took it 3 days before test date,  149V/ 167Q

 

Powerprep 2:  took 2 days before test date, 149V / 163Q,

Real GRE:  153V / 163Q / AW not known yet.

 

Hours studied:  300+

   0

[saaman]

hey guys, need help: my scores on the manhattan prep model tests and the first ets pp 1 are all around 156 both Quant and Verbal. I have like...15 days to the test.

 

any advice will be graciously accepted.

[psychguy845]

Took it again and got 154V and 157Q... Still nowhere near my powerprep scores!

 

For those of you saying your second quant section was not that hard for you, what methods are you using to prep? I'm finding that the ETS books don't have the level of material equal to the actual test. Any help is greatly appreciated! 

[Levon3]

On 6/24/2016 at 11:13 AM, psychguy845 said:

Took it again and got 154V and 157Q... Still nowhere near my powerprep scores!

 

For those of you saying your second quant section was not that hard for you, what methods are you using to prep? I'm finding that the ETS books don't have the level of material equal to the actual test. Any help is greatly appreciated! 

I found Kaplan to be helpful (raised my Quant score from 159 to 164)

Hours studied: appx. 20

Edited June 28, 2016 by Levon3

[AspiringGC]

Actual #1: 158V 153Q 4W 

Practice: 
PowerPrep 1: 152V 151Q (beginning of GRE prep course)

PowerPrep 2: 159V 154Q (after GRE prep course and night before actual GRE)

Actual #2: 157V 155Q TDB W

Practice: 
CrunchPrep: 155V 155Q 

Manhattan Prep: 155V 158Q 

PowerPrep 1: 154V 155Q

PowerPrep 2: 158V 153Q (night before actual GRE)

Took my first GRE late February after a month long GRE prep class. 
Took the second today with minimal preparation over about a month.
For both, my second PowerPrep practice most accurately showed my Verbal score, where as the averages of the practices most accurately showed my Quant score. Didn't vastly improve my scores, but I have a feeling my Writing score will be much higher and I am pleased that I raised my math a few points. 

[Skander]

Does anyone else feel Kaplan 2016 is too easy.  I have looked around at other forums, and they say it is harder.  However, these forums are from 2012.  I have taken both Powerprep tests and recieved a 149V/157Q and 150V/157Q on them.  I have taken two Kaplan MSTs before the Powerprep test and recieved 154V/165Q and 155V/167Q.  Any help would be appreciated.

[Kay87]

This forum was very helpful to me throughout my three months of GRE prep, so I'm including my scores as well. 

My target score for the verbal section was 166 (the quantitative measure isn't as important for the humanities programs to which I am applying).

I completed all of the verbal practice questions in Magoosh and watched most of the videos. I also took 5 Manhattan GRE practice tests and averaged in the low 160s for verbal and high 150s for math.

ETS Practice Tests:
PowerPrep 1: 163V/156Q
PowerPrep 2: 159V/155Q

Actual score: 166V/154Q

 

[psychguy845]

I just don't believe the Quant PowerPrep sections are representative of the real test; I find them substantially easier than what you actually see on test day.

[jtjake]

Since I read this thread so many times leading up to my test, I feel like I have to share my data and experience...thanks to all of you that posted before!

I used Magoosh almost exclusively and answered most of their practice questions over the course of roughly 4 weeks. I ended up taking 3 Magoosh practice tests, the free Manhattan Prep test and both Power Preps.

1) 156 Q 162 V - Magoosh before studying at all

2) 161 Q 164 V - Magoosh 16 days before test

3) 164 Q 162 V - 1st Power Prep 12 days before test

4) 163 Q 162 V - Magoosh 1 week before test

5) 159 Q 163 V - Mahattan free test 5 days before test

6) 166 Q 167 V - 2nd Power Prep 2 days before test

162-166 Q 160-165 V - Magoosh Predictor

165 Q 166 V - Actual

I'm pretty happy with my score, although I know I made at least one stupid mistake on the first quant section and realized it right after my time was up. I will be applying to Computer Science programs, so I would gladly trade a few verbal points for a higher quant score.

Overall, I thought the Power Prep tests were slightly easier, yet very close to the real thing (perhaps the difference was just nerves on test day). Magoosh was generally a bit harder in Math, but their video explanations were really good refreshers since I took Algebra 2 way back in 96-97, and I thought that their verbal and quant questions were both similar in style to the actual test. I didn't think the Manhattan questions were very representative of the actual GRE questions and wouldn't recommend it.

[Clinpsyc01]

This thread was really helpful to me, so I thought I'd share my scores!

I used the ETS official guide and did all the math problems in Manhattan's 5 lb. book. I took practice tests over the course of about two months, with more towards the end of my studying. 

ETS book 1: 168V 153Q (at the beginning of my GRE prep) 

ETS book 2: 169V, 161Q

Manhattan 1: 165V, 159Q

Manhattan 2: 165V, 160Q

Manhattan 3: 164V, 158Q

Power Prep 2: 168V, 157Q

Manhattan 4: 166V, 159Q

Power Prep 1: 167V, 161Q

Actual (unofficial) score: 169V 161

 

[abstract_art]

Power Prep I: 163 V/ 169 Q

Power Prep II: 163 V/ 169 Q

Actual score: 163 V/ 167 Q

[OlgaBondarenko]

Non-native speaker

1) PowerPrep I                     165V    166Q

2) PowerPrep II                    166 V   169Q

3) ETS Official guide I          160V    165Q

4) ETS Official guide II         158V    165 Q

5) Manhattan free                153V    160Q

6) Magoosh practice test    163V    162Q

7) Magoosh predicted score range (dashboard)     160-165V  160-164Q

ACTUAL EXAM                   163V     166Q

Hope that helps!

 

[ragman922]

Manhattan 1 (before studying): 155Q, 160V

Manhattan 2: 157Q, 164V

Manhattan 3: 157Q, 158V (wouldn't recommend taking these at midnight)

Manhattan 4: 157Q, 161V

Manhattan 5: 159Q, 164V

Manhattan 6: 161Q, 164V

Powerprep 1: 163Q, 166V

Powerprep 2: 163Q, 166V

 

Actual: 162Q, 170V

 

Study regimen: scattered reviewing after class / work, over the course of 2 years. I really didn't focus my energy until the last 3 months. If you have the time, spreading things out can really help with retention. I used the standard 8 Manhattan Prep books (4th edition) for most of my studying, with some free Magoosh resources peppered in.

 

I would say that Manhattan tends to be consistently more difficult than the real exam, but this is more of a strength than a weakness. Quant problems tend to be more involved (require more steps to solve), but the content is otherwise very representative of what you would see on the exam. The vocabulary is not necessarily more obscure than what you would see on the real GRE, but the frequency of "obscure" words is definitely higher. Reading comprehension sections are very representative, but I've found that they tend to ask you to infer more than the real GRE would. Definitely take both powerprep exams; they are the best simulation of a real exam.

[DogsArePeopleToo]

Thanks for sharing all of your scores, folks. I'm taking the test mid-September and have been reading your posts. Very helpful to know the sore ranges and discrepancies.

Two questions:

1. What worked and what didn't for you? As you share your scores, please also share your "lessons learned"
2. Why do you think people tend to score higher on the actual GRE than on practice tests?

Many thanks!

[swallace]

Practice Scores:

Verbal: 155

Quant: 158

Actual:

Verbal: 157

Quant: 153

Writing: 5.0

--

Studied for about 2-3 weeks.  Really dissapointed in the Quant scores as a CS major.  Got caught off guard by some of the questions.  Some of the word problems were crazy long.

 

 

[Catyorkc]

I'm disappointed in my score in comparison with my practice tests. I've been out of school 20 years so I knew I was going to need help.

My diagnostic test proved this:

146 Q 149 V

But then I used Kaplan self prep and my scores became more consistent:

151 Q 163 V

151 Q 158 V

153 Q 157 V

154 Q 160 V

156 Q  (unfinished verbal)

161 Q 158 V

 

My actual test:

152 Q 153 V

Which is my worst score since my diagnostic. I'm not retaking it, because I don't think it will be a problem. It's not a competitive score, but it more than qualifies for my program. But if I had to recommend anything to future test takers it would be to practice tests from different sources. 

I kept hearing that Kaplan's tests were the same as the GRE, harder even, but my experience was that the wording of the GRE and the types of questions I got on test day were  different enough to feel foreign. It seemed like an easier test, but I was thrown and kept rechecking my answers. My pacing was way off.

I wish I would have done a few Power Prep Practice Tests in addition to my Kaplan studies. That would have prepared me better.

Adding my experience so that it might help someone else.

 

 

 

 

 

[jansport]

I can finally add my scores to this thread!

I, stupidly I might add, never really took a practice test in the beginning, so I can't compare from where I started. I primarily used magoosh to study and studied for about two months. Due to some personal stuff happening in the home stretch I never got to finish all of the math videos and had to cram a bit at the end.  

 

Magoosh practice test 1: V: 163 Q: 158

Magoosh practice test 2: exact same fucking score (1 week in between & a couple of days before the test)

ETS paper test: just verbal: 165 first try

ETS paper test: just verbal: 164 second try

ETS just quant: 156 

Magoosh score predictor: Q: 155-160, V: 161-166

Actual GRE: Q: 155, V: 166!!!!!!

So oddly enough on the actual test I hit my lowest of the score predictor on quant and my highest on verbal. Like I said I never finished all of the math videos, so I did have to flat out guess on some problems.  I was also pushed up against the clock on quant where as I was finishing verbal way early and had ample time to check answers.  I'm applying to media studies programs that want to see a good verbal score and I totally nailed that section, so I'm happy! I'm also expecting a good AWA score. 

 

[DogsArePeopleToo]

OK, I can finally respond to this thread as well:

Practice tests:

• Magoosh practice test: Verbal 164, Quant 149 (Magoosh's score predictor: Verbal: 157-162; Quant: 148-153)
• PowerPrep II test 1: Verbal: 157, Quant: 149

Actual test:

• Verbal: 163, Quant 148 (essay scores not out yet)

Prep time: Spent about a month with an average of 3 hours a day, give or take. Mostly used Magoosh's instructional videos and practice questions.

Observations: A bit bummed that my actual GRE scores were more or less the same as my first practice test of a few weeks ago. Magoosh was a better predictor of my actual scores than ETS. I spent almost no time on verbal prep, focusing instead on math, but to no avail. I am planning to retake the test in November and hope to use the time to improve my math score.

[makingtheleap.back]

Kaplan (2 weeks prior): 156V, 154Q

Powerprep I (1 week prior): 162V, 161Q

Powerprep II (1 day prior): 168V, 161Q

Actual: 169V, 161Q

Hours studied: 40ish

[pnicogen]

I am a non-native speaker.

Before preparations

Manhattan Free Practice Test: 157V, 163Q (2 months before)

During and after preparations

ETS POWERPREP Test 1: 156V, 169Q (5 days before)

Kaplan Free Practice Test: 157V, 170Q (3 days before)

ETS POWERPREP Test 2: 157V, 169Q (a day before)

Actual GRE: 161V, 167Q, AWA is awaited.

Edited September 24, 2016 by pnicogen

[Bunny_sua]

Non-native speaker as well.
Practice tests:

• Magoosh: 143V, 155Q (Before preparations)
• Magoosh: 148V, 166Q (predictor: 145-150V, 162-167Q) (2 weeks before) 
• Manhattan Free Practice Test: 156V, 158Q (5 days before)
• ETS Powerprep 1: 148V, 160Q (3 days before)
• ETS Powerprep 2: 150V, 161Q (2 days before)

Actual test:

• 152V, 162Q

Prep time: 2 months 5ish hours per day