Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required for those students who are seeking admissions to graduate or business schools worldwide.GRE is conducted for the students seeking admission in MS courses worldwide. This test evaluates candidates' analytical writing skills, quantitative ability, and verbal reasoning skills. GRE is opted by majority of the students as GRE scores are accepted by more than 1200 business schools around the world including few top-ranked MBA colleges. It is conducted around the year, and candidates can appear for the general test as per their convenience. It is a computer adaptive or paper delivered test conducted five times in a continuous 12 month period from the activation of the first test with a gap of least 21 days between two successive attempts.
GRE Preparation Strategy
The paper is divided into six sections with a 10- minute break followed by the second section. Majorly, GRE exam is split up into three sections: verbal reasoning, analytical writing, and quantitative aptitude. The analytical writing has one section for issue task and other for argument task. The next four subsections consist of two verbal and two quantitative sections.
GRE Verbal Reasoning
The verbal reasoning area measures your ability to:
- Investigate and reach inferences from a piece of text.
- Recognize major from minor or important points.
- Ability to summarize and understand the structure of the content.
- Understand the relationship between words and concepts.
The verbal reasoning section contains questions on three major topics i.e. Text Completion, Reading Comprehension, and Sentence Equivalence.
Some other important points to be remembered:
- The key area on which you should focus in verbal reasoning is the vocabulary usage.
- The section will always start with Text Completion area in which the level of difficulty increases accordingly.
- Reading Comprehension can include either one long or two medium passages. It is necessary to find out the relation that exists between the given passages.
- Sentence Equivalence questions are included within the reading passages.
- This section measures your ability to analyze the structure of the sentences and evaluate the written material and synthesize information obtained from it.
- The important point which to be remembered is that the questions must be understood completely and then they should be attempted.
GRE Analytical Writing
The analytical writing examines your skills on critical thinking and methodical writing.
The aim of analytical writing to focus on the ability to:
- Evaluate and articulate arguments
- Formulate, create and support composite ideas
- Hold over the word decision and utilization
- Maintain an engaged, strong, and reasonable discussion, and
- Hold over the traditions of language and sentence structure
This section divides into two independently timed essays. You will be provided 30 minutes each to deliver on a specific topic.
- Analyze an issue (30 minutes): In this area, you are asked to compose an essay in which you react to a concise statement based on an issue of general topic. You will be given a topic that can be seen from various points. This task will measure your ability to think critically about a given topic and your skills to express your thoughts in writing.
- Analyze an argument (30 minutes): After analyzing paragraph length argument, you will be provided a task to write an essay. This area will assess your ability to analyze, understand, and evaluate arguments. The arguments will be displayed in a concise section that advances the author’s belief or case. You have to decide whether it is legitimately stable and assess it.
Note that the first article expects you to express your opinion and give supporting proof, while the second exposition expects you to assess author’s opinion.
Keep in mind that you will be evaluated on how you utilize basic reasoning to address the given point and how well you can communicate through your composition.
GRE Quantitative Reasoning
The Quantitative Reasoning section measures your skills on:
- Basic mathematics
- Ability of problem solving with quantitative methods
- Understanding the concepts of elementary mathematics
- Ability to reason quantitatively
This section covers questions from majorly four topics:
- Arithmetic
- Algebra
- Geometry
- Data Analysis
Some pointers which need to be focus on:
- Each question shows up either autonomously as a discrete inquiry or as a major aspect of a set of questions.
- Questions in Data Analysis are based on the same data sets that are presented in tables, graphs, frequency distribution, and many more.
- Certain steps or strategies to solve the questions based on Data Analysis and Quantitative Reasoning.
- In data analysis section, you need to interpret the information given in those structures and pick the right answer as needs to be.
Use of calculator is allowed in computer - delivered as well as paper- delivered test.
Overall, you have to brace up to handle reasoning based questions requiring a strong analytical application. Concept strengthening should be followed by consolidation of application orientation and after that by an adequate number of practice tests. While attempting the paper, keep in mind the basics of time management, prioritization and striking a right balance between speed and accuracy!
