Taking the GRE in about a month and a half: advice?

Does anyone know where I can find a list of average GRE scores for various graduate programs in EE or Computer Engineering? I can’t seem to find one. I would really like one that’s free. This way I can kind of tell where I stand once I begin taking practice tests and once I take the real thing.

There are books that have this info for some programs…

I believe its Peterson’s Guide to Graduate Programs in the U.S. or something to that effect. I’m not sure that it is actually Peterson’s, but that’s the name that sticks out in my head. If you have access to a university library this series (and there are several volumes) should be readily available - just ask a reference librarian. I briefly searched the Peterson’s website but found no entries with that specific info. Some of the entries list what percentage of students are supported by what means, which is also helpful info.

Sometimes a professional organization can provide average GRE scores as well. IIRC, American Institute of Physics does that for physics grad programs. Grad schools don’t seem to want to let go of that info.

Ah-ha!

Website better than books. Here is a USNews tool that allows you to search for schools based on your GRE score. In the results of the search, school summaries show the average GRE score of incoming people, so there’s probably a way to search by that too. I’m just too lazy at the moment.

Good luck!

That’s really good info. Thank you.

I found myself wishing I’d studied more vocabulary. I’m a verbally oriented person who reads a lot, but there were times I found myself struggling to figure out a crucial meaning. The verbal section of the GRE is harder than the SAT in that way, so much so that I did ten points worse on it than I did on the math section (which is easier than the SAT version of the same).

Also, make sure you know what the graders will be looking for on the essays. I made the mistake of not bothering to take that angle, since I knew I was a good writer–big mistake. Luckily my personal statement and my scores on the other GRE sections made up for it, but you want everything you can get in your corner just in case.

(Some people have mentioned the Logic section–sadly, that no longer exists. It’s Analytical Writing now. Hooray for subjective grading… mutters)

Okay, so there are essentially 3 sections that are scored(?) :

  1. Verbal Section
  2. Math Section (Quantative)
  3. Analytical Writing

I went to my university library and picked up one of the Princeton Review books they had. It was made specifically for the GRE CAT (Computer Adaptive Test - the one I will be taking) so I thought it would be a good pickup to beginwith, but I guess it does the logic section instead of the writing. I was getting confused as to what sections were on there.

I forgot to say that the book I have is from 1999 so that’s why it still refers to the old format.

You are correct about the sections. Verbal and quant are multiple choice, and the analytical writing consists of two essay-type questions. Taking the computer adaptive test, there is also an experimental section. Unlike other standardized tests, they tell you which section is experimental (for me it was the very last section, don’t know if that’s standard.) Your participation in the experimental section isn’t mandatory, and they are very clear about that in the instructions. Be sure to read the instructions for each section carefully.

Check the official GRE website for the most accurate and up-to-date info on the test material and format. There are also sample writing topics and sample questions for both the verbal and quantitative sections. Really a lot of info there, I highly suggest you make yourself familiar with it!