GRE is the gateway to the world’s top educational institutions, and millions of students take the exam every year. Many students get the perfect score on the first attempt, and there is a considerably large section of students not scoring well even after successive attempts. What could be the possible reason? Is it the weak foundation of the English language? Is it the lack of analytical skills? These could be the possible reasons, but these couldn’t be the reason for successively not getting a good score. A strategically planned preparation with a balanced approach towards all the sections can bring a substantial difference.
It’s not the lack of an inherent ability that makes the difference, and it’s the combination of hard work and smart work that is needed to score well in the GRE. The Analytical Writing, Verbal & Quantitative Reasoning sections are crafted in a way that anyone can get a perfect score. One needs to focus for two to three months and be strict with the GRE plan. Even the best GRE prep books will be of help only when it is supplemented with a perfect strategy.
Understand the test pattern
“Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories”, ancient Chinese philosopher and military strategist Sun Tzu, said this thousands of years back. Here, we are not talking about an enemy but understanding the test pattern is the first step towards strategizing the GRE preparation. For different sections, go through the sample papers and try to decipher the pattern in which questions have been asked in the last couple of years. One can also refer to the sample material provided by the ETS.
Taking a few sample tests without any preparation will help in ascertaining the weakness and strengths. Someone from a science, maths, and engineering background may find the quantitative section relatively easier. In contrast, someone from a humanities and arts background might find the verbal section easy. So it’s important to understand which area needs more work than others.
Make a viable plan
Once students take the test without any preparation, they know which section needs more attention and which one they can manage with less effort. Knowing the areas of strength and weakness helps in chalking out the plan for taking the GRE. The most challenging sections should be tackled first, giving the much-needed confidence to take up other sections. Make a deadline and be strict to it with a come what may attitude. Never miss a deadline as it will affect the entire preparation. Time is the most crucial element in the GRE test, no matter how good a student is at verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing. If time management is poor, it will have a direct bearing on the score.
So, time management starts right at the preparation stage and shouldn’t be restricted to the test. Enrolling in a test series or getting a GRE package is the most realistic and efficient way to stick to a schedule. If a student is preparing on their own, it becomes pretty cumbersome to learn these things in a short span of time.
Practice, Practice, and Practice
The practice may or may not make a man perfect, but it can certainly make the GRE score perfect. There is no alternative to practice, and it is almost guaranteed that if a student does a lot of practice, it will be reflected in the GRE scorecard.
Quantitative section
This section is mathematics-oriented and assesses the ability of a GRE test taker in solving mathematical problems. However, it shouldn’t be confused with calculus or linear functions. They will ask more straightforward concepts with a great deal of focus on fundamental understanding. The questions aren’t tough per se, but they need a great deal of practice as they aren’t easy either. So, practice is the only way to brush up the mathematical concepts, and there is no alternate to it.
Verbal Section
It is considered one of the most challenging sections of the GRE test as it puts a significant impetus on vocabulary. One needs to learn the maximum number of words that they can till the time of the exam. And practicing comprehension, text completion questions, and sentence equivalence are the most effective ways to ace the verbal section. No one can remember each and every word in the English dictionary. So, one must practice seeing the hints and clues given in the question itself.
Analytical Writing
This section assesses the ability of a test taker to understand and comprehend visibly tough concepts into simpler meaning. Understanding and communicating is one of the most sought qualities among the professionals, and GRE put a special impetus on this assessment. The best source for acing the analytical writing section is the ETS website that provides precisely the type of material one needs to get a good score.
Work On Weakness and Enhance Your Strength
The best way to ace any exam is to have a Hawkeye view of each practice test’s performance. Analyzing the tests and charting the scores helps a lot in understanding the areas where one needs to work and those areas where they need to aim for a 100% score. The ability to analyze the performance is the real differentiator among the test takers. Most GRE test takers spend a lot of time in the section where they are confident of getting a good score but neglect those sections which trouble them.
Make a chart of each section and see the score pattern; if the pattern is sporadic or declining, it needs to be tackled at the earliest. If the score is usually the same but below the required score, it needs more effort. And, the last one should keep practicing those sections where they are confident of getting a good score, as these are the sections that are going to boost the overall score.
Take Calculated Risk
In exams like GRE, one should always be open to taking a calculated risk as there is no possible chance on earth that a test taker will know all the answers. There are specific questions wherein the sole intention of the question setter is to test the risk-taking ability of the test taker. When it comes to the verbal section, one can’t know the meaning of all the words. Taking a calculated risk in vocabulary is a must, but the risk should be calculated and not a blind guess. The same goes with the quantitative section, and there will be questions where a student can guess the correct answer right after solving a few steps, and there is no need to solve the problem completely. In a multiple answer type question, one must focus on the options as there are several instances where options speak for themselves. But to even be in a position to take an intelligent guess, a ton of hard work is needed.
A good GRE score can open the door to the world’s best universities and bestow an opportunity to work with the best minds of the world. A good GRE score also helps in taking loans as most lenders are more inclined towards those borrowers who have scored well on the GRE test. In the case of international lenders, they even make the loan’s terms and conditions more flexible for students securing overly high scores in the GRE test. On top of all, every university keeps a cut-off score, and one must score more than that to be eligible to apply for admissions. So, if a few months of hard work can bring such a considerable shift in life, one must put all in to change the course of life.