The nerves can get to anyone on the actual day of their GRE exam. But the one thing that you should not forget is to shortlist at least 4 universities that you wish to apply to. Do this research well before the exam and make your list before the exam day. And why should you make that list? BECAUSE your GRE exam fee also includes sending your exam score to 4 schools for FREE. Yes. Here is the official verbiage from the the GRE website:-
"Your test fee entitles you to request that scores be sent to as many as four graduate institutions or fellowship sponsors. For the computer-based GRE® General Test, you will be asked to designate your score recipients at the test center. For the paper-based GRE General Test, you will be asked to designate your score recipients during registration or on your admission ticket correction stub. You will be required to pay US$23 per recipient to have scores sent at a later date."
Source:- http://www.ets.org/gre/general/scores/send
So remember to make a list of 4 schools before your exam, and then send your score to these schools right after your exam if you are happy with your score. Any additional schools that you wish to apply to will cost you $23 a pop. However, if you do not like what you scored and decide to take GRE again at a later date, do not send your scores.
Showing posts with label GRE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GRE. Show all posts
HOW TO prepare for GRE in 15 days
How do I prepare for GRE or TOEFL in 15 days, I haven't started yet?!?!
Lots of students procrastinate their preparation until the last month or 15 days of taking their GRE of TOEFL exams (and I too am guilty as charged :) ). Well, we all know how bad that sucks. But the question is, once you are in that boat, how do you sail through, or at least try and give it your best shot? So how do you prepare for your GRE in 15 days or a month??
Now I am saying this from my personal experience, and this may or may NOT work for you. So do not curse me later and take this only as an advice and not a rule, and the best advice is to start your preparation at least 6 months before your GRE exam date.. Although I was not the one who did not start until one-month from my exam, I mean I was doing the word lists and math on and off, but I do say that I really, really studied for my GRE in the last one month. And what tremendously helped me was to take a GRE sample test each day for one month. I took the test, then I took a break, and then I went back to analyzing what I did wrong, what the problem areas were, and where I needed to really focus. Of course I did go through the correct answers for questions I got wrong. But rather than just leaving it there, I revisited the concept that the question was based on, and made sure that the next time I came across a question based on the same concept, I would have an improved chance of getting it right.
Now some of us try to remember / cram up question that we get wrong. That has been known to fail more often than it might work. Ask any student that has taken the GRE. The important thing I think is to focus more on that concept that you did not quite understand, and because of which you got the question wrong. So all you procrastinators, pull you pants up quick and make this last month count for good.
Lots of students procrastinate their preparation until the last month or 15 days of taking their GRE of TOEFL exams (and I too am guilty as charged :) ). Well, we all know how bad that sucks. But the question is, once you are in that boat, how do you sail through, or at least try and give it your best shot? So how do you prepare for your GRE in 15 days or a month??
Now I am saying this from my personal experience, and this may or may NOT work for you. So do not curse me later and take this only as an advice and not a rule, and the best advice is to start your preparation at least 6 months before your GRE exam date.. Although I was not the one who did not start until one-month from my exam, I mean I was doing the word lists and math on and off, but I do say that I really, really studied for my GRE in the last one month. And what tremendously helped me was to take a GRE sample test each day for one month. I took the test, then I took a break, and then I went back to analyzing what I did wrong, what the problem areas were, and where I needed to really focus. Of course I did go through the correct answers for questions I got wrong. But rather than just leaving it there, I revisited the concept that the question was based on, and made sure that the next time I came across a question based on the same concept, I would have an improved chance of getting it right.
Now some of us try to remember / cram up question that we get wrong. That has been known to fail more often than it might work. Ask any student that has taken the GRE. The important thing I think is to focus more on that concept that you did not quite understand, and because of which you got the question wrong. So all you procrastinators, pull you pants up quick and make this last month count for good.
Starting school in US in Fall semester vs Spring semester
So what is the fall season, and which one of fall season or spring season is the best time to start school in US ?!?!
Here are the names of four seasons observed in the US in Hindi:-
** SPRING (saavan) begins 1st March
** SUMMER (garmi) begins 1st June
** FALL (patjhad) begins 1st September
** WINTER (sardi) begins 1st December
I hope I did not screw up on the hindi names. Anyways, Summer is short but really nice, and Fall is all colorful. Fall is actually what we call patjhad in hindi. Fall is when the trees start shedding leaves (and before they are all gone, they turn pink and orange and look amazing). Fall is also the start of the school year. 5th September, right after the labor day holiday, is when most students in US start school.
Another time of the year when you have an option to start school is Spring. The number of students joining in in spring is nothing compared to Fall. Partly because everyone else starts in Fall, and majorly because everything else is aligned with the Fall semester. We will discuss this "everything else".
-Most tuition/financial aid grants are made to the students starting in Fall, thereby the funds are limited by the time it is Spring, and hence chances of getting aid in Spring are no where near those in Fall.
-Most new student orientation type things are done in Fall, so you miss out on those. And if you are an international student, believe me you don't want to miss these orientation trainings.
-Most schools have what they call the "International Club". Here you get a chance to make new friends, and do fun things with these fellow international students. While you can join in on the fun in Spring, it is best to start when the club starts out every year in Fall.
-Most important, most companies tend to do all their hiring in Apr-Aug. So if you start in the Spring semester, you would usually finish up in a fall semester, and would find very few companies hiring in Jan-Mar period. This would certainly not be an issue for someone who started in Fall and then finished his graduation in Spring. You might argue that since fewer students started in Spring, and so fewer will come out in Fall and hence lesser competition in the job market at that time; but believe me that is certainly not the case cause very few companies are hiring during that period.
-And last but definitely not the least, fall is also the time when most stores here have what they advertise as "back to school sales". You can get some really good deals during these sales on various school essentials like laptops, school supplies, etc.
So fellas, plan all your preparation so that you start in the Fall semester. Yes people still do join in in the spring semester, and they still get jobs, but why make it any more difficult than it already is??
Here are the names of four seasons observed in the US in Hindi:-
** SPRING (saavan) begins 1st March
** SUMMER (garmi) begins 1st June
** FALL (patjhad) begins 1st September
** WINTER (sardi) begins 1st December
I hope I did not screw up on the hindi names. Anyways, Summer is short but really nice, and Fall is all colorful. Fall is actually what we call patjhad in hindi. Fall is when the trees start shedding leaves (and before they are all gone, they turn pink and orange and look amazing). Fall is also the start of the school year. 5th September, right after the labor day holiday, is when most students in US start school.
Another time of the year when you have an option to start school is Spring. The number of students joining in in spring is nothing compared to Fall. Partly because everyone else starts in Fall, and majorly because everything else is aligned with the Fall semester. We will discuss this "everything else".
-Most tuition/financial aid grants are made to the students starting in Fall, thereby the funds are limited by the time it is Spring, and hence chances of getting aid in Spring are no where near those in Fall.
-Most new student orientation type things are done in Fall, so you miss out on those. And if you are an international student, believe me you don't want to miss these orientation trainings.
-Most schools have what they call the "International Club". Here you get a chance to make new friends, and do fun things with these fellow international students. While you can join in on the fun in Spring, it is best to start when the club starts out every year in Fall.
-Most important, most companies tend to do all their hiring in Apr-Aug. So if you start in the Spring semester, you would usually finish up in a fall semester, and would find very few companies hiring in Jan-Mar period. This would certainly not be an issue for someone who started in Fall and then finished his graduation in Spring. You might argue that since fewer students started in Spring, and so fewer will come out in Fall and hence lesser competition in the job market at that time; but believe me that is certainly not the case cause very few companies are hiring during that period.
-And last but definitely not the least, fall is also the time when most stores here have what they advertise as "back to school sales". You can get some really good deals during these sales on various school essentials like laptops, school supplies, etc.
So fellas, plan all your preparation so that you start in the Fall semester. Yes people still do join in in the spring semester, and they still get jobs, but why make it any more difficult than it already is??
HOW TO calculate my GPA if my school does not follow grading system
Lots of international students stumble upon this section of the application process, and then have no idea what to do. Many countries in the world have schools that do not follow the US grading system and insted have a percentage and marks out of 100 system. Most of us get on google and start searching for "how to calculate GPA??". But here's the deal. You don't have to in most cases. Most universities in US know that a large majority of schools around the world follow the aggregate percentage based system, and not the letter-grade system followed by the US schools. And so most of them allow you to enter your aggregate percentage for the 8 semesters in the GPA box, just put a percentage sign (%) after the number. BUT, the keyword here is "most". Not all of them are quite happy with percentages, and in that case, you will have to somehow work out your GPA, which I will explain shortly.
But before that, shoot your school an email and ask them if percentages instead of GPA are ok. Most schools would mention it on their app forms, but some do not. And by sending them an email, you can make sure and not regret having wasted time/money on sending an incomplete application.
Anyways, so here is how GPA or the Grade Point Average system works and is calculated using your percentage based marksheets. Before you can calculate GPA, you should know how many credits each course you take is worth.
Now it is imperative you understand what these credits mean. A 4 credit-hour course (aka 4-credits) generally means that you would attend 4 hours of classes for this course per week. The cost of taking this course is also determined by the number of credits its worth. And, before you can you graduate from a US school, you need a certain number of credits in total. So you see how all of this adds up. A Master''s degree might be worth 32 credits. That simply means you have to take course whose total credits would add up to 32, and then and only then would you be awarded the Master's degree.
Anyways, a 4 credit course would cost you 4 * cost per credit for your school. This cost per credit hour varies vastly from one school to another. And remember, the cost for graduate and undergraduate credits is also different. Graduate credits are more expensive.
Moving further, once you know the credits your courses are worth, this is how you calculate your GPA:
Let's say in the 1st semester, you took two courses, P (a 3 credit course) and Q (a 4 credit course).
Now suppose your total score (which is a combination of your homeworks, programs, project work etc) at the end of the semester for P is 89% and Q is 93%. Generally the following grades are awarded (the cut-offs vary from one school to another or from professor to professor):-
Overall Score Letter Grade GPA
> 90 A 4.0
85-90 A- 3.77
80-85 B+ 3.44
75-80 B 3.11
70-75 B- 2.78
65-70 C 2.45
you don't want to get any lower than this anyways :)
So, you scored 89% in P (grade A-) and 93% in Q (grade A). Here is what your GPA for the 1st semester (also known as CGPA: Cumulative GPA) will be:-
CGPA after 1 semester ==
3.77 * credits_for_P + 4 * credits_for_Q
-----------------------------------------
total credits taken (=7 for sem 1)
And that's the formula you should use for calculating your GPA for every semester of your BE, and then take an average. Simple, right? But again, for this to work you need to know the letter grades and what range of scores they correspond to.
But before that, shoot your school an email and ask them if percentages instead of GPA are ok. Most schools would mention it on their app forms, but some do not. And by sending them an email, you can make sure and not regret having wasted time/money on sending an incomplete application.
Anyways, so here is how GPA or the Grade Point Average system works and is calculated using your percentage based marksheets. Before you can calculate GPA, you should know how many credits each course you take is worth.
Now it is imperative you understand what these credits mean. A 4 credit-hour course (aka 4-credits) generally means that you would attend 4 hours of classes for this course per week. The cost of taking this course is also determined by the number of credits its worth. And, before you can you graduate from a US school, you need a certain number of credits in total. So you see how all of this adds up. A Master''s degree might be worth 32 credits. That simply means you have to take course whose total credits would add up to 32, and then and only then would you be awarded the Master's degree.
Anyways, a 4 credit course would cost you 4 * cost per credit for your school. This cost per credit hour varies vastly from one school to another. And remember, the cost for graduate and undergraduate credits is also different. Graduate credits are more expensive.
Moving further, once you know the credits your courses are worth, this is how you calculate your GPA:
Let's say in the 1st semester, you took two courses, P (a 3 credit course) and Q (a 4 credit course).
Now suppose your total score (which is a combination of your homeworks, programs, project work etc) at the end of the semester for P is 89% and Q is 93%. Generally the following grades are awarded (the cut-offs vary from one school to another or from professor to professor):-
Overall Score Letter Grade GPA
> 90 A 4.0
85-90 A- 3.77
80-85 B+ 3.44
75-80 B 3.11
70-75 B- 2.78
65-70 C 2.45
you don't want to get any lower than this anyways :)
So, you scored 89% in P (grade A-) and 93% in Q (grade A). Here is what your GPA for the 1st semester (also known as CGPA: Cumulative GPA) will be:-
CGPA after 1 semester ==
3.77 * credits_for_P + 4 * credits_for_Q
-----------------------------------------
total credits taken (=7 for sem 1)
And that's the formula you should use for calculating your GPA for every semester of your BE, and then take an average. Simple, right? But again, for this to work you need to know the letter grades and what range of scores they correspond to.
HOW TO prepare for GRE exam, coaching centers, etc.
Planning for your GRE preparation can be as daunting as the preparation itself. Questions like where do I start, how much time should I spend each day and how early should I start, hit us at some point in time. I think what GRE really requires is consistent study for a considerable period of time. Starting early might give you an edge. But even if you are say 3 months away from your d-day, a consistent plan to spend a fixed number of hours, depending on what your schedule and capacity allows, every day might just be the key.
Most of us prepare for our GRE while we are in college or working. College or a new job can take up most of your time. It is thus imperative to plan ahead of time. You must know beforehand how many hours a day can you devote to your preparation. And even more important is to stick to that schedule. I don't think their is any disagreement in how spending 3 hours every day for say 3 months is way more beneficial that spending 12 each day for 10 days before the exam date. Moreover, it can be tedious and boring to study for the GRE. Even more difficult is to keep the course, to stick to your schedule.
And this is where the coaching centers might be helpful. Now this might vary from one person to another, and I know a lot of people who can chart out a study schedule and really stick to it for months; but if you are an average Joe like I, coaching centers can really help you in the critical preparation phase of you GRE. The main benefits are that these guys do all the homework on what material is current, so you are spending your time on only on the right material, something that a person preparing on his own may not be doing. Then, you will not be wasting hours fishing for GRE preparation materials on the internet like so many other students. And with weekend classes that most of them offer, it is easier to stick to the preparation schedule. Most places also have a test every other week, which by the way I feel is the best way to prepare for GRE, that tells you where you stand amongst the other students in your class. While you should not allow a low rank in your class bother you too much, you should still use it to see where you stand and how you should modify your preparation plan to improve your rankings.
On my last trip back home, I had a chance to meet some students who were preparing for the GRE. These guys had formed a study group, and it was kind of working for them pretty well. They downloaded tests, and then took them together on their computers in a same room, basically to simulate the actual GRE center environment. And one of them said that when you are taking a test with two other students in the same room, it kind of replicates the same feeling of competition (by all means, healthy), and nervousness that you will encounter when you take the actual GRE. So that was one idea I liked and wanted to share with your guys.
The other craze I see among some students preparing for GRE is stacking up on all sorts of material. I know of students who've spent 1000s on stacking up their book shelves with GRE preparation books like Barron's, Kaplan's, Big book and what not. But seriously guys, do you think you can really cover 3 or more books effectively. I am of the school of thought that if you did even one book, cover to cover, and like really absorbed it, it should be more than enough. Claims like the GRE exam has more words from book A compared to book B are crap. Drawing of words on your GRE exam is a totally random process. So the point is, while it is good to have a variety of material, please do not spend too much time gathering too much material, and ending up with only little time to cover this material.
The last important thing for your preparation is to not compare your preparation habits with other. While it is important to know what methodology worked for others, you and only you can decide what will work for you. My friend does a whole word list in a day, I have to do that too. WRONG, please never think that way. Realize that every person has a different capacity. It is very important to know how much your brain can absorb in a day, and trying to exceed that just because someone else seems to be doing that might not be useful. It is your GRE preparation, and you should approach it the way that is best for you.
Most of us prepare for our GRE while we are in college or working. College or a new job can take up most of your time. It is thus imperative to plan ahead of time. You must know beforehand how many hours a day can you devote to your preparation. And even more important is to stick to that schedule. I don't think their is any disagreement in how spending 3 hours every day for say 3 months is way more beneficial that spending 12 each day for 10 days before the exam date. Moreover, it can be tedious and boring to study for the GRE. Even more difficult is to keep the course, to stick to your schedule.
And this is where the coaching centers might be helpful. Now this might vary from one person to another, and I know a lot of people who can chart out a study schedule and really stick to it for months; but if you are an average Joe like I, coaching centers can really help you in the critical preparation phase of you GRE. The main benefits are that these guys do all the homework on what material is current, so you are spending your time on only on the right material, something that a person preparing on his own may not be doing. Then, you will not be wasting hours fishing for GRE preparation materials on the internet like so many other students. And with weekend classes that most of them offer, it is easier to stick to the preparation schedule. Most places also have a test every other week, which by the way I feel is the best way to prepare for GRE, that tells you where you stand amongst the other students in your class. While you should not allow a low rank in your class bother you too much, you should still use it to see where you stand and how you should modify your preparation plan to improve your rankings.
On my last trip back home, I had a chance to meet some students who were preparing for the GRE. These guys had formed a study group, and it was kind of working for them pretty well. They downloaded tests, and then took them together on their computers in a same room, basically to simulate the actual GRE center environment. And one of them said that when you are taking a test with two other students in the same room, it kind of replicates the same feeling of competition (by all means, healthy), and nervousness that you will encounter when you take the actual GRE. So that was one idea I liked and wanted to share with your guys.
The other craze I see among some students preparing for GRE is stacking up on all sorts of material. I know of students who've spent 1000s on stacking up their book shelves with GRE preparation books like Barron's, Kaplan's, Big book and what not. But seriously guys, do you think you can really cover 3 or more books effectively. I am of the school of thought that if you did even one book, cover to cover, and like really absorbed it, it should be more than enough. Claims like the GRE exam has more words from book A compared to book B are crap. Drawing of words on your GRE exam is a totally random process. So the point is, while it is good to have a variety of material, please do not spend too much time gathering too much material, and ending up with only little time to cover this material.
The last important thing for your preparation is to not compare your preparation habits with other. While it is important to know what methodology worked for others, you and only you can decide what will work for you. My friend does a whole word list in a day, I have to do that too. WRONG, please never think that way. Realize that every person has a different capacity. It is very important to know how much your brain can absorb in a day, and trying to exceed that just because someone else seems to be doing that might not be useful. It is your GRE preparation, and you should approach it the way that is best for you.
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