How much were you able to raise your scores?

[med latte]

I just took my first practice GRE, and my score was 9 points below my target for Q, and 2 points below my target for verbal. I have 5 months to raise those scores. I'm alarmed by how far I have to go on the Q. Let the studying begin!

 

I'm curious -- how much were you able to raise your scores with studying and practice? 

[serenade]

I raised my V score by 6 points and Q by 4, though I probably could have raised the latter higher had I put in more effort. Raising your Q score 9 points will be challenging but doable in 5 months.

[GREMasterEMPOWERRichC]

Hi med latte,

 

5 months is a HUGE chunk of potential study time, so you can absolutely raise your scores.

 

What were your scores on this MST?

Did you take the ENTIRE MST (including the Essays)?

What practice materials are you using?

 

GRE Masters aren't born, they're made,

Rich

[med latte]

I have the Kaplan 5lb book with online account (that was the source of my first full practice test yesterday), and Magoosh apps on my phone.  I just signed up for the online Empower course; it looks like the videos will cover the basic math skills I desperately need to review. 

 

I think a big part of my problem with the quant is that it's been 20 years since I looked at a math problem or took a standardized test. I had to guess at many of the quant questions. But at least I know my baseline, and it can only improve from here. I'm determined.

 

When I applied for my MA, I applied to only one school, and for a program that did not require GRE scores.

 

Overall  I'll have a pretty strong application to the PhD programs I'm aiming for -- great GPA from my MA, work history, presentations, and letters of reference -- but I must get these GRE scores up. 

 

Anyone else have stories of increasing GRE scores? 

Edited May 31, 2015 by med latte

[GREMasterEMPOWERRichC]

Hi med latte,

 

You have a few things going in your favor in regards to the Quant section:

 

1) The 'math' that you'll have to do in the Quant section is fairly 'low level' - it's math that you did when you were probably 14 or 15. You just need to retrain to get those skills back.

2) You can always skip questions during the GRE and come back to them later.

3) The wrong answers often fall into patterns that you can use to eliminate them (and take a good guess, even if you get 'stuck' on a question).

4) You have MONTHS of potential study time, so you can take things in a slow and deliberate manner (if you choose) - you'll learn some content and some tactics and you'll go through the necessary repetitions.

5) The GRE is predictable, so you CAN properly train for what you'll face.

 

GRE Masters aren't born, they're made,

Rich

[random_grad]

I don't remember the exact number on my first GRE diagnostic test, but it was in the 150s. I increased to the maximum both V and Q, by working super-thoroughly through McGraw and Hill (correcting their own errors) + learning Kaplan words daily + adding a few more math formulas with Magoosh. I had not practiced math for 6 years, but initially had a pretty solid background, so that helped. I also know several other languages, which helped with vocab roots. For me that hardest was the AWA. I spent most of my prep time on that and still didn't get the coveted 6.0. I did a classification of all topics posted on GRE website and made arguments for each group, but I ended up having very different prompts on the exam. This angered me quite a bit actually! I mean, they put online all these repetitions and variations of the same questions, and then ask you something completely different. I find it misleading and a waste of my time. Anyway. What worked for me on AWA is to create a plan in 1-2min and then just type type type as fast as I could. Length seems to impress them.

Edited June 11, 2015 by random_grad