<p>I apologize if this is the wrong thread. I was just curious if anyone had any advice for this test. Currently I am a freshman in college, and I want to start off on the right path. By my senior year I hope to make a score in the 90+ percentile. I know the only way to adequately prepare is to take the right classes and do well in them. So my question is: Can anyone list the classes I should take, if I want to achieve a score in that range? Also any other advice is greatly appreciated, such as is there anything else I should do while taking the classes to be better prepared?</p>
<p>If you are in engineering or math and some of the other sciences, don't bother. You oughta score near 800. If you are an engineer or math and you score 700, then you could be in trouble.</p>
<p>Yeah...the GRE really isn't about what math courses you take in college, to be honest. I'm teaching GRE test prep stuff, which requires you to score in the 90th percentile anyway...and just so you know, an 800 on Quantitative only yields the 94th percentile. </p>
<p>I was an English/Spanish major in college and took one calc course my freshman year and one phil/stat course my senior year. Even two years removed from my last math course, the GRE Quant wasn't that tough. If you're gonna be an engineer or something, you should score close to 800 anyway; grad programs will basically expect that. The Quant section is the same level (Algebra) as the SAT. It's the Verbal section that's much harder.</p>
<p>It's good you're already thinking about how to get where you want to go. Don't worry about this test for another year or two, though. Enjoy college.</p>
<p>He is referring to the subject exam.</p>
<p>You need to take Single variable calc (differentiation and integration), vector calculus (know how to integrate, take the gradient of, curl, etc of vector valued functions) and differential equations. It wouldn't hurt to take a probability course as well. Then of course you must take an abstract algebra course (groups, rings, fields, all that jazz). You probably also should take a point set topology course, a real analysis course and a complex analysis course if you want to score a 90%. They also ask some misc. math questions, like counting problems and sometimes they ask some stats problems.</p>
<p>Just tackle as many problems as possible from the aforementioned topics. And most of all, don't make it your priority. If you do well in those courses, you should do fine on the GRE Math. You should focus more on mastering the material. Everything else will take care of itself if that happens.</p>
<p>One thing I'd add is that speed is really the big issue. It's not just about knowing calculus (and half of the exam is calculus); it's about being able to do the problems very quickly without making mistakes. The questions from the more advanced material (abstract algebra, number theory, complex analysis, topology, etc.) actually tend to be pretty easy; they're trying to screen for people who've never encountered the concepts. Everyone taking the exam has had calculus, though, so the calc questions are a bit trickier and offer opportunities to fall into traps. I concur with the above posters that it's not just about what classes you've had. I've taken classes in every single subject covered on the GRE-- and lots more to boot-- and I failed (twice!) to make the 90th percentile. My advice would be to work lots of practice problems under simulated time pressure.</p>
<p>Thanks for your reply's, yeah I was referring to the subject exam. Sorry if I wasn't to clear. I appreciate your advice SBU and Holomorph. Yeah I am more interested in making the math classes my top priority than the GRE subject test. I was just curious which math classes I should make my priority and put my focus on, so I could score well on the Math GRE. So for the classes that you guys mentioned, do you think the time spent on those classes as an undergrad is enough, or will I have to add supplemental material? For example the supplemental material could count as doing extra problems, or going a little more in depth in the topic than you do in class. I usually try and do extra problems on my homework, to get a better understanding, is there any other advice you guys have, that you found helpful when taking math classes (e.g. what worked and what didn't). Thanks!</p>
<p>I'm a CS major who is seriously contemplating giving the thing a shot.</p>
<p>I've never had an advanced math course (I'm in linear algebra right now, and I had cal-based probability and statistics) and I've done fairly well on the practice Math GREs.</p>
<p>Whenever I take a new practice test (there are several floating around online / in libraries, etc.) and I come across some question from an area I don't know about, I'll check out a book on it and skim over it.</p>
<p>I've done (very casually) like 4 practice tests (at least) and the last one I did I finished under time and with all but 2 right (first try, mind you). So I'm going to keep looking for more, and maybe work through a few more upper level books... algebra, analysis, etc.</p>
<p>You should be much better off if you're a math major the whole way through. Then all you'll have to do is pay close attention in class and you'll have way more practice than me...</p>
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I'm a CS major who is seriously contemplating giving the thing a shot.
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<p>Do CS grad schools require the math subject test? I'm confused as to what you're contemplating and why.</p>
<p>Some good advice in this thread. Something that I THINK would have helped me (had I done it) is tutoring calculus during my sophomore/junior years to keep my calculus fresh. When I took the GRE during my senior year my calculus had gotten quite stale, and I felt like a fool being able to do most of the "higher math" problems with ease yet only knowing how to do 3/4 of the calculus problems.</p>
<p>Why are you shooting for 90th percentile?</p>
<p>No, CS grad schools don't require it. I'm thinking about applying to a few nice Math programs, though, and it would be nice to show them I know a thing or two about math into the bargain.</p>
<p>I'm practicing for the CS one, too.</p>
<p>Hmmm I am dreading the GRE [math sophomore here]. I am particularly prone to liking the most abstract kinds of math, and all indications say the subject test ain't my cup of tea. Suggestions on what I should do? Just get prep books and take 2000 tests?</p>
<p>@Fetton</p>
<p>I am hoping to teach at university level one day. I've talked to a lot of my math professors and asked them how they did on it, and many of them told me they scored in the 95th percentile, and higher. There advice was similar to some of the earlier posters. They said you don't really have to study for the subject test itself, but do well in the classes instead. I think scoring in the 90+ percentile is a great feat, and a goal worth going for. If I don't get in that score range, and I give it my BEST, then I will still be happy. It's pretty much just a target I'm trying to hit by the time I get there =)</p>
<p>I mean, at the end of the day, the math GRE is just like any other standardized test, right? You just have to go in confident and don't panic. Don't cram the night before, and don't think too hard about how you're doing. Being nervous will kill your score on any of these big tests.</p>
<p>i was nervous when i was taking the exam this month… i never feel nervous when i take the exam… except this time… maybe because my mind kept telling me this was gonna be my last time to take the exam before i applied for grad school… and after the exam, i lost confidence…</p>
<p>refer to mathematicsgre.com ( dedicated website for subject GRE math test - which is a difficult exam. and you are unlikely to be able to finish all 66 questions</p>
<p>The best way to prepare your the exam is to take it a few times and try to remember the questions after the test. They recycle A LOT of questions, so you should probably have at least 5-10 questions that you’ve already seen, when you take it for real. This will have a huge impact on your score, especially if you are aiming for 90%+. If you cancel your scores after the exam, there will be no trace that you’ve ever taken it.</p>
<p>This is my advice, because I took the exam twice (October and November). I had the typical condescending attitude towards the exam as a European, so I studied like 4 days for the first exam and got around 70%. I decided I needed to retake it and studied a few weeks and got a high 90%. I had 3 questions from the October exam on my November exam and it probably saved me at least 5-7 minutes, so I could answer maybe two more questions.</p>