GRE For Dummies Quick Prep

Ron Woldoff, Joseph Kraynak

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9781119068679
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Guías de estudio
• Subtopic: Guías de estudio GRE

Your get-in, get-out resource for passing the GRE

Are you getting panicky about taking the GRE? You're not alone! Offering proven strategies and tips to help you score your highest on exam day, GRE For Dummies, Quick Prep Edition sticks to the basics, leaving flowery, dispensable information at the door. Covering just what you need to know to prepare for the GRE, this no-nonsense guide gets down to the nitty gritty of the verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and analytical writing skills you need to master in order to get into the graduate school of your dreams.

The Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) is a standardized test that is an admissions requirement for most graduate schools in the United States. If you're one of the more than 800, 000 people prepping for the GRE this year and want to increase your chances of scoring higher—without spending months pouring through yet another tedious text— GRE For Dummies, Quick Prep Edition has you covered.

• Includes one full-length practice GRE test, complete with answers and explanations
• Competitively priced at $12.99
• Helps you master verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and analytical writing
• Prepares you for the big day by providing ample practice of GRE questions

So, what are you waiting for? Grab a pen, gauge your readiness, and practice your way to test-taking perfection with GRE For Dummies, Quick Prep Edition.

Part I

Getting Started with the GRE

Visit www.dummies.com for free access to great For Dummies content online.

In this part …

• Get the details about signing up for the GRE, what’s on the exam, and how your score is calculated.
• Figure out how to schedule your study time in advance of test day and get some pointers if you’re retaking the exam.
• Know what you need to do to prepare for the exam (beyond studying) and find out what to expect on test day.

Chapter 1

Knowing What to Expect with the GRE

In This Chapter

Fitting the GRE into your schedule

Deconstructing the GRE to better understand what’s on it

Grasping the scoring system

Looking forward to intermissions

One of the easiest ways to reduce your test anxiety and optimize your performance on the GRE is to become familiar with it. Knowing what to expect gives you less to think about and fret over come test day so you can focus on what really matters — the test itself.

In this chapter, I encourage you to schedule your exam early so you can get a time slot that works for you. I also discuss the GRE’s structure and scoring system so you can build your strategies around them. With this guidance, you’re better equipped to avoid surprises that may throw you off your game.

Signing Up for the GRE

In most parts of the world, the GRE is a computer-based test, which makes it easier to administer to individual test-takers. Sign up early so you can choose the day, time, and place that work best for you. If you’re a morning person who’s sharpest at sunrise, you can schedule the test for early morning; if you’re a night owl who tends to sleep in, you can opt for late morning or early afternoon. Actual time slot availability varies according to the testing center, but you have more days and times to choose from than you do with paper-and-pencil tests, such as the LSAT and SAT.

The paper and computer versions of the GRE are slightly different. For example, the paper version has 25 questions per section, while the computer version has only 20. Don’t worry too much about the differences; your only option will most likely be to take the computer version.

To sign up for the GRE, see the current GRE Information and Registration Bulletin (available through most college admissions offices), register online at www.ets.org , or register via phone by calling 800-473-2255. You can also check the GRE testing center locations and available time slots at www.ets.org.

To help you get in the right mindset, take the practice tests at the same time of day you plan on taking the real thing. (Check out the practice tests in Chapters 4 and 6.) I’ve had students use this strategy to become accustomed to the effects that their circadian rhythms (hunger and nap patterns) have on their test-taking abilities. If you’re used to eating or relaxing at a certain time each day, make sure these tendencies don’t sneak up on you during the exam. One of your goals is to make the GRE as familiar as possible, or rather, to make the test-taking experience as less unfamiliar as possible. (See Chapter 3 for more on how to prepare for the GRE.)

Because the computerized GRE is administered to individual test-takers, testing centers tend to have few seats, and those seats fill up quickly during peak admission deadline months (April and November). If you’re planning to take the GRE around these months (to get your test scores in on time), schedule your test early and secure your ideal time slot. You can always reschedule, but the last thing you need is an inconvenient time or location. One of my students waited until the last minute to schedule his exam, and he had to drive from Phoenix to Tucson (approximately 120 miles) to take his GRE and get his scores in on time. He called me during his drive to review math formulas, but this wasn’t an ideal way to ramp up for the test.

Breaking the GRE into Manageable Pieces

Standardized tests tend to convey a sense of gloom and doom. Telling someone you have to take the SAT, ACT, or GRE usually elicits the same facial expression as saying that you need to have your wisdom teeth pulled. However, breaking the GRE down into its component parts makes it more manageable and less threatening.

Table 1-1 provides a quick overview of what’s on the exam. The essays are always first, but the multiple-choice sections may be in any order.

Table 1-1 GRE Breakdown by Section (Computer-Based)

Section	Number of Questions	Time Allotted
Analyze an Issue	1 essay	30 minutes
Analyze an Argument	1 essay	30 minutes
Verbal Section	20 questions	30 minutes
Math (Quantitative) Section	20 questions	35 minutes
Verbal Section	20 questions	30 minutes
Math (Quantitative) Section	20 questions	35 minutes
Discreetly Unscored Math or Verbal Section (may be earlier in the exam)	20 questions	30 or 35 minutes

At close to four hours long, the GRE challenges your stamina as much as your ability to answer the questions. No matter how solid your math and verbal skills are, you must maintain the concentration and focus needed to do well for four hours, which isn’t easy on a challenging task such as the GRE. You can build your test-taking stamina by practicing in four-hour stretches and taking multiple timed practice tests.

The GRE includes one unscored Math or Verbal section in addition to the scored sections. So you actually have three Math or three Verbal sections, with one of those sections unscored. This unscored section neither helps nor hurts your score. The GRE may indicate that the section is unscored, but usually it doesn’t, so be sure to work all of the sections to the best of your ability.

Unlike other computer-based tests (such as the GMAT and TOEFL), the GRE allows you to skip questions and return to them later, as long as you’re still in the section. When you reach the end of a section, the GRE displays a review screen that indicates any unanswered questions. If you have time remaining in the section, return to these questions and answer them as well as you can. This feature is nice because you can knock out all the easy questions before spending time on the hard ones. (See Chapter 2 for tips on managing your time during the exam.)

In each section, the questions are worth the same number of points, and within that section, they don’t become more or less difficult based on your performance. However, on the computer version of the exam, your performance on the Math or Verbal section determines the overall difficulty level of the next Math or Verbal section. For example, if you do extremely well on the first Math section, the GRE makes the second Math section harder. Even if you don’t get many questions right in the second Math section, your score may be higher than the score of someone who answers more easier questions correctly, because GRE scoring accommodates for the difficulty level of the questions.

So exactly what types of questions and how many of each type can you expect to run into on the GRE? Check out Table 1-2 for the answers.

Table 1-2 GRE Breakdown by Question Type

Type of Question	Approximate Number of Questions
Per Math Section (20 questions each)
Multiple-choice with exactly one correct answer	6
Multiple-choice with one or more correct answers	2
Fill-in-the-blank with the correct answer	2...