I'm doing 19 things
I just finished the GREs a day ago and my results came out pretty good. 790 for Verbal and 780 for Quantitative, 1570 total. If you have 1) approximately 3-4 weeks left and 2) really don’t want to pay for prep courses and 3) can be extremely disciplined under high stress then this is for you.
I’m not saying it’s the best way but hey it worked for me.
1) Get a basic GRE prep book, the answering techniques do help. I had princeton review, but I heard Baron’s is better. Check out reviews on Amazon. Do NOT think that the word list in princeton review’s is enough, get the one from Baron’s. 8000 words I think? I covered them all, and more. Sit down and spam 300 words a day. Hopefully your vocab base is strong enough so only 50 (or less) out of the 300 are completely new.
1.1) So you have the baron’s word list. How do you cram so many words into your brain? Well techniques range from flash cards to mnemonics. What I did was to check up unfamiliar words on Dictionary.com, because sometimes they provide sentences using that word. The sentences help me remember the meaning of those troublesome words. Plus, it also helps boost your writing ability for analytical. For example, the word “maelstrom” means a violent whirlpool of sorts. But checking dictionary.com gives you “the maelstrom of early morning traffic.” That’s killing two birds with one properly aimed stone!
2) In your spare time (e.g. before you sleep), stop reading trashy novels. Read Pride and Prejudice. Read Little Women. I read Saki’s Short Stories and Edgar Allan Poe (mainly because I love them) and I tell you, only in the classics will you get to revise those esoteric, antiquated words you find in the word lists. Who the heck uses “disporting themselves” to mean “amusing themselves” nowadays?
3) Use the free GRE powerprep software they provide you with. Try the sample tests and the math review questions. You need a feel of how the actual test will look like on that day. DO NOT try the sample tests until the very end, when you feel you’re ready. It will give you an idea of how your actual scores will be like. I scored 1530 and 1570 on the sample tests, and lo and behold, I snagged a 1570 on the actual one. It’s quite an accurate reflection IMO, so don’t complete them when you know nothing. You’re wasting your free tests.
4) Source out free GRE prep resources online. Svyum.com was not bad, that was the main site I perused. My maths results were a bit of a disappointment, because i’m a science major, and everyone expected an 800 from me. The maths CAN be pretty tough! If you really need help in that area, I suggest grebible.com. I didn’t use it, but I heard great reviews about that site. Apparently it has the toughest maths tests.
5) You MUST practise taking tests under timed conditions. The atmosphere there can be quite freaky, and unprepared people may go into shock.
If I get a 6 on analytical writing I’ll write up my experience on that, but meanwhile I hope these pointers help.
If you’ve paid so much for it, and you really want it to happen, you will do well. God bless and good luck!
