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So I just took a GRE practice test and scored:
780 Q
540 V
I'm beating myself up right now because I hate how my verbal score is. I've been going over the Barron's 3500 list and I still score terrible. Are there any tips other than practice/memorize? I'm planning on taking the test in a month's time, before classes begin, so this month I'm going to cram as many words and practice tests in as I can, which basically means practice test everyday.
I can't do anything about my quantitative score. It's always hovering around 800-780. Always stupid mistakes that I know the answer to like the back of my hand. I just have to take my time and double check more.
Please, any tips from anyone who has taken the GRE general tests?
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hi, i'd recommend the GRE vocabulary flash cards, i think they are made by kaplan. other than that, just take as many practice tests as you can. i think you'll find, though, that there is less upward mobility than you think. when i worked at a test prep place, i saw students pull scores from the 540 range to maybe the 650 range in verbal but rarely higher than that. there will always be some fluctuation from test to test. i'm not trying to discourage you, but increasing more than 100 points is unlikely and will take a great deal of work.
did you see what type of questions you were missing most frequently? when i took mine, i was missing nearly only analogies and spent about a month practicing them before taking the test again. there will always be questions where you'll have to disambiguate between two very similar words, so be sure to practice connotation as much as denotation.
it's bizarre how much harder the verbal section is than the quantitative. i was an english major and hadn't taken a math class in almost 5 years and got similar scores to yours in quantitative but also struggled with the verbal. i think the test is a bit of a joke for that reason, but 4 tests later and almost 1k down the drain i got the scores i wanted.
GL!
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oh, also make sure you note what percentile the scores you got place you in. i think a perfect score on quantitative only places you in 96th percentile (since so many people get perfect scores), but iirc anything over like 730 is 99th for verbal.
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GRE is such a dumb test; it's like a test for esoteric vocabulary and your ability to do high school math and not make mistakes. I don't think either of them are adequate meaures of a graduate's performance.
*bitter because i scored 800's on the quantiative for every practice test but only a 770 when i actually took it* ...if anything, my advice is to not be too careful on the math. i spent time to double check some of my answers and ended up not finishing the last 2 questions ><
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Yeah it's very strange how the verbal part is so much harder than the quantitative part.
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On July 13 2009 10:21 skronch wrote:
GRE is such a dumb test; it's like a test for esoteric vocabulary and your ability to do high school math and not make mistakes. I don't think either of them are adequate meaures of a graduate's performance.
*bitter because i scored 800's on the quantiative for every practice test but only a 770 when i actually took it* ...if anything, my advice is to not be too careful on the math. i spent time to double check some of my answers and ended up not finishing the last 2 questions ><
i agree with you that it's not an adequate measure for grad school, i think a lot of people will just feel like they are taking the SAT part 2
however, keep in mind that a lot of grad schools might not even want your GRE scores, and they very rarely disqualify you from a program. from what i know of grad school admissions, they mainly use the GRE scores to break ties and determine TAships. a high score on the GRE will make you more competitive for better funding and afaik that's about it, your other aspects are far more important
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On July 13 2009 10:41 benjammin wrote:Show nested quote +On July 13 2009 10:21 skronch wrote:
GRE is such a dumb test; it's like a test for esoteric vocabulary and your ability to do high school math and not make mistakes. I don't think either of them are adequate meaures of a graduate's performance.
*bitter because i scored 800's on the quantiative for every practice test but only a 770 when i actually took it* ...if anything, my advice is to not be too careful on the math. i spent time to double check some of my answers and ended up not finishing the last 2 questions >< i agree with you that it's not an adequate measure for grad school, i think a lot of people will just feel like they are taking the SAT part 2 however, keep in mind that a lot of grad schools might not even want your GRE scores, and they very rarely disqualify you from a program. from what i know of grad school admissions, they mainly use the GRE scores to break ties and determine TAships. a high score on the GRE will make you more competitive for better funding and afaik that's about it, your other aspects are far more important
yea I agree that grades, recommendations, and research experience are much more important, but with graduate school applications increasing, I think GRE scores are becoming more important to distinguish (or disqualify) similarly accomplished applicants. For me, I feel especially pressured for my quantitative scores...I'm applying for engineering grad school, and what sort of engineering graduate doesn't score an 800 on the GRE?
Also, I don't think grad school is really worth it if I have to pay for it haha
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Thank you for your replies.
I realize that the GRE General Test isn't as important as GPA, portfolio, recommendations, and experience, but I really want to cover all the bases so I have an edge when it comes to applying. I'd rather waste my money on applications and have a fighting chance than to waste my money and not.
I really am having a lot of problems on my analogies, which also boils down to me not completely understanding the word(s) in question.
On the quantitative section, I'm usually testing into the 98-99 percentile, while on the vocabulary, I'm stuck at the 70 percentile. I just hope after studying this month I can get past 600 at least. I'll be so much happier if I can get my vocabulary score up 100 points, although I have no illusions that I'll ever hit 700.
I'm applying for architectural graduate schools, so basically everything else means more than the GRE. Maybe I am making too big a deal out of this.
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EPT
