My thoughts on the GRE

[Muscles00GT]

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I took the GRE this morning and here is how it went...computers were old! I mean from the early 1990's or even 1980s. The screen was irritating my eyes and one of my contacts started to bother me, so i took most of the exam with one eye closed. It takes you through a long series of instructions in the beginning such as how to move a mouse, how to click, how to scroll, and so forth. It's boring. You get a packet of scratch paper and a couple pencils. I ran out of time on the one math part with about 8 questions remaining..so I guessed on those. Verbal sucked..guessed most of it and used process of elimination on the others I didn't know. Once you're finished, you choose to keep the test or not. If you don't keep it, you don't see your scores. Once you decide to keep it, you see your score and can pick four schools to have them sent to. Anyway, verbal killed me which I'm not too surprised by. I ended up with a 450 verbal/620 quantitative. I was actually pleased with these results considering I had only studied a few days, I guessed on 8 math questions due to poor time management, and the fact half the exam my one contact was killing me so I took it with one eye closed.

So, advice for those taking it in the near future..

1. Remember your ID (i didn't forget mine, but I saw someone who did)
2. Take practice exams so you're very familar with the format
3. TIME MANAGEMENT! It screwed me over

Anyway, good luck to everyone! 😎

 

[MinnDasota]

Congrats on finishing! When will you find out about the analytical writing? Sucks about the contact thing! I remember when I took mine, there was an impending blizzard coming so I was all stressed out in getting to the testing center on time. My scores were similar to yours, studied very little, and it got me in, so hopefully your happy with it and gets you in too!

Good luck with the rest.

BTW, you can probably add:

4. Bring reading glasses just in case your contacts act up! jk

 

[Muscles00GT]

Congrats on finishing! When will you find out about the analytical writing? Sucks about the contact thing! I remember when I took mine, there was an impending blizzard coming so I was all stressed out in getting to the testing center on time. My scores were similar to yours, studied very little, and it got me in, so hopefully your happy with it and gets you in too!

Good luck with the rest.

BTW, you can probably add:

4. Bring reading glasses just in case your contacts act up! jk

Thanks! And yes you are right if you do wear contacts, bring glasses! I don't have reading glasses, but it would have certainly helped. It was raining pretty hard this morning and I had trouble finding the testing center, so I was stressing out about that. My GPA isn't stellar, but my extracurriculars/volunteering set me above other applicants. If I can land an interview, I know I'll be good.

 

[WillWords]

1. Remember your ID (i didn't forget mine, but I saw someone who did)
2. Take practice exams so you're very familar with the format
3. TIME MANAGEMENT! It screwed me over

Anyway, good luck to everyone! 😎

4. Take 2-3 months to study!!

Anyway, great job Muscles--I think you did awesome for someone who had limited time to prepare.

On a side note, the only way to manage your time better on the GRE is by taking as many practice exams as possible, which teaches you how to correctly pace the test. And the only way that is possible is by taking the necessary time to prepare.

 

[Muscles00GT]

4. Take 2-3 months to study!!

Anyway, great job Muscles--I think you did awesome for someone who had limited time to prepare.

On a side note, the only way to manage your time better on the GRE is by taking as many practice exams as possible, which teaches you how to correctly pace the test. And the only way that is possible is by taking the necessary time to prepare.

Agreed 100%. Time wasn't much of a factor for me on the practice exam, but then again I knew it was JUST a practice exam, so if i didn't know a question, I didn't bother working it out and thus just guessed. On the actual GRE, I took the time to work certain problems out and it bit me in the behind since I ran out of time. Definitely take practice tests like they are indeed the real deal...In my opinion, it's the only way to accurately gauge how well you manage to allocated time. Thanks for the kind words! 👍

 

[MJHUSKERS]

Congrats on the scores Muscles. I would be happy with those scores, especially with only a week of preparation.

Is it worth taking practice tests on the computer? Or will the paper tests give you enough preparation?

 

[Muscles00GT]

Congrats on the scores Muscles. I would be happy with those scores, especially with only a week of preparation.

Is it worth taking practice tests on the computer? Or will the paper tests give you enough preparation?

I didn't take any of the full length practice exams on paper, but I did take a series of practice questions (sets of questions so to speak). I took two "practice" exams on the computer (princeton review book) which provided me with a similar layout as the actual GRE. This was my first standardized test on a computer, so it was all new to me. Every test I've taken in the past was on paper, so I am more comfortable sitting at a desk with a physical test in front of me. My advice is if you are taking the computerized based GRE, take at least one practice exam on the computer to familiarize yourself with the NEXT, ANSWER CONFIRM, TIME, EXIT, etc. buttons. If you are taking the paper exam, I see no reason to practice on a computer unless you just want extra preparation.

 

[rlw237]

I took the GRE a year ago in September 2008 and received a total score of 970 (360 V, 610 QM, 3.0 AW). It should be noted, haha, I signed up on tuesday and took the exam friday with zero preparation and a 2 hour drive from State College to Harrisburgh, Pa that morning.

A year later I took the GRE in scranton, PA (where I live) and studied for about 5 months (about 1-2 hours a day). I just recieved my scores today and got a 1280 (630 V, 650 QM, and 4.5 AW). Its funny how this is an exam on how well you can manipulate questions and disect the answers. I bought three materials to study from(which I highly recomend). BARRONS Review, Princeton Review, and Kaplan's 500 most frequent words flashcards. Best 50 dollars I ever spent on amazon. I took no classes or expensive seminars just read the books and studied the cards. Barrons was awesome, it helped you break down each verbal question so you have a 50 50 chance on the ones you don;t know. I'm sure it was some luck tho, but i would say 18/30 questions had words straight from the flashcards. Oh and Princeton Review gurauntees atleast a 4.0 on the AW if you follow there templete. All and all good materials. Don't waste your money on anything else when you can just get some books and flashcards.

Just put some time into this exam and try not to stress, also take the exam close to you as you can cause a good night rest is key.

 

[MJHUSKERS]

rlw,

Did you use Barrons Review for reviewing for the math sections or did you just use it for the verbal study?

Glad to hear the kaplan's 500 words worked well, I spent a lot of time learning all 500.

 

[lee9786]

How much time does it usually take from the time you register for the GRE to the time you actually take the GRE?

 

[rlw237]

MJhuskers,

I used it for both actually. If you are using any book for Math then choose Barrons. The math is so in dept its great. I believe the sections are A-O they teach you techniques first with examples and then give you 20-25 problems to do on your own. Princeton review only does a small fraction when it comes to really getting a good understanding of the material. Plus Barrons does all those stupid questions like if alex is 6 years older than mike, and mike is 2 years older then jen how much older will alex be than jen 6 years from now. Or if you have 8 paintaings and 3 rooms and need to hang 2 in each room how many combonations can you have in each room. Great breakdown of probability to.

One advice they do give is focus on the first 7 questions the most it makes or breaks your score because of the CAT system

Barrons gives a 3500 most common word list as well which i had time to study and it helped a lot.

If you can only get one book get Barrons I think it was like 25 bucks ::shrugs::

If you can get two get Princeton review just for the analytical writing part (barrons was alittle to complex), and PR had great templets to follow (and suprisingly they worked)

Hope it helps

 

[ViscaBarca]

How much time does it usually take from the time you register for the GRE to the time you actually take the GRE?

It depends on what days are available when you register. I was able to take it in about two weeks.

For those taking the GRE dont stress out too much about the test because some schools do not really care how you do on the test. There are some schools that require a minimum score so in that aspect it can be important. I know the school I am attending mostly focused on Pre-req GPA, background information, and letters of recommendations. All things being equal a school would probably take the student with the better score but the GRE is certainly not the most important aspect of getting into school. If the GRE is important aspect of getting into the schools your are applying to then it is a great idea to start studying months in advance. The only reason I did not really study, besides taking practice exams and familiarizing myself with what was asked in the writing section and math concepts , was because i knew that my school did not give the GRE much importance.

Also does some one know for sure if you are penalized for guessing? I am not sure but are you not supposed to be scored by how many of the questions you answered are right, and their difficulty. I know i left quite a few questions unanswered in the math section and i still received a decent score. I will say that compared to the practice exams the math section did seem to be harder to try and finish in the allowed time.

 

[lee9786]

It depends on what days are available when you register. I was able to take it in about two weeks.

For those taking the GRE dont stress out too much about the test because some schools do not really care how you do on the test. There are some schools that require a minimum score so in that aspect it can be important. I know the school I am attending mostly focused on Pre-req GPA, background information, and letters of recommendations. All things being equal a school would probably take the student with the better score but the GRE is certainly not the most important aspect of getting into school. If the GRE is important aspect of getting into the schools your are applying to then it is a great idea to start studying months in advance. The only reason I did not really study, besides taking practice exams and familiarizing myself with what was asked in the writing section and math concepts , was because i knew that my school did not give the GRE much importance.

Also does some one know for sure if you are penalized for guessing? I am not sure but are you not supposed to be scored by how many of the questions you answered are right, and their difficulty. I know i left quite a few questions unanswered in the math section and i still received a decent score. I will say that compared to the practice exams the math section did seem to be harder to try and finish in the allowed time.

From what I hear it's more important to get the questions right in the beginning than in the end. For some reason they influence the score more. I do wonder how much the GREs are really taken into account. I'm preparing like they are important. Pretty dry information. I'll be happy when this is done with.

 

[PT Dad]

Don't waste your money on a review course like Kaplan's. My daughter did not do well on the GRE and still got into all the schools she wanted.

 

[MJHUSKERS]

I guess it depends on what school you're applying too. Most the schools I am applying to seem to make a big deal about the GRE; even more so if your GPA is below the average.

 

[DocPayne]

I spent 1000 on a kaplan course and i thought it really helped me. I would recommend one to anyone that finds it difficult to focus on GRE studying on their own time or someone who perfers the classroom instruction (especially me). My quan went up about 300 points while my verbal score stayed the same so i figured it worked out. However, the method for teaching in the class is just going through their textbook and using class participation to answer questions. If you can stay focused and dedicated to it at home then you could probably get similar results following an old kaplan book or their $50 review book.

 

[mtm34]

I think the GRE is a silly test overall for PT school, unlike the DAT and MCAT the GRE has no science which is the core of pre reqs for graduate school. Regardless I pulled a 1070 but only got 410 on my verbal and 660 quant. will that cut it or do i need to retake it?

 

[fallbackplan]

I think the GRE is a silly test overall for PT school, unlike the DAT and MCAT the GRE has no science which is the core of pre reqs for graduate school. Regardless I pulled a 1070 but only got 410 on my verbal and 660 quant. will that cut it or do i need to retake it?

The thing about the GRE is not the material contained within. It is more of a test to judge where you sit in accordance with your "peers" and also a way to judge whether you are capable of thinking logically and critically under pressure.


These things are important when it comes right down to it. Could they (they being a consortium of Physical Therapy Schools, the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy, and the APTA) come up with a test that is a little more biased toward PT? Sure they could (and for all I know, this could be in the works). But I have to ask, why do they need to if the GRE already serves the aforementioned points?


>>>stepping off my soapbox now

 

[vapt]

Greetings all! Decided I've lurked for long enough...Anyways, thought I might help with those that are still waiting to take their GRE's. I finally took mine this past fri., and they're not as bad as people (and books) make them out to be. I am absolutely horrible at math and standardized tests in general, but buying a $30 Kaplan book and taking the practice exams on the ets site were enough to get me scores higher than I needed; I probably studied for several hours a week for a month or so. Honestly, the kaplan math was way harder than the gre- I suppose if you're doing well on it, then the harder stuff helps out. Also, I was really suprised that I didn't have any of the new fill-in-the-blank questions, nor did I have to retake a section, so I hope this happens to anyone else as well- was in and out in 2.5 hours. Even though 2/4 schools I'm applying to have a min. score, the best advice I got was to stop stressing the gre's...with observation hours, lor's, prereq's, scare-tactic statistics, overall ptcas shenanigans, etc.,we have enough to worry about. Good luck to all- you'll do just fine!