How Early Should You Register For Gre

How to study for the GRE, whether you're on a 2-week, 1-month, 2-month, or iii-month study schedule

Introduction to edifice a not bad GRE report schedule

There are dozens of graduate degrees to choose from and applying to each 1 is different. But among the tangle of different deadlines and application requirements, there is i thing you lot can count on to be relatively abiding: the GRE.

The GRE isn't required by all programs, and the extent to which programs prioritize scores certainly does vary. What the GRE does, however, is give you a lot of flexibility and assistance make up for what you might consider weak spots in your awarding. Any your plans may be, a great GRE score puts y'all in a very good place.

Flexibility comes from the fact that the GRE is required past many graduate programs, and accustomed past almost all. Even some of the nation'south top Law Schools and Business Schools have the GRE in lieu of the LSAT or GMAT. And despite what you may hear, most admission councils don't actually favor either of the specialized tests over the GRE.

Peradventure yous're unsure about the specific graduate caste you lot desire to pursue. Suppose you're torn betwixt an MBA and an MS in Data Science, for example. Rather than studying for months and spending hundreds of dollars for each exam, you tin can salvage fourth dimension and money by focusing on the GRE. The same applies to any student torn between an MA/MS, PhD, JD, MPP, and others.

Can the GRE exist used for medical schoolhouse admissions?

Sorry, prospective med students, the GRE yet tin can't take the place of the MCAT and is unlikely to any time presently. We have you covered, though–take a wait at our guide to the Ideal MCAT Study Schedule!)

Perhaps most importantly, the GRE is the well-nigh immediate matter you can exercise to help your chances in graduate admissions. An undergraduate GPA takes years to form, and by the time y'all're an upperclassman, information technology's difficult to change information technology significantly. Work and research experience, too as relationships with potential recommenders, too take months or years to develop.

The GRE, on the other hand, is offered almost every single day. You lot could ace it adjacent week and immediately meliorate your access chances.

To ace the GRE, though, you'll need to make a schedule. Having a strict GRE written report plan is the fundamental to scoring well on the exam. Your study program volition be your guide and accountability tracker. Students who make thoughtful and realistic study schedules routinely achieve improve scores on the GRE.

And that'south why you're here–to create your GRE study plan, lay the background to achieve (and surpass!) your target scores, and ultimately gain access to your choice of grad schoolhouse. Let's go started!

What this GRE Study Schedule Guide Covers:

This guide is meant to give y'all a framework for writing a GRE study plan tailored to your own specific needs–1 that is comprehensive, adaptable, and, of course, effective.

Below, the guide covers:

Detailed steps to building the best study plan for yous, including how to choose a test date and how to organize each week until your exam
Answers to the most frequently asked questions about the GRE study schedule
Template study schedules for 2-week, 1-month, 2-month, and iii-calendar month GRE study plans

The guide does not assume any specific study materials, only that you lot do have admission to full-length practice tests too every bit more targeted review content. A good place to outset is the gratuitous grooming material provided by ETS, the company that writes the GRE. Freely available to everyone who registers for the GRE are two full-length online practice tests, overviews of each of the three sections, every bit well as reviews of the content on each section.

Part i: How to build a GRE study schedule tailored to your needs

Step 1: Select a GRE examination date and allocate daily study time

The first thing you want to do is choice a date. Picking a test date is important practically and emotionally: Kickoff, information technology sets a constraint on your study fourth dimension and helps decide your study strategy. Second, past making the prospect of taking the exam reality, you may feel a bit more motivated to start studying!

But you shouldn't randomly book a test appointment and hope to only capitalize on the post-registration motivation. There are several factors you lot should consider when choosing. Here are some questions to ask yourself:

When practise I want to employ to graduate programs? At the very least you want to take your scores earlier you send off applications. Official score reports are returned x-xv days afterwards your exam engagement, so leave at least ii weeks between your test and application deadline. On the other extreme, your GRE scores remain official for 5 years, and then don't bother taking the GRE if you lot don't program on applying to a graduate program in that time.

What time commitments do you lot have during the time earlier you programme to employ to graduate programs? Studying for the GRE takes fourth dimension, and it'due south easier and more than efficient to written report for it when y'all have fewer obligations. This might have some foresight. Some college students might take the GRE equally early as the summer after their freshman or sophomore year if they call back they'll have internships the next couple of summers and desire to apply to graduate programs during their senior year.

What are your target scores? Perhaps this question is surprising. Why not aim for a perfect 6.0 Writing, 170 Verbal, and 170 Quantitative Reasoning, yous ask? The work it takes to reach those scores might non be the all-time course for you. A smashing GRE score is a few points higher than the average scores of students admitted to your desired graduate program. Most programs will take the percentiles of admitted students' scores readily available on their websites, and nosotros highly encourage you to make a data-driven decision.

What is a good GRE score?

The 50th percentiles on the Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning sections of the GRE are well-nigh 151 out of 170 and 153 out of 170, respectively, so anything above these 2 is better than most test-takers.

The existent important question is how your score compares to students admitted to your desired graduate plan. Stanford's graduate programs in Computer Science recommend scores in the high 90'due south in percentile. This would mean scores of 165+ Exact and 169-170 Quantitative.)

How much boosted work do you need in society to attain those scores? Suppose y'all take a practise examination (similar ETS'southward POWERPREP® Online) and score ten points higher than both the average Verbal and Quant scores of your dream program. If this is the instance, y'all probably don't need to report as much equally if your scores were 10 points lower on each.

Take this terminal tip with a BIG grain of salt, though. No matter how well you score on a diagnostic practice test, yous should still aim to study for at to the lowest degree a calendar month for the GRE. Your diagnostic score may not exist representative; exercise not assume y'all'll be able to recreate it with ease under real examination conditions on test 24-hour interval, especially if information technology is a higher score.

How long should I written report for the GRE?

This answer depends on your goal scores and how far yous are from those scores. In whatever case, you should not spend less than 2 weeks studying for the GRE and volition likely reach diminishing returns by 6 months of studying. Ideally, you should spend somewhere from 1 month to 5 months studying.)

Finally, after you lot decide on a test date, attempt to upkeep a few hours every day until and so. Remember to consider fourth dimension in form or doing schoolwork, work hours, holidays, and even desired personal time when creating your GRE written report plan, regardless of the study plan length you decide upon. The remaining waking time should exist used for GRE studying.

On a given day of studying, you should devote at least an hour and a half to GRE studying. If your math gives you a number smaller than this, yous should revisit your test date. The virtually efficient daily study sessions range from ii to 4 hours per solar day.

Step ii: Pattern the content phase of studying

Now that we've allocated our daily study time, we can begin to fill out our study plan. Yous'll dissever your schedule into two distinct parts, the commencement of which will be the Content Stage.

In this section, y'all'll spend 70% of your time on the textile you are expected to know for the GRE and 30% on practice issues. Since the GRE is a general aptitude test, rather than a subject-specific test, this phase should unremarkably comprise less than half of your total study schedule.

Even so, in that location is a concrete set up of cloth covered on the GRE, and it's very possible and necessary to study that cloth. Specifically, if you know y'all are non comfortable with the math covered on the GRE or if you often meet words yous don't know when y'all read a paper, y'all may desire to allocate more time to your Content Phase of studying.

Is information technology possible to study for the GRE?

Yes, it is possible to study for the GRE! Even though the GRE is a general bent test, you'll be expected to exist comfortable with concepts that would exist covered in a high school algebra or statistics class. Yous should also endeavor to learn advanced vocab that appears in high-level writing, such as that of the New York Times or The Wall Street Journal.)

Here's how to organize this material in your schedule:

Assign a little less than half of your time as the Content Phase of studying. If yous determine to take the GRE in ii months (after considering the questions in the last section!), give yourself 3 weeks to focus on content.

In preparation for the Quantitative Reasoning department, make a list of all concepts covered on the exam. A complete list tin exist found on the ETS website. At that place are 4 main fields of math covered on the GRE–Arithmetics, Algebra, Geometry, and Information Science–and each one encompasses most 10 to fifteen cadre concepts.

Now, you lot have about sixty individual concepts to main in three weeks. As such, you should aim to comprehend 20 of these concepts every week. If you make up one's mind on a schedule longer or shorter than 2 months in total, y'all'll take to cover fewer or more concepts per calendar week.

(Wait a second–60 units of math?! Don't panic–most of these concepts are actually very short, and some are even just a single definition. You'll move through them faster than you may await.)

What math do you need to know for the GRE?

The GRE'south Quantitative Reasoning section will test you on Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry, and Data Analysis at the high school level. These include arithmetic operations on integers, solving equations and systems of equations, and descriptive statistics such every bit mean, median, and mode. The geometry on the GRE includes characteristics of parallel and perpendicular lines and of circles and basic regular polygon. The GRE does not require any geometric proofs.

The geometry on the GRE includes characteristics of parallel and perpendicular lines and of circles and basic regular polygon. The GRE does non require whatsoever geometric proofs.)

In preparation for the Verbal Reasoning department, you lot'll take to learn advanced vocabulary that, bluntly, you lot probably wouldn't encounter in day-to-day life. Instead, look to one of many flashcard options. You can supplement your vocab work by reading high-level writing, keeping a log of unfamiliar words, and studying their definitions.

Can you study for the GRE Verbal Reasoning department?

Yes, it is possible to study effectively for the Verbal Reasoning section of the GRE. An ambitious goal is to review 100 new words per week (think, you only demand to know them well enough to recognize them, not use them in your own life!). Yous should work on vocab every day, even on flex days (stay tuned for what this means) and days you are otherwise taking off. Fifty-fifty just 30 minutes a day volition piece of work wonders.

With the Verbal and Quantitative Reasoning in mind, here is an example of a 3-week Content Phase completely mapped out:

sample content phase of gre study schedule — sample content phase of gre report schedule

Here are some things to note about this sample content structure:

This study schedule covers the iv categories of Quantitative content in parallel rather than sequentially. This manner, you won't find at the cease of this phase that y'all forgot all the math you lot began with!
Every weekday introduces xx new words. The adjacent twenty-four hour period you lot review all the week's words, then all words cumulatively. Effort to review vocab constantly.
This schedule requires merely ane-3 hours per day, allowing yous to maintain other commitments during your study time.
The end of each week includes flex time you can use to revisit fabric you didn't stop, to review material you lot demand a fiddling extra work on, or to just rest and make sure you're ready for the adjacent calendar week.
Notice the checkboxes side by side to each task. This schedule can double as an accountability measure–we highly recommend building this into your ain GRE report plan!
This content phase assumes the educatee needs pregnant fourth dimension to review or relearn all these math topics. Some students don't need the same math review, and for this reason, they might have a content phase much more centered on vocabulary or but a much shorter content phase in full. The initial practice exam is essential for helping to identify your own needs.

Step 3: Design do phase of studying

Concluding comes the Practice Stage of your studying. This stage is the inverse of the previous one: now you'll spend 70% of your time on practice questions and 30% on vocab and math review.

The do phase is longer than the content phase considering, on the GRE, it'southward much more than important that you be comfortable answering questions on a time limit than it is that you know every detail about every topic.

Practice is essential for learning the GRE question types, which in some ways are content in and of themselves. This is especially true for the Verbal Reasoning department: Reading Comprehension, Text Completion, and Sentence Equivalence each nowadays unique challenges.

The Quantitative Comparison, Select Ane, Select Multiple, and Numeric Entry questions may have their own strategies, simply they ultimately cover the same math.

Needless to say, practice is essential for refining your strategies on the Belittling Writing Section besides.

Here is how a educatee equally focused on QR, VR and Writing might organize their practice phase:

sample practice phase of gre study schedule — sample practice stage of gre study schedule

Here are some things to note about this practice phase schedule:

Every week yous take a practice test, followed by a flex day. Your only chore on flex days is to review vocab; use these more relaxed days for flex studying or to recharge for the next week.
You see a lot of "MQL" on here, and this stands for the Missed Questions Log. The MQL is a centralized identify where you lot'll track and review the concepts you lot're missing on your practice problems. Information technology'southward really important that you larn from your mistakes and spend a lot of time reviewing questions you originally got incorrect.
This schedule should only take 2-3 hours of studying per day, on boilerplate.
In the terminal week, remember to review the topics you feel confident about, likewise. Chances are, you didn't miss as many questions on those topics, and so there's been less reason to revisit them until now.
Even for private sections, try to practice under real test atmospheric condition. This means timed and with a figurer on your computer screen.

Step iv: Refine your GRE study schedule:

Finally, keep an open listen after you've made the first draft of your GRE report plan. Many students are reluctant to modify their schedule, fearing that a change of plan results from some sort of lack of discipline or accountability. This isn't truthful! Yous know yourself and your needs; if something isn't working, change it.

Non just will you realize your original fourth dimension allotments for each topic aren't perfect, but you'll likewise see everyday obstacles similar unexpected school, piece of work, or family obligations.

The trick is to build flexibility into your schedule from the beginning. With flex days on the weekend or adaptive sessions similar your Missed Question Log reviews, you'll maximize efficiency and keep your studying topical and fun. And if even more changes are needed, don't be afraid to marking up your original schedule.

Good luck making your GRE study plan, and we sincerely hope that this guide will help yous score well on this exam!

Role 2: GRE Study Schedule Templates (2 Weeks | 1 Month | 2 Months | 3 Months)

2-calendar week GRE report schedule
ane-month GRE written report schedule
2-month GRE study schedule
3-month GRE written report schedule

two-week GRE written report schedule

If you're taking the GRE in less than one month, then it's time to get studying. Yep, information technology'south recommended that you don't wait until this shut to test twenty-four hour period to get-go studying, but we know information technology happens. And even if you have as few as two weeks until test day, there's a lot of progress you can make.

In this very short time frame, you'll notice that the content stage of studying practically disappears from the schedule. There will be time to review areas with which yous are especially unfamiliar, only for the near role, you'll be learning from practice and your missed question logs (MQL). By focusing on the ii total-length practice tests and additional practice sections, you'll learn only what you absolutely need to know in the near efficient fashion possible.

With this plan, you'll also be exposed to 500 new vocab words.

If you want to see meaningful progress in only a couple of weeks, yous should dedicate at to the lowest degree 3-4 hours per day to studying.

GRE 2-week study schedule — GRE ii-week study schedule

1-calendar month GRE report schedule

You'll be in a decent identify if you give yourself 1 month to study for the GRE. All the same, it's non quite every bit much time as it sounds, so this written report schedule requires about 3 hours every mean solar day, besides as one day a week y'all can dedicate to taking a full-length practice GRE exam.

In this study schedule, you'll spend a week and a half focusing on the GRE math content, after which you'll swoop right into the practise phase of studying, completing, and reviewing two practice sections per solar day on boilerplate.

With this schedule, y'all'll be exposed to more than 500 vocab words and will accept ample time to gain comfort with all of them.

ii-calendar month GRE study schedule

After 2 months of studying, you'll have the confidence and familiarity with the GRE material to ace information technology, come test twenty-four hours. Unlike the shorter timelines, the 2-month GRE study plan allows you fourth dimension to expect at each and every topic in the Quantitative Reasoning sections on the GRE and so that nothing volition surprise you on the exam itself.

This study schedule includes a iii-week content phase of studying and a five-calendar week practice stage, and it will have an average of 2-3 hours per solar day to follow.

This schedule also exposes you to 700 vocab words at a very manageable pace. This will allow you lot to principal the bulk of the words recognized every bit most likely to prove up on the GRE.

3-month GRE study schedule

You lot'll be the about prepared person in your testing center later on 3 months of diligent report. In 12 weeks, yous'll exist able to master every math concept covered on the QR section of the GRE and will become very comfortable with the three question types on the VR section of the GRE. Yous'll too cover all 1,000 GRE words that most GRE vocab flashcard packs include and volition have fourth dimension to add your own words from supplemental readings.

This extended timeline also reduces the daily study load to about 2 hours per day. But make certain you stay disciplined–one of the challenges you may face with this written report schedule is burnout! On this schedule you may feel more justified in using your flex days for rest if that means y'all will be able to maintain your report pace afterward.