GRE Literature vs. GRE General

[Poiple]

Everyday I find my self facing the same decision - whether to study for the General or the Subject test that day! I'm keen to hear what other people are devoting their time to and which test people think is more important to ace!

[peachypie]

I didn't have to take a GRE subject so I didn't study for both.  I reviewed for the GRE general, but if I were taking both I would spend more time on the subject test rather than the general.  Mainly your grasp of the literature subject test will be more reflective of what you are capable of in your literature PhD.  If you bomb the quant section but do great on the GRE subject then it shows that though you have weaker quant skills you have relative skills to your PhD.  Raising your quant score in that case will not be as helpful as raising your subject score. 

Do you have to provide both or is the subject an optional recommendation?  If you don't have to do both then I'd also consider dropping the subject and going GRE general only. 

[jhefflol]

Which one are you taking first? That will answer your question.

[unræd]

As little as I'm studying now that classes have begun, when I do study, it's more often for the subject test. Partially that's because I'm taking it first, but also because I think that, at least for me, it can be studied for more readily than the general exam. 

 

That doesn't reflect the tests' relative importance, though, I don't think--sure, while I have some schools on my application that require the subject test, none of them have firm cutoffs for it, whereas the general exam is often used to help determine funding funding, hit basic admissions cutoffs for the graduate school, etc.

[ProfLorax]

I didn't have to take the subject test, so take my response with a grain of salt. It seems that the General is all about test-taking skills, while the Subject is about test-taking skills but also content. Which means, I think you can probably study for both at the same time. Every time you take a practice Subject test, practice the test-taking skills that will also help you on the General test. Hypervodka's response on the GRE English thread is a great example of this! You'll find similar vocabulary questions on both the subject and general test, and the process of elimination strategy is often more important than knowing the definition of the word itself. If I were in your position, then, I'd spend probably most (51-80%, depending on your already existing knowledge base) of my time studying the content that will be on the Subject test, then spend the rest of the time preparing for the General and Subject together by taking both General and Subject practice tests.

 

I have no idea if I'm making sense today, but it makes sense in my head.