GRE- Biology subject test

[podo]

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Has anyone taken the GRE biology subject test? If so, would you please tell me what review material you found helpful and any suggestions/comments about the actual test itself. I am taking the exam in April and would greatly appreciate the advice. Also, if you dont mind- could you list your score and how much you studied, etc.
Thanks!!

 

[banditalfi]

I don't think too many of us have taken it - I know I haven't. In fact, I specifically ruled out schools based on whether or not they required it.

As for the root of your question, I find the best thing to find any study aid is to sit down in your bookstore and read through a few of the books. Some might have a better reputation, but if you don't learn well from them then don't bother. When I was studying for the (normal) GRE I just looked through all the books and bought the one that I got the best feel from - it also had a bunch of practice tests, which was nice.

 

[smoknjoe44]

I've always been pretty decent at biology, so I didn't study too much. However, if you get a study book put out by Kaplan and know just what is in it, you should do fine. The only part of the test that brought my score down was ecology because I haven't had any of those classes. Anyhow, like I said before, I studied very little and got a 670.

 

[philomycus]

I got a 770 and didn't study at all. But I've been teaching colleeg level biology for 8 years. I was kinda embarassed I didn't break 800.I'm sure the questions I missed were on the geological time scale and plants. I hate plants. The last 50 questions on experiments were pretty darn nasty too.

Go ahead and register for the test ASAP so you can recieve your study guide well in adavnce. It has a practice test too. There are also plenty of books you can buy at your local bookstore.

 

[NoleDevil]

Too bad we couldn't take the Bio subject test INSTEAD of the General GRE. I am horrible at taking standardized tests, so personally, I study as much as possible. I only took the General test, but you could definitely utilize similar study techniques for the Bio test. I think the thing that helps the most is to take as many TIMED practice tests as you can - preferably on the computer so you can get familiar with the testing style. If you can't take them on the computer, though, I would just get a book with practice tests in it (i.e. from Kaplan, Princeton Review, etc.) and time yourself when you take one. In addition to that, I would probably study old notes from Biology classes and whatever other subjects are on that test.

 

[flokemahe]

I took it about a hundred years ago, back when you used *gasp* a #2 pencil. I spent about a month beforehand reviewing my Biology textbook (it was by Campbell) cover to cover. It contained everything that was on the exam, and almost nothing that wasn't on the exam. I don't remember my raw score, but it was 97th percentile.

 

[philomycus]

I think the thing that helps the most is to take as many TIMED practice tests as you can - preferably on the computer so you can get familiar with the testing style.

The Bio GRE is only offered with paper and pencil (at least that's how it was last year).

 

[Biomajir]

First of all, wow a 770? I was really proud of my 630 lol, oh well. On my test there were alot of genetics questions so be sure to know that.

 

[nyanko]

I took it in 2006 and scored the same as philomycus, 770. The GRE Bio test is a very broad exam. What you'll want to do is take a look at the different sections that are on it and identify your weaknesses in those sections. Take a practice exam and see which sections you do poorly on. Focus on studying those ones. Basically, I majored in Molecular Biology and Microbiology so I don't have any background in ecology or plant bio.

I don't recommend what I did as a way to study, because I was under a lot of pressure at the time from lab practicals and exams in other courses and such, but I ended up staying up all night before learning everything the Barron testprep book said about ecology and plants. I actually ended up doing okay on those questions, but it was still the weakest part of the test for me. Try reviewing in advance though, it will probably pay off better for you. 🙂

 

[NoleDevil]

The Bio GRE is only offered with paper and pencil (at least that's how it was last year).

Touché! I don't know if they changed it for this year, either... nonetheless, practice tests are key!

 

[dyachei]

The Princeton Review book was the one I bought when I took my test. it was under 20 dollars and had points to focus on, but mostly, its just knowing your biology.

 

[podo]

Thanks to all your responses- they are very helpul! To those of you who took the test, can you tell me if you there was a difference between your actual test score and your practice test score? I have heard some people say that some practice tests can actually be harder. Also, when did you hear back from ETS regarding your test site?

 

[dyachei]

Thanks to all your responses- they are very helpul! To those of you who took the test, can you tell me if you there was a difference between your actual test score and your practice test score? I have heard some people say that some practice tests can actually be harder. Also, when did you hear back from ETS regarding your test site?

I certainly did worse on practice tests than the real thing. You have to remember that the biology GRE is weighted depending on the test for the year. The scores may go higher than 800 or they may not, so its really the percentile you have to look at (it makes the practice tests hard to compare). I can't remember about the test site, sorry.

 

[kittenj]

do you think the schools that don't require the Bio subject test would still look favorably on a good score submitted with my app?

I've decided to retake my GRE this summer to help strengthen my app next cycle, I am very strong on the verbal but weak on the quantitative. Looks like most schools look for the balance to be shifted the other way 🙄 Anyway I think I could really rock it on the bio subject test, does anyone think that would add enough to my application to be worth taking it? (maybe the strong science score making up for weaker general quant??) None of the schools I am currently thinking about applying to require the subject test, just the general.

Thanks all

 

[nyanko]

I can only speak for UC Davis, but the DVM admissions committee here wasn't even aware that I took the GRE subject test, nevermind my score on it. This is despite the fact that the score appears on my GRE score report that was sent to all the schools and I entered it into VMCAS. So I think it's safe to say that it was completely ignored. (too bad too, it was a good score!)

 

[twelvetigers]

There won't really be a way to let the schools that don't require the test know what you made. Odds are, they wouldn't care about it anyway. So, unless you see OKstate or UGA in your future, don't waste the $300. Oh yes, it's pricey.

 

[stick91]

I took the Bio GRE in October. I ordered a couple test prep books online, Kaplan and Princeton Review and used those to go over material. Certainly if you have a general bio book and know everything in that you will do well, but that will also probably cover more than you need to know. I chose the prep books so that I could easily break down my studying into weekly chunks and then have a couple weeks to do practice exams and see if there was material I needed work on. Like many, the ecology/evolution part was by far the section I did the worst on. I did get a 740 overall so it wasn't too terrible.

Flashcards were helpful for me with some of the terminology that I wasn't familiar with. I highly recommend doing as many practice tests as you can because it does tend to be a test that will take you the majority of the testing period and its nice to develop some sense of what questions you should skip and come back to or just leave unanswered. My practice test scores probably averaged out to be around what I got on the real one. It took the full 6 weeks for me to get my scores, though sometimes you can get them earlier by calling and paying 12 bucks if the waiting is driving you crazy.

 

[sumstorm]

I had a 700 in 1995, and the only questions that caught me off guard were a series of 10 questions that involved names of biologist and what they did. Weren't big familiar names like Darwin, Watson/Crick, etc. Totally caught me out of left field (I rarely associate names with concepts unless the concept/method/procedure is named after them like Kjeldahl.

I had ETS report my GRE bio along with the GRE general test (doesn't cost anything extra) but no idea if it affected anything.