GRE 2020 Exam - Dates, Registration, Fee, Test Format, Eligibility

Candidates wanting to pursue graduate studies abroad are required to qualify their Graduate Record Examinations (GRE). Candidates are required to check with their university admission guidelines and accordingly start preparing for the test. Candidates can check out the latest GRE Syllabus and the GRE Exam Pattern below.

More than 1,200 business schools around the world accept the GRE scores, including top-ranked MBA programs according to The Financial Times, U.S. News & World Report, and Bloomberg Businessweek along with a handful of US law schools accept GRE scores. In this article, we are going to talk about each and every aspect related to the GRE Exam. Candidates looking to appear for their GRE examination will learn about the following GRE Topics:

Two test formats

GRE exam has two test formats - GRE General Test and GRE Subject Test. The GRE syllabus is different for each.

  • GRE General Test: General Test is the standard exam that tests students’ verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and analytical writing skills.
  • GRE Subject Test: For more specific courses a Subject Test might be required by the college, as Subject Test focuses on judging the candidate’s expertise in specific fields.

What are the Skills Tested in GRE?

Starting October 2020, ETS has raised the GRE® General Test Fee from US $205 to US $213. Candidates registering from India after October 7, 2020, would be required to pay the new GRE Registration Fee of US $213. All other fees including changing of GRE Test Centre and Rescheduling of the GRE exam remain unchanged.

  • Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA)
  • Quantitative Reasoning
  • Verbal Reasoning

GRE Syllabus for General Test

Here is the GRE exam syllabus covering writing syllabus, verbal reasoning syllabus, and Math syllabus:

Analytical Writing

The analytical writing section aims to measure the test taker's ability to articulate complex ideas clearly and effectively, support ideas with relevant reasons and examples, examine claims and accompanying evidence, sustain a well-focused, coherent discussion and control the elements of standard written English.

Verbal Reasoning

The verbal reasoning section aims to measure the test taker's ability to analyze and draw conclusions from the discourse, reason from incomplete data, identify author's assumptions and/or perspective, select important points, distinguish major from minor or relevant points, summarize text, understand the structure of a text, understand the meanings of words, sentences and entire texts and understand relationships among words and concepts.

List of topics covered under the verbal section

  • Basic Sentence structure: Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives
  • Verb Tense
  • Idioms & Idiomatic Expressions
  • Pronoun Agreement
  • Subject-Verb Agreement
  • Modifiers
  • Parallelism

Quantitative Reasoning

The quantitative reasoning section aims to measure the test taker's ability to understand quantitative information, interpret and analyze quantitative information, solve problems using mathematical models, and apply basic mathematical skills and elementary mathematical concepts of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, probability, and statistics.

List of topics covered in Quantitative Reasoning

Ratio and proportion

Profit and loss

Simple and compound interest

Speed, distance and time

Permutation & combination

Linear equations

Quadratic equations

Sets Theory

Statistics

Powers and roots

Probability

Pipes, cisterns, work, time

Lines and angles

Triangles

Polygon

Quadrilateral

Circles

Coordinate geometry

Order of operations

Volume and surface area

Percentage

Number properties

GRE Subject Test Syllabus

GRE syllabus for Subject Test consists of the following subjects:

Biology

The test consists of approximately 190 five-choice questions related to Biology. The topics include:

  • Cellular and Molecular Biology
  • Organismal Biology
  • Ecology and Evolution

Chemistry

The test consists of approximately 130 multiple-choice questions related to the four fields into which chemistry has been traditionally divided

  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Inorganic Chemistry
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Physical Chemistry

Literature in English

Each edition of the test consists of approximately 230 questions on poetry, drama, biography, the essay, the short story, the novel, criticism, literary theory and the history of the language.

  • Literary Analysis
  • Identification
  • Cultural and Historical Contexts
  • History and Theory of Literary Criticism

Mathematics

The test consists of approximately 66 multiple-choice questions drawn from courses commonly offered at the undergraduate level.

  • Algebra
  • Calculus
  • Additional Topics

Physics

The test consists of approximately 100 five-choice questions, some of which are grouped in sets and based on such materials as diagrams, graphs, experimental data and descriptions of physical situations.

  • Classical Mechanics
  • Electromagnetism
  • Optics and Wave Phenomena
  • Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics
  • Quantum Mechanics
  • Atomic Physics
  • Special Relativity
  • Laboratory Methods
  • Specialized Topics

Psychology

The test consists of approximately 205 multiple-choice questions. Each question in the test has five options from which the examinee is to select the one option that is the correct or best answer to the question.

  • Biological
  • Cognitive
  • Developmental
  • Social
  • Clinical
  • Measurement/Methodology/Other

GRE Syllabus – General Exam Pattern

Even though one is aware of the GRE Syllabus and knows all the answers, failure to manage time can lead to an incomplete exam. This is where the importance of being familiar with the GRE Exam pattern is of utmost importance. The GRE question paper is divided into three main sections, namely, Analytical Writing, Verbal Reasoning, and Quantitative Reasoning. The total time given to complete the exam is three hours and thirty minutes (3 hours 30 minutes=210 mins) and for computer-based, it is three hours and forty minutes (3 hours 40 minutes= 220 mins).

Test Pattern for Computer-Delivered General GRE

For the computer-based pattern, each of these sections is further divided into two-sub-sections with forty questions in total (Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning). Analytical Writing has only one section that contains two tasks with a time duration of one hour. Apart from these main sections, there are two other variable sections included in the computer-based pattern exam. This section is followed by a ten-minute break after the Quantitative Reasoning part is complete. However, these two variable sections- Unscored and Research section- are not included in the final GRE Scores.

GRE Sections

No. of Sections

Duration

Analytical Writing

1 section- two tasks

60 minutes

Verbal Reasoning

2 section- 40 questions

60 minutes

Quantitative Reasoning

2 section- 40 questions

70 minutes

Unscored

Varies

Varies

Research

Varies

Varies

Test Pattern for Paper-Delivered General GRE

The paper-based exam includes two sub-sections of each of the main categories- Analytical Writing, Verbal and Quantitative Reasoning. Analytical Writing part contains two tasks with a duration of one hour (60 mins). Verbal and Quantitative reasoning each contains two sections and 50 questions with a maximum time limit of 60 and 70 minutes, consequently. The variable sections of Unscored and Research are not included in the paper-based exam.

GRE Sections

No. of Sections

Duration

Analytical Writing

2 sections- 2 tasks

60 minutes

Verbal Reasoning

2 sections- 50 questions

70 minutes

Quantitative Reasoning

2 sections- 50 questions

80 minutes

Unscored

NA

NA

Research

NA

NA

Best Books for GRE Preparation

The costs of studying and preparing for the GRE exam plus the application costs add up to a lot of expenses. If you are taking coaching classes, even then you will need to purchase an official GRE guide and practice tests. So it doesn’t make a difference whether you will be taking coaching classes or you believe in self-studying; you will need to purchase a few resources to practice GRE sections. So here are the best online resources to boost your studies.

GRE POWERPREP II Software - Preparation for the Computer-based GRE revised General Test

Along with the sample questions, strategies and tips, this free software includes two full-length practice tests. They have timed tests, which simulate the test-taking experience including the user-friendly design features like changing answers within a section, as well as an on-screen calculator.

The Official Guide to the GRE revised General Test, Second Edition

The second edition of the official test prep book includes a copy of the POWERPREP II, Software CD along with four complete practice tests, hundreds of test questions, explanations for answers, sample essay responses with user commentary, test-taking strategies and more. This guide is available in print and eBook versions.

FAQs for GRE Syllabus

Still got doubts, check out our most frequently asked questions to clear all your queries on GRE Exam.

What is the math syllabus for GRE?

The Math Syllabus for GRE includes the following: Calculus (50%), Algebra (25%) and Additional Topics (25%).

Is Gre syllabus similar to sat?

Conducted by ETS GRE is an exam for Graduate studies whereas SAT conducted by The College Board is solely for undergraduate studies.

How do I get complete the GRE syllabus and pattern?

Candidates wanting to appear for their GRE can check out our website for the latest GRE Syllabus and GRE Exam Pattern.

Is there any similarity between the GRE syllabus and the GATE syllabus?

While GRE is conducted for students who want to study abroad, the GATE is conducted for admissions to M.E/M.Tech course in Indian Institutes

How much time does it usually take to complete the GRE syllabus?

This depends entirely on the retaining capacity of the candidate. A quick learner would take lesser time to prepare as compared to a comparatively slow learner.

To know about GRE Exam Pattern

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