:couch:
So. The GRE.
I don't know the first thing about it.
How hard is it?
What are you tested on?
How difficult is it to do well on it - do most people take it several times?
How do you study for it, how long do you study for it?
How expensive is it?
Or anything else I might need to know as I'm throwing grad school around in my head, on occasion. (Two words I thought I'd NEVER say!)

It's been quite awhile since I took it. I did study for months ahead of time. I took it once, but my major didn't require a super high score. I would see if you can get a GRE study guide at the library or go hang out at the bookstore for awhile and peruse one there. That would give you a good idea of what the test is like.

I am sure someone who has taken it more recently will be of more help:)

I'm studying for it right now.

The math is lower end high school math, nothing theoretically harder than Algebra 2, but lots of tricky questions. Math isn't my strong suit, so they are getting to me, LOL.

The verbal is heavy, heavy, heavy on the vocab. The prep book I'm using (Princeton Review, came the most highly recommended) has over 400 vocab words that you "should" know before going into the test. I am ashamed to admit that of those, I only knew the actual meaning of about 1/3, had heard of another 1/3, and the rest were new to me, LOL. The actual questions are analogies, antonyms, sentence completion and reading comprehension. The first 3 all heavily depend on your vocab knowledge obviously.

The essay portion makes me a very nervous person, which is odd b/c my writing has always been my strong suit, but it has been awhile, yk?

The test is $55 I think, and the Princeton book recs. at least 4 weeks of study, no more than 12. I'm hoping to take the test sometime in January/February for a June deadline for Fall. I know it is late in the game, but it is the only choice I have right now. If it doesn't work out, I'll go for it next year.

You can look at sample questions at gre.org, and when you register for the test you get access to their test prep stuff as well.

The actual test is computer adaptive now, they base your next question on how well you answered the previous one, so the early questions are the most vital to a higher score. You can still take the paper version, but it is only given twice a year and in very limited markets now, so computer is pretty much the way to go.

Thanks so much! That was very helpful!

what is a GRE?

Graduate Record Examinations.. it's the test generally required to get into Graduate school.
Graduate Record Examination - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graduate_Record_Examination)

I just took it and didn't study for it. I did magnificently on the vocabulary and only 68th percentile (that's a score of 690, btw) on the math. I have a very, very strong math background and aptitude, but you forget stuff--and you need to remember them for this test.

Absolutely do study. I like the Princeton Review materials, myself.

The test is $140, though. Ouch.

Graduate Record Examinations.. it's the test generally required to get into Graduate school.
Graduate Record Examination - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graduate_Record_Examination)

ohh okay. it's different here in canada, soo.. thanks.

I just took it and didn't study for it. I did magnificently on the vocabulary and only 68th percentile (that's a score of 690, btw) on the math. I have a very, very strong math background and aptitude, but you forget stuff--and you need to remember them for this test.

Absolutely do study. I like the Princeton Review materials, myself.

The test is $140, though. Ouch.

Oh man, I was WAY off, LOL. Don't know where I got $55 stuck in my head, hmmm. Maybe that is my app fee to grad school, LOL.

ohh okay. it's different here in canada, soo.. thanks

Really? I asked a Canadian friend of mine, she said the GRE was pretty common, and I found this on a website about Canadian graduate programs:

In addition to an official transcript of marks, some graduate programs, especially professional ones, require you to submit official test scores on one or more standardized tests. The most common are the Graduate Record Examination or GRE and the Graduate & Management Admission Test or GMAT.

i've never heard of it here.

My Dh just took them this month. He didn't study, but did go through a practice test online, the night before. (no essay practice, though). He hasn't gotten the results from the essays yet, but he rocked the rest of it--same scores as he got on the SAT, actually. He's a really smart guy, though. I would have to study a lot to get even close to what I got on the SAT, I think, at least in math.