GRE Resources
The GRE General Test was significantly shortened in September 2023, cutting total length from about 3 hours 45 minutes to under 2 hours. The test still covers the same four areas (Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, Analytical Writing, and experimental sections), and the same underlying skills. This hub covers verbal domains, quant domains, the Analytical Writing Assessment, and typical program-admission score targets.
Domain References
Concept summaries and key formulas for every GRE domain across the two scored sections. Click any practice topic to drill into that topic.
Analytical Writing Assessment
One 30-minute essay task: Analyze an Issue. The old Analyze an Argument task was removed in the September 2023 update. Students now write a single issue essay with a prompt that asks them to take a position and defend it.
AWA is scored on a 0 to 6 scale in half-point increments by a combination of a human reader and an automated e-rater. The two scores are averaged. Most graduate programs care about AWA less than Verbal and Quant, but an unusually low score (below 3.5) can flag the student’s file. Programs in humanities, social sciences, and law care more than STEM programs.
What graders reward
- A clear, specific position taken in the opening paragraph. "I strongly agree with X for the following three reasons" is not elegant, but it works. Ambiguity costs points.
- Specific examples, drawn from any area the student genuinely knows: history, literature, science, current events, personal experience. Fake-sounding examples hurt. Real examples with real names and dates help.
- Organized structure. Graders skim first, read second. A clean structure signals a clean argument, even before they read closely.
- Varied sentence structure. Writing that alternates short and long sentences scores higher than writing that runs everything together or chops everything short.
- Addressing a counterargument. Even one sentence acknowledging a reasonable objection and then refuting it moves a 4.0 essay toward a 5.0.
A template that consistently scores 4.5 or higher
- Paragraph 1 (Introduction, 3 to 5 sentences). State the prompt in different words, state the position clearly, preview the two or three main reasons.
- Paragraph 2 (First reason, 5 to 7 sentences). State the strongest reason. Support with one specific, concrete example. Explain how the example supports the reason.
- Paragraph 3 (Second reason, 5 to 7 sentences). Same structure. A second reason with a second specific example.
- Paragraph 4 (Counterargument and response, 4 to 5 sentences). Acknowledge the strongest objection to the position. Respond with one sentence of refutation or qualification.
- Paragraph 5 (Conclusion, 3 to 4 sentences). Restate the position. State the stakes or implication briefly. Do not introduce new reasons.
Scoring targets by program
- 4.0 is a common target floor for most graduate programs. Below this, AWA becomes a question mark on the file.
- 4.5 clears the bar comfortably for most STEM PhD and professional programs.
- 5.0 or higher is competitive for selective humanities and social-science PhD programs, law (though most law students take the LSAT instead), and MBA programs that weight writing.
- 5.5 and 6.0 are unusual and require both strong writing and polished mechanics. These scores rarely become the deciding factor on their own, but they reinforce a strong verbal reader.
Test Day Prep
Test format and structure
The GRE General Test is delivered as a computer-based test either at a testing center or at home through ProctorU. The shortened format has one section of AWA followed by two sections each of Verbal and Quant, for a total of around 1 hour 58 minutes including a 10-minute break after the third section.
- The test is section-adaptive: the difficulty of your student’s second Verbal section depends on performance on the first Verbal section, and the same is true for Quant. Getting to a harder second section raises the ceiling on the scaled score.
- Within each section, questions are not further adaptive. Students can flag questions, move between questions, and change answers until section time runs out.
- Experimental or research sections from older GRE formats are no longer included in the shortened test.
At-home testing logistics
At-home testing through ProctorU is a convenient option but has strict requirements that cause disqualifications when students do not prepare. Students should:
- Run the system check at least 24 hours before the test. The check verifies camera, microphone, bandwidth, and browser compatibility.
- Clear the testing room of notebooks, phones, unused electronics, and food or drink (except a clear water bottle without a label).
- Have valid government-issued photo ID ready. The name on the ID must exactly match the name the student registered with.
- Use an approved whiteboard and dry-erase marker for scratch work. Paper scratch is not allowed in the home environment.
- Expect a proctor room scan before the test begins. The proctor will ask the student to rotate the camera 360 degrees to verify the space.
At a testing center
- Arrive 30 minutes before the scheduled start. Centers process IDs and seat assignments in order of arrival.
- Bring photo ID. Nothing else is allowed into the testing room. Phones, watches, hats, and extra layers of clothing stay in the locker.
- The center provides scratch paper and pencils. A single laminated note sheet is sometimes offered; the rules vary slightly by center.
- The break after the third section is the only scheduled break. Use it. Walk, drink water, reset.
Program Targets
Typical GRE targets for the most common program types. Real targets should be calibrated to the specific programs on your student’s list (most programs publish median admitted-student scores on their admissions pages).
| Program type | Typical Verbal | Typical Quant | Typical AWA |
|---|
| Top engineering or CS PhD | 155+ | 166+ | 4.0+ |
| Top humanities or social science PhD | 163+ | 155+ | 5.0+ |
| Top natural-sciences PhD (bio, chem, physics) | 158+ | 164+ | 4.0+ |
| Competitive MBA (where GRE is accepted) | 158+ | 160+ | 4.5+ |
| Mid-tier master’s | 150+ | 152+ | 3.5+ |
| Professional master’s (e.g., MPH, MSW) | 152+ | 150+ | 4.0+ |
Program-specific lookups will ship with the College Counseling dashboard in Phase 11. For now, check each program’s admissions page directly for published percentile or median statistics.
How programs actually read GRE scores
Most graduate programs use GRE scores as one data point in a holistic review. A few rough patterns worth knowing:
- Quant-heavy programs (engineering, CS, mathematics, quantitative social sciences) read Quant scores hard. A Quant score below 160 becomes a real headwind even when the rest of the file is strong.
- Verbal-heavy programs (English, comparative literature, classics, philosophy) read Verbal and AWA hard and are often more forgiving on Quant.
- Interdisciplinary programs (public policy, international relations, public health) look for balance. Neither section should be a liability.
- Fit and recommendations consistently outweigh GRE at the margin. A 165 Quant does not overcome a weak statement of purpose or thin letters. A strong rest-of-file can survive an average GRE.
learningwithsruthı