A common question asked by most students planning on taking the GRE is, what is the full form of GRE? The GRE exam full form stands for Graduate Record Examinations. Conducted by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), this examination is a computer-based test where your skills are evaluated based on multiple-choice questions. Moreover, the GRE scores are accepted by many business and graduate schools all over the world. The scores of the GRE provide business and graduate schools with benchmarks for assessing your eligibility and preparedness for graduate-level academic studies. To be precise, GRE is your gateway to a top-notch educational institution for fulfilling your academic goals.
Now that you know what the GRE full form is and who conducts this exam, let’s delve a little deeper. Mentioned below is some general information regarding the GRE exam, which will help you understand how to prepare for it if you are planning to attempt it.
Eligibility Criteria For the GRE
Officially, there is no such specific criteria to be eligible for attempting the GRE. You only need to focus on securing a good GRE score to meet the score requirements of the programs at the institutes you are aiming to apply for. Additionally, there is no minimum cut-off score for taking the exam.
There is also no age bar under the eligibility criteria of the GRE. Moreover, there are no specified criteria in terms of academic qualification when taking the GRE, as the ETS itself does not offer any course. Additionally, applicants across nations can appear for the GRE.
However, your academic credentials will count at the time of applying for a particular course at a specific institute. The courses which generally accept students based on GRE scores are Masters programs or specialised Masters programs in MBA, business, law, or doctoral studies.
Centres for the GRE
You can appear for the GRE from a registered centre in your own city or at any other nearby location if there aren’t any test centres where you stay. Of late, the test centres are abiding by the safety norms as a preventive measure against COVID-19. In the wake of the current situation, you can also take the GRE at home from your computer with a human proctor as an invigilator.
Fee Structure Of the GRE
The GRE exam fee is USD 213 in India, which approximately amounts to INR 15,800. The fee does not differ whether you apply for the exam online or through a test centre.
GRE Exam Structure
The GRE General Test is divided into three sections: Analytical Writing, Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning.
- Analytical Writing
The Analytical Writing section assesses your ability to communicate critical ideas with clarity and conviction. You will be assessed in terms of how you analyse a given situation.
- Verbal Reasoning
The Verbal Reasoning section evaluates your skills to examine and draw inferences from a particular discourse, be it deducing from incomplete data, understanding an author’s intent and comprehending multiple layers of meaning, summarising texts, and so on. This section has three question types —Reading Comprehension, Sentence Equivalence and Text Completion.
- Quantitative Reasoning
The Quantitative Reasoning section determines your ability to understand, decode and analyse quantitative data, and solve mathematical problems using basic concepts of arithmetic, algebra, geometry and data analysis.
Mean Scores
The Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning segments are each scored on a scale of 130 to 170. The mean score for Verbal Reasoning is 151, while it is 153 for Quantitative Reasoning. The mean score for the Analytical Writing evaluation is 4.0, marked between 0 to 6 in half-point increments.
The GRE Scores: An Idea
You have to look at the minimum score requirement at the business or the graduate programs you intend to apply to. This will enable you to determine the score baseline that you need to target. To adopt a competitive outlook and reach your target score, you might have to research the mean GRE score of the previously admitted candidates.
Additional Information On The GRE
- The most comprehensive website for the GRE is ets.org, where you can register online to take the examination. The official website of ETS keeps you up-to-date with the relevant information and announcements regarding the examination.
- You should register for the GRE at the earliest so you can choose a date that will give the ETS sufficient time to process your scores and send them to the programs under the institutes you will be applying to. This entire process can take between 10 to 15 days.
- The exam duration is approximately 4 hours with an optional break of in and around 12 minutes.
- Your GRE score is valid for five years from the date you take the exam.
- After you pay the registration fee, the ETS allows you to choose up to four schools where you can send your score reports for free.
Conclusion
Getting a decent score in the GRE can be a reality if you adopt a systematic approach and follow the right study resources to prepare for the exam.
CareerLabs offers systematic preparation with highly experienced faculty, scientific and pragmatic techniques, offline and online modes of learning vis-a-vis flip class model, doubt clearing sessions whenever required, and a state-of-the-art Diagnostic Toolkit Software for achieving accuracy. You can learn extensively from over 150 hours of video lectures, 3500 practice questions, and 50 hours of flip classes. CareerLabs, with its exhaustive GRE content, prepares you to achieve the highest possible scores in your first attempt.
FAQs
1.What is the full form of GRE?
The full form of the GRE exam is Graduate Record Examination.
2.What is the highest I can score in the GRE exam?
The highest possible score in the GRE exam is 340 and the lowest possible score is 260
3.What are the mean scores for GRE Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning?
The mean scores for GRE Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning are 151 and 153 respectively.