anyone taken the GRE?

soontobeBailey

I am going back to school and have to take the GRE to get into grad school. Has anyone taken this? I am wondering about how hard the test is, any experiences or tips you can share, and if it is worth it to buy a test prep book.

Thanks ladies!!!

jerseygirl81

How long have you been out of school? I took it a few years ago and bought a cheapie prep book from the 1/2 price bookstore. It could be worth it just to get back into the idea of standardized tests.

I didn't really think it was all that bad.

NewBlue

I took the Kaplan course and it helped a lot.  It is much different than other standardized tests I thought.  My company paid for the Kaplan course or else I probably wouldn't have taken it but DEFINATELY buy a prep book with practice tests.

liz606

Buy the prep book that has a CD-rom to take the sample computer tests.  It will help you to adjust to the forced-choice format.

Echowysp

I took it back in the late 90s... yes, I'm old.  I found it to be very hard, mainly because it was hours of continuous testing.  I remember my eyes being blurry when I'd look up to see the time.  I found the math portion to be the hardest, but weirdly enough I got a better score in that area. 

GL to you!

Echowysp

Oh and yes, I found the prep book helpful.  I should've studied more from it, but I got lazy.

SBear12

I took it right after college. I'm good at standardized tests so I didn't prep for it, and didn't think it was that bad. The analytical section was actually fun... sort of like logic puzzles.

One interesting thing is that the scoring percentiles are different than the SATs... even though it's technically on the same scale (800 is the highest score). In other words, getting a 680 in Verbal on the GRE put me in the 95th percentile, while getting a 680 in Quantitative on the GRE only put me in the 66th percentile (math = not my most favorite thing). Just something to be aware of when you're interpreting scores... I was thrown off when I first saw my results.

Then again, that was all in 2001, so the test could be significantly different by now... either way, good luck!

inbetweendreams

I took it about 9 years ago. I had the prep book with the CD-ROM, and I found that to be pretty helpful. You can check out the prep books at the library if you don't want to buy one.

Mrs.tlcS

SBear12:

I took it right after college. I'm good at standardized tests so I didn't prep for it, and didn't think it was that bad. The analytical section was actually fun... sort of like logic puzzles.

One interesting thing is that the scoring percentiles are different than the SATs... even though it's technically on the same scale (800 is the highest score). In other words, getting a 680 in Verbal on the GRE put me in the 95th percentile, while getting a 680 in Quantitative on the GRE only put me in the 66th percentile (math = not my most favorite thing). Just something to be aware of when you're interpreting scores... I was thrown off when I first saw my results.

Then again, that was all in 2001, so the test could be significantly different by now... either way, good luck!

Yeah, I know it's different now, because my year was the last year they had the analytical section (2002).  Now there is a writing section.  Get a prep book - they are extremely helpful.  Also, sign up for the word of the day email from dictionary.com.  That also was very helpful for strengthening my verbal score.

willogirl101

I took it in 2004 and studied.  I think that I did well on the written portion due to the study book- it pretty much told you exactly how to write the essay!! It is totally computerized which is kinda different so I would suggest practicing on the comp. Good luck!! BTW- I usually do well on comprehension so I didn't focus on that as far as studying but this test kicked my butt - or so it seemed - as I did that portion.

kgb1411

I would get a study book.  The math is mostly h.s. math, so even if you have taken math recently, you might forget how to do geometry and trig.  I ran out of time on the essay, and I wish that I had practiced beforehand. 

shakespearenluv

I took it first with no studying and didn't get very high scores.  I had to take a Kaplan course in order to get higher scores.  The course really helped but it was expensive.

litzo27

I took both GRE and GMAT a couple of years ago (with the essay section). I studied and even more importantly practiced A LOT since I needed a really high score to get into programs of my choice. Find out which section your program focuses on - for example if you're going back for a math or science degree they are not going to care at all about the verbal so don't spend time studying for it. If you're going for humanities vice versa.

Definitely get the prep book. If you can afford it get several, or take out earlier additions from the library. Also often people of craigslist or ebay sell the lot of their books (with CDs) for a small $ amount. It helps to get several because the key is practice. Once you review the basics try doing one test a week in entirety (or just the sections you need). Also if you need to focus on verbal easiest way to up your score is to download a list of most common GRE words and creat flashcards of ones you don't know. Then review them for 10-15 minutes a day. After a month you'll be a pro.

 Practice your essays a bit just so you're comfortable with how many minutes should be spent in each paragraph to get a cohesive essay. And try to use vocab words. 

Lastly, IMHO the classes are a waste of money. You can learn everything from strategy to materials from the books.
 

 Good luck.