What you must know about the GRE!
he Graduate Record Examination is held by the Educational Testing Service and is required for admissions into graduate programmes in universities in the United States of America and Singapore.
Being a Computer Adaptive Test, it can be taken any time of the year.
All one has to do is book a date with the ETS to write the GRE.
The GRE has three sections:
i. Quantitative Reasoning: This mainly includes basic mathematics questions -- 28 questions to be attempted in 45 minutes. One can score a maximum of 800 in this section.
ii. Verbal Ability: 30 questions in 30 minutes is acknowledged by most to be the toughest section in the examination, especially for non-native English speakers. The highest score possible in this section is also 800.
iii. Analytical Writing Ability: This requires students to write two essays -- one expressing your opinion on a topic, and another in which you are expected to analyse an argument. This section is scored out of 6.
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v. The PowerPrep CD
When you book your date to write the GRE, you will receive this CD from ETS.
This CD does not have as much information as one might expect (shocking, especially when one looks at how much ETS charges the test taker!).
I strongly recommend preserving one of the two diagnostic tests on the CD for the day before the GRE. This is because repeated experiments with several people I know seem to indicate that what you score in the actual GRE will hover around your score in the PowerPrep test.
There are lots of other test prep CDs and books you can avail of. (Cambridge and Peterson's crop to mind), but it is best to stick to these.
If you have the time, inclination and money for the others, do give them a shot.
Note: Many wonder whether it is worth attending coaching classes to prepare for the GRE. To answer the question: No.
The coaching institutes charge the earth, and do not give you an edge over anyone else who has worked hard sitting at home.
Also: the practice tests that most of them promise you are merely CATs from some of the CDs I have mentioned above. Take it from one who has actually squandered a lot of money on these classes!
Tomorrow: Preparing for the GRE!
- Got tips to crack the GRE? Siddhu Warrier
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