₦airaland Forum

Scholastica16:
How can you ask a Toad for chair when you see it is already squatting?

I am not a mentor oh. Just helping where I can.

If you are really keen on scholarships then USA, Canada and UK should be in that order.

Canada requires you to first get in touch with faculty and get a response before applying. Good luck with that.

UK, UK, UK. Well, no school will give you any substantial funding to get by there. You can try out the Commonwealth scholarship program but I think the next edition will soon be advertised against Fall of 2018. Look out for it. There are other scholarship bodies in Nigeria that sponsor strictly to UK like NLNG, NITDA, NDDC, SHELL and AGIP. But you would have to find out yourself if your course qualifies you to vie for it.

As for USA, although early bird admissions began this month some schools have varying deadlines most of which end in December (for early bird admissions) and in some schools January. On average, applications can still be made up to even March or April but then funding will be harder there - not impossible.

For obvious reasons I will recommend the USA. While you are doing your research on the schools you may want to apply to fully cognizant of the areas in your field you'd want to major on, try to contact POIs. Read their works and share your thoughts with them. Ask them if they are recruiting for their next research group. If they respond, they may ask you for standardized test scores which you'd have to take and present but the important thing is they can almost help you secure not just the admission you need but funding as well.

It won't be as simplistic as I have presented it here but that should not be a problem considering good things most times come on the path of which many will not take. But if you can focus on the glory ahead, it will be easy to suffer the "cross" and despise the momentary "shame".

Thanks a lot bro. I'll do just that.

GlitteringStar:
IELTS Academic is not acceptable for Express Entry. He should choose TOEFL since he will be applying to both schools in the United States and schools in Canada. Schools in the United States have a preference for TOEFL while Canadian Universities accept both.

Cc: TheExclusive

Thanks a lot @Scholastica16 and @GlitteringStar for your responses.

So i can conlude that TOEFL is the way to go in order to increase admission chances in both US and Canada.

I have also observed that people are placing much emphasis on only GRE. Is test of English no longer compulsory for admission?

Thanks

Scholastica16:
Amandrush, how far? How was it?

I have been hearing that GRE is hard and all the daunting stories... today am now a living withness to it.

I had about 3 weeks to prepare for this exam, which is very crazy because I wrote TOEFl interstice this period. Virtually I used only 2 weeks to prepare. I used Manhathan and little of Kaplan for the preparation.. I was virtually reading 8 to 12hrs daily, very true and crazy. I did couple of tests with manhattan free tests and the power test.

On the day of the test, I was virtually fidgeting because I was completely over loaded.. My head became heavy and kinda constricted. I just believed it to be exam tension. we started little before 10am. the eassy was usual so i just worked it out. the first session was quant, this section was kinda hard but moderate. I managed and finished it leaving 2 questions out. the second section was verbal. it was as if it was the devil himself that set this section. you can read two paragraphs without understanding what the passage is saying.. its well. After that I went for break and came back. this was when I was able to do better because I know I did better.
my scores after everything is 305..

Advice to all that want to take is that you need 2 months or more to prepare for this exam. it is not a walk in the park like other exams you would have taken. please prepare adequately. Am hoping to rewrite by december because my admission is for fall next year.
Also, Pacing can really be a good strategy when working. because with time you can almost sovle everything or anything but that is exactly what GRE wont give you.
God bless you all.
I will take this time and work harder and smarter. I have truely learnt alot about this exam.

TheExclusive:
Thanks a lot @S.cholastica16 and @G.litteringStar for your responses.

So i can conlude that TOEFL is the way to go in order to increase admission chances in both US and Canada.

I have also observed that people are placing much emphasis on only GRE. Is test of English no longer compulsory for admission?

Thanks

It is highly advisable to write English test in order to increase one's chances of getting either RA or TA (especially for schools in the United States). Most Canadian Universities do waive English tests for English speaking countries including Nigeria.

Amandrush:
I have been hearing that GRE is hard and all the daunting stories... today am now a living withness to it.

I had about 3 weeks to prepare for this exam, which is very crazy because I wrote TOEFl interstice this period. Virtually I used only 2 weeks to prepare. I used Manhathan and little of Kaplan for the preparation.. I was virtually reading 8 to 12hrs daily, very true and crazy. I did couple of tests with manhattan free tests and the power test.

Thank you for sharing your test experience.

GlitteringStar:
It is highly advisable to write English tests in order to increase one's chances of getting either RA or TA (especially for schools in the United States). Most Canadian Universities do waive English tests for English speaking countries including Nigeria.

Thanks GlitteringStar.

Please do US and Canadian universities offer Post Graduate Diploma, and what are the requirements?

I have a 2.2 in Industrial Chemistry from a federal university in Nigeria but i want to switch to an engineering course.

And should the case be different, what about Indian universities? Any info if they offer post graduate diploma, and how is there admission like?


Thank you

DanjaNinja:
The GRE is one of the many requirement for Graduate admission in the US, Canada and lots of other developed countries. For Job applications, i think SHL and GMAT are more suitable.

do u know any Gmat center?

Hello @dreManuel thanks for d advice. I will take 2months to revise dn before I register but pls i dont know what u mean by PM. Could u drop ur number so i can call u to collect d matetials or u cam elaborate on that word PM. Thank u so much

My head hurts. No, I am not thinking about the present situation of the country, the recent NNPC scandal, the fact that we have not had light for days, I have just written my GRE exam. After months of on and off and off and on and off and off and off and off and on preparations, I can now call myself GREat. Lol.
Having finally written the GRE, I feel I'm in a position to advise potential test takers. It goes without saying that in order to obtain high scores, one needs to practise. Take as many practice tests as you can and keep working on improving your scores. Infact, the practice tests are coterminous with the actual exams. My experience today proved that. In addition to preparing for the exam, you should also be preparing yourself mentally. You should be googling stuff like "how to keep your brain active for four hours", "How to detect the experimental section in the GRE exam", "How to read 600 word Reading comprehension passages in 2 -3 minutes".
I did not have as adequate a preparation as I had wished. Work was so demanding and I couldn't find the time. Still, I studied whenever I could; on commutes to work reading articles from Aldaily, using the magoosh vocab app, memorising words from a list I had earlier created on quizlet (Studying GRE PRACTICE on Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/202373358/gre-practice-flash-cards/ ) - this was especially helpful as associating words with pictures ensured I remembered them. For the quant, I watched the magoosh videos and skimmed through the Manhattan sets.
Serious preparations however began 2 weeks ago. I digested the whole ETS guide in one weekend and took the practice tests (158Q, 154V). No other material can substitute the ETS official guide in my opinion. That same weekend I took the powerprep and had (158,152) and I was like hay God! Is this my destiny? I hurriedly went through the Manhattan 5lb for quant and princeton review for verbal. In hindsight, I regret the haphazard manner with which i read the Manhattan 5lb. It is another great resource to ensure a good quant score. Took the second powerprep and the free crunchprep test yesterday and was averaging Q162, V158. Na so I close shop. What else could mans do? I was just hoping that ginger go enter my body today which would cause my scores to miraculously shoot up. Lol.
Got to the center and was shown my desk. It was when I sat down that I realised I had not brought any snack. No water. Nothing. And Nairaland people advised me. How could you forget son? It was gonna be a long four hours. I got the VQVQV format. The first Verbal Section no be here o. I was tempted to walkout and go and pick masters form at Unilag. The 2 quant sections on the other hand were not bad at all. I was able to answer most if not all of the questions correctly , at least from my own perspective. Lol. The remaining verbal sections were fair. I did not encounter any strange words. The bulk of my time however was spent trying to decipher those arcane and convoluted RC passages. My advise, tackle the TCs and the SEs first, then the paragraph arguments before dealing with the RCs. That way, you are left with enough time to deal with the RCs.
Reported my scores and was not surprised. I was just hoping for more. Sent to my preselected four schools and left the building to go find food and water.

Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

MasterforceII:
My head hurts. No, I am not thinking about the present situation of the country, the recent NNPC scandal, the fact that we have not had light for days, I have just written my GRE exam. After months of on and off and off and on and off and off and off and off and on preparations, I can now call myself GREat. Lol.
Having finally written the GRE, I feel I'm in a position to advise potential test takers. It goes without saying that in order to obtain high scores, one needs to practise. Take as many practice tests as you can and keep working on improving your scores. Infact, the practice tests are coterminous with the actual exams. My experience today proved that. In addition to preparing for the exam, you should also be preparing yourself mentally. You should be googling stuff like "how to keep your brain active for four hours", "How to detect the experimental section in the GRE exam", "How to read 600 word Reading comprehension passages in 2 -3 minutes".
I did not have as adequate a preparation as I had wished. Work was so demanding and I couldn't find the time. Still, I studied whenever I could; on commutes to work reading articles from Aldaily, using the magoosh vocab app, memorising words from a list I had earlier created on quizlet (Studying GRE PRACTICE on Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/202373358/gre-practice-flash-cards/ ) - this was especially helpful as associating words with pictures ensured I remembered them. For the quant, I watched the magoosh videos and skimmed through the Manhattan sets.
Serious preparations however began 2 weeks ago. I digested the whole ETS guide in one weekend and took the practice tests (158Q, 154V). No other material can substitute the ETS official guide in my opinion. That same weekend I took the powerprep and had (158,152) and I was like hay God! Is this my destiny? I hurriedly went through the Manhattan 5lb for quant and princeton review for verbal. In hindsight, I regret the haphazard manner with which i read the Manhattan 5lb. It is another great resource to ensure a good quant score. Took the second powerprep and the free crunchprep test yesterday and was averaging Q162, V158. Na so I close shop. What else could mans do? I was just hoping that ginger go enter my body today which would cause my scores to miraculously shoot up. Lol.
Got to the center and was shown my desk. It was when I sat down that I realised I had not brought any snack. No water. Nothing. And Nairaland people advised me. How could you forget son? It was gonna be a long four hours. I got the VQVQV format. The first Verbal Section no be here o. I was tempted to walkout and go and pick masters form at Unilag. The 2 quant sections on the other hand were not bad at all. I was able to answer most if not all of the questions correctly , at least from my own perspective. Lol. The remaining verbal sections were fair. I did not encounter any strange words. The bulk of my time however was spent trying to decipher those arcane and convoluted RC passages. My advise, tackle the TCs and the SEs first, then the paragraph arguments before dealing with the RCs. That way, you are left with enough time to deal with the RCs.
Reported my scores and was not surprised. I was just hoping for more. Sent to my preselected four schools and left the building to go find food and water.

Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

congrats bros. Wishing u all the best. Kindly check your pm i want to ask u few questions

MasterforceII:
My head hurts. No, I am not thinking about the present situation of the country, the recent NNPC scandal, the fact that we have not had light for days, I have just written my GRE exam. After months of on and off and off and on and off and off and off and off and on preparations, I can now call myself GREat. Lol.
Having finally written the GRE, I feel I'm in a position to advise potential test takers. It goes without saying that in order to obtain high scores, one needs to practise. Take as many practice tests as you can and keep working on improving your scores. Infact, the practice tests are coterminous with the actual exams. My experience today proved that. In addition to preparing for the exam, you should also be preparing yourself mentally. You should be googling stuff like "how to keep your brain active for four hours", "How to detect the experimental section in the GRE exam", "How to read 600 word Reading comprehension passages in 2 -3 minutes".
I did not have as adequate a preparation as I had wished. Work was so demanding and I couldn't find the time. Still, I studied whenever I could; on commutes to work reading articles from Aldaily, using the magoosh vocab app, memorising words from a list I had earlier created on quizlet (Studying GRE PRACTICE on Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/202373358/gre-practice-flash-cards/ ) - this was especially helpful as associating words with pictures ensured I remembered them. For the quant, I watched the magoosh videos and skimmed through the Manhattan sets.
Serious preparations however began 2 weeks ago. I digested the whole ETS guide in one weekend and took the practice tests (158Q, 154V). No other material can substitute the ETS official guide in my opinion. That same weekend I took the powerprep and had (158,152) and I was like hay God! Is this my destiny? I hurriedly went through the Manhattan 5lb for quant and princeton review for verbal. In hindsight, I regret the haphazard manner with which i read the Manhattan 5lb. It is another great resource to ensure a good quant score. Took the second powerprep and the free crunchprep test yesterday and was averaging Q162, V158. Na so I close shop. What else could mans do? I was just hoping that ginger go enter my body today which would cause my scores to miraculously shoot up. Lol.
Got to the center and was shown my desk. It was when I sat down that I realised I had not brought any snack. No water. Nothing. And Nairaland people advised me. How could you forget son? It was gonna be a long four hours. I got the VQVQV format. The first Verbal Section no be here o. I was tempted to walkout and go and pick masters form at Unilag. The 2 quant sections on the other hand were not bad at all. I was able to answer most if not all of the questions correctly , at least from my own perspective. Lol. The remaining verbal sections were fair. I did not encounter any strange words. The bulk of my time however was spent trying to decipher those arcane and convoluted RC passages. My advise, tackle the TCs and the SEs first, then the paragraph arguments before dealing with the RCs. That way, you are left with enough time to deal with the RCs.
Reported my scores and was not surprised. I was just hoping for more. Sent to my preselected four schools and left the building to go find food and water.

Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

Congratulations bro...
You did great.

paulbets:
Congratulations bro...
You did great.

Thanks bro.

Congrats MasterforceII and Amandrush. I am glad you gave back to the thread and your reported experience will definitely help someone else.

Amandrush, I understand that you want to retake it. My advice will be to attempt more practice tests and less reading except you want to revisit a specific topic that you don't seem to be getting right while practicing.

I will always sue for full-length tests that should start with Kaplan (as it is slightly easier) then should gravitate towards Magoosh/Manhattan/CrunchPrep and finally the PowerPrep II software.

MasterforceII, congrats again and no you would not need to retake the test as you have done very well. Your GPA is also quite strong. Just put out a very well-rounded SOP and quality LORs. You could also try to reach out to POIs in your considered schools armed with your transcript, CV and now the PDF version of your GRE all in one. I am sure you know areas you would like to work on so read about it - and if possible the works of some of the POIs you are considering.

If you can tell them a bit about it; what you understood and how it can be improved and then ask to join their research group - you could be admitted and funded solely on that premise.

Even without that, your profile is strong so try to apply early (that is, before November if possible). I am excited about your chances.

TheExclusive:
Thanks a lot @Scholastica16 and @GlitteringStar for your responses.

So i can conlude that TOEFL is the way to go in order to increase admission chances in both US and Canada.

I have also observed that people are placing much emphasis on only GRE. Is test of English no longer compulsory for admission?

Thanks

GRE is more important but TOEFL etc helps with the things GlitteringStar mentioned.

All the best.

GlitteringStar:
IELTS Academic is not acceptable for Express Entry. He should choose TOEFL since he will be applying to both schools in the United States and schools in Canada. Schools in the United States have a preference for TOEFL while Canadian Universities accept both.

Cc: TheExclusive

Had no idea. Thanks.

Prospective test takers should take note of Computerized full-length tests MasterforceII used and how they closely mirrored what he reproduced on the main day. That is exactly what most of us have been saying.

DanjaNinja:
My GRE Experience: Lessons Learnt - J.

General Tips
#Tip 1: Don’t rely on any one single book.

Each book has its strength and weakness. Combine them all for maximum impact.


#Tip 2: What books do I need?

1. Grubber 2015
2. Barron’s GRE
3. Nova GRE Math Bible
4. Kaplan
5. Princeton Review

#Tip 3: How can I get these books?

[b][color=#990000]UPDATE : January 2017:
As of this moment, the GRE materials have been deleted from both accounts by google due to Copyright violations. Nonetheless, these materials are widely available through a simple google search.

[/color][/b]
If you can afford physical copies of these books – Sweet, go head and buy them all. But If you can’t afford any or you’re a ijebu madam like the lovely,intelligent MsNas or like myself, simply send a blank mail to selfstudy360@gmail.com or selfstudy.version2@gmail.com for soft copies (Pdf’s). #MoneyMustNotWaste

(a) selfstudy360@gmail.com contains:

• Barron's New GRE 19th Edition
• Cracking the GRE 2013
• Gruber's Complete GRE Guide 2012

While

(b) Selfstudy.version2@gmail.com (New*) contains:

• Gruber's Complete GRE Guide (2015)
• Mahanttan Prep - 5* lb. Book of GRE® Practice Problems (2013)
• Nova’s GRE Math Bible (2008)

#Tip 4: When should I take the GRE?

Take the exam at least 4 months before you plan to send your admission applications. That way, if you don’t meet your targeted score (not your portion…Oya say Amen!), you would still have enough time to retake the exam without duress. For example, if the deadline for admission application is September 15th, the ideal time for taking the GRE should be by May. The reason for this is simple: If you don’t meet ur target score, you can retake the GRE by June thereby providing ample time for sending your application. This is not a rule but a suggestion.


#Tip 5: How much time would it take to prepare for the GRE?

Minimum: 2months @ 4-5hours per day.
Note: The number of hours do not really matter, it’s the amount of problem solving skills learnt per unit time that counts. Some people learn quickly while for others, it might take longer to read and understand new concepts. So remember, 4-5hours are just recommendations, whether u spend more or less time – ultimately, it doesn’t matter. What matters is how much u learn and how fast you can correctly answer questions. If it takes u 4-5hours per day to achieve this goal, so be it. If it takes u less time, so be it. If it takes you more time, so be it. No one cares. Ultimately it’s your scores that matters.

#Tip 6: Can I prepare within a month?

Yes u can, but it’s not advisable. You need time to internalize and completely memorizes the GRE strategies.

And lastly,

#Tip 7: Don’t be deceived by your score on POWERPREP II.

You took the sample test on PowerPrep II, you had an average of 160-165, you feel good and cant wait to take the actual test. Truth is Powerprep II does not compare to the actual test. On a scale of one to ten, one being very easy and ten being very difficult, Powerprep is a 4.5 and the actual test is an 8.5. #OkBye

Now for the part you’ve been waiting for: My GRE Experience.

This is a summary of lesson learnt from my personal experience, please feel free to add your insights and contributions. Sharing is caring.

You probably know this already but just to refresh your memory - The GRE is made up of three parts: Analytical writing, Verbal and Quantitative.
1. Analytical Writing
2. Verbal
3. Quantitative

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO ACHIEVE HIGH SCORES.

FOR ANALYTICAL WRITING:

Books and Resources needed for Analytical Writing:
Official GRE Topic List (30%) + Kaplan (60%) + Barron (10%).

(a) Official GRE Topic List: GRE maintains a list of every possible topic that you will find on the actual test date!!!!!! It’s totally legal and you can find the list here:
Pool of Argument Topics: https://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/argument/pool

Pool of Issue Topics: https://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/issue/pool

The list is quite exhaustive: 200 issue task topics and 200 argument task topics. Once you have the list, group the topics into categories and proceed to (b). I believe if u know the possible questions, your chances of success should be up 30%.

(b) Get a copy of Kaplan’s New GRE Premiere and head to the Analytical Writing Section. Read, digest and understand the essay development template for both the issue task and the argument task as discussed on chapter 15 – Chapter 21 (New GRE Premiere - Kaplan 2011-2012 edition. Newer editions should be better). Don’t bother reading anything else on Kaplan, the rest of the book is useless. With the Kaplan template, you can begin to draw up possible responses to each topic category from the GRE topic list that you obtained from the GRE website. That way, on the test day, coming up with responses won’t be all that difficult because you’ve seen it all – abi how una see am?

(c) Get a copy of Barron: While this may not be compulsory, it will help you in paragraph development. Read and understand the “Claim, Grounds and Warrants” development on chapter 6 (Barron’s New GRE 19th Edition).

The last and most important step is to PRACTISE, PRACTISE AND PRACTISE. Practice using the available topics from the GRE list in a timed mode – your practice should mimic the real test. For the GRE, its 30minutes per writing task but for you, its 22 minutes. Why? It’s always better to practice with less time – It makes you stronger.

Practice with POWERPREP writing platform or Notepad to get a feel of the nature of the typing platform. Don’t practice with Microsoft Word.

One Again, PRACTISE AND PRACTISE. It’s ultra-important you do so. You can only write well by constant practice.

My Experience: I didn’t practice enough. Truth be told I practiced only once and the end result was abysmal. I could only manage one sensible paragraph for the issue task – Big Poo. The way time flies when ur messing up is simply amazing. The argument task was much better, I wrote 4 sensible paragraphs –all within 23 minutes.
Score: Surprisingly,I scored a 3 on the writing section. since the total score is the average of both scores, I assume I made a 5 on argument and a 1 on issue…lol..just my opinion.

Generally, Argument tasks are easier than issue tasks – for Argument tasks, an essay or issue with faulty premises is given; your job is to identify and logically explain them while for the Issue writing Task, you have to develop your own argument from scratch. Finding faults is easy (argument task), writing from scratch is less easy (issue essay). But for you reading this right now, a minimum of 4.5/6 should be perfectly achievable. Why? Cos you know every possible topic, you have pre-planned responses and your “hand dey hot” due to constant writing practice.

One last tip: As soon as you are done with a particular section, whether you performed well or not, it’s best to completely ignore that section, it belongs to the past - it doesn’t matter anymore. Whether you did well or not, does not matter and if you believe you didn’t perform well, it still doesn’t matter. Focus completely on the next section – You have seven (7) more sections to deal with and you need a focused, optimistic mindset to proceed successfully. There’s no use crying over spilt milk. [/b]

FOR QUANTITATIVE

Books You Need for Quantitative:

Grubber (25%) + Barron’s (25%) + Nova GRE Math Bible (25%) + Mahanttan (25%).

Do you have to read them all from cover to cover? Not really. Each book has its strength and weakness’s. You want to be prepared for every possibility. Better you write the GRE once than write it twice. Think of the cash - $200. Think of the time spent on preparation – weeks, even months and finally, think of your Goals. So grab does books and study like mad. The end justify the means.

Lesson 1: Study each question category and solve the most difficult questions you can find on that category to re-enforce your understanding of that category.

For example, if you had prepared with Grubber like I did, you will find the data interpretation, graphical and statistical questions difficult. Why? Grubber does not really delve into these sections. Barron in addition with Manhattan and Nova does a better job. So read and understand the underlying principles and skim all books for difficult questions on all topics.
Likewise, if u ignore Grubber’s Data Comparison and algebra strategies, you might not do so well. But then, there are notable exceptions. Individuals with an engineering, mathematical and statistical background would generally do better in the Quantitative section – they’ve been doing these problems for years. Also those with an aptitude for numbers would better. Does that mean those with little mathematically backgrounds would end up with low scores? – Nope. Just read up and practice, you might end up doing better than the so called Math wizards.

The GRE Quantitative consists of two sections made up of 25 questions each. Each section runs for 40minutes – that’s an average of 96 seconds per question – which leads to lesson 2.

Lesson 2: When studying and solving quantitative questions, set a time limit of 50 seconds per question and stick to it. Like previously stated, practicing with less time makes you stronger and faster.

Lesson 3: Solve lots of Quanttitative questions.

Manhanttan and Nova Math Bible offer a huge collection of quality quantitative questions. Solve as much questions as you can on both books. Luckily, if you don’t know the answers, solutions and explanations are provided in both books.

My Experience: I studied solely with grubber. Algebra and data comparison were a walk in the park but “I hear “ween” for Data interpretation/Statistics, Combinations and Graphs. On the actual test, I saw 6 hefty graphical and data interpretation problems and some others I can’t recall @ the moment. Were they super hard? – Not really but “them hard small o”. To answer them, you need to understand the question (30secs), solve for solutions (30-40secs) and compare possible answers (10secs). If u get it wrong, u start all over again. But as you start over, remember Time dey go ooooo!
That’s why you need Lesson 4.


Lesson 4:Someone on this thread advised - if you find any question difficult, simply mark that question and move on to others.. You may return to that question later. Don’t waste time trying to solve one question for over 1 minute, skip and return later. This is so true!.

FOR VERBAL

Books you need: Grubber (90%) + Barron (10%).

Honestly, You can actually survive by using only grubber. The verbal section seems like the easiest section on the GRE but don’t be complacent o! This section is pretty tricky. I remember one particular essay with about seven (7) paragraphs. It was so dense that you could barely understand the content of a single paragraph; It also felt like it was written in another language. It was that difficult.

Also,the verbal section is made up of several subsections all mixed into one. You will find sentence completion (synonyms and antonyms) and essay comprehension all packed into one.
My Experience: I scored a 157/170 – Not bad @ all given that Grubber was the sole book I used. I won’t lie, am an avid reader – I guess that helped. However, if you study the Grubber Verbal Strategies: Latin and Greek Roots, Prefixes and Suffixes; the Most Important/Frequently Used GRE Words and Reading Comprehension Strategies – You should have no problem with the Verbal section. Grubber does an excellent job by building ur vocabulary, teaching new words and providing some interesting strategies for essay comprehension.
There are other books like Princeton Review but since I didn’t use it, I can’t say much about it. This is where external input is advisable. Those who used Princeton, oya speak up.

Final Advice:
Unlike Jamb (wicked people) that provides a single opportunity to write the exam per year, the GRE gives you 5 chances per year to write the exam (better people). But because you can doesn’t mean you should. Prepare well and write it once. A score of 160 per section is totally achievable. Just read and solve a huge collection of difficult questions in a timed mode.

Oya it haff do, una bye bye, I don try.


UPDATE 1: If you had to choose one Book for Quantitative Analysis, Barron's should be it. That Book is the truth. The best GRE Quantitative prep book ever.

UPDATE 2: Added Kaplan New GRE to "selfstudy.version2@gmail.com". If you want a copy of the Kaplan GRE book, send a blank mail to selfstudy.version2@gmail.com" .

Okay so am new on this thread and I want to absorb every experience from page 1 down to 259 (someone should wish me luck) I recently finished my B.Sc and with the way our NYSC dey do gragra make I no waste better time. So happy reading to me. Would catch up with you all soon...

babiepraiz:
Okay so am new on this thread and I want to absorb every experience from page 1 down to 259 (someone should wish me luck) I recently finished my B.Sc and with the way our NYSC dey do gragra make I no waste better time. So happy reading to me. Would catch up with you all soon...

good luck

MasterforceII:
My head hurts. No, I am not thinking about the present situation of the country, the recent NNPC scandal, the fact that we have not had light for days, I have just written my GRE exam. After months of on and off and off and on and off and off and off and off and on preparations, I can now call myself GREat. Lol.
Having finally written the GRE, I feel I'm in a position to advise potential test takers. It goes without saying that in order to obtain high scores, one needs to practise. Take as many practice tests as you can and keep working on improving your scores. Infact, the practice tests are coterminous with the actual exams. My experience today proved that. In addition to preparing for the exam, you should also be preparing yourself mentally. You should be googling stuff like "how to keep your brain active for four hours", "How to detect the experimental section in the GRE exam", "How to read 600 word Reading comprehension passages in 2 -3 minutes".
I did not have as adequate a preparation as I had wished. Work was so demanding and I couldn't find the time. Still, I studied whenever I could; on commutes to work reading articles from Aldaily, using the magoosh vocab app, memorising words from a list I had earlier created on quizlet (Studying GRE PRACTICE on Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/202373358/gre-practice-flash-cards/ ) - this was especially helpful as associating words with pictures ensured I remembered them. For the quant, I watched the magoosh videos and skimmed through the Manhattan sets.
Serious preparations however began 2 weeks ago. I digested the whole ETS guide in one weekend and took the practice tests (158Q, 154V). No other material can substitute the ETS official guide in my opinion. That same weekend I took the powerprep and had (158,152) and I was like hay God! Is this my destiny? I hurriedly went through the Manhattan 5lb for quant and princeton review for verbal. In hindsight, I regret the haphazard manner with which i read the Manhattan 5lb. It is another great resource to ensure a good quant score. Took the second powerprep and the free crunchprep test yesterday and was averaging Q162, V158. Na so I close shop. What else could mans do? I was just hoping that ginger go enter my body today which would cause my scores to miraculously shoot up. Lol.
Got to the center and was shown my desk. It was when I sat down that I realised I had not brought any snack. No water. Nothing. And Nairaland people advised me. How could you forget son? It was gonna be a long four hours. I got the VQVQV format. The first Verbal Section no be here o. I was tempted to walkout and go and pick masters form at Unilag. The 2 quant sections on the other hand were not bad at all. I was able to answer most if not all of the questions correctly , at least from my own perspective. Lol. The remaining verbal sections were fair. I did not encounter any strange words. The bulk of my time however was spent trying to decipher those arcane and convoluted RC passages. My advise, tackle the TCs and the SEs first, then the paragraph arguments before dealing with the RCs. That way, you are left with enough time to deal with the RCs.
Reported my scores and was not surprised. I was just hoping for more. Sent to my preselected four schools and left the building to go find food and water.

Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

I want to write the GMAT exam but searching for where to register for it. Do you have an idea where I can do that? I live in Lagos State. Thanks

DreManuel:
You mean you want to take GRE in November 2017 and have not started preparation by October? Interesting. To be brutally honest, except you are a savant in Maths and the use of English, you likely won't get your desires scores. You may PM me to get some of the materials you seek.

Please DreManuel, I need GRE materials too especially Magoosh videos and Princeton Reviews. Thanks

MasterforceII:
My head hurts. No, I am not thinking about the present situation of the country, the recent NNPC scandal, the fact that we have not had light for days, I have just written my GRE exam. After months of on and off and off and on and off and off and off and off and on preparations, I can now call myself GREat. Lol.
Having finally written the GRE, I feel I'm in a position to advise potential test takers. It goes without saying that in order to obtain high scores, one needs to practise. Take as many practice tests as you can and keep working on improving your scores. Infact, the practice tests are coterminous with the actual exams. My experience today proved that. In addition to preparing for the exam, you should also be preparing yourself mentally. You should be googling stuff like "how to keep your brain active for four hours", "How to detect the experimental section in the GRE exam", "How to read 600 word Reading comprehension passages in 2 -3 minutes".
I did not have as adequate a preparation as I had wished. Work was so demanding and I couldn't find the time. Still, I studied whenever I could; on commutes to work reading articles from Aldaily, using the magoosh vocab app, memorising words from a list I had earlier created on quizlet (Studying GRE PRACTICE on Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/202373358/gre-practice-flash-cards/ ) - this was especially helpful as associating words with pictures ensured I remembered them. For the quant, I watched the magoosh videos and skimmed through the Manhattan sets.
Serious preparations however began 2 weeks ago. I digested the whole ETS guide in one weekend and took the practice tests (158Q, 154V). No other material can substitute the ETS official guide in my opinion. That same weekend I took the powerprep and had (158,152) and I was like hay God! Is this my destiny? I hurriedly went through the Manhattan 5lb for quant and princeton review for verbal. In hindsight, I regret the haphazard manner with which i read the Manhattan 5lb. It is another great resource to ensure a good quant score. Took the second powerprep and the free crunchprep test yesterday and was averaging Q162, V158. Na so I close shop. What else could mans do? I was just hoping that ginger go enter my body today which would cause my scores to miraculously shoot up. Lol.
Got to the center and was shown my desk. It was when I sat down that I realised I had not brought any snack. No water. Nothing. And Nairaland people advised me. How could you forget son? It was gonna be a long four hours. I got the VQVQV format. The first Verbal Section no be here o. I was tempted to walkout and go and pick masters form at Unilag. The 2 quant sections on the other hand were not bad at all. I was able to answer most if not all of the questions correctly , at least from my own perspective. Lol. The remaining verbal sections were fair. I did not encounter any strange words. The bulk of my time however was spent trying to decipher those arcane and convoluted RC passages. My advise, tackle the TCs and the SEs first, then the paragraph arguments before dealing with the RCs. That way, you are left with enough time to deal with the RCs.
Reported my scores and was not surprised. I was just hoping for more. Sent to my preselected four schools and left the building to go find food and water.

Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

Congrats those are really nice scores

MasterforceII:
My head hurts. No, I am not thinking about the present situation of the country, the recent NNPC scandal, the fact that we have not had light for days, I have just written my GRE exam. After months of on and off and off and on and off and off and off and off and on preparations, I can now call myself GREat. Lol.
Having finally written the GRE, I feel I'm in a position to advise potential test takers. It goes without saying that in order to obtain high scores, one needs to practise. Take as many practice tests as you can and keep working on improving your scores. Infact, the practice tests are coterminous with the actual exams. My experience today proved that. In addition to preparing for the exam, you should also be preparing yourself mentally. You should be googling stuff like "how to keep your brain active for four hours", "How to detect the experimental section in the GRE exam", "How to read 600 word Reading comprehension passages in 2 -3 minutes".
I did not have as adequate a preparation as I had wished. Work was so demanding and I couldn't find the time. Still, I studied whenever I could; on commutes to work reading articles from Aldaily, using the magoosh vocab app, memorising words from a list I had earlier created on quizlet (Studying GRE PRACTICE on Quizlet: https://quizlet.com/202373358/gre-practice-flash-cards/ ) - this was especially helpful as associating words with pictures ensured I remembered them. For the quant, I watched the magoosh videos and skimmed through the Manhattan sets.
Serious preparations however began 2 weeks ago. I digested the whole ETS guide in one weekend and took the practice tests (158Q, 154V). No other material can substitute the ETS official guide in my opinion. That same weekend I took the powerprep and had (158,152) and I was like hay God! Is this my destiny? I hurriedly went through the Manhattan 5lb for quant and princeton review for verbal. In hindsight, I regret the haphazard manner with which i read the Manhattan 5lb. It is another great resource to ensure a good quant score. Took the second powerprep and the free crunchprep test yesterday and was averaging Q162, V158. Na so I close shop. What else could mans do? I was just hoping that ginger go enter my body today which would cause my scores to miraculously shoot up. Lol.
Got to the center and was shown my desk. It was when I sat down that I realised I had not brought any snack. No water. Nothing. And Nairaland people advised me. How could you forget son? It was gonna be a long four hours. I got the VQVQV format. The first Verbal Section no be here o. I was tempted to walkout and go and pick masters form at Unilag. The 2 quant sections on the other hand were not bad at all. I was able to answer most if not all of the questions correctly , at least from my own perspective. Lol. The remaining verbal sections were fair. I did not encounter any strange words. The bulk of my time however was spent trying to decipher those arcane and convoluted RC passages. My advise, tackle the TCs and the SEs first, then the paragraph arguments before dealing with the RCs. That way, you are left with enough time to deal with the RCs.
Reported my scores and was not surprised. I was just hoping for more. Sent to my preselected four schools and left the building to go find food and water.

Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

Please can you send me Princeton review to my mail obiusvwede@yahoo.co.uk ? I am writing in few weeks. Congrats ooo.. Nice scores

Thanks so much Scholastica. Means a lot to me coming from you. I hope my scores and GPA are good enough for the schools I have selected. I feel I'm being a tad ambitious sending scores to the likes of Georgia Tech and Michigan State but I know anything is possible if you believe. Right now, I am working on the other parts of my applications - preparing for TOEFL and writing my SOP- and should start rolling out applications by next month as unfortunately, I am not armed with my transcript at the moment. In the interim, I plan to instigate correspondence with prospective supervisors in the schools I have shortlisted after careful study of their papers. I hope this pans out well. Thanks once again.

Scholastica16:
Congrats MasterforceII and Amandrush. I am glad you gave back to the thread and your reported experience will definitely help someone else.

Amandrush, I understand that you want to retake it. My advice will be to attempt more practice tests and less reading except you want to revisit a specific topic that you don't seem to be getting right while practicing.

I will always sue for full-length tests that should start with Kaplan (as it is slightly easier) then should gravitate towards Magoosh/Manhattan/CrunchPrep and finally the PowerPrep II software.

MasterforceII, congrats again and no you would not need to retake the test as you have done very well. Your GPA is also quite strong. Just put out a very well-rounded SOP and quality LORs. You could also try to reach out to POIs in your considered schools armed with your transcript, CV and now the PDF version of your GRE all in one. I am sure you know areas you would like to work on so read about it - and if possible the works of some of the POIs you are considering.

If you can tell them a bit about it; what you understood and how it can be improved and then ask to join their research group - you could be admitted and funded solely on that premise.

Even without that, your profile is strong so try to apply early (that is, before November if possible). I am excited about your chances.

Secrets11:
I want to write the GMAT exam but searching for where to register for it. Do you have an idea where I can do that? I live in Lagos State. Thanks

Hello. I think you can register at BYMafit. Their office is somewhere in ikeja or you can visit their site at http://www.gregmattoeflnigeria.com I registered for my GRE with them. They are credible and reliable.

Goodluck

Epithet:
Congrats those are really nice scores

Thank you so much.

Vwederian:
Please can you send me Princeton review to my mail obiusvwede@yahoo.co.uk ? I am writing in few weeks. Congrats ooo.. Nice scores

Thanks so much. I have sent the Princeton Review to your mail. What other materials are you preparing with. Few weeks don't seem so far from now o. Take practice tests after practice tests. You'll be fine. Cheers.

MasterforceII:
Hello. I think you can register at BYMafit. Their office is somewhere in ikeja or you can visit their site at http://www.gregmattoeflnigeria.com I registered for my GRE with them. They are credible and reliable.

Goodluck

Thank you bro

ladivaswt:
Hello @dreManuel thanks for d advice. I will take 2months to revise dn before I register but pls i dont know what u mean by PM. Could u drop ur number so i can call u to collect d matetials or u cam elaborate on that word PM. Thank u so much

Sorry I can't drop my number here. PM means Private Message. Otherwise, you could drop your e-mail address here. Once I acknowledge, you can take off your e-mail address.

MasterforceII:
Profile:
CGPA: 3.64/4.00 (WES unofficial score)
GRE Score: 321
Quant: 163
Verbal: 158
AW: Check back in 2 weeks.
Applying for MS Electrical Engineering. #fall2018

This thread really helped a lot and it's only fair that i repay by giving an account of my GRE experience so that prospective test takers may glean from it one or two stuff like I did from reading others' experiences on here. I don't think I would be rewriting the exam. I don't think I can subject myself to that amount of mental drudgery again. Schools will have to accept me with that score whether they like it or not. Lol

Nice! Thanks for sharing your experience. #TeamFall2018