All About the Revised GRE

GRE got revised in 2012 and a lot of people are still not able to find the complete information regarding the changes in one place.  There are a lot of web pages which still have the outdated information. This might confuse the candidates.

The old GRE has always been Computer Adaptive Test. Haven’t heard  this term before? Here’s a simple explanation to this term:

In a Computer Adaptive Test (CAT), the computer assumes all candidates to be equal and to start the test with a medium difficulty level question. If the candidate answers some of these questions correctly, the computer would progressively increase the difficulty of the test.  And if the candidate answers the questions incorrectly, the test will get easier. The higher difficulty level questions would carry a larger score than a less difficult question.

The Revised GRE isn’t adaptive within a section. It is adaptive between sections. This means that your performance in the first section would determine the difficulty of the next section.  The level of questions doesn’t change after every question. Each section will contain a mix of difficult and easy questions.

Here’s all you need to know about the New Revised GRE:

• The total time for the GRE Test is 3 hrs and 45 min, and has 6 sections with a 10-minute break after the 3rd section.
• The directions provided at the start of each section depict the total number of questions and also the time allotment for that section.
• Analytical Writing is always the 1st section, while Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning can come in any sequence.
• An unidentified section which won’t count towards a score might be included in the test and could appear in any sequence after Analytical Writing.
• An identified research section which too won’t count towards the score might also be included but always at the end of the GRE test.
• The questions in GRE now have a variety of formats. Some might be “single answer choice” type, some might require you to choose more than one answer choices, and some may even require you to “enter” a numeric answer.
• The new GRE provides the option for editing or changing answers within a particular section.
• Candidate is able to navigate back-and-forth between sections (while skipping questions).
• Candidate can also tag questions by using a “mark and review” section.

• The Quantitative section will now have an On-Screen Calculator (for those taking the paper test a calculator is provided at the test centre).
• As per the previous format one can take the test once in every month. But the new GRE could be taken less frequently (once every 60 days).
•  As per the previous GRE the unofficial Quantitative and Verbal scores could be seen right away and are sent to graduate schools in 2-3 weeks. The new GRE doesn’t let you see your scores immediately.
•  The scoring scale has been changed to 130-170(from 200-800).
• There would be NO GRE tests during the month of July.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Remember:  It’s a wise move to familiarize yourself with the working of computer interface to make sure that you’re well familiarized with the format.

 Useful Information About The Registration Procedure

There is no specific date when GRE is conducted. The GRE is conducted throughout the year in almost all major cities across the globe. For registration details please visit ETS website: http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/register/

The problem with GRE registration is that most of the test takers prefer to take the GRE test during the period of September to December. Thus the seats fill up very quickly during this period. So in case you too wish to take the test in this period, you got to register very early. Here are some tips associated with registration:

• Register on time so that you can receive your scores before you plan to apply in the universities/colleges.
• While registering, be careful that the spellings of your name match with that printed on your primary ID proof (your Passport).
• Late registration is also available (only online) which closes 1 week after the actual registration date.

For the detailed tips to crack the upcoming GRE exam, refer to our article here.  If you wish to join a coaching class for GRE, you can post your GRE requirement here. Please leave your  estions and feedback in the comments below