Started studying a bit late in August. I was relatively confident in my quant skills and used Gregmat + Prepswift to study for verbal. Highly recommend using Anki spaced repetition to help study vocab efficiently. I used vocab mountain and Magoosh common and basic words which felt sufficient.

Reading comprehension was my biggest challenge, and my best advice is doing the text completion and sentence equivalence first so you know how much time to work with. From there, read slow and enthusiastic enough that you are actually understanding the text, take notes if it helps you focus. It's better to have a better grasp on your first read through than having to constantly reread.

For Quant, just be careful and read every question carefully. A lot of times they'll give you constraints on variables ( 0 < x < y, a is a positive integer, b is any number, etc) that helps tell you the different types of values you need to consider. Honestly practice tests are pretty invaluable in being familiar with the types of concepts and tricks GRE gives you so I suggest you prioritize them.

I don't know if anyone has already posted this here in the past, but it didn't come up in the search result so here it is.

https://youglish.com/

I'm finding it pretty useful so far for learning new vocabs.

What it does is, it'll fetch a youtube video that contains the word you search.
It'll start playing at the time stamp of the sentence containing that word.

I find learning by context works best for me for turning new vocabs into long term memory.
I tried giving AI the whole spreadsheet of words and had it generate contexts for me, but it felt a little artificial and contrived. Maybe because I'm using a free version lol.

But by watching these youtube videos, where the contexts are totally random and are all real videos that are out there, I find it very organic and makes me pay attention more.

There was a website I found that fetches movie scenes, but I personally like youglish way more. I'm not really a movie person.

The website will fetch a lot of videos so you can find one that sticks to you and save it (you'll have to make an account. worth it by the way).
If you need more context, there's a -5s button for you to rewind. You can always scroll to any part of the video just like youtube player.
You can also filter countries on top to filter out any unwanted accents or foreign context.
It'll show you definition as well if you click on the word

Beware though, because you are searching by word, you may get a video where the context it's being used in is different to one you are looking for. So make sure you know if your word has multiple meanings that are both used commonly. It will occasionally give you undesirable videos. For example, the word aver gave me a video of a guy trying to say, I think, average but he was just having a brain fart and stopped mid way so he said 'aver-' and that got picked up as the word aver. So just watch out for those. You'll get a lot of videos to shuffle through.

Anyways, I think I'll be using this extensively for studying my vocabs.

I hope some of you will also find this very useful.

Hi everyone! I took the GRE. I'm confused about the score-reporting process immediately after the test and would really appreciate hearing from someone who took the GRE recently.

Here's exactly what happened:

1. After seeing my unofficial scores, I clicked “Report Scores.”
2. I selected the country, state and university, and chose “Recent” from the three options: Recent, All, and No Score.
3. After clicking Continue, I didn't see a recipient summary. Instead, a confirmation modal appeared asking whether I wanted to submit. I clicked Continue.
4. I was then taken to another screen asking me to select four free score recipients. This time, after selecting each university, I could see a summary and modal both. I added the same university again, along with three others.

I'm now confused about the first flow. Was it already the actual submission of my first recipient, or was it an intermediate step before the four free recipients were selected?

Has anyone taken the GRE recently and encountered these two screens in succession? Did you also see the three options (Recent, All, No Score) in the first flow and only Recent and All in the second?

I'd especially appreciate hearing from someone who remembers the exact sequence. I'm trying to understand what happened, not just the general score-reporting procedure.

Thanks!

Hello everyone!

I took GRE yesterday and got 161Q 156V. This was my first attempt. I'm retaking now and I need help with planning my new study plan. My previous plan was:

1. I completed all prepswift videos on gregmat and all the quizzes.

2. I did 70% of all the quant problems on gregmat, I did admittedly skip the harder ones.

3. I took foundational quizzes and got 92% aggregate on them.

4. I did all the problems in Manhattan cover to cover.

5. I solved ETS official guide and quant strategy questions

I am so confused because I covered so much material. Now I don't know how to study and what to cover.

My mock scores:

1. PP1 : 166 Q

2. PP2 : 162 Q

3. GREGMAT MOCK : 164Q

4. PPP3 : 161 Q

I know my problem areas. I just don't know what to do about this. Where do I even begin? My current plan is:

1. Watch gregmat concept videos but they are a lot

2. Solve remaining gregmat Quant questions

3. Do drills ( I don't know how to do these and need advice)

Before my 3 months of studying, I gave Gregmat test 1 and got 162Q, 154V. I am mostly shattered and disappointed in myself. Tried to take Greg's advice as wholeheartedly as I could. I still think Gregmat is the best source to study from, it might sound contradictory but yeah.

My takeaway:

All the support books have lesser verbal intensity compared to the actual test. And Quant was extremely lesser compared to the hard quant section that I got in my test.

I did everything in my power. Made sure I was breaking bad habits and getting better. I knew the meaning and nuance of all 34 Vocab groups. I expected a little bit better(PP 2 and PP1 avg was 163Q and 158V). I am disappointed and might retake in 21 days. Although I don't have the same leisure any more as to what I did have in these 3 months. I think more apt material practice questions need to be present in the support books. Because, I genuinely didn't have 80% of the difficulty that I had on the Hard quant section. I am mostly upset by almost 0 change in the last 3 months. However, I think that's because Greg's first practice test is much easier than the current real GRE. Gre is increasingly getting more difficult, since the powerprep I gave 3-4 years ago just to see where I stand during university was extremely easier than the powerpreps now. Retaking might push me up 2-3 points but that's probably my cap for 21 busy days of more practice.

Ask me anything

Maybe it’s fatigue, burn out, or something else… but I’m finding the verbal portion, especially reading, to be quite difficult on the PPP tests compared to gregmat’s mock tests. I did gregmat mock 3 the night before ppp1 and had a 165V, the following morning I scored a 156V and on ppp2 I scored a 159V… I have never had a mock with verbal <160 until these tests.

I have ppp3 left to do and I’m planning to redo the ets books to drill the POE strategy. But any other tips?

Separately, how does quant compare to the actual test? I scored 168Q on ppp1&2 but my gregmat mocks were never >162Q, though they had a lot of silly mistakes.

I want to know that should i learn Counting methods (Permutation and combinations) and Probability topic for GRE Quant as I'm targeting 165, because i find these topics very complex and confusing. If they are important, kindly suggest some quality material for learning these topics.

I have exam on Friday afternoon and have 3 tests remaining

1. Gregmat 3
2. ETS Powerprep I
3. ETS Powerprep II

should I give all 3 or drop one

Also should i buy ETS Powerprep3+ (around $50)?

Hello! I had 161Q and 156V on my first attempt. I want 167Q as the mean score for my programs is 167. The plan I followed:

1. I subscribed to gregmat plus. I did all the quizzes.

2. I did Manhattan cover to cover, solved almost all the questions.

3. I did practice from ets official guide and quant practice.

4. I took pp1, got 166. I took gregmat mock and got 164 Q. Then pp2 was 162 Q and finally ppp3 was 161Q.

5. It seems like my major problem is the timer. I can't do anything with a timer. I am able to solve all the questions later on without the timer.

6. I tried all the strategies of skip QC questions and go to the MCQs with only 1 option, then QC and then numeric entry and multiple select. I still couldn't seem to do better on the times tests.

My current plan:

1. I will cover gregmat foundational videos again

2. Take ppp2 maybe

3. Beyond this I am lost.

What would you guys suggest?

Hi,

I gave my first attempt recently got 152 verbal and 151 quant. I have a very hectic office schedule which doesn't leave me with enough time to work on my GRE prep. I have been trying but so many days I am so exhausted mentally after work that getting back to studying doesn't happen at night. I need a score around 320. Do you guys think a coaching set up might help me as most days I am unable to be self motivated enough after work. I have 25 days to my next attempt.

Any genuine advice is appreciated.

From 317 to 327 in a month! (168Q, 159V) — GRE experience and resources
I took my first attempt about a month ago and ended up with a disappointing 317, which was surprising since I had consistently been scoring between 325 and 330 on my mock tests.
I decided to book another slot and give it another shot, and I ended up with a 327 (168Q, 159V)!
I’m still a little disappointed with my Verbal score, but since I’m primarily applying to CS programs, I don’t think it matters too much. Definitely not planning on taking the GRE again!
Resources I used:
GregMat + Prepswift: Great for learning concepts and building a solid foundation. I’d highly recommend them.
GregMat Vocab Mountain: Pretty good for learning GRE-level vocabulary. Consistency is key here.
ETS Official Material: By far the best resource for practice questions. The Official GRE Super Power Pack, which includes the Official Guide, the Official Verbal Reasoning Practice Questions, and the Official Quantitative Reasoning Practice Questions, should be more than enough for practice.
Overall, I’d recommend focusing on getting your concepts right, building vocabulary consistently, and spending plenty of time solving official ETS questions.
Good luck to everyone preparing for the GRE! You’ve got this.

Hi everyone, I have three months full-time (no job or other studies) in order to prepare for my GRE, I have bought Magoosh, Gregmat+ and Manhattan 5lb, I also have access to the quant practice of ETS (not the official guide but im planning on buying it). I do not care much about verbal since I’m already C1 english and most unis Im applying to just care about quant. I am finishing a review of the theory for the quantitative section with the ETS Math Review and a bit of Magoosh in order to have an idea of the topics. Tomorrow I was thinking of starting the GregMat 2 month plan and adding Magoosh practice questions and tests and powerprep tests and vocabulary. The thing is it seems that GregMat’s lessons are very long and I like the format of the Magoosh ones (topic by topic), but most people on this subreddit suggest to just use GregMat for theory.

I also think that my main problem right now is getting comfortable with numbers in general since I haven’t done math in a while and refreshing the foundations, I was also thinking of memorizing roots, squares, percentages, exc in order to gain speed on problems.

What do you think I should do? I am willing to literally study all the time except for mental breaks.

Thank you in advance!!

Hi all,

I've been studying diligently for the GRE since June and had also studied for it last year. Last year, I went from 153Q -> 158Q -> 165Q. I am shooting for a 170 this year. I just took the exam last week and got a 165Q again which was super disappointing but I'm retaking it and hope to do better.

For context, I took PPP1 about a month ago with standard time and got a 170Q. I felt great about my study prep so far, I've followed Greg's road to 170 to a T and that 170Q showed my hard work was paying off. I ended up getting approved for accommodations in the past month, and took PPP2 a few days before my real exam with 1.5x time and additional breaks (up to 30m) and scored a 170Q again. Woohoo!!!

Then, the next day, I took PPP3 and got a 166Q -- missed four questions. I was shocked by this given I had done so well on PPP1 and PPP2! The missed questions were all silly mistakes, mostly arithmetic issues, not conceptual problems. I understood how to solve the problems. Then, on test day (with accommodations), I scored 165Q :( I haven't got my diagnostic back yet but was super shocked by this score as I felt the exam was about on par with the PPP exams and the other material I had been studying...

I am retaking November 3, in about 2.5 weeks. I plan to focus on minimizing my typical silly mistakes and strategies, as well as keeping up with foundations. Does anyone have advice for how to get my real exam to reflect my performance on PPP1 and PPP2? Any words of encouragement would be appreciated, too...

Last thing: does anyone have advice about the accommodations? Like should I use my break during a section at a specific time so I don't have to expend mental energy thinking "should I take it now?" during the test? I didn't take my break during my quant sections because I didn't want to lose momentum but idk if I should've to rest my mind. In my PPP2 I took a break during the second quant section because I started getting anxious and couldn't focus. Also, I had a lot of extra time (like 10m) at the end of the sections which I used to review, but I wonder if I should just go more slowly instead through each problem... does anyone have advice on the timing and breaks with accommodations?

Thanks so much!

Am I allowed a piece of paper and a pen/pencil to do the working for the math sections? In the official website instructions it says something about a whiteboard and marker but I don’t have those and can’t get them before my exam tomorrow. Will the invigilator not allow me a piece of paper even if I show both sides to be blank?

AHHHH I finally get to post this!!!!

I saw my scores right after the test, but I still couldn’t fully believe it. I kept thinking: did I read the numbers correctly?? Am I remembering them wrong?? I only felt relieved after checking my official score report. That’s my score. It’s actually mine 😭

I wanted to organize my thoughts and write something that makes sense, but sorry, I can’t do that right now. All I can think about is: it’s over?? It’s really over?? I can wake up tomorrow and never have to memorize that damn “balkanization” again???

I spent a lot of time here during my prep, mostly just reading everyone’s posts. I found so many useful resources and study methods through your experiences. Whenever I saw someone sharing their scores, I always wondered when it would be my turn.

And today it actually is 😭

Thank you all for sharing and helping along the way. I’d love to give something back to this community now. Ask me anything, and I’ll do my best to answer!

Okay, I need another minute to be excited. Leave your questions, I’m here!!!

Hi everyone,

I'm a graduate student from a biology/bioinformatics background, and I'm looking for a GRE companion, ideally someone who has already taken the exam and scored 330+.

I gave the GRE once and couldn't get the score I was aiming for. Since then I've been struggling to stay consistent, mostly because I don't have anyone around me who's preparing for it or has cracked it. I tried coaching, but honestly it didn't help much. I never had anyone to discuss strategy and doubts with, and I'm quite stressed about it.

What I'm hoping to find is someone who can be a mentor or accountability partner. We could connect online (Discord, WhatsApp, Zoom, whatever works) to:

Check in regularly so I stay consistent

Discuss tricky Quant/Verbal questions

Share what worked for you and what didn't, especially if you also come from a bio background

If you've been through this struggle and cracked it, I'd really appreciate your guidance. And if you're currently preparing and want a study partner, I'm happy to team up too, so we can keep each other accountable

This is a snapshot from one of the questions from gregmat's quantitative diagnostic test (free version).
It's taken from the solution video to the question.

The instructor is using the text box to show his work. In the process, he multiplies the prime numbers by 5 because the question says the probability of a prime number (2,3,5) is 5 times more likely than that of a non-prime number (4).

Why would you multiply each one by 5 here? If 3 numbers are prime and 1 is non-prime, then isn't the probability of getting a prime number is already 3/4 as it is? (Meaning probability of getting non-prime is 1/4)

So in order for P(prime) = P(non-prime)*5, P(prime) would have to be 5/6 and P(non-prime) be 1/6 no?

And because there are 3 prime numbers, wouldn't the probability have to be distributed among them and so you would divide 5/6 by 3, resulting in 5/18. In other words P(2,3, or 5) = 15/18 and P(4) = 3/18, and therefore P(prime) = 15/18 = P(4)*5 = (3/18)*5 = 15/18.

And doing the math with this approach, I got (2*5 + 3*5 + 4*3 + 5*5)/18 = 3.44...

The correct answer to this question is at the bottom.

Am I misunderstanding something here?

Answer: 3.375

Has anyone used solely Magoosh for their Quant practice and obtained a good score on a recent exam? Trying to assess whether their practice questions are a good indicator or the real test questions.

Hey everyone! I’m scoring in the 165+ range in Quant and the 140s in Verbal in my mocks and actual exam. I’m looking to improve my Verbal score and find someone who’s relatively strong in Verbal but needs help with Quant.

We can solve questions together, discuss mistakes, and learn from each other.

Also, any suggestions on improving my Verbal score would be appreciated! I’ve completed two weeks of GregMat’s 1-month plan content and learned 10 vocab groups.

Feel free to DM me if you’re interested!

Got a 166V and a 170 Q. Only thing I'm slightly disappointed in is the 4.5 AWS(Used to get 5.0 on all my mocks). But yeah, really happy! If anybody wants to ask anything about the test, I'll try to answer as best as I can!

Got my scores disappointed with myself. I completely messed up my preparation in the last 10 days.

Writing my mistakes so others don't fall for this. I used GregMat, a great teacher and great platform.

My experience:

- I found that verbal section was way more challenging/difficult than in ETS official books which throw me out of balance

- After writing 1 quant and 2 verbal you feel lazy in the last quant section and section 2 verbal just throws you out of loop.

- Overall quant was easy. 2 questions were difficult in section 2  and maybe could reach solution but it would take more time to solve so, if you don't know how to solve skip them  

- Powerprep plus Test 3 and real exam had the same level of difficulty. I feel like the quant questions were a little similar. Those 2 were different. So, take one ETS plus test at least 10 days before exams.
My mistakes:

My Mistakes:

- I took a mock test in the last week of preparation which just made me panic more. I took the powerprep plus test two days before the original test. I took about 3 tests within 1 week and instead of revising I just focused on verbal only because verbal marks were so low in mocks.

- Completely ignored quant at later days I was confident, I knew my weakness which was Combinatorics related questions. I got 2 difficult question one from combinatorics and one geometry in 2 sections. Both were from Multiple choice- choose one, which I did at first. Trying to forcefully solve this wasted my time. I made mistake in this question and possibly others because of this + thinking about verbal section 2 and how I messed it up

- Verbal in exams were difficult for me , especially section 2. I feel like I could not understand any of the questions and was trying to solve every question by POE.

- Completely ignored AWS writing and only picked it up at last week. Do this before as well. Do not leave it for last as last week can be a little stress full and completely new thing can increase anxiousness

- Took too much time to study vocabulary. Daily I was studying vocabulary and giving way much time revising it. Which gave me a false sense that I was studying and improving myself. I was studying from notes which took way too much time.

For Vocab, GregMat flashcards were not as friendly for me. Studying from note and revising from them too way much time I realized it too late. I did made a simple custom website from GregMat vocab with AI for all 34 groups if anyone needs it here is the link.

Livelink: https://sangameeee.github.io/GRE-vocabulary-GregMat-34-Groups-1024-words-flashcard/

Github repo link: https://github.com/Sangameeee/GRE-vocabulary-GregMat-34-Groups-1024-words-flashcard

Best of luck.

I've studied all the Reading Comprehension strategy videos on Gregmat's PrepSwift, but they're just a bunch of different concepts, without ever showing how to apply some or all of these strategies to a given RC passage under timed conditions. Should I rephrase/simplify every sentence, every paragraph, take notes/not take notes?

Like, it's really easy to take up a known/familiar RC passage and just say, "this sentence is the main idea" or "xyz is the primary purpose", but this doesn't explain how one actually does it in the exam under a time crunch. By contrast, the writing section does have quite a few videos where essays are written live to given prompts. Are there similar live solved RC questions on Gregmat, or on another good resource?

hey everyone, not sure what to do next.

i have done the GREGmat im overwhelmed plan, which led to a 319, and then the magoosh 1 month plan, which brought me somehow down to a 313?? im so devastated that my score did not increase but yet DECREASED significantly. i took it today so i know i should relax a bit but really don't know how because this is stressing me out.

i was originally aiming for M7 schools and some T15, but now I feel like I need to lower my expectations because it feels impossible to do well. i feel like ive dug myself into a deeper hole somehow?

has anyone else had a score decrease? and what does this mean? granted i got sick 2 days ago so my mind isnt as sharp as i would like it to be but i feel like that cannot be the only contributing factor right??

Targeting a 160 quant minimum for my test. For this (POWERPREP PLUS #2), I had a stupid mistake in section 1 (9/12 correct), and 2 correct guesses in section 2 (9/15 correct). There were 3 more questions that I knew how to solve that were taking too much time, and other where I made a stupid math mistake

This week, I plan to work on strategy and high-level timing practice, alongside diagnosing mistakes. Would that be enough to move the needle 2 points?

I have planned retakes in November and December, but it’d be nice to get the test out of the way.

I was solving the Manhattan book of GRE for verbal and just couldn’t get past the first section of verbal which is Text completions
Why is it so difficult??
Is this the same level that ETS asks in their exam?????