Standardized Exams

By far the most commonly used test for graduate admission is the Graduate Record Examination, or the GRE.

The GRE General Test measures verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, critical thinking, and analytical writing skills that have been acquired over a long period of time and that are not related to any specific field of study. The GRE Subject Tests gauge undergraduate achievement in eight specific fields of study. Find out more about and register for the GRE on the GRE Web site.

Some programs place a high importance on GRE scores, while others do not, or consider some sections of the exam more important than others. Thus a humanities program might not care as much about your quantitative reasoning score as about your verbal reasoning score, while the reverse might be true for a program in the sciences.

Test Preparation
To the extent that you can, find out how the programs of your choice treat standardized test scores. Investigate what tests your program requires for admission, and what the average score of incoming students are. Do take your standardized test preparation very seriously (many students underprepare!), and consider taking a prep course with a company such as Kaplan or the Princeton Review.