Who in your opinion makes the best GRE prep material?

[Nico Corr]

I took the GRE in June, and got a really good verbal score of 158, and not so great quant score of 140. I used Princeton review to prepare for my first attempt, and found it somewhat helpful, but found it wanting in depth of explaining certain concepts. I heard a lot about Manhattan Prep, specifically its " 5 pounder" book, but found it disappointing as it doesn't seem to explain the concepts before giving you problems to work out. My quant scores are probably the weakest aspect of my application, and I'm going to take the exam again in December just before admissions deadlines to try to raise my score up to at least a 150. What has everyone else used as far as prep materials? What did you find helpful?

[Hamb]

This is a tricky question to answer because most of us probably haven't used a variety of services enough to grade them against each other.

I will tell you that I went from a 152 Q on my first practice test with Magoosh to a 161 on the actual test. If you are good at learning through short video lessons, I'd highly recommend Magoosh. I wouldn't say that it is better than other services as I didn't use other services, but in 5 weeks of prep I went up a good amount.

 

Do you have experience with the type of math covered in the GRE section? I'm not trying to be rude, but a 140 is rather low, so advice might come from someone who's climbed from that score in the past. The magoosh videos worked well for me because I was just learning things again from previous math courses I've had. Refreshing things I'd forgotten, not really learning anything new. So my advice that their product worked well for me might not apply if you aren't familiar with the concepts previously. They have a number of free lessons though, and I think a free trial on their product.

[Annie2759]

I have been using 2 GRE Prep Material and so far each one have been very helpful with my GRE Preparation. 

Magoosh - overall, it has helped me a lot! Given that I had purchased a license at a discounted rate, the contents are also very much helpful in helping me remember past lessons

Preped - Although this prep program is still new in the market, their courses are really challenging. Also, I got the chance to try some of their tests for free...just wanted to try it out before actually purchasing their full course. Did not regret spending a single penny on this!

 

[Travis James]

Great to hear that someone here is using Preped too!

In addition to Magoosh and Preped, I have been reading Kaplan books and Nova Press GRE books (which I believe is already available in Preped). Both books are really helpful. 

[Nico Corr]

On 10/22/2017 at 11:20 PM, Hamb said:

This is a tricky question to answer because most of us probably haven't used a variety of services enough to grade them against each other.

I will tell you that I went from a 152 Q on my first practice test with Magoosh to a 161 on the actual test. If you are good at learning through short video lessons, I'd highly recommend Magoosh. I wouldn't say that it is better than other services as I didn't use other services, but in 5 weeks of prep I went up a good amount.

 

Do you have experience with the type of math covered in the GRE section? I'm not trying to be rude, but a 140 is rather low, so advice might come from someone who's climbed from that score in the past. The magoosh videos worked well for me because I was just learning things again from previous math courses I've had. Refreshing things I'd forgotten, not really learning anything new. So my advice that their product worked well for me might not apply if you aren't familiar with the concepts previously. They have a number of free lessons though, and I think a free trial on their product.

Thanks for the response. My "experience" with the type of math covered in the GRE doesn't go back much further than high school. Math has always been my Achilles heal. It took me four tries to pass basic math requirements in undergrad. I have already spent about $400 on the actual test and test prep materials, and didn't want to spend much more, but I think I will cough up the $ for Magoosh. Iv'e heard nothing but great things about it, and have done the tutorial videos. I think it could help my scores substantially.

[Nico Corr]

On 10/24/2017 at 2:02 AM, Travis James said:

Great to hear that someone here is using Preped too!

In addition to Magoosh and Preped, I have been reading Kaplan books and Nova Press GRE books (which I believe is already available in Preped). Both books are really helpful. 

I've never heard of Preped. I'll have to check it out.

[cowgirlsdontcry]

I only used Magoosh and was faithful working with it (at least on the verbal side). I raised my score from the first practice test from mid-150s to an actual GRE score in verbal of 163. As you know, the math is algebra and finite math. It pays to learn the formulas for the finite problems. I had only used a TI-84 in class and never learned the formulas, whereas I knew the algebraic formulas. Therefore, my math scores were rather deficient. I feel that, if I had practiced with the math, to the extent I practiced with the verbal, I would have had a much better score. English departments are going to be verbal heavy and I had only so much time, so chose to focus on the verbal.

[_kita]

I will second what a lot of people have said. I like Magoosh for the quant for their practice problems, apps, and video explanations. I also subsidized that with Khan Academy videos (which is free, but not GRE specific). Both of those helped develop my overall "number sense" as well as tips and tricks for the exam itself. Otherwords, I have the Kaplan and ETS math workbooks. My plan is, if my scores aren't high enough after going through both thoroughly, I'll be going through an in-class prep session. I'm aiming to increase my score by almost 20 points - which is a rather tall order.

[Nico Corr]

On 10/25/2017 at 11:04 AM, _kita said:

I will second what a lot of people have said. I like Magoosh for the quant for their practice problems, apps, and video explanations. I also subsidized that with Khan Academy videos (which is free, but not GRE specific). Both of those helped develop my overall "number sense" as well as tips and tricks for the exam itself. Otherwords, I have the Kaplan and ETS math workbooks. My plan is, if my scores aren't high enough after going through both thoroughly, I'll be going through an in-class prep session. I'm aiming to increase my score by almost 20 points - which is a rather tall order.

_kita, thanks for the input. Quick question; for Khan academy, which subject did you work most with? I am confident that with hard work, you will be able to to reach your 20 point improvement goal. Best of luck and thank you : )

[_kita]

@Nico Corr mainly geometry, but I did a lot of refreshers along the spectrum. This is a useful grid for comparison: https://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/khan_academy

[ImDeMan]

Hi! I've been tutoring students for the GRE for over five years. For those struggling with the quant section, I really love Kaplan's GRE Math Workbook. It goes through every concept of the GRE and gives you basic, intermediate, and advanced problems. There are also several practice sets focused on question type. My students have gone up 5-15 points in quant just by using this book. 

[TheKingLives]

I definitely recommend the Manhattan Prep Set of 8 Strategy Guides and the Manhattan Prep Flash Cards. I began my prep with Magoosh and liked it, but Manhattan Prep did a great job of making me feel confident about the material, especially important as the real GRE ended up being much more difficult than the practice tests I took. Got a 166V 161Q (slightly disappointed with my Q score, was hoping for 330+, but I supposed it's still strong). Good luck!

[audioisdaway@go]

EmPower gre prep is BY FAR, the best out of everything i've tried (kaplan, princeton review, magoosh) I found I had a ton of trouble with the actual concepts and knowing how to even begin a problem on the Quant section, it completely prepared me and although I was only halfway through my prep schedule, i took the gre and still got a 150 on the quant! I wish I would have discovered it sooner than two week before my test date, as I know I could have done so much better. Therefore, im retaking it in a few weeks and have all the confidence in the world thanks to them!! Seriously, it's amazing. (Ps. A 150 was amazing for me since I haven't taken a math class in almost four years and actually had to look up dividing fractions at the start of my studying)

 

-a once lost & unhopeful senior freaking about the gre

Edited November 7, 2017 by stmatt

[coffeecupanalogy]

I have had a great experience with both Magoosh and Manhattan. I'm also using KhanAcademy for math and verbal. So far I really like khanacademy for algebra and geometry, I'm currently using it also to study probability.  So I really recommend those 3.  Barron's is also good for vocabulary  but Magoosh has the free flashcards that are also really useful. 

Khanacademy and ETS kinda have a partnership so it's also good to know how to use it: https://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/khan_academy

Edited November 15, 2017 by coffeecupanalogy

[PokePsych]

How I studied;

1. Went over the math review of GRE - summarized it, did their practice questions, etc. Was a great way to understand what they want. My initial quant score was 143 before my review (forgot all formula's, rules, etc.) Most concepts that were covered in this review were things I covered during high school, so it was more a refresher (although I failed maths in high school as I never went to class lol)

2. Did the quant practice questions - plus checked what they were looking for in answers (both quant book + official guide)

3. Used Manhattan 5lb book for quant - was also extremely useful in seeing the strategies they use. Definitely helped me on at least 8 questions over the whole GRE (considering the total is 40, it definitely helped me improve). Probably helped me most. 

4. Did not bother much with verbal - did little bit of flash cards for vocab but didn't help much. Plus I'm a non-native speaker with a 120/120 TOEFL so I was just aiming for the 150s which I consistently got on my practice tests.

5. Went over the explanations for AW in both GRE official guide, GRE verbal practice book and Manhattan

My final scores were 161 (88th percentile - lol), 159 (73rd percentile - good enough for me considering where I started 3 weeks before with my 143), 4.5 (82 - also good enough)

 

For maths, first try to really UNDERSTAND what is going on. Then do practice. 

[Nico Corr]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. I actually talked to someone from one of the schools I was going to apply to told me they decided not to make GRE scores a requirement. This coupled with the fact that the holidays are around the corner, and I'm currently strapped for cash as it is makes me think I should just apply with my current scores, and if anything else, I can just study over the spring/summer and apply for the next admissions cycle in the Fall.