<p>I took a free paper and pencil Kaplan practice GRE and my scores were roughly what I expected them to be given that I have been out of school for so many years and that I knew almost nothing about the GRE.</p>
<p>My thoughts concerning that practice test (Math/28 questions/45 minutes + Verbal/30 questions/30 minutes) is that the problems in the Math section were ridiculously easy (If I remember correctly, easier than the math problems in the SAT) but in spite of the fact that I found them ridiculously easy I still did not 'ace' the test, which I interpret to mean that my unfamiliarity with the test caused me some confusion at first and also that with practice I could probably easily improve my performance on the Math section of the GRE.</p>
<p>What I want to know if is the free practice test I took is a good representative of what the actual GRE is like.</p>
<p>The paper-and-pencil practice is nothing like the present GRE, which is computer adaptive testing. On my paper-and-pencil tests with Kaplan (timed), I got a 600 verbal, 760 math. I was very happy. I studied like that for two weeks thinking I’d ace the math.</p>
<p>Then I took the computer adaptive test. OMG, is pretty much all I can say. Started out 660 verbal, 560 math, and slowly inched up to something vaguely more respectable. Math is hard because if you mess up, it gives you more and more questions requiring more and more computation and less pure math knowledge, slowing you down more. Anyway, that’s how it worked for me although some people I know insist that is not how the algorithm works.</p>
<p>I strongly suggest you take Princeton Review’s or Kaplan’s free online CAT to get an idea of what your score will be like. In my opinion, the CATs were much better predictors of my actual score. Better yet, go ahead and buy the book. It’s just $30 which is nothing compared to the cost of the actual test, and well worth it.</p>
<p>I tried several different books when I was studying for the GRE and used both the paper and online practice tests. However, I found the free software from the ETS GRE site to be the best/most accurate predictor of my score on the real test.</p>
<p>Agreed. I think computer adaptive test takers need to really focus on getting those first 7-10 questions right, the main basis of the score rely on those first crucial questions. I took ETS power prep test and got a 770 on math and that’s what I got exactly on the actual test. Verbal not so good (550?), but its was still similar to the power prep score. When I tried to some practice tests from Kaplan, the verbal was skewed to almost as high as 690 and the math was as low as 670.</p>
<p>Powerprep is pretty accurate, but I give this piece of warning:don’t take the powerprep tests until a few days before your test. If you end up taking powerprep a bunch of times, you’ll see repeat questions and it will skew your score. For example, after taking powerprep practice test 2 for the third time, I got an 800 V, 720 Q. I got a 720 V 670 Q on the real test. Just don’t let yourself take it too many times because its hard to get a test without repeats after the first or second time.</p>
<p>If you buy the Kaplan, PP or PR books, with access to free practice tests, you will not get repeat questions within the eight or so CATs that they make available to you.</p>
<p>I did, however, have two math questions in the real test that were EXACTLY the same as in my Kaplan practice tests.</p>
<p>When will you be taking the GRE? Since the GRE will experience a number changes, the practice tests you’re taking may not be as helpful as you think.</p>
<p>OK. Here’s a good thread on how others have done on practice tests vs. real GRE. You will notice that the PowerPrep scores are a great indicator on how people will do on the real GRE.</p>