When to Stop Studying for the GRE
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Studying for the GRE might be one of the hardest things that you’ll ever do. It may even be harder than some of your graduate school classes!
So what happens when you’ve spent months of your time studying for the GRE, invested money in a class or books, put your heart and soul into trying to increase your score… but you still haven’t hit your target? Here’s the uncomfortable truth:
You Might Not Hit Your Goal Score
As an educator, I’m deeply invested in doing whatever I can to help all my students succeed, but I also don’t believe in sugar-coating or building false hope. I know that even with months or years of hard work, not everyone is going to get above a 325.
Personally, I know that if I worked with the best personal trainer in the world for months, I could become significantly stronger and more agile. Unfortunately, no amount of hard work would turn me into an Olympic gymnast. I’m just not built for exceptional (or even above-average) athleticism. At a certain point—despite all the effort I could muster—there would be vanishing returns on the athletic skills I could achieve.
The same is unfortunately true when studying for the GRE: after a certain point, everyone is likely to hit a threshold of vanishing returns, after which all the studying in the world won’t yield a score increase.
You might be thinking, “Wow, this is really discouraging.” (You might also be thinking, “What is she thinking? Shouldn’t she be telling me that I’ll succeed if I just buy more books or resources or tutoring hours?” Absolutely not! My mission is always to do what’s in the best interest of my students, and I would never want anyone to spend time or money on anything that wasn’t going to bring results. Every one of my colleagues would agree.)
But don’t despair yet: here are several reasons why it’s ok to stop studying for the GRE before you hit your goal score.
1. The GRE is not the most important part of your application.
This may be surprising, but it’s true. Graduate schools care about the whole applicant: work history, undergraduate record, hobbies and interests, etc. They want someone who is going to be an all-around asset to the school.
If you have a 336 GRE score, but a low GPA with a resume that shows no initiative or leadership… you’re not going to get into a top school. The GRE score alone won’t get you in. On the other hand, if you have a very impressive resume but a lower GRE score, it’s certainly still possible to get into a top school. Schools can overlook the GRE if they have enough other data points to believe that you’d be an asset.
2. Your time might be better spent improving other parts of your application.
Let’s say that you’ve been studying for the GRE for 4 months, you’ve learned all the content, and your practice exam scores have gone from 308 to 315 to 319 to 321… but they’re not budging from there. You’ve taken the real test twice and gotten a 319, then a 320. Your goal is to get a 325-330.
Option 1: You could spend another 2-4 months grinding away, spending every spare hour studying, in the hopes of bringing your score up a few more points.
Option 2: You could spend that time doing more volunteering, perhaps taking on a leadership position in an organization. You could take an online or extended-learning class in a topic relevant to your program, demonstrating interest and academic prowess. You could help your friend build an app for her new startup. You could write an article and get it published, etc., etc.
A GRE score increase might seem more immediately necessary, because that’s what will be measured directly against other candidates. But I assure you, some version of Option 2 is the much better option: that’s what will make you unique and stand out among the competition! Think about the things you could put on an application that no one else could, then think of ways to accentuate those things.
So How Do I Know When I Should Stop?
Here’s a flowchart of questions to help you decide:
It can be disappointing to let go of a goal before you’ve fully reached it. But if you’ve put earnest, significant effort into your studies and gotten as far as you reasonably can, it’s the prudent decision to ignore the sunk costs and invest your time elsewhere.
Making smart decisions about where to invest your time for maximum payoff is a skill that will serve you well in graduate school and beyond! ?
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Céilidh Erickson is a Manhattan Prep instructor based in Boston, MA. When she tells people that her name is pronounced “kay-lee,” she often gets puzzled looks. Céilidh is a graduate of Princeton University and a master’s candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Tutoring was always the job that brought her the greatest joy and challenge, so she decided to make it her full-time job. Check out Céilidh’s upcoming GRE courses (she scored a 760, so you’re in great hands).