best source of GRE Prep for Self-Studiers

lalaxton · Mar 20, 2007

I found the Princeton review invaluable. I also bought a book (sorry forget the name) that had many previous GRE exams and just plowed through it. I did very well on the exam.

Good luck!

cormann · Mar 20, 2007

I used the Kaplan books and did very well. However, a few nights before the exam I went to the store and browsed through the Princeton books and they covered types of math questions that weren't even in the Kaplan books. Because of this, I would highly recommend using the Princeton books.

CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Mar 21, 2007

Is Kaplan or Princeton books any good in your opinion? What other good prep materials are there that you all recommend?

I never looked at Princeton. Kaplan was great. Barrons was good. Rue was not-so-good. Check your local library. Mine had a number of books & CD-ROMs that I checked out when prepping for the exam.

Good Luck!

np_wannabe · Mar 21, 2007

I used a Kaplan book that had a CD. It worked well for me.

kangaroo621 · Mar 22, 2007

I used a Princeton book to study for the GRE's...

I also borrowed a few SAT-II English & Math review books (also from Princeton) from my younger cousin who is still in high school. Yes it seems odd, but it was a great review as well -- these were all words/terms/lessons I REALLY should know... and it helped!

I also did a bunch of mini-essay questions (you can find that sort of 5 minute question on a lot of sites -- SAT,GRE,ACT, etc...) that help you get ready for the short-answer section and analytical writing. It helped me to just do a million of these fairly ridiculous questions that always seem so easy until you actually have to sit down and write half a page on them. This helped me a lot -- and you could do them anywhere - on the T going to work, waiting for an appointment, during a few commercial breaks, etc.

Hope this helps... and DON'T let the weird computer format of the GRE's freak you out :chair:

A

FLAgal14 · Mar 22, 2007

I personally like the Princeton book too - they give a lot of tricks for math to make calculations easier, and tips on how to answer verbal questions when you don't recognize one of the words, etc... I also bought the ETS GRE book which has actual older GRE tests in it to practice on.

SteveNNP, MSN, NP · Mar 23, 2007

I just recently took the GRE, and I'd have to say with all the studying I did over the last few months that Princeton Review's "Crash Course for the GRE" and Arco's "30 Days to a Better GRE score" were the most helpful. Both were thin, easily read, and focused more on how to "take" the test than figuring out the answers. By plugging in numbers and formulas I was able to do really well. I would advise you to get Kaplan's Vocabulary flashcard-book (all of these I found at B&N) to brush up on vocab, if it's not you strong point. Keep in mind that most schools do not weigh heavily on the GRE for admissions.

Best of Luck!

Stephen