new GRE

[anwang]

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I guess their changing the GRE test... Does anyone know what changes their making? Should I take it before or after the great change?

 

[irish80122]

I guess their changing the GRE test... Does anyone know what changes their making? Should I take it before or after the great change?

It is my understanding that instead of being a computer adaptive test, where you only have to take some of the questions, you have to take ALL of the questions, regardless of how well you do. As for if you should do it before or after, it depends on how good you are and if you are good at long tests. If you are good at the math and vocab but don't do well over time, I would take it now. If you are like me and are middle of the road in vocab and would have done better with all of the questions, then wait. Good luck!

 

[Pia Getty]

http://princetonreview.com/grad/testprep/testprep.asp?TPRPAGE=880&type+GREl

 

[WaitingKills]

My question is:

How are the schools going to react and deal with the changes?

Are they going to give the old test and new test equal weight? Are they going to favor scores on one over the other?

I think that I'd do better on the new test, but if I'm the norm, will that just inflate the scores 'needed' to get looked at?

 

[perfektspace]

My question is:

How are the schools going to react and deal with the changes?

Are they going to give the old test and new test equal weight? Are they going to favor scores on one over the other?

I think that I'd do better on the new test, but if I'm the norm, will that just inflate the scores 'needed' to get looked at?

My guess is they won't weigh the GRE very heavily until the new version has been around a year or two. If you don't test very well this may be an opportune time to take the test and reduce the effect it has on your chances of interviewing.

 

[Baloo]

I formerly worked at Kaplan, and it is my understanding that the new test is going to be MUCH HARDER. My advice, is to take it BEFORE the test changes. There are numerous study aids for cracking the current GRE, why wait for new materials and new strategies to come into existence. I think taking the new GRE would not be adventageous. I hope this helps, good luck!

 

[Ihatethisgame]

http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.c988ba0e5dd572bada20bc47c3921509/?vgnextoid=6793cb8a55e76010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD&vgnextchannel=53e65da22af66010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD

I like the elimination of analogies and antonyms as well as less geometry and a caluclator! I think I will do better on the new test compared to the old one. There are sample questions on this website too!

 

[jcam17]

I already took the GRE and am satisfied with my score. If i end up in a master's program this year, do you guys think schools will still accept the old edition of the GRE two years down the road?

 

[AnotherCanadian]

For most schools, GRE scores from within the last five years are acceptable.

Another question: what do you consider acceptable scores on the GRE (subject and general), and what do you think are really great scores. I am wondering if my GRE generals are a part of the reason why I am not getting the response from schools that I had hoped for. I know they give us percentages, but I am not clear on what kind of scores will actually get you in. Any thoughts?

 

[Sorg1123]

I already took the GRE and am satisfied with my score. If i end up in a master's program this year, do you guys think schools will still accept the old edition of the GRE two years down the road?

I'm pretty sure you can keep your scores for 4 years. But, I think it will get sticky when compairing the scores of applicants who took different tests (as mentioned previously). So, they should still accept the scores, but I would only avoid the new test if you can rock the current one.

 

[AnotherCanadian]

I'm pretty sure you can keep your scores for 4 years.

Oops, sorry! Must be 5 for the canadian schools...

 

[chaos]

For most schools, GRE scores from within the last five years are acceptable.

Another question: what do you consider acceptable scores on the GRE (subject and general), and what do you think are really great scores. I am wondering if my GRE generals are a part of the reason why I am not getting the response from schools that I had hoped for. I know they give us percentages, but I am not clear on what kind of scores will actually get you in. Any thoughts?

I'd say good general= Above 600 on both verbal and quant, and great= above 700. Porbably about the same for the subject test. As long as you score above the magic 1200 mark v+q, I don't think GRE scores make THAT much difference. For example, if you have a 1200 v+q GRE and an otherwise strong application with research experience, etc, you'd probably get in over someone with a 1350 v+q and less research experience. I think they just use the GRE as a starting point to weed out really low scores.

 

[CuriousGeorgia]

Im applying straight out of undergrad and for that I have a strong research background. Im currently working on two manuscripts - one of which I am the first author. Ive also had a ton of clinical experience - a lot of which are somewhat unique. I have a 3.8 GPA but only a 1250 on my GRE. Of course, compared to my friends going to nursing school or PT school or business school or the such a 1250 is super high (since most of them only need a 1000 to get in). I applied to 9 schools and only got 1 interview. I'm sure my GRE isnt the only reason - but I definitely feel that if I had a higher GRE i would have gotten at least 1 more interview. The GRE is frustrating and so is this whole admissions process! And BTW - GRE scores are good for 5 years here in the US too. I think with this change it may work somewhat like the change in the SATs. There will be like 2 years (possibly 3) of accepting both either GRE, and then after a certain date you will have to have the new one. Who knows?! Thats my 2 cents at least!

 

[NYCPsych]

Arg; I feel your pain. I've taken the GREs twice now, & am still not happy with my verbal score (an extra bummer, since I consider myself a "verbal" person). For now, I'm concentrating on the Psych GRE, and then I'll see if I want to put myself through the regular again. (Maybe before it changes in Sept.)

Anyway. Some schools have "cut-off" scores. ie. under 600 on any section = out of consideration. SO, even if your total is 1250, perhaps if 1 section is under 600, this could be a problem...? I think that system is ridiculous, but some schools are brutal. Esp. when applicants can be so hard to tell apart. You could call schools to see if this is the case.

Or, again, maybe it's the issue of interests not matching certain professors' interests?

My boss tells the story of a student of hers applying to many, many schools, getting only ONE interview and then getting into that program! She said it was "a prestigious institution," and wanted to protect identities. ;-) Anyway, a success story to keep people's hopes up.

 

[cleverclover]

Arg; I feel your pain. I've taken the GREs twice now, & am still not happy with my verbal score (an extra bummer, since I consider myself a "verbal" person). For now, I'm concentrating on the Psych GRE, and then I'll see if I want to put myself through the regular again. (Maybe before it changes in Sept.).

I had the same problem with my verbal score. I used Kaplan's Flip word book and my verbal score went up 50 points in two months. It still wasn't where I wanted it to be, but it was a lot better. I think memorizing common words found on the test does help and also take as many practice tests as you can.

 

[RayneeDeigh]

For the verbal section, I found it really helpful to get post-it notes and put all the "common GRE words" that I didn't know on them, and then stick them around my room, office, etc. That way when I was doing something else, I could look up, memorize a word, and move on.

 

[LadyInRed]

I formerly worked at Kaplan, and it is my understanding that the new test is going to be MUCH HARDER. My advice, is to take it BEFORE the test changes. There are numerous study aids for cracking the current GRE, why wait for new materials and new strategies to come into existence. I think taking the new GRE would not be adventageous. I hope this helps, good luck!

I agree - take the test now if you can. After I finished my GRE, I took a sample math section with questions in the style of the new exam. The new math section is harder - that is why they are giving you a calculator. Some of them are also not multiple choice. However, the new test also gives you more time per question which would have been nice for me since I tend not to finish on time.

And as Baloo said, there are so many practice materials out there for the current test. Since the new test hasn't been released yet, there are no sample old exams that you can take to prepare. If you plan on studying for the GRE (which I'd highly recommend), then it would be to your benefit to take the old test with lots of study materials, since you'll be competing in the same pool as students taking the new test without established study materials. Good [email protected]

 

[dubbs07]

Arg; I feel your pain. I've taken the GREs twice now, & am still not happy with my verbal score (an extra bummer, since I consider myself a "verbal" person). For now, I'm concentrating on the Psych GRE, and then I'll see if I want to put myself through the regular again. (Maybe before it changes in Sept.)

Anyway. Some schools have "cut-off" scores. ie. under 600 on any section = out of consideration. SO, even if your total is 1250, perhaps if 1 section is under 600, this could be a problem...? I think that system is ridiculous, but some schools are brutal. Esp. when applicants can be so hard to tell apart. You could call schools to see if this is the case.

Or, again, maybe it's the issue of interests not matching certain professors' interests?

My boss tells the story of a student of hers applying to many, many schools, getting only ONE interview and then getting into that program! She said it was "a prestigious institution," and wanted to protect identities. ;-) Anyway, a success story to keep people's hopes up.

As one of my faculty advisors told me, it's unfortunate (i.e., kind of a waste of time) but true that you do need a decent GRE score. Schools need a way to narrow the field of applicants - it's not reasonable to expect that they'll read 350+ personal statements and 1000 letters of recommendation in 2 months.

Check out the 'how do they choose applicants to interview?' (or similar) thread on here for some great info about how different programs manage the process - it's really insightful.

 

[Quynh2007]

i would have done better on this new GRE.

Math is my strong point, so making it harder doesn't matter--I love math (800 on SATI, 790 on SATII Math IIC, and 750 on GRE). Analogies was my worse, and since they are geting rid of it (or decreasing it significantly) my verbal should go up. who knows?

 

[PhDshallsee]

Of course I'm the class of 2008, and the first class that will really be affected by the new GRE. Urgh. I was speaking to a few professors of mine who recommend taking one of each, or just the new one, but not to take the old one only.

 

[psypsypsy]

This is in regards to if schools care which one you take. I took the GRE just before they changed it the last time (from Analytical to writing section). I then decided not to apply right out of undergrad and took 2 years off and then applied. Since my scores were valid for 5 years and I did well I didn't want to take them again. With one exception, all the schools were willing to take the old one, and I got a number of interviews, so I can't imagine it made a difference. Out of all the schools I was thinking about applying to, only 1 school said they required the new GRE, and since the school wasn't high on my list, I didn't retake the test.

So, that was 2 years after the test was changed, and I don't really think any of the schools cared which one I took. So, especially if you're thinking about applying next year, take whichever one you think you'll do better on.