Monday, November 19, 2012

GRE Diary : Nov 19 2012 : The End!

Edit:
This is an old post. I re-took GRE. You can read about it here - http://ash-sandbox.blogspot.com/2013/05/gre-diary-jan-21-2013-new-beginning.html

Well, I'm not sure whether it's the end or a new beginning. I was so upset during the exam that I wanted to cancel the test midway and get the hell out of there. But I stayed persistent and managed to secure a 315 overall. That's like 1300 in the old scale. It's not bad, but 'not bad' is not what I wanted.

I am sure I got everything correct on my quant section 2, but I couldnt finish section 1 in time. I spent a lot of time inadvertently on a statistics question and therefore had to leave about 3 questions without answering. That brought down my score in quants to 157, which I think is average. Sad thing is, I knew how to answer all of the questions that I left unanswered.

I'm in a dilemma whether I should go ahead with this result and apply for universities or prepare more and take another test for getting in next Spring. Time to call the counselling guys.

Probably this is the last entry in the GRE Diary. Next up, TOEFL!

GRE Not-So-FAQ! Updated Regularly.

Saturday, November 17, 2012

GRE Diary : Nov 18 2012 : Final Day!


Reached Chennai.

The test is gonna be conducted at Everonn Systems, Prometric near Numgambakkam. You can either take two buses, find your way to the centre, search for a hotel, etc. Or you can pay 300 Rs to an auto rickshaw guy who'd take you there and show you around. 250 to get there. I paid him 50 Rs extra for helping me find a nice hotel to stay, 2 kms away from the test centre.

By the way, you wont find the centre if you ask around for Prometric Systems or Lister Labs or Romar House. It took me sometime to find the place. Ask for the office of "Vijay TV". It's in the same building. There is a Taj Hotel close by that would serve as a landmark.

I found a nice hotel, with moderately good rooms. For 1100, you get tiny rooms with dim lighting, bad toilets, etc. I paid 1500 for an AC room, but surprisingly, the AC room I got was bigger, well lit, clean large bathroom, with TV, cupboard, table, chair, etc. And yes, AC too.

After a nice light tasty breakfast from a nearby vegetarian hotel, I've settled down into my bermudas.

Yesterday, I scored 1370 in the mock test, which is an amazing score considering how little time I spent preparing. Gonna concentrate on vocab and essay today. Maybe a couple of mock tests too. After that, I guess I'd be ready for the big day.

GRE Not So Frequently Asked Questions

Thursday, November 15, 2012

GRE Diary : Nov 15 2012 : Two days left!


It was my birthday yesterday. I didn't get to celebrate cos I was studying Book 6. All maths books are done with. (Yeah!!!)
But to my horror, instead of book 8, I found a duplicate of book 7! This shocked me and drove me insane. Another nail to the coffin?
I have mailed the MGRE Prep support and described the situation, asking for an ebook version of the last book. I dont have much hope that they would do this. What a disaster!

Update:
They sent me an ebook version!!! Manhattan guys rock! After the exams, I'm definitely gonna post a review on Amazon for them.

Book 7, Chapter 2.

GRE FAQ and Not So FAQ!

Friday, November 9, 2012

GRE Diary : Nov 10 2012 : One week left!

Passport? Check
Booked bus tickets to Chennai and back? Check
Maths : 5 n half books
Verbal : High frequency words, A, B, V, W, X, Y and Z.

Afterburner is on full power. Gonna take a mock test tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

GRE Diary : Nov 04 2012 : Joined Counselling.


Slowly things are getting tortuous.
As of now, I have somewhat covered the Barron's High Frequency GRE words and A, B and C of the full list. 2 math books remaining.

Joined Princeton Review, Bangalore for GRE counselling. Now have to provide them with the test score so that they can shortlist a few universities for me. Also, I have to draft the documents and get them signed from the university. And I have to shift to a new place in between all this. And prepare for GRE. And TOEFL.

To aspirants who are reading this, learn from my mistake! Apply for a test date in October by August itself.

In case of doubts/suggestions, please leave a comment.

GRE FAQ