Taking the GRE: How to Improve Focus and Save Time
The GRE is a standardized test required by most graduate study university programs. This 4-hour exam can feel like a grueling marathon, but it doesn’t have to. By improving your test-taking focus and understanding how to save time during the test, you can significantly improve your score on the GRE. Knowing these insider strategies will reduce your test anxiety, help you feel your best, and set you up for success.
Improve Your Focus on the GRE
Being able to sit through the test while maintaining energy and focus is many people’s biggest challenge.
1) Train your brain. You can build your test-taking stamina so that the real test doesn’t feel so draining. On a regular basis for a few months before test day, practice taking full-length tests. Take these practice tests at the same time of day your real test will be given. Establish a study schedule where you are concentrating for longer periods. Work with a tutor to keep you on a disciplined track.
2) Use your breaks wisely. When you take the GRE, you’re given 1-minute breaks between sections as well as one 10-minute break. On the long break, you’re going to want to accomplish five things:
· Eat a snack to keep your blood sugar steady. Include some good protein or nuts as well as carbs like fruit for quick energy.
· Drink some water. Although you don’t want to have to go to the bathroom frequently, staying hydrated is important to your brain.
· Hit the bathroom. Even if you don’t have to, better now than trying to think when you gotta go.
· Get your scratch paper ready.
· Move around. Jump up and down or do jumping jacks. Get the blood flowing to your brain.
3) Improve Nutrition: what you eat the morning of the test can really affect how you are able to think through the 4-hour ordeal. Do not just eat simple carbs like cereal or a muffin. This will result in a blood sugar crash halfway through the test. Make sure to have protein, complex carbs and good fat for sustained energy. In fact, consider cleaning up your diet for a few weeks before your test to really maximize your focus and reduce brain fog. Eat high quality protein, lots of veggies, fruit and good fats such as nuts and avocado.
4) Get Enough Sleep. Yes, it’s cliché but research shows that getting enough sleep, especially the night before your test, has a direct impact on how well you can think. And if you haven’t studied much to prepare for the GRE, don’t bother cramming the night before the test. Sleep is more important. A study of military sharpshooters showed that just one night of less than 7 hours of sleep dramatically affected accuracy. Getting enough sleep when you’re studying for the GRE also helps you retain information better.
5) Remember Your “Why” Just a simple reminder to yourself about why you are taking the test (along with a few deep breaths) may help get you back on track if you start to feel distracted or anxious.
Save Time on the GRE
A bit of preparation on test structure and how to maximize your efforts will help you move efficiently through the exam. A personal, online GRE tutor can teach you the most important tips and tricks – and will give you individualized guidance for your strengths and weaknesses.
1) Don’t spend too much time on one question. One question is not worth more than the others and will just throw you off the longer you spend on it. Don’t be a perfectionist. Keep moving.
2) Answer all questions. You only get credit for the ones you get right, so getting them wrong doesn’t penalize you further. Mark the ones you weren’t sure about so you can come back to them if you have extra time when you’ve finished the section.
3) Use calculators anywhere they’re allowed. This keeps you from making a silly, simple mistake.
4) Know all the question types and how to best answer them. For example, on the math sections, you’ll want to memorize the formulas ahead of time. For the reading comprehension on the verbal sections, don’t take too much time on your first passage read-through. Read the questions carefully, then read the passage more thoroughly when you’re looking for answers. On the writing section, outline your essays first. Don’t take more than 3 minutes to do so.
5) Analyze your errors. When studying and taking practice tests, look at the mistakes you make most frequently. This will give you red flags to watch for on the real thing and give you a heads up as you approach certain sections or questions. A tutor will be particularly helpful with this.
Approaching the GRE in a smart and organized manner will improve your score and put your mind at ease. This exam can change the course of your future, so enroll the help of a tutor to make sure you do your very best.
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-Alia Almarri, Dubai American Academy