GRE Prep| A Week Before the Exam
The Graduate Record Examination is curated for those who are interested in pursuing an undergraduate or graduate program abroad. Having a good GRE score helps you get into the university and program of your choice. However, achieving a good score on the GRE is not as easy as one might think. It requires rigorous preparation over a period of two or three months or even more. And, after having prepared for the past two or three months, GRE exam-takers are often restless during the week before the exam. Hence, here are some things you can do a week before the GRE.
How to Prepare for the GRE a Week Before the Exam?
A week before the GRE, you ought to relax and revise. Since you have been vigorously preparing for the GRE for the past few months, you need to take it a bit easy a few days before the exam. You can take up various creative activities to keep yourself engaged such as reading a book, painting, sketching, or even journaling. This is also the right time for you to revise your fundamental concepts and vocabulary with the help of flashcards.
During the last week of preparation, focus on relaxing and maintaining a positive attitude. You can also reaffirm yourself to avoid panicking. Additionally, practising deep breathing exercises and pursuing activities that soothe you will help you overcome exam anxiety. You can also incorporate physical activities into your routine such as jogging, walking, swimming, or cycling. This will help you stay energized and feel refreshed and positive.
The last week is also a good time to work on your weaknesses and work on sections you struggle the most with. Having said that, it doesn’t mean you need to cram everything up. Do as much as possible without losing your mind over it. Practice questions that you struggle with. Additionally, you can use this time to practice GRE previous year question papers.
Generally, taking a mock test at the last moment might stress you out more but if you feel you want to give it a go, you can do so. Taking a final mock test will also help you assess how well prepared you are. Simulate the actual test-taking environment when attempting the mock test — stick to the time allotted for each section and put away all your electronic devices. You can also take the designated breaks in between to familiarise yourself with how the GRE would be conducted.
After having taken your mock test, set some time aside to analyse your performance based on how much time you have taken for each section and if you have exceeded the time limit. You can also use the GRE score calculator — raw scores — to figure out your estimated GRE score. Calculating your GRE scores is rather easy, with each question you answer correctly; your raw score is one. So, if the Quantitative Reasoning section consists of 20 questions and you get them all right, your raw score is 20. You can head over to the official site to find the score chart to convert your raw scores to your scaled scores. However, an important thing to remember is this is an estimated score, so your actual GRE score might slightly vary.
Last but not the least, the key to acing the GRE is to attempt it with a calm mind. So, a day before your exam, stop studying and revising. You can use this time to watch something or relax with your friends or family, this will help you de-stress and rejuvenate yourself.
To conclude, acing the GRE is rather difficult but it is not impossible. With a calm and rational mind, you can do good, but of course your preparation should be done well.
