AN EFFECTIIVE WAY TO PREPARE FOR GRE: SOME TIPS

Wordlist:

• Wordlists help to prepare for Analogies, Antonyms and sentence completion.
• When reading a wordlist, keep handy a good dictionary like Merriam Webster Collegiate dictionary. Never hesitate to use the dictionary. It won’t hurt if you use it more frequently that you blink!
• Almost all wordlists have some words that elude us. Write down those words in a separate sheet of paper or flashcards. And from this list, you may form another list, thus narrowing down to a shorter list each time, containing the most elusive words.

/* a bit of psychological explanation for the above point:
This method is much better than marking those words in the wordlist itself because our mind has the beautiful ability to remember more than just a word. For instance, you may recall the meaning of some words purely based on the font color, font size, the position of the word in a page and so on. Writing down words separately in a different style, helps overcome these seemingly useful disabilities. */

• More than just reading the words, revising them is the key. Do as many revisions as possible.
• I would say BARON’S is good enough along with some supplement like taking tests from BIGBOOK.
• GRE BIG BOOK is THE BEST and the most comprehensive material you can find. It has the best tests. DO practice from it. It will be available in any local lending library or as e-book on the internet.

Quantitative:
• An 800 in quants is a very good thing. So spend some time everyday to do some quants.
• ‘Quants’ in GRE is easy, but tricky.
• Be doubly sure that you have ASSUMED NOTHING and that you have ONLY TAKEN WHAT IS GIVEN.
• Diagrams can be very misleading. Unless specified in the question, no angle is acute or obtuse or right angled. Unless specified in the question, no point inside a circle is its centre.
• I would advise you to read the question twice.
• Verify your answer once before proceeding to the next question.
• Remember: All wordlist and no quants, makes Ram an English boy. Scoring an 800 in verbal and 740 in quants is no more impressive than a 650 in verbal and an 800 in quants.

Essay:
• Essay score matters. Your admission and visa could be problematic if you score below 3 in essay.
• Make sure you write at least 4 arguments and 4 issues as practice.
• Resist the temptation to rattle off those flowery words you get to learn in wordlists.
• Employ a simple, direct and lucid style of writing. Avoid complex sentences. Communication of your idea should be your motive.
• Write the strongest point in the beginning and the second strongest point at the end. Remember: First impression is the best impression and last impression creates a lasting impression.

General instructions:
• Write tests continuously- from BIG BOOK (THE BEST MATERIAL) or GRE BIBLE (secondary option). There is no hard and fast rule that you have to take a test only after finishing wordlists. Taking a test can impart you a healthy perspective in learning wordlists as you will get to know in which form to expect the words.

• The two best tests are Kaplan and Power prep (by ETS). Reserve these tests for the last five days before your planned GRE date.

• You may find some good tests with GREBIBLE, although a couple of questions may be wrong here and there. (From personal experience. No offence to anybody).

• (You may get those softwares on the internet: esnips.com and www.ets.org. Alternately you may visit skblogbuster.blogspot.com for a common direct link to all of them)

• Take all tests fully, along with the essays. Time the tests strictly. Take all the practice tests seriously and take the tests at the same time of the day as you have scheduled your GRE. This would help your mind to get used to being active during those hours.

• Analyze the outcome of each test section wise and question-type wise and track your progress. Read and prepare for each test based on your performance in previous test(s).

• Generally, an average of the two Power prep scores gives a rough estimate of your likely score in the main GRE. Kaplan score give your likely score MINUS 50. That means, generally, your Kaplan score can be expected to be lower than your Power prep score.

• I would suggest you to NOT take any test on the day immediately before your planned GRE date.

• Take the 3 tests provided by Kaplan and the 2 by Power prep alternatively as below. [read (D-n) as Dee minus en]:
(D-6) day: Kaplan 1
(D-5) day: Power Prep 1
(D-4) day: Kaplan 2
(D-3) day: Kaplan 3
(D-2) day: Power prep 2
(D-1) day: Chill and do some light revision
D day: Go write GRE and then celebrate your good score :-)

In the exam:

• Assure yourself that you are going to give your best. Positive thinking brings about a positive energy and good confidence :-)

• Allocate a little extra time for the first ten questions as they carry a lot of importance and can boost your score greatly- if answered correctly.

• Don’t spend a lot of time reading a given comprehension passage and analyzing it. Better skim it once first and then go on to the questions. Knowing the question will help you look for what is needed, efficiently.

• Just keep calm. Simply forget the questions you have already answered. Remember that time is unidirectional. The best bet you have at any point of time is to make sure you answer the current question to the best of your ability.

I wrote GRE in July 2009 and score 1420(V: 620 Q: 800 Essay: 4.0).