GRE Preparation Tips 2024: Preparation Tips & Tricks for GRE Test

A lot of students are confused about the best GRE exam preparation practices and ask, How to study for the GRE? We are going to dive right in and discuss the best GRE study material for them. Here are the top 10 Tips and Tricks for the GRE

1. Plan ahead
2. Know what you're getting into
3. Take lots of practice tests
4. Start studying vocabulary
5. Focus on your subject
6. Don't ignore the other subject
7. Use good materials
8. Know question types
9. Keep an error log
10. Plan on taking the exam twice

The first section of the GRE is always the Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) section. This section comprises two analytical writing tasks -- an analysis of an issue task and an analysis of an argument task. These two tasks are timed separately and you get 30 minutes to complete each task. This section is followed by two Verbal Reasoning sections, two Quantitative Reasoning sections, and an unidentified unscored section which may be either a Verbal Reasoning section or a Quantitative Reasoning section. For students to master the section-wise preparation for GRE, we have Subhajit Bandyopadhyay, Academics - Head (Emeritus) writing about the Section-wise Preparation Tips for GRE for our readers - a must-read.

1. Start by taking a GRE practice test: The first step towards preparing for your GRE exam would be to know your current stand. By taking a full-length GRE practice test, the candidate should be able to identify weak areas and sections that would need extra focus. 

2. Determine your GRE Cut off score: This would be the score you would require to apply to your preferred university. Candidates should note that their GRE target score should be above the average score of the university. This way, the candidate would be able to make his application stand out. 

3. Close the gap: The next step in the GRE preparation process would be to plan on closing the gap. Candidates can opt for GRE preparation online, GRE prep books and be part of GRE classes as part of the GRE preparation exercise. 

• Practice with and without a calculator: Candidates would have access to an onscreen calculator which is a huge advantage but can also prove to be a liability. So it is important the candidate knows when to use the calculator and when he is better at using the rules of a key math concept.

4. Build up your GRE vocabulary: Candidates are required to read a lot of analytical non-fiction to build up their GRE vocabulary. 

5. Practice GRE Practice Papers: Candidates are required to practice GRE sample papers as many as possible and review their results and note down their progress.  

In this section, we are going to be talking about the top low-cost tools available on the official website as part of the GRE preparation plan for students looking to ace the GRE exam. 

• SCOREITNOW!™ Online Writing Practice - $20
• Official GRE® Quantitative Reasoning Practice Questions Volume 1, Second Edition - $20
• Official GRE® Verbal Reasoning Practice Questions Volume 1, Second Edition - $20
• Official GRE® Value Combo - $37
• POWERPREP PLUS® Online - Practice Test 1 (Scores provided on all three measures) - $39.95
• POWERPREP PLUS® Online - Practice Test 2 (Scores provided on all three measures) - $39.95
• POWERPREP PLUS® Online - Practice Test 3 (Scores provided on all three measures) - $39.95
• The Official Guide to the GRE® General Test, Third Edition - $40
• Official GRE® Mentor Course - $100

In this section, we are going to be talking about the top free tools available on the official website as part of the GRE preparation plan for students looking to ace the GRE exam. 

• POWERPREP® Online - Practice Test 1 (Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning scores provided) - $0
• POWERPREP® Online - Practice Test 2 (Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning scores provided) - $0
• POWERPREP® Online - Practice Test 1 (Untimed - No scores provided) - $0

source: https://ereg.ets.org/ereg/public/testPrep/viewtestPreparation?_p=GRI

Candidates should note that there is no set template for preparation. What might work for Person A does not have to necessarily be right for Person B and vice versa. Hence, we have through this article provided a list of multiple learning techniques and we expect our readers to select the one that most suits their needs and follow the same to score better in their GRE exams. 

How Can I Prepare for GRE at Home?

Candidates should not get confused about preparing for GRE at Home and preparing for GRE at the test centre. As both the tests are the same, only the test environment is different. A lot of times, test takers could get overwhelmed. Candidates should note that ETS - the conducting body of the GRE exam has started conducting the GRE test at home for candidates who are looking to appear for the GRE test from the safety of home. Candidates who do not have a conducive environment at home or the necessary system requirements can appear for the test from the GRE test centre if the COVID-19 local restrictions allow.

How Long Does it take to Prepare for the GRE exam?

This is again a very personalized question. While some test takers may take two to three months to reach their optimum level of preparation for their GRE test, others could take a longer or shorter duration to study. Hence, there is no set time frame. Candidates are encouraged to schedule their GRE tests only once they have completely prepared for the GRE test. 

If you are focused and confident about your GRE prep, a 30-day GRE study plan will work out great for you, as long as you have the required time. You will need to dedicate at least 2-3 hours a day on average; that too, only if your basic math concepts are clear. If they are not, you’ll need more hours per day. Also, if you are good at certain sections, you can skip the sections you know you don’t need to review. So essentially this guide can be customized to your strong and weak areas.

When you're preparing for the GRE, it can feel like you're awash in a sea of advice. Some of it is good, some of it's bad, and some of it's just plain unhelpful. So, let's narrow it down. What can you do now to ensure you get the best score before your exam? Here we have provided section-wise GRE preparation tips and tricks for our readers. 

Whether you are planning to pursue a master’s course in law, business, or any other graduate course, you need to take the GRE test, which is accepted by thousands of schools across the globe. For the benefit of our readers, we also have a very dedicated GRE sample papers section for candidates to visit for the latest GRE study material. Here, the study material available is online and the GRE study material has been sourced from the most reliable sources and is in tune with the current GRE Exam Syllabus and GRE exam pattern.  

The GRE Test evaluates the candidates on their verbal, analytical, and mathematical skills. Whereas, the Subject Test focuses on judging the candidates’ abilities in specific areas. The GRE General Test is taken by students from various educational backgrounds and it provides schools with common selection criteria for comparing candidates' qualifications. We have collated the latest GRE sample questions and brought them together for our readers. They can be found below.

Solve GRE questions papers here:

One big question everyone preparing for the GRE faces is figuring out how to start the GRE preparation. Some prefer good old private tuitions, coaching classes, or self-studies, the most recent favourite among students is online prep courses. If you are confused between coaching classes or online prep, here are a few points clarifying why online exam prep is suddenly a rage among test-takers internationally.

1. Convenient and customizable
2. Personalized lessons
3. Learn at your speed
4. Evaluation
5. Cost-effective

As mentioned earlier, the GRE exam is made up of multiple sections that come together to make the GRE test. Read on as we provide important section-wise preparation tips for candidates looking to prepare for the GRE exam. 

How to prepare for GRE Analytical Writing?

The GRE Analytical Writing section is designed to assess critical thinking and analytical writing skills, which is reflected by your ability to express complex ideas clearly and effectively while maintaining a coherent and focused discussion. Many students lose sight of the fact that the test does not evaluate their content knowledge. So what opinion you provide has no right or wrong answer.

1. Note that your AWA tasks will be selected from the pool of tasks, which has been published by ETS at www.ets.org/gre/awtopics. However, don't even think of practising writing your responses to all the topics and tasks. Writing your responses while taking the full-length practice tests should be enough, but do get the essays scored and review them.

2. Refer to the Official Guide to know the specific instructions one of which will accompany each AWA task. There are only six instructions relating to the issue task and eight instructions relating to the argument task. You must address the issue and the argument according to the specific instructions accompanying each task.

3. Do practice writing the AWA responses while taking every practice test.

4. Do have a template in mind for writing your AWA responses; that will help you sail through the AWA section with ease so that you are able to tackle the subsequent verbal and quant sections with full energy and zeal.

5. Do not forget that in the argument task, you are not supposed to comment or discuss whether the statements in the argument are true or not. You should not state whether you agree or disagree with the position stated. In other words, you must not express your own views on the subject. You are just required to evaluate the soundness of the argument according to the specific instructions accompanying the argument.

• VARC (Verbal and Reading Comprehension): Tips, Questions And Preparation

How to prepare for GRE Verbal Reasoning Section?

The Verbal Reasoning section of the GRE is often seen as difficult as the mathematics portion due to the big amount of vocabulary included. The purpose of the Verbal Reasoning section of the GRE is to assess your comprehension of written material and your ability to evaluate it. The GRE Verbal Reasoning test also measures your skill in analyzing sentence structure and your understanding of relationships between words and concepts.

1. Appreciate the importance of vocabulary in the verbal section of the GRE remembering that the words that you should know must be the sort of words that are likely to appear on the GRE. At the same time, no set of words is ever enough for your GRE prep. Keep learning words till such time you take the GRE exam. Learn the secondary meanings of the words as well.

2. Don't use only just one technique to learn all the words. Do maintain a vocab journal (register), use flashcards, use etymology, use mnemonics, use vocab games, and also do use online apps and tools to learn words.

3. Along with words, do learn how to answer the Sentence Equivalence and Text Completion questions. Just learning words will not suffice; you must also know the techniques that you should use to solve the Sentence Equivalence and Text Completion questions.

4. Never plug in the answer choices in the blanks to solve Sentence Equivalence and Text Completion questions. Focus on clues and triggers (if any) to come up with your own word or phrase and then use the process of elimination.

5. Remember that the two credited responses in a sentence equivalence question need not necessarily be synonyms.

How to prepare for GRE Quantitative Section?

The Quantitative Reasoning section of the GRE General Test examines your basic mathematical skills, understanding of elementary mathematical concepts, and ability to reason with numbers and to solve problems with quantitative methods.

1. Do not ignore Math fundamentals. Although there may be very few questions solely based on math fundamentals, it may be impossible for you to solve several maths questions unless you are thorough with math fundamentals.

2. Give due importance to the math topics that are tested more extensively on the GRE rather than the topics from which there are likely to be fewer questions. For example, give more importance to the number system, averages, percentages, ratio-proportion, etc. rather than to permutation-combination and probability. You can start paying more attention to the latter topics after you have mastered the former more commonly tested topics.

3. Refer to the Official Guide and take a look at the list of all the math topics that may appear on the GRE; make sure you master each and every topic.

4. Keep in mind that although GRE doesn’t test you on esoteric math concepts, questions are often tricky. You should, therefore, learn to identify and avoid trap answers.

5. While you do have a (drop-down) calculator to use in the quant section, remember that it provides you only basic mathematical operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division (and square root). Further, the calculator is not very easy to use, but you must use it when necessary. Therefore, start using the calculator from the very beginning for practice, but remember that very often the moot point to determine is whether or not to use the calculator.

• Quantitative Aptitude Preparation Tips for MBA Exams

GRE study material: If you take the route of self-study to prepare for GRE, there are a lot of GRE preparation materials and GRE study plans available to help you. The official ETS has its own official study guide and a mobile app. Refer to the following GRE books and guides to help you create a study plan -

• The Official Guide to the GRE revised General Test, Second Edition - Both the book and eBook feature two actual, full-length tests, hundreds of authentic GRE test questions, explanations for many answers, test-taking strategies, sample essay responses with reader commentary, and more.
• The Official GRE Guide app - It gives you access to authentic test questions with answers and explanations, plus valuable test-taking tips and strategies. The Official GRE Guide app is the most accurate and informative GRE revised General Test preparation available in an interactive, electronic format.
• Official GRE Verbal Reasoning Practice Questions, Volume One - this guide includes an authoritative overview of the GRE Analytical Writing measure, complete with sample writing tasks, and scored sample responses.

• Official GRE Quantitative Reasoning Practice Questions, Volume One – This book offers 150 never-before-published Quantitative Reasoning questions with complete explanations. It also includes a review of the math topics you need to know for the test.
• ScoreItNow! Online Writing Practice Service for the GRE revised General Test – This service is a web-based tool that can help you sharpen your analytical writing skills and prepare for the Analytical Writing section of the GRE revised General Test. 
• Manhattan Prep - They offer 8 test-taking strategy guides, focusing on each of the tests' content areas including Algebra, Fractions, Decimals & Percents, Geometry, Number Properties, and Word Problems.

Candidates can check out this way as we update our readers with the best GRE preparation material for their GRE Subject Tests. 

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