![\"Manhattan](\"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2018\/05\/what-look-for-gre-trial-class-tom-anderson.png\")
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As you may know, we open up the first session of our 8-session <\/span>Manhattan Prep GRE Complete Course<\/span><\/a> as a free GRE trial class for anyone to attend. What happens in a GRE trial class? Why bother attending one? I\u2019m sure every class is a little bit different, but there are some things you can expect to see, as well as a few things you should make sure to look for.<\/span><\/p>\n When I was a high school student preparing for the SAT, I never really considered taking a test prep class. In retrospect, I really should have\u2014I just never considered it at the time. I have a hunch that it had something to do with my own deep misunderstanding of how standardized tests work. I thought that the SAT tested how smart you were. It was called the \u201cScholastic Aptitude Test,\u201d after all. Surely, smart people just did well on it and that was that. Actually, in the 1970s, the SAT was renamed the \u201c<\/span>Standardized <\/span>Achievement<\/span><\/i> Test<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Why the name switch? I think they realized such a silly test could not and should not pretend to test someone\u2019s innate ability. Rather, it tests a set of discrete, learnable skills. In many ways, the SAT just tests how well you prepared for the SAT.<\/span><\/p>\n Likewise, the GRE\u2014at its core\u2014is just testing you on how well you prepared for the GRE. And you will almost definitely do better on it if you put in some deliberate practice. When I approached the GRE as an adult, I did so in a much different way than I\u2019d studied for such tests in the past. I dug deep into the problems I missed, ironed out weaknesses in the <\/span>5 lb. Book<\/span><\/a>, and noticed that the problems were usually much easier when I pushed past the content to look for time-saving and efficiency strategies.<\/span><\/p>\n After years of considering myself \u201ca bad standardized test taker,\u201d I surprised myself with how well I did on my GRE. I also recently went back and took the SAT again. (That might seem peculiar\u201430-year-old me sitting there with a bunch of teenagers getting ready to go to college\u2014but sometimes you\u2019ve got to do such things if you\u2019re a test prep instructor.) After years of teaching the GRE, I was surprised at how much easier this test felt compared to when I was in high school.<\/span><\/p>\n1. Why take a standardized test class in the first place?<\/b><\/h4>\n