I was going to vote a "nay" on TPR materials, but then I realized Kaplan's are no better.
I'd suggest utilizing the free resources out there as well as ETS'. ETS' practice book w/ 7 paper exams is excellent -- definitely get that. Also, the website
www.number2.com has a great GRE tutorial that I found quite a bit more useful than even TPR's online course that you pay a ton for (I took the class and then did the online tutorial from the class). I really don't think TPR's way of doing things is helpful. It's far too gimmicky and really only useful for getting your scores up into the 1000s. If you're wanting to get into the 1200s-1400s, TPR isn't going to be much help. In that case, you simply need to do A LOT of practice problems. For the Psych GRE, I suggest the best intro psych textbk you can get your hands on and the Kaplan Psych GRE book. The TPR book is super short. I will tell you the TPR classes don't help
at all -- or at least they didn't for me (n=1). I believe I stayed right around 1100-1200 throughout the course (no significant change). It wasn't until I studied on my own afterward, set up (and followed) a rigorous self-study program, and
dumped every single TPR "tip" I'd learned that my score shot up into the 1400-1500s consistently (I ended up with a mid-1400 score). I also scored nearly a perfect 800 on the Psych GRE by focusing primarily on an intro textbook and then taking 3 practice tests. I believe I spent about 5 days quickly skimming the Kaplan book for anything psych-related I'd missed.
So n=1 here, but I don't think it's worth spending money on study materials beyond the
ETS GRE practice manual (10th ed.) ($15) and a slightly dated (i.e., 1 edition old) psych text (that should run you only around $15-30 if it's not a current edition) -- I'd strongly recommend
Gleitman's Psychology, 6th ed. (7th ed. is the current one, but 6th is still pretty current information and far cheaper at around $25). Verbal can also be helped quite a bit by reading
The New York Times on a regular basis (esp. articles in subjects you're not familiar with). Force yourself to think critically about each article, even try engaging in a mental debate w/ the author. Also, ask yourself about the author's biases, tone, agenda, etc. as well as the article's main topic, various themes (general and specific), etc. The NY Times website also has the advantage of being able to click on words you're not familiar with and instantly be given a definition for each word. Finally, as I mentioned earlier, the tutorials and practice questions on
www.number2.com work pretty well. You can also take free GRE practice exams at
www.princetonreview.com (why pay if you don't have to?!) and
http://www.kaptest.com/gre. Furthermore, if you feel like playing the system a bit, you can actually take a second free GRE on TPR's website by starting an application to teach for them and taking the instructor qualification GRE.... You also get 2 free CBTs on the CD-ROM that comes with your GRE registration materials (these are, of course, the most representative and should probably be saved until the final couple of weeks before you take the test).
about the GREs, I am forced to ask; For those of you that used the Princeton Review books (and were successful in doing so 🙂), which ones did you use? 'Cause I browsed their website and there are quite a few to choose from. Which ones are the best to use? Personal testimonials are encouraged!
