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Studying for GRE's Quant Section

As a broke CNA and a mother of a rambunctious toddler, I've done my absolute best to maximize my time and minimize my costs to study for this godforsaken test. 

Overview

To start any conversation about the GRE, we have to start with the fact that it is an adaptive test. Think of it like a video game. Imagine that Level 1 is the easiest, and Level 2 is the most difficult. The first section you'll do will be a mix of Level 3-4 problems with some Level 2 and Level 5 problems mixed in. The test will see how you do with problems, and it takes into account the levels of said problems. Level 5 questions are harder, but they unlock better score bonuses. Level 1 questions are easier, but they have no bonuses. 

Note that the GRE was updated September 22, 2023. The old version was longer, had more sections, and included breaks.



The new version comes in at a slim two hours and removes a few sections: 


There is one essay, and the quant section is divided into two parts—and so is the verbal reasoning (reading/vocabulary) section. 

Resources


Flip through this practice test to show you what to expect. 

For a good overview of content to assess your weak points, I recommend the GRE Ninja Tutoring course, free on YouTube. This helped me highlight what I needed to study. And in my case, that was all of it. 

Another good resource for an overview of concepts and to help you highlight your weak points is the official GRE Math Review from ETS. If one of the questions does not make sense, and you're looking to review an explanation, take a screenshot and use Google's image search. Someone out there will have completed a detailed explanation. 

I've also made some Knowt cards on what to memorize as there is no formula sheet. 

So, now you know what concepts you need to study. Where can you study them from? I have tried to remain faithful to ETS resources. The ETS Official GRE Quantitative Reasoning Practice Questions book an Appendix A in the back with a fantastic overview of the concepts, a great bang for your buck on time. Note that this book is the first edition—two more have come out in the meantime. However, the only meaningful change of the test is the structure, not the content. This means the concepts and practice questions in this book are still useful. 

If you'd like more for free, Reddit has a very popular post about the GRE Big Book: Practicing to Take the General Test from 1996. 

From there, I'd recommend checking out the official practice tests from the ETS site. It offers two for free! 

Now, if you're looking to spend money on something, I'd shoot for The Official Guide to the GRE. 

If you're broke like me, don't underestimate the power of your public library and torrenting via sites like Library Genesis, as well. At the time of my posting this, LibGen is down, but it comes and goes! Always worth looking into! 

Taking the Test 

Before registering for the test, I recommend applying for a fee reduction. Submitting the application was easy, and the response was within a few business days.

The test can be taken at home or at a formal testing center. When researching which would be best for me, I came across some stories about students whose scores were cancelled after taking it at home. I made the decision to register for an in-person test after learning that because there is no way I will torment myself for two hours just to have said agony count for absolutely nothing. 


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