Acing the gre 5 doc

This book contains ques-tions from actual past GRE General Test ediques-tions, as well as a review of the math concepts tested on the exam and sampling of Analytical Writing essays with

For the Verbal and Quantitative sections, you will receive both raw scores and scaled scores The raw scores reflect the number and difficulty level of questions you answered correctly ETS then converts them

to scaled scores, the scale being from 200 (an indicator that you showed up for the test) to 800 (meaning that you answered all questions correctly), reported in increments of ten points You may recognize this scoring scale from the SAT Also on your score report is the percentage of test takers who scored below you For exam-ple, you might receive a raw score of 60, a scaled score of 640, and a “percentage below” of 91 That would mean you answered approximately three-fourths of the questions correctly, your scaled score is 640, and 91%

of other test takers scored below you At the end of this section is a chart showing potential raw scores and how they translate into both scaled scores and percentages

The Analytical Writing questions are scored differently Two professionally trained, unbiased readers read each of your two responses Each reader scores each response on a scale of zero to six The two readers’ scores for each response are then averaged, unless they differ by more than one point If that is the case, a third reader will score the essay to resolve the differences After each of your essays has been scored and averaged, your two essays’ scores are averaged and rounded up to the nearest half-point You then receive that score as

a single Analytical Writing score

How Many Times May I Take the GRE General Test?

You may retake the exam as often as five times in a 12-month period All scores, other than those you choose

to cancel before looking at them, will be retained for a five-year period, and all will be reported whenever you request your scores be sent out

How to Use This Book

Congratulations on having the foresight and motivation to prepare for the GRE Those qualities are vital ele-ments of success in any endeavor, including graduate school Throughout this book, you will find strategies

to help in your preparation for the exam Chapter 2 is devoted to proven study methods and test-taking tips that will improve your scores

The single most crucial thing you can do to prepare is to familiarize yourself thoroughly with the exam before the test day comes This will enable you to accurately assess your strengths and address your weaknesses

in all three sections of the test When you register for the GRE, ETS will send you a CD-ROM, which con-tains the GRE POWERPREP This software simulates actual testing conditions and uses the word processing program ETS has written for those who choose to compose their Analytical Writing essays on the computer instead of on paper POWERPREP can also be downloaded from www.GRE.org/pprepdwnld.html

ETS also sells a book called Practicing to Take the General Test, 10th Edition This book contains

ques-tions from actual past GRE General Test ediques-tions, as well as a review of the math concepts tested on the exam and sampling of Analytical Writing essays with reader comments, which yield insights into the way the essays are read and scored It is a good idea to purchase and carefully study this book, using it for practice and look-ing for patterns of question types You can purchase it online at www.GRE.org/book.html It will be worth-while, in fact, to explore www.GRE.org, the official website, for useful information Among the gems you

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excited, though—there are hundreds of potential topics on the lists You can’t prepare for each one you might encounter Still, it is smart thinking on your part to peruse the lists

Many other study guides and test-prep books are on the market For the most part, they contain prac-tice tests, not lessons, as in this book However, you may glean the occasional nugget of useful information from them You can also purchase more specialized books to help you prepare for specific sections of the test Because vocabulary is one of the primary skill or knowledge sets tested on the GRE, improving your vocab-ulary is one of the most productive things you can do to prepare for the exam LearningExpress publishes sev-eral practice books specifically targeted to all three areas of the GRE:

501 Word Analogy Questions 501 Geometry Questions

501 Synonym and Antonym Questions 501 Quantitative Comparison Questions

501 Writing Prompts Algebra Success in 20 Minutes a Day, 2nd Edition Vocabulary and Spelling Success in 20 Minutes a Day, Geometry Success in 20 Minutes a Day,

These study aids are an excellent way to practice your word power and strengthen your math skills There are

more resources listed in the Appendix If you have taken the GRE General Test before but were not satisfied

with your scores, you can improve them with repeat testing, but only if you prepare You have made a good

start simply by reading this book The next chapter of this book, Studying for the GRE, will help you stay on the right path

Ranges of Raw-to-Scale Score Conversion and

Percents Below

Raw Score Scaled Score % Below Scaled Score % Below

The Big Picture

In summary, there are three sections of the GRE: the Analytical Writing section, the Verbal section, and the Quantitative section The Analytical Writing section, which is your first section, is designed to test your abil-ity to think critically and to convey your thoughts in writing The Verbal section tests your knowledge of words, your ability to recognize the relationship between words and concepts, and the ease with which you can work with the component parts of sentences The Quantitative section assesses your knowledge of basic mathematical concepts and your ability to apply these concepts within verbal contexts

Read on for specific lessons and practice on the type of questions encountered on the GRE General Test, and get started on the journey toward a top score and a bright academic future!

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 W h e r e D o I S t a r t ?

Chances are, you don’t have an unlimited amount of time to prepare for the GRE General Test You have a life outside your plans for graduate school that may include work and family obligations Or you may already

be in school How can you maximize the study time you do have? To study means to give one’s attention to learning a subject; to look at with careful attention Notice that the word attention comes up twice in this

def-inition How you study is as important as how much time you spend studying

To study effectively, you need to focus all your attention on the material, so the preparation time you have must be quality time This section of the book will help you determine which study strategies are right for you It also will provide you with techniques for overcoming the two most common roadblocks to suc-cessful studying: anxiety and distraction

C H A P T E R

Studying for the GRE

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A Reality Check

Actor and comedian Jim Carrey reportedly wrote himself a check for a million dollars when he was still strug-gling and broke He carried that check in his wallet for years Whenever he felt discouraged, he would take out the check and look at it He visualized receiving a million-dollar check for his work Jim Carrey made that million-dollar paycheck part of his reality, and reality added a few zeros for him

Visualize Your Future

You have likely researched the graduate programs in which you are interested Perhaps you are attracted to the work of certain faculty members and have decided you want to study with them Maybe you know the reputations of a particular program and want the career opportunities it can offer You may desire to go to a school close to where you live If you have not investigated your options, now is the time to do that You can search online for information, contact schools directly, and ask reference librarians to help you search

As you narrow your options to one or a few schools, you will want to learn as much about these par-ticular program(s) as you possibly can Perform Internet searches for all faculty members in a program to learn more about their particular areas of interest This can help you make your decision If you have already decided on a school, having knowledge of faculty interests and publications will give you an edge when you submit application materials and go for interviews

If at all possible, visit the campus(es) In addition to helping you choose wisely, the information you gather is valuable input to help you form a visual image of yourself in graduate school Visualization is a pow-erful tool It motivates you to work toward your dreams, which helps make your dreams a reality

Once you know where you want to be, spend a little time envisioning yourself there What are you doing? Giving a presentation? Engaging in conversation with an admired professor? Listening to an inspired lecture? Once you have created an image of yourself, go over your vision, keep it in your mind, and use it to reinforce your resolution to study It can be hard to stick to a study plan There are often other things you would rather

be doing Obstacles present themselves You may be overwhelmed at times with the size of the task or you may

be anxious about your chances for success These are all common problems and they can all be overcome This book will show you how

 I N e e d a P l a n

You already know a great deal about studying You couldn’t have gotten this far—to the doorstep of gradu-ate school—without effective study skills The following pages will help you fine-tune your study methods

so you can make efficient use of your time

The key to success in this endeavor, as in so many, is to take things one step at a time Break this giant task down into manageable pieces Your first step in successful studying is to think about your study plan

What Should I Study?

First, you must decide what you need to study You may want to start with a practice test to help you assess your strengths and weaknesses Then make a list of each type of question and how well you scored on it Ana-lyze your list What kinds of questions did you miss? What are the patterns you see? Do you need to work on data analysis? Charts and graphs? Do analogies throw you for a loop? Are you organizing your thoughts well and conveying them clearly in your practice analytical essays? In other words, are you saying what you are try-ing to say? It is hard to accurately judge your own writtry-ing Get feedback from someone whose opinions you trust and respect Most important, don’t forget to give yourself credit for all the answers you got right Once you are aware of what you know and what you still need to work on, you can effectively priori-tize whatever study time you have available Remember, no matter how you scored, no matter what areas you need to work on, you will get better with practice The more you study and the more effectively you work, the better you will score on the actual exam

How Do I Find the Time to Study?

Now is the time to create a realistic study schedule You might be thinking that your life is too full to add study time But maybe you have more time available than you think Think about your typical daily and weekly activities and determine when you have free time to devote to studying Don’t forget the short stretches, the ten minutes here, the fifteen minutes there Sometimes, you can do your best studying in short bursts Now ask yourself what is more important to you in the long run than achieving your goals Your life may seem quite full, but there is bound to be some time you spend at less productive activities, such as watching TV, that could

be better spent to make your dreams come true Remember, your future hangs in the balance That’s what you are really deciding here—your future—not just your agenda for a few Sunday nights

I Deserve a Reward

One way you can help yourself stay motivated is by setting up a system of rewards Write down a list of things you enjoy; they will be your rewards For example, if you keep your commitment to study for an hour in the evening, you get to watch your favorite television show If you stay on track all week, you can indulge in a

Sun-day afternoon banana split Only you know what will keep you on task.

What Is My Style?

Another way to make your study time more effective is to think about how you learn best Everyone has cer-tain modes that he or she employs to make it easy to learn and remember information Is your mode visual, auditory, kinesthetic, or a combination of two or all three? Here are some questions to help you determine your dominant learning style(s)

1 If you have to remember an unusual word, do you

a “see” the word in your mind?

b repeat the word aloud several times?

c trace or write the letters with your finger?

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