Culver-Stockton College is helping students interested in furthering their education by offering an introduction to the Graduate Record Examinations.  Otherwise known as the GRE, the informational session was held on Sep. 13, 2018 in Johann 303.

Dr. Melissa Holt, an assistant professor in Psychology, facilitated the meeting.

The cost of the GRE is $205 for the general test. The general test is the one most graduate schools require, but some may recommend a subject GRE. There are a total of three sections on the test: verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and analytical writing.  The closest test site to C-SC is at Truman State University in Kirksville, Mo.

There are many different resources a student can access in order to study. The library offers practice tests, and through the library’s website a student can access the Educational Training Service (ETS), another way to practice for the GRE, along with various other tests including the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), and the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT). The ETS website offers up to two free attempts at a practice test, as well as various other forms of official practice material. Some other materials that were mentioned include Magoosh, Kaplan, and Khan Academy.

“Don’t over study the things you know,” said Emily Blackden, a senior Psychology Pre-Occupational Therapy major. Blackden has already taken the GRE and is graduating this May. “Focus on the things you need to learn.”

Most of the score comes automatically from the test, and if the test-taker decides that the score is not as high as it could be, it is possible to retake the test. In order to retake the test, however, the student must wait a three-week period – 21 days – before taking the test again. The score range is between 130 and 170, down from the previous 200 to 800.

“I’ve been studying periodically throughout the summer,” commented Sarah Sparrow, a senior double major in English and Psychology. Sparrow is planning to take her GRE in October.

Not only juniors and seniors came to the meeting. The crowd had a few sophomores in the seats, interested in getting a head-start for their advanced academic careers.

Naomi Mosley, a sophomore Business and Political Science double major attended the GRE meeting in hopes to possibly getting ahead in preparedness.

“It was very beneficial,” Mosley said about the meeting. “It made me realize that I should probably start studying and thinking about grad school sooner than the end of my junior year.”

Mosley hopes to take the exam in the spring break of her junior year.

It is best to set aside quite a bit of time in order to study for an entrance exam that one may have to take. The test takes anywhere between four to five hours, and a recommended tip is to practice anywhere from 20 minutes a day or perhaps set aside an hour a week to study. For students needing further information about the GRE, Holt would be another possible resource.

“It’s kind of like a mind game,” Blackden said, “you have to just be ready to prepare for it. A lot of it you already know how to do, like writing. You just have to be confident.”