What is Reddit's opinion of Official GRE Super Power Pack?

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Bought these last year for my MSN program but ended up taking the MAT and forgot to return these to Amazon. Highlighted the first two pages of one book, but other than that brand new never used. If anyone wants these, just cover ship and they are yours! Just wanted to offer these here first, otherwise I'm just going to donate them to Goodwill. Also, here's the link from where I got them https://www.amazon.com/Official-GRE-Super-Power-Pack/dp/0071841814/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1531872629&sr=8-16&keywords=ETS+gre+book

I'll second the advice that ETS is closest to the real thing, and everything else will be subjective and potentially unreliable. ETS provides two free full length practice tests, two more for a charge, and a bunch of practice questions in the super power pack (that you can get used for cheap or potentially rent from a library). These should keep you busy for a good long time. For most students, that's enough practice. But really pay attention to those problems, and if you then need more sources, you'll have a good idea of what you're comparing them to. In other words, you'll be able to tell when questions aren't very GRE-like and can pay less attention to those. You'll be better discerning yourself.

What is your budget?

Regardless, first buy the Offical GRE guide and verbal/quant set => https://www.amazon.com/Official-Super-Power-Pack-Test/dp/0071841814

The set will give you a basic intro to the GRE, basic review, and tons of practice problems.

1. Because it or the GMAT is required for any business school worth attending.
2. Whenever you have at least a couple of months to study at least an hour a day. Also before fall application deadlines.
3. https://smile.amazon.com/Official-GRE-Super-Power-Pack/dp/0071841814?sa-no-redirect=1

I finished up with my undergrad at UCF about a year and a half ago. I'm using the Official GRE study guide by ETS I'm looking to take the actual test by the end of the year so I'm planning on spending about six months in prep.

I’m talking about this set: https://www.amazon.com/Official-GRE-Super-Power-Pack/dp/0071841814

Jumping from 160-165 in quant seems well within reach, but 150-160 verbal is a much bigger leap. It's definitely possible, though. What did you struggle the most with?

Memorizing vocab can certainly help. Vocab is often learned in context, though, which is why I recommend reading high level material like the New York Times or The Atlantic. GRE verbal is largely a reading test, so you absolutely have to become a strong reader.

Get the Official GRE Super Power Pack, as the verbal is hands down the best. I'd stick to it exclusively if I were you. There's also old GRE material and Official GMAT material that can be useful, particularly for extra RC practice.

Make sure to study your mistakes. If you get a question wrong, don't move on until you've convinced yourself why you were wrong and why the right answer is right. Take your time and really break down every word in sentences and every sentence in passages. You can work on speed later, but for now you have to feel the anatomy of GRE verbal, really getting behind the questions and answers.

Keep at it, and let us know how things are developing!

Yikes. If it's any comfort, I took the first powerprep and got like a 158 only to get 170 on the test the next day. I too didn't know some of the vocab, but I did on the real thing. So sometimes it can be hit or miss depending on if you know the words. You can also expect a lower score when you're getting used to the format and all.

Still, high scorers can get questions right even when they don't know the vocab, and low scorers tend to get questions wrong even when they do know the vocab. Does this mean learning vocab is a futile exercise? No. It's a necessary evil, but only a small part of your overall preparedness for verbal.

This is because learning the connotations of words is often just as important as learning the dictionary definition. The GRE is designed to trap students who learned the definition of a word but don't understand how it's used. So I wouldn't suggest studying definitions for no more than maybe 10-20% of your verbal study time.

You absolutely need to start reading. And a lot. You've got to make up for lost time! Reading is tremendously important in developing verbal skills like reading comprehension, critical thinking, and vocabulary in context. The idea is that high level sources, like the New York Times or The Atlantic, will use words that you don't know with some regularity. And the more you see words, the better your own idea of them will become.

Practice verbal questions, especially from the official guide, and really study your mistakes. What clues did you miss? Why is your answer wrong? What words didn't you know? What traps did you fall for? If you can work slowly and really answer these kinds of questions, you will see improvement.

Same with quant. Get the official guide and go through the math review. It's not very user friendly, but it gets straight to the point. So if you're stuck, don't move on until you understand the concept. Do practice problems and work slowly, carefully studying your every mistake, and reviewing past problems every day. Improvement can feel laborious, but you should see great gains early! Give it a couple weeks and take the next powerprep and hopefully you'll be much closer to 155 :)

I'm also here to help with any other more specific questions or concerns. Don't hesitate to reach out, even if just to chat!

-Magoosh Student Help

Honestly, everyone's different. Some people need more than others. My general recommendation is to start with a powerprep test to get a feel for it. Then work on the official material for awhile and see how it goes. You'll want to own those materials no matter what.

If you're doing well you might be able to get away with just that stuff. If you're struggling, you might have to look into other options.

Online programs like Magoosh will have recorded lessons for you to watch instead of reading. Then there will be practice problems with explanations and access to real support. But they're more expensive than just books.

What have you been doing so far? How are you feeling about it? Do you have the official material? Do you think you'll need more?

You can expect a pretty sizable jump from your cold scores. Generally you'll get big gains as you start studying, and then you'll plateau a bit. Luckily, though, quant is easier to improve 10 points in than verbal. Quant is fairly linear, in that you can learn concepts and improve your score directly. Learning how to read well is a much less straightforward proposition.

These are the official materials: Official GRE Super Power Pack. You'll want to have those books and know them inside and out. They are as good as it gets, and well worth your time.

Make sure to keep an error log, and pay close attention to the problems you are missing. Why are you getting them wrong? What concepts are you not confident with? What traps are you falling for? This will help you identify and target your weaknesses, to better focus your study time. Don't move to quickly, but keep coming back to those hard problems and concepts, even if you think you know them.

Otherwise, I'm here to help, so feel free to reach out if you can any questions along the way! Seems like you're on a good path, so keep it up.

-Magoosh Student Help

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Hey there!

Best of luck in your studies and your pursuit of admission :)

How long will you need to study for? There is no exact magic number here. Some people can score a 328 cold in their sleep. Others will study for years and never get close to that. I guess what we need is a baseline. So go ahead and a powerprep test, or two, and see how you do. If you're already close to your goal, you might not have to work that long. If you're very far away, it might take awhile.

Luckily, quant is easier to improve than verbal, and progress tends to come quicker. This is because it's pretty linear: today, you might not know exponent laws so you get exponent questions wrong. But then tomorrow you can learn the exponent laws, and no you won't miss those questions anymore. So bit by bit you can just learn what you need to learn. The creative application of concepts, critical thinking, and logical problem solving skills are harder to learn, but it seems like you probably have pretty good intuitions in those areas.

But start with the practice tests and see what your baseline is. Stick to official stuff at first and see how it goes. If you need more you can look to outside sources.

Let us know how things go! I'm here to help.

-Magoosh Student Help