If you’re here, reading this article, you’re most probably about to take a very important exam, your GRE exam. As far as difficulty is concerned, the GRE is one of the most challenging tests you will ever take in your academic career. That is why it is truly essential to take all the necessary measures. And have the best preparation techniques before the pre-established GRE exam date.
One of the most common student’s difficulties when it comes to taking the GRE exams is the stress that comes before the actual exam date. The pre-exam jitters are, most of the time, the elements that sabotage students and prevent them from reaching their full potential during most of the examinations.
Don’t panic. As these things happen a lot, it’s obvious that there are certain techniques and tactics that can be used in order to avoid and deal with pre-exam unpleasant feelings and thoughts.
The way I perceive it, the excellent GRE exam results can be easily obtained if you learn a few important preparation “magic tricks”. These tricks can be learned once, and then used every time an exam is approaching. Let’s take a look at some of these tricks.
Make Use of Flashcards
In order to prepare yourself for the words which may come across on the GRE exam, you can make a selection of the ones which you are less familiar with. Then create flashcards out of them. They are fun to practice with, and you can use them at any time of the day or whenever you have a spare moment to check your knowledge. You can even take it one step further and rely upon or mnemonics or other cues to help you remember the exact meaning of the word.
Take a Practice Exam
One of the best ways to prepare thoroughly for your GRE exam is to actually take one for practice. Taking a practice GRE exam will help you familiarize yourself with the form and the challenges of a real GRE test. However, you will come across questions that will be different than the ones you are practicing with. How else will you know that the test is divided into three different sections, or how much time it takes you to complete each one, or all of them together?
Once you get the results of the practice exam, you will know which sections have been the most challenging for you. And how you can work on improving your knowledge and your performance in those areas where you have been less than brilliant. Another bonus is that you will feel less nervous when the time comes for you to take a real test. It will be something that you are already familiar with, even though you may not know the exact questions in advance.
Go Over the Basics
Another tricky part of your GRE test is its quantitative section. Why? Because, they are pretty much free to ask you anything regarding math, algebra, or geometry. And although you feel confident when it comes to your math skills, when was the last you used some of the basic formulas you learned back in high school? It would be great if you could go back to basics and refresh your knowledge of quadratic equations, plotting functions, or the Pythagorean Theorem. Even those “…for Dummies” article and books can be of great help.
It’s Not All About the Study
If you want to be successful in any situation, you have to have the right mindset and attitude. Even when it comes to the GRE exams, knowing all the necessary information that’s required isn’t going to help you thrive if you’re not confident enough. And it’s not just about confidence. It’s about the way you tackle the situation and how you handle everything.
What do I mean by that? When you have the GRE exam coming, you should not only study but ALSO prepare yourself psychologically. You should cultivate confidence, optimism, and faith. It’s one of the things that most students neglect. It brings them down quite often, without them realizing the reason why.
Having a strong mindset will prevent you from being nervous and losing it while dealing with issues during the time you’re taking the exams, confidence it’s important. It always reminds you that ‘you got this”, and even if some issues come along, you’ll be ready to face them.
Improve Your Writing Skills
Since you will be required to write two different essays during one section of your GRE exam, you could try and work on your writing skills in advance. But, it can take months or even years before your analytical writing is on a level need for your exam.
One awesome source of amazing essays and writing tips is AustralianWritings. If you check out their website, you’ll find some really good examples of successful essays. Pay close attention to the details and the style they’re approaching. After you analyze some of their articles and learn from their writers, you’ll soon notice big improvements in your writing style. And those improvements will definitely help you enhance your writing
Find Your Own Way of Memorizing Information
Each student is different. The learning process can be extremely different even if we compare two role-model students that always do well. If you want to thrive, you must get used to a few specific memorizing techniques. Some will work for you, some won’t. Either way, the moment you find one that’s working, you should focus on it and get used to it.
For example, you can use the Connect & Link memorizing method. It consists of creating association links between the information you have to memorize and certain items you use every day. Another one is about creating visual images about whatever you feel that connects a certain piece of information with certain images. For more memorizing techniques, you can check out this article.
Prepare Your Spirits
Good performances are often influenced by the way you’re taking care of yourself before your GRE exam. There are certain factors that can improve your memory, your performance, and your vibes. First of all, you should never neglect your energy levels by not getting enough sleep. Sleep is very important. A lot of information you memorize gets stacked during your sleeping hours.
Second of all, you should do some physical activity. Besides the fact that it helps your memory, you’ll also gain a lot of energy and good mood if you’re exercising before exams. Third of all, you should make some time and try to relax. Listen to some chill music. Or it can be motivational and inspiring. The main thing here is to get good relaxation and motivation before the stress and efforts you’re about to encounter.
Conclusion
Almost all of the students who do well have some strategies that help them perform better than the average on their GRE. If you wish to accomplish great results, you should pay close attention to all of the “magic tricks” explained in this article. One last piece of advice: find out what works best for you. And then try to emphasize it as much as you can and you’ll do great.
Jessica Freeman is a professional journalist and a freelance content writer from Sydney, Australia. She focuses her content writing on education, business and academic topics.
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