GRE 101

Class Location: Internet.

Description:  The GRE exam will be discussed in detail.

Prerequisites:  Willingness to learn.

Required Text:  None.

Objective: Get a high score on the GRE.

In August 2011, the GRE Revised General Test replaced the former version known as the GRE General Test which itself was rolled out in the fall of 2007. This site has been updated for the new version of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). The revision aimed to improve a number of aspects of the GRE including increasing its validity; providing admissions offices with improved information on applicants' performances; increasing the security of the test; making it more available around the world; and incorporating advances in technology and psychometric design.

While the test will kept the same types of sections—verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and analytical writing—the revision will include changes to each of the individual test sections. The idea is for the GRE to better test the skills graduate school students will need for their graduate studies. The revision means the GRE is no longer a linear test, meaning that everyone taking the test at the same time will have to answer the same questions. Instead, it is now section adaptive, meaning that the your performance on the first section is measured and the difficulty of the second section you are assigned will be based on your performance of the first section.

The verbal reasoning section is now comprised of two 30-minute sections. Analogies and antonyms are gone. The GRE Revised General Test now emphasizes more complex and cognitive verbal skills and less emphasis is being placed on vocabulary. It will include more text-based questions, including a broader range of reading passages. It will require more computer-enabled tasks, such as clicking on a sentence to highlight it. It will also stress skills necessary for graduate work, such as complex reasoning.

The quantitative reasoning section is now comprised of two 35-minute sections with increased emphasis on skills related to graduate work. (The on-screen calculator is probably the best example of this.) It will have more questions on real-life scenarios and data interpretation. Numeric entry and multiple choice questions with multiple correct answers are the new features.

In the analytical writing section, the content will stay the same, and the issue and argument tasks will each run 30 minutes. There is no more essay choice, so test takers must write about the topic they are given.

The score scale for the analytical writing section remains the same. However, the verbal and quantitative sections have new score scales, which which range between 130 and 170 in one-point increments.

The revision also aims to increase the availability of the test around the world. While registrants must take the GRE General Test on pre-determined administration dates, an expanded internet-based testing network will be accessible worldwide.

Those students preparing for the revised GRE should be sure to familiarize themselves with the new test structure and types of questions. Everyone who registers for the test will have access to free GRE test-prep materials from the GRE Program. The GRE website now includes sample questions for the revised test, and a free full-length revised test.