How to Study for the GRE

You can prepare yourself for the GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) by becoming familiar with the test format, reviewing fundamentals and taking practice tests.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Dictionaries
• Calculators
• High-energy Snacks
• Pencils

1. Familiarize yourself with the overall format of the test. The GRE tests three main areas: verbal ability, mathematical proficiency and analytical ability. There will be two sections for each of these areas, plus an extra unscored section. The content of the unscored section will vary.

2. Take as many practice GREs as possible. The more practice you get, the more familiar you'll become with the test's format, and the more comfortable you'll be when you actually take it.

3. Review the directions for each section of the test before you take it. Skipping the directions will save time during the test.

4. Remember that you will have 30 minutes to complete each section of the exam. Each verbal section will have 38 questions, each math section will have 30 questions, each analytical section will have 25 questions and the unscored section will have 25 to 30 questions, depending on content.

5. Familiarize yourself with the question formats for each section. The verbal section has four types of questions: antonym, analogy, sentence completion and reading comprehension. The math section contains quantitative comparisons and basic problem-solving, and the analytical section features analytical reasoning and logical reasoning questions.

6. Increase your vocabulary. The verbal portion of the GRE is essentially a vocabulary test.

7. Review basic math such as geometry, algebra, proportions, fractions, percents, decimals, the order of operations and anything else you might have learned in high school math.

8. Try solving a few logic puzzles and games to prepare for the analytical portion of the exam.

Tips & Warnings

• There are many GRE study guides and books that contain practice tests.

• When you take the test, guess at answers you do not know - there's no penalty for incorrect answers. First eliminate answers you know are wrong and then choose the most likely answer.