![\"preparing](\"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2020\/01\/mprep-blogimages-wave1-22-1-1024x536.png\")
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In a way, preparing for the GRE is your first graduate school experience. It can be infuriating. It can feel completely pointless and utterly unfair. But it can also teach you lessons that have nothing to do with the content\u2014lessons that, if you let them, may stay with you for the rest of your life.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The GRE tests <\/span>math<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>vocabulary<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>reading<\/span><\/a>. It doesn\u2019t test those topics because they\u2019re relevant to your career (especially the math part, for most of us). It tests them because math, vocabulary, and reading are convenient and tangible stand-ins for skills that <\/span>are<\/span><\/i> relevant to every graduate student, but that are much harder to test directly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For example: the GRE tests <\/span>attention<\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As of 2020, the GRE is nearly four hours long, with only two short breaks. Taking the GRE tests your mental stamina. It also tests your ability to sustain intense focus on a particular question for a minute or two, then switch to a question that might be completely unrelated. That\u2019s not a skill that you\u2019re born with. It\u2019s one that you\u2019ve developed, to a greater or lesser extent, throughout your life; it\u2019s also a skill that <\/span>you can intentionally improve with practice<\/span><\/a>. And attention is useful through graduate school and through your career.<\/span><\/p>\n The GRE also tests your ability to <\/span>identify important information<\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Every problem on the GRE includes <\/span>critical clues<\/span><\/a>. In any Reading Comp passage, some sentences are meaningless fluff, while others might state the main idea outright. Every Text Completion problem includes<\/span> key words and phrases (\u201cclues\u201d)<\/span><\/a> that point you to one, and only one, answer choice.<\/span><\/p>\n When you practice Quant problems, we recommend an approach called <\/span>\u201cWhen I see this, do this\u201d<\/span><\/a>: go back into the problem, spot each important clue, and assess what it was really telling you. Doing this requires that you distill the problem, separating the clues from the fluff. <\/span>Practicing<\/span><\/i> this trains you to see straight to the heart of whatever you\u2019re reading, and to do so quickly. You\u2019ll do a lot of reading in graduate school, and you\u2019ll do even more skimming. When you study for the GRE, you\u2019re learning to skim effectively, and learning the subtle hints that guide you to what\u2019s really important.<\/span><\/p>\n You may be reading this article because you\u2019ve been out of school for a while, and the GRE might be your first experience with focused studying in years. On the other hand, you may be in school right now! Regardless, studying for the GRE can push you to study more efficiently, and to learn more about how <\/span>you<\/span><\/i> learn and retain information.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There are thousands of vocabulary words that might be tested on the GRE; you should definitely learn at least the five hundred most essential ones. There are both efficient and inefficient ways to learn five hundred words. <\/span>Spaced repetition is the most efficient way we know of, but it isn\u2019t just for vocabulary<\/span><\/a>. Learn this method while you\u2019re studying for the GRE, and you can use it years later, anytime you need to retain a lot of new information quickly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Studying for the GRE is a chance to practice accountability and organization.<\/span> Come up with a study calendar method that inspires you<\/span><\/a>. When you discover something that works, use it the next time you have to organize a long-term project.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As we get older, the invitations to deeply learn about something new get less and less frequent. The GRE is one of those invitations. And since the GRE is an aptitude test, it not only invites you to learn about a topic (math, vocabulary) but also to learn new skills (problem-solving, skimming). Take advantage of this invitation to become better about learning. Take note of what works for you and what doesn\u2019t. The study methods that worked best in school may no longer be the right ones for you; you might discover things you never knew about how your own brain learns. That knowledge won\u2019t go to waste.<\/span><\/p>\n To succeed on the GRE, you need to become a \u201cgood test-taker.\u201d You\u2019ve probably heard that phrase before, but how often have you deeply explored what it means?<\/span><\/p>\n A good test-taker strikes a difficult balance between caution and boldness.<\/span> On the GRE, you need to get as many answers right as possible to get a good score<\/span><\/a>. However, you don\u2019t have enough time to deal with every problem meticulously. The GRE forces you to strike a balance on two levels.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n When you\u2019re doing an individual problem on test day, you may have to walk away from it before you\u2019re completely satisfied. Taking the GRE forces you to develop your \u201cmeta-reasoning\u201d skill: the skill of figuring out how likely it is that your answer is right, and knowing when to be satisfied with an answer that\u2019s likely enough.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You also need to choose your battles in a broader sense. You can\u2019t devote your full time and attention to every problem on test day, given the time limit. So you\u2019ll have to get better at figuring out, at a glance, whether you\u2019re likely to get a problem right (in which case it\u2019s worth trying) or whether a problem is likely to lead you down a rabbit hole (in which case you\u2019re better off with a quick guess). Educated guessing, by the way, is another skill you\u2019ll learn!<\/span><\/p>\n In this sense, a good test-taker is also a good reasoner. A good test-taker can tell what\u2019s worth bothering with, and what just isn\u2019t going to lead anywhere. And those are skills you\u2019ll need in graduate school, and skills you\u2019ll need even more in your career.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A good test-taker has self-awareness and accepts their abilities for what they are, while still striving to be better. A great way to <\/span>under<\/span><\/i>perform on the GRE is to \u201cpunch above your weight.\u201d If you go into the test intending to get every problem right, you\u2019ll stall out as soon as you hit a super-tough problem, waste a ton of time, and end up being forced to rush through the easier stuff. So, a good test-taker goes in with an honest awareness of what they\u2019re able to achieve, and a willingness to give up on a certain number of questions in order to maximize their overall score. A good test-taker is a good strategic planner. So is a good graduate student!<\/span><\/p>\n Unless you\u2019re one of those lucky souls who never struggles with the GRE at all, you\u2019re going to experience defeat as part of the preparation process. You\u2019re going to run into challenging topics and disastrous practice tests. There will be days where you just can\u2019t seem to remember anything.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Perhaps the most important thing the GRE can teach you is to treat these experiences the way a scientist treats an experiment. When your experiment doesn\u2019t prove your hypothesis, that isn\u2019t a failure. It\u2019s evidence. You\u2019ve learned that either the hypothesis was incorrect, or the experiment wasn\u2019t correctly designed. And so you design a new experiment, or come up with a new hypothesis, and you carry on. A scientist who responds to failure by shutting down and giving up\u2014or by trying the same thing over and over, hoping for the results to change\u2014is a poor scientist.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The GRE can teach you something about the scientific mindset. When you fail, you\u2019re learning. In fact, you learn more from failure than from success. Respond to your GRE failures with patience and curiosity, not with anger, frustration, or sadness. Analyze what went wrong: did you study the wrong material? Did you take the test itself ineffectively? And keep moving. The GRE doesn\u2019t measure your worth. It measures how well you\u2019ve demonstrated certain skills at a certain moment of time: skills that you can both strengthen with practice, and learn to demonstrate more effectively.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The GRE isn\u2019t a perfect test! It can\u2019t tell you for sure whether you\u2019ll fail or succeed in graduate school. But it <\/span>can<\/span><\/i> teach you a lot, if you let it. Studying for the GRE is a chance to become a better graduate student\u2014more patient, thoughtful, attentive, and aware of your own strengths and weaknesses\u2014before you ever apply to schools.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n KEEP READING: <\/b>How to Study for the GRE<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Don\u2019t forget that you can attend the first session of any of our online or in-person GRE courses absolutely free. We\u2019re not kidding! <\/i><\/b>Check out our upcoming courses here<\/i><\/b><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n Chelsey Cooley<\/a> In a way, preparing for the GRE is your first graduate school experience. It can be infuriating. It can feel completely pointless and utterly unfair. But it can also teach you lessons that have nothing to do with the content\u2014lessons that, if you let them, may stay with you for the rest of your life.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[921840],"tags":[133,158,1364931],"yst_prominent_words":[1364906,1364240,1363044,1364908,1362627,1364909,1364900,1363027,1364903,1364899,1362634,1364907,1364910,1363777,1363223,1363038,1362670,1362628,1364902,1364901],"class_list":["post-12688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gre-prep-2","tag-gre","tag-gre-prep","tag-prepare-for-the-gre"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/127"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12688"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12688\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12691,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12688\/revisions\/12691"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12688"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=12688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What skills does the GRE test?<\/b><\/h3>\n
How Studying for the GRE Changes You<\/b><\/h3>\n
Being a Good Test-Taker<\/b><\/h3>\n
Think Like a Scientist<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n![\"Chelsey](\"https:\/\/cdn2.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2015\/11\/chelsey-cooley-150x150.jpg\" "\\"Chelsey")
<\/a>\u00a0is a Manhattan Prep instructor based in Seattle, Washington.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/i><\/b>Chelsey always followed her heart when it came to her education. Luckily, her heart led her straight to the perfect background for GMAT and GRE teaching: she has undergraduate degrees in mathematics and history, a master\u2019s degree in linguistics, a 790 on the GMAT, and a perfect 170Q\/170V on the GRE.\u00a0<\/em><\/i>Check out Chelsey\u2019s upcoming GRE prep offerings here<\/a>.<\/em><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"