90 day gre study plan

8/11/2019 90 Day GRE Study Plan

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90 Day GRE Study Plan (Verbal Focused)BY MIKE ON MARCH 5, 2012 IN STUDY GUIDES AND PLANS

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OK, you are starting more or less from scratch, and you want to prepare for the GRE in 90

days. You need a strategic plan to organize yourself. I designed four different versions of

the 90 Day Plan, and I need you to start with a little self-diagnosis. Which sounds most like

you?

90 Day GRE Study Plan for Beginners : Help! Math and verbal both scare the living

bejeebers out of me! I need all the help and support I can get! Help!

90 Day GRE Study Plan (Math Focused) : I have a natural affinity with the verbal, but the

math is far less intuitive for me. I would like to focus more there.

90 Day GRE Study Plan (Verbal Focused): Me a math nerd. Me think all math easy.

Me have big verbal problems. One day, me will talk good.

90 Day GRE Study Plan for Advanced Students : I actually feel reasonably comfortable with

math & verbal; if I took the test today, Id get around 310 -320 combined score. Im

interested in refining my understanding and getting into the 320s region in the next twelve

weeks.

90 Day GRE Study Plan (Verbal Focused)

Essential Materials:

Magoosh GRE Prep ETSs Official Guide to the GRE book (+ our free video explanations )
http://magoosh.com/gre/author/mikemcgarry/http://magoosh.com/gre/author/mikemcgarry/http://magoosh.com/gre/author/mikemcgarry/http://magoosh.com/gre/category/study-guides-and-plans/http://magoosh.com/gre/category/study-guides-and-plans/http://magoosh.com/gre/category/study-guides-and-plans/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-for-beginners/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-for-beginners/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-math-focused/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-math-focused/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-for-advanced-students/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-for-advanced-students/http://gre.magoosh.com/http://gre.magoosh.com/http://www.amazon.com/Official-Guide-Revised-General-Edition/dp/007179123X/ref=dp_ob_title_bkhttp://www.amazon.com/Official-Guide-Revised-General-Edition/dp/007179123X/ref=dp_ob_title_bkhttp://www.amazon.com/Official-Guide-Revised-General-Edition/dp/007179123X/ref=dp_ob_title_bkhttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-official-guidehttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-official-guidehttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-official-guidehttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-official-guidehttp://www.amazon.com/Official-Guide-Revised-General-Edition/dp/007179123X/ref=dp_ob_title_bkhttp://gre.magoosh.com/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-for-advanced-students/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-math-focused/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-for-beginners/http://magoosh.com/gre/category/study-guides-and-plans/http://magoosh.com/gre/author/mikemcgarry/


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ETSs PowerPrep Software : If you are a Mac user that cant use ETSs Poweprep, or would

prefer to take the practice test on paper, you can print out ETSs practice test PDF ( with

video explanations here ) . Take note that the Poweprep software and the paper-based test

have overlapping material, so it wont be of much help to do both, unless you space them

out far enough so that you wont recognize the questions and answers! I recommend using

the Poweprep software if you can, since taking the test on a computer is a better simulation

of exam day conditions.

Volumes 7 & 8 of the Manhattan GRE books . Its an eight -volume set, so if you want extra

math practice, feel free to buy some of the other volumes. Volumes 7 & 8 are used in this

plan. One other purpose of getting these books is to get the code in the back, to register

and get access to six GRE tests online.

Magooshs online GRE Flash cards . Theyre free and you can use them on the web, on

your iPhone/iPad or Android . Subscribe to the Sunday New York Times (NYT), online or print Reading material: this may be any non-fiction scholarly book , history and social science

preferable. You may also choose one of the recommended magazines : Scientific

American , Atlantic Monthly , The New Yorker , National Geographic , The Economist . You are

reading (a) to build your reading comprehension skills, (b) to refine your understanding of

grammar and usage, and (c) to expand your vocabulary.

a journal or notebook (yes, a physical hard copy item) Notecards

Supplemental/Optional Materials:

Any of the steps listed in the schedule for the materials below are purely for extra practice,

so they are to be done as optional tasks if you have extra time.

Novas GRE Math Prep Course : there is essentially no instruction in this book and the

explanations are horrible: we only recommend this as a bank of challenging math problems.

Any one volume of the Manhattan GRE books . Its an eight -volume set, so buy as much as

you think will help you and as you can afford. One of the purposes of getting one book is to

get the code in the back, to register and get access to six GRE tests online.

McGraw- Hills Conquering the New GRE Math : this book is for those struggling with the very

basics of math, folks who are sheer panic over almost anything mathematical. If you are

following this plan, youre probably pretty confident in your math skills, so Id recommend

this book only if youre really desperate for some extra practice material.

Quizlet.com : gives you online access to flashcards, making it easier, say, to quiz yourself on

your mobile device
http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/powerprep2/downloadhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/powerprep2/downloadhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/powerprep2/downloadhttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-paper-testhttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-paper-testhttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-paper-testhttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-paper-testhttp://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://gre.magoosh.com/flashcardshttp://gre.magoosh.com/flashcardshttp://gre.magoosh.com/flashcardshttps://itunes.apple.com/us/app/magoosh/gre-vocabulary-flashcards/id672962658https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/magoosh/gre-vocabulary-flashcards/id672962658https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/magoosh/gre-vocabulary-flashcards/id672962658https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magoosh.flashcards.grehttps://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magoosh.flashcards.grehttps://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magoosh.flashcards.grehttp://nytimes.com/http://nytimes.com/http://nytimes.com/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/gre-vocabulary-books-recommended-fiction-and-non-fiction/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/gre-vocabulary-books-recommended-fiction-and-non-fiction/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/gre-vocabulary-books-recommended-fiction-and-non-fiction/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/vocabulary-in-context-the-new-york-times-the-economist-the-atlantic-monthly-and-the-new-yorker/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/vocabulary-in-context-the-new-york-times-the-economist-the-atlantic-monthly-and-the-new-yorker/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/vocabulary-in-context-the-new-york-times-the-economist-the-atlantic-monthly-and-the-new-yorker/http://www.scientificamerican.com/http://www.scientificamerican.com/http://www.scientificamerican.com/http://www.scientificamerican.com/http://www.theatlantic.com/http://www.theatlantic.com/http://www.theatlantic.com/http://www.newyorker.com/http://www.newyorker.com/http://www.newyorker.com/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://economist.com/http://economist.com/http://economist.com/http://www.amazon.com/GRE-Math-Prep-Course-Novas/dp/1889057592/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346108685&sr=1-1&keywords=NOVA+math+GREhttp://www.amazon.com/GRE-Math-Prep-Course-Novas/dp/1889057592/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346108685&sr=1-1&keywords=NOVA+math+GREhttp://www.amazon.com/GRE-Math-Prep-Course-Novas/dp/1889057592/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346108685&sr=1-1&keywords=NOVA+math+GREhttp://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/mcgraw-hill%e2%80%99s-conquering-the-new-gre-math-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/mcgraw-hill%e2%80%99s-conquering-the-new-gre-math-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/mcgraw-hill%e2%80%99s-conquering-the-new-gre-math-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/mcgraw-hill%e2%80%99s-conquering-the-new-gre-math-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/mcgraw-hill%e2%80%99s-conquering-the-new-gre-math-book-review/http://quizlet.com/subject/gre/http://quizlet.com/subject/gre/http://quizlet.com/subject/gre/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/mcgraw-hill%e2%80%99s-conquering-the-new-gre-math-book-review/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://www.amazon.com/GRE-Math-Prep-Course-Novas/dp/1889057592/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346108685&sr=1-1&keywords=NOVA+math+GREhttp://economist.com/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://www.newyorker.com/http://www.theatlantic.com/http://www.scientificamerican.com/http://www.scientificamerican.com/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/vocabulary-in-context-the-new-york-times-the-economist-the-atlantic-monthly-and-the-new-yorker/http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/gre-vocabulary-books-recommended-fiction-and-non-fiction/http://nytimes.com/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magoosh.flashcards.grehttps://itunes.apple.com/us/app/magoosh/gre-vocabulary-flashcards/id672962658http://gre.magoosh.com/flashcardshttp://magoosh.com/gre/2012/manhattan-gre-book-review/http://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-paper-testhttp://gre.magoosh.com/videos-for-revised-gre-paper-testhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/powerprep2/download


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WordSmart : very basic level 1 definition of words with simple sentences Dictionary.com : very good example sentences with definition Wordnik.com : provides a flood of example sentences Word Dynamo (Dictionary.com) : give you little quizzes & games to add some variety to

vocab learning Magoosh iPhone/Android app, for mobile practice

A note on learning GRE vocabulary : first of all, its important not only to learn the literal

dictionary definition (the denotation), but also to understand the metaphorical use of the

word in context (the connotation). For example, the word opaque literally means not

transparent, but metaphorically it can means hard to understand or, describing a person,

it can mean thick -headed, stupid. Ultimately, you should strive to learn both the

denotation and the connotation of each word.

Daily review of vocab is vital. I wrote this schedule recommending the Magooshs GREFlashcards, but DO NOT limit yourself to just these words. AS YOU READ and find more

words you dont know, look them up, make flash cards (including context), and make your

own flashcard decks. You could have one pile for words whose denotation you are trying to

master, another containing words for which you know the denotation but not the

connotation, and a done stack that gets reviewed only rarely.

A note on the prep books: Dont write in any of the test prep books, because for any of

them, after a period of time you may want to go back and do a problem again that you

havent seen for a while. You can only start it fresh if the page is free of your marks.

This 90-day plan is demands a manageable pace that must be followed diligently so things

dont get out of hand. Its designed to have you improve as much as you can improve in a

three month period. I have designed twelve weeks, assuming 1-2 hours for each of the five

weekdays, and one 4- 5 stint on the weekend (Day Six). If you would prefer to work on

both weekend days, and free up some weeknight time, feel free to make those

changes. Note: Many folks find that each days assignments take 1 -2 hours, although times

to complete them will vary for different students

Also, as much as possible, get enough sleep during this month. REM sleep plays an

important role in encoding long term memory, and in an eight hour period of sleep, the last

hour has the most REM. If you are getting 7 hours/night instead of 8 hours/night, you are

depriving your brain of one of its most powerful systems for learning and

remembering. Caffeine and energy drinks will keep you feeling awake if you dont get
http://www.amazon.com/Word-Smart-Building-Vocabulary-Princeton/dp/0679745890http://www.amazon.com/Word-Smart-Building-Vocabulary-Princeton/dp/0679745890http://dictionary.reference.com/http://dictionary.reference.com/http://www.wordnik.com/http://www.wordnik.com/http://dynamo.dictionary.com/http://dynamo.dictionary.com/http://dynamo.dictionary.com/http://www.wordnik.com/http://dictionary.reference.com/http://www.amazon.com/Word-Smart-Building-Vocabulary-Princeton/dp/0679745890


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enough sleep, but they dont do bupkis to replace the lost opportunity to encode more

information into long term memory.

Week One

Week One, Day One1) Go to http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/about/content/ , and read about the

content of the GRE. Click on and read each sub-heading link.

2) In the Official Guide Guide,

Read Chapter 1, Introducing the GRE revised General Test

Read Chapter 2, GRE Analytic Writing (just the descriptions of the question, not all the

sample material)

Read the introductory few pages of Chapter 3, GRE Verbal Reasoning (everything up to

the sample questions)

Read the introductory few pages of Chapter 4, GRE Quantitative Reasoning (everything up

to the sample questions)

3) In the Official Guide Guide, start skimming the GRE Math Review. Do the first two

exercise sets (Arithmetic & Algebra) and correct your work right away.

4) In Magoosh, watch the following videos

In Verbal : under Text Completion Overview, the first three videos in that section

Week One, Day Two

1) Finish skimming the GRE Math Review in the Official Guide. Do the last two exercise sets

it contains (Geometry & Data Analysis) and check your work right away. If most of that

material is obvious to you, and most of the questions easy, then this plan is the right plan

for you. If more than a couple topics in the Math Review are difficult/confusing for you,

consider whether this plan is the best for you.

2) Download and start reading the Magoosh GRE eBook. Continue reading whenever you

have the time over the course of the next two weeks.

http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/about/content/http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/about/content/http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/about/content/http://magoosh.com/gre/gre-ebook/http://magoosh.com/gre/gre-ebook/http://magoosh.com/gre/gre-ebook/http://magoosh.com/gre/gre-ebook/http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/about/content/


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In Verbal : under Text Completion Overview, the last three videos in that section

NOTE: As you finish each section of lesson videos, take the practice quiz at the end of the

set.

NOTE: I am not assigning you any math videos. You may want to watch a couple of thestrategy summary videos at the ends of sections, simply to verify that you understand

everything covered. As you feel you need brush up on anything mathematical, feel free to

dip into those videos.

4) In Magoosh, set up a practice session by clicking on the Practice link in the header. For

Math, check off all of the subjects that youre comfortable practicing, set the difficulty to

adaptive, the question pool to unanswered, the number of questions, the time to no

limit, and the mode to practice mode.

Narrow your practice to just that subjects youve studied so far. Youll widen the scope of

your practice over the course of your studies.

Do the following problems:

10 Multiple choice math questions

For each Magoosh problem, after you submit your answer, on the next page which tells you

whether you were right or wrong, theres a video solution and below that a text

summary. If you got the question right, skim the text summary to verify you got it right forthe right reason. If you got the question wrong, see if you can figure out for yourself why

the right answer is right. After thinking through it yourself, watch the video, taking notes in

your journal about any concept or any aspect of the question type that was unclear to you

Week One, Day Three


In Verbal : under Sentence Equivalence, the first three videos in that section 2) Download the Magoosh Complete Guide to GRE Vocabulary

Read carefully the section Making Words Stick, about learning vocabulary, and the section

Vocabulary in Context: Articles from Magazines and Newspapers. Skim the rest of the

book to get a sense of the layout and style. As you build vocab through this plan,

periodically go back to this book to verify your understanding and to make connections to
http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/gre-vocabulary-ebook/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/gre-vocabulary-ebook/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/gre-vocabulary-ebook/http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/gre-vocabulary-ebook/


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other words. The more ways you have of remembering a word, the more likely you are to

remember it!

3) In Magoosh, set up a practice session by clicking on the Practice link in the header. For

Math, check off all of the subjects that youre comfortable practicing, set the difficulty to adaptive, the question pool to unanswered, the number of questions, the time to no

limit, and the mode to practice mode.

Narrow your practice to just that subjects youve studied so far. Youll widen the scope of

your practice over the course of your studies.

Do the following problems:


Week One, Day Four


In Verbal : under Sentence Equivalence, the last three videos in that section

2) In Magoosh, do the following problems


Week One, Day Five


In Verbal : under Reading Comprehension, the first four videos in that section

In Verbal: under Paragraph Argument, the first three videos in that section


10 Quantitative comparison math questions

3 Paragraph argument verbal questions

3 Reading comprehension verbal questions


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Week One, Day Six


In AWA: all ten videos

In Verbal: under Paragraph Argument, the last six videos in that section

In Verbal: under Vocabulary, all ten videos

2) Today, you are going to write two essays, half an hour each. You will write two Issue

essays and two Argument essays.

For topics, go to the ETS GRE Issue Pool

( http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/issue/pool ) and the

ETS GRE Argument Pool

( http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/argument/pool ) . Figure

out a way to pick topics at random (maybe you print the lists, cut it into slips of paper, and

choose some at random). Write the essays in a word processing program.

Now that you have these essays, what do you do with them? If you have a friend or mentor

who is a gifted writer, see if they would read the essays for you and critique them. If they

are willing, you can show them the assessment criteria in the Official Guide Guide, and ask

them to follow it. If you cant convince anyone else to read it, you may try posting them on

that same GMAT club forum, and see whether an expert there will critique youressay. Failing either of these options, at least you can set the essays aside, and in a

couple days re- read them with the Official Guide Guides rubric beside you.

Week Two

Week Two, Day One


In Verbal : under Reading Comprehension, up to Difficult Passage I

In Math : under Data Interpretation, all four videos

2) Manhattan GRE Volume 7: Reading Comprehension & Essays

Read Chapter 1
http://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/issue/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/issue/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/issue/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/argument/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/argument/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/argument/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/argument/poolhttp://www.ets.org/gre/revised_general/prepare/analytical_writing/issue/pool


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3) In Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review any previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read

three good-sized article from The Economist , noting grammatical structures. Look up, and

create a flash card for, any words you dont know.



3 Data interpretation questions

Week Two, Day Two


In Verbal : under Reading Comprehension, the last four videos in that section


Read Chapter 2, up to and including Principle #3. Take notes in your journal on any

concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.

3) In Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read




5 Text completion verbal questions

5 Sentence equivalence verbal questions


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Week Two, Day Three


In Verbal : under Text Completion No Shifts, all four videos in that section


Read to the end of Chapter 2, but dont do the Problem Set today. Take notes in your

journal on any concept or perspectiv e or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read

Your chosen reading material (one chapter, or a few articles). Look up, and create a flash

card for, any words you don t know.



Week Two, Day Four


In Verbal : under Text Completion Sentence Shifts, the first three videos in that section


Do the Chapter 2 Problem Set.. Read the full explanation of the answers. Take notes in

your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.

3) In Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go throug h 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read


card for, any words you dont know.



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Week Two, Day Five


In Verbal : under Text Completion Sentence Shifts, up to Multiple Shifts


Re ad Chapter 3 and do the Chapter 3 Problem Set. Read the full explanation of the

answers. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to

you.


flashcards.

4) Read





Week Two, Day Six

1) Today, you are going to write two essays, half an hour each. You will write one Issue

essay and one Argument essay.

For topics, go back to the topics from the ETS Issue Pool & Argument Pool. Again, choosetopics at random. Write the essays in Word.

When done, share the essays with a trusted friend/mentor, or post in the GMAT forum, or

set aside and critique it yourself with the Official Guide Guide rubric in a few days.

2) In the Official Guide Guide:


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a) do the Verbal Reasoning Practice Sets 1-6

b) do the Quantitative Reasoning Practice Sets 1-4

Treat this as a mock GRE. You might even combine it with the two essays, and do

consecutive batches 2-3 set without interruption, to simulate more effectively a real

GRE. Set a timer for the time limits. Here are the time limits to observe:

Official Guide Guide Verbal Reasoning Set 1 = 9 minutes






Official Guide Guide Quantitative Reasoning Set 1 = 22 minutes




After you are done, check all your answers. For any question you got right, skim the

explanation to verify that you got it right for the right reason. For any question you got

wrong, read the explanation thorough, taking notes in your journal on any concepts you

didnt understand and anything about the question format that psyched you out. If you still

cant make sense of the question after read ing the explanation, email us at Magoosh.

If you are doing much better than expected on Verbal, or much worse than expected on

Math, this might be a good time to consider whether you should switch to another version of

the 3-month plan (see explanations of them at the top).

Week Three


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Week Three, Day One


In Verbal : under Text Completion Sentence Shifts, the last three videos in that section


Read Chapter 4 and do the Chapter 4 Problem Set. Read the full explanation of the

answers. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to

you.


flashcards.

4) Read





Week Three, Day Two


In Verbal : under Text Completion Double Blanks, the first three videos in that section


Read Chapter 5, but dont do the Problem Set today. Take notes in your journal on any

concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read





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Week Three, Day Three


In Verbal : under Text Completion Double Blanks, the last two videos in that section

In Verbal : under Text Completion Triple Blanks, the first video in that section


Do the Chapter 5 Problem Set. Read the full explanation of the answers. Read Chapter 6.

Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read






Week Three, Day Four


In Verbal : under Text Completion Triple Blanks, up to One Sentence Triple Blanks

2) Manhattan GRE Volume 7: Reading Comprehension & Essays Read Chapter 7 through the entire discussion of all the ques tions accompanying the Model

Short Passage Revisited. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or

strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.


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4) Read






Week Three, Day Five


In Verbal : under Text Completion Triple Blanks, the last three videos in that section 2) Manhattan GRE Volume 7: Reading Comprehension & Essays

In Ch. 7, read the Model Long Passage Revisited and the following pages of questions &

explanations pertaining to it. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or



flashcards.

4) Read






Week Three, Day Six1) Today, you are going to write four essays, half an hour each. You will write two Issue

essays and two Argument essays.

For topics, go back to the topics from the ETS Issue Pool & Argument Pool. Again, choose

topics at random. Write the essays in Word.


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When done, share the essays with a trusted friend/mentor, or post in the GMAT forum, or

set aside and critique it yourself with the Official Guide Guide rubric in a few days.

Week Four

You have already seen all the Magoosh Verbal videos at this point. In a few weeks, we will

watch them a second time. In the time slot in which you would be watching those videos,

I will have you work on challenging math problems from the NOVAS book.

Week Four, Day One

1) In the NOVAs GRE Prep Course bookDo Problem Set A Substitution & Problem Set B Substitution, Quantitative

comparisons. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

NOTE: The Math in the NOVAS book is very challenging, and therefore serves well as

practice for the mathematically ambitious students preparing for the GRE. The explanations

in the NOVAS book are not that good, and there are flaws in the answer key. If you get

one of these questions wrong, check for any mistake, but if you cant find one, you may be

correct.

The problem sets throughout the book, denoted by capital letters, are in alphabetical order

and are found mostly at the ends of sections.

Also, do all the Nova questions timed . Count the number of problems in a problem set,

multiply that number by 1.75, and round to the nearest whole number: thats the number of

minutes you should give yourself for the problem set.


Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage A. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions.



flashcards.

4) Read


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Week Four, Day Two

1) In the NOVAs GRE Prep Course book

Do Problem Set C Substitution & Problem Set D Defined Functions. Check your answers

as soon as you finish.


Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage B. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions.



flashcards.

4) Read






Week Four, Day Three


Do Problem Set E Number Theory, #1 -20. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


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Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage C. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions

on. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.

3) In Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review your previously learnedflashcards.

4) Read





Week Four, Day Four


Do Problem Set E Number Theory, #21 -39. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage D. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions.



flashcards.

4) Read





Week Four, Day Five


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Do Problem Set F, Quantitative comparisons. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage E. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions.Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read





5 Numeric entry math questions


Week Four, Day Six

1) Today, you are going to take the hard copy practice GRE in the Official Guide Guide,

starting on p. 303.

For the two essay questions, write the essays in a word processing program. These essays

you will either share with a trusted friend or mentor, or post in the online forums asking for

feedback, or critique later with the Official Guide Guide rubric.

As much as possible, try to mimic the GRE conditions. Give yourself relatively short breaks

in between sections. Only eat the kinds of snacks that you are planning to bring to the real

GRE. Note how your sleep the night before affects your work. Note how what you had for

dinner the previous night and what you had to eat earlier that day affects your energy level

and concentration. Write any observations in your journal.


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Week Five

Week Five, Day One


Do Problem Set G, Hard Quantitative comparisons, Problem Set H Hard Quantitativecomparisons,, and Problem Set I Geometry #1 -6. Check your answers as soon as you

finish.


Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage F. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions.

Take notes in you r journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read





Week Five, Day Two


Do Problem Set I, Geometry, #7 -31. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Do Chapter 8 Problem Set, Passage G. When you are done, read thoroughly the solutions.


3) I n Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read




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Week Five, Day Three




Start reading Chapter 9. Read up to and including the discussion of the first question type,

Strengthen the Conclusion. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or



flashcards.

4) Read






Week Five, Day Four




Finish reading Chapter 9, but you dont have to do the Problem Set today. Take notes in

your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


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3) In Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words . Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read





Week Five, Day Five




In Ch. 9, do ASP Practice Problems. Read the full explanation of the answers. Take notes

in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read






Week Five, Day Six


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1) Today, you are going to take your first of the Manhattan GRE practice tests. Take the

whole test, and then read & study the explanations, taking notes on whatever you got

wrong whatever about the concepts or the questions format was unclear.

As much as possible, try to mimic the GRE conditions. Give yourself relatively short breaksin between sections. Only eat the kinds of snacks that you are planning to bring to the real




Week Six

Week Six, Day One


Do Problem Set J, Geometry, Problem Set K Coordinate Geometry, and Problem Set L

Elimination Strategies. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Read approximately the first quarter of Chapter 10, a long chapter; stop at any convenient

stopping point. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats

new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read






Week Six, Day Two



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Do Problem Set M, Inequalities. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Read approximately another quarter of Chapter 10, stopping at any convenient stopping

point. At this point, you should be about halfway through Ch. 10. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read






Week Six, Day Three


Do Problem Set N, Fractions & Decimals. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Read approximately another quarter of Chapter 10, stopping at any convenient stopping

point. At this point, you should be about 75% through Ch. 10. Take notes in your journal

on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read





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Week Six, Day Four


Do Problem Set O Equations. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Finish reading Chapter 10. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or



flashcards.

4) Read






Week Six, Day Five


Do Problem Set P Averages, and #1- 5 of Problem Set Q Ratios & Proportions. Check

your answers as soon as you finish.


Read the introductory pages to Appendix A, everything before the vocab list. Skim that

vocab list. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy that s new

to you.


flashcards.

4) Read


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5 Multiple answer math questions

Week Six, Day Six

1) Today, you are going to take another one of the Manhattan GRE practice tests. Take the








Week Seven

The beginning of this week is the halfway point in the three-month plan, so for the next

three weeks, you watch each of the Magoosh verbal videos a second time.

Week Seven

Week Seven, Day One


In Verbal : under Text Completion Overview, all six videos in that section

2) Manhattan GRE Volume 8: Text Completion & Sentence Equivalence

Read Chapter 1.


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flashcards.

4) Read






Week Seven, Day Two


In Verbal: under Sentence Equivalence, all six videos in that section


Start reading Chapter 2. Read through the section on Pivot Words. Do the Drill:

Sentence Analysis (Clues, Pivots, Fill- Ins). Read the full explanation of the answers. Take

notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.

3) In Mag ooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read






Week Seven, Day Three



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Week Seven, Day Five


In Verbal: under Reading Compression, the last four videos in that section


In Ch. 2, do the Drill: Medium Questions. Read the full explanation of the answers. Take



flashcards.

4) Read





Week Seven, Day Six1) Today, you are going to take another one of the Manhattan GRE practice tests. Take the








Week Eight

Week Eight, Day One


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In Verbal: under Paragraph Argument, the first five videos in that section


In Ch. 2, do the Drill: Hard Questions. Read the full explanation of the answers. Ta kenotes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read







Week Eight, Day Two


In Verbal : under Paragraph Argument, the last four videos in that section


Begin reading Chapter 3. Read the first few pages up to the first drill, and do the Drill:

Sentence Analysis. Read the full explanation of the answers. Then read the sections up to

the second drill, and do the Drill: Answer Choice Analysis. Read the full explanation of the

answers. Take notes in your journal on any concept or pers pective or strategy thats new to

you.


flashcards.

4) Read


create a flash card for , any words you dont know.


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Week Eight, Day Three


In Verbal : under Text Completion No Shift, all four videos in that section

2) Manhattan GRE Volume 8: Text Completion & Sentence Equivalence In Ch. 3, read the final content sections, and do the Drill: 20 Easy Questions. Read the full

explanation of the answers. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or



flashcards.

4) Read





Week Eight, Day Four


In Verbal : under Text Completion Sentence Shift, the first three videos in that section


In Ch. 3, do the Drill: 20 Medium Questions. Read the full explanation of the answers.

Take notes in your journal on any concept o r perspective or strategy thats new to you.


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flashcards.

4) Read


card for, any w ords you dont know.



Week Eight, Day Five


In Verbal : under Text Completion Sentence Shift, up to Multiple Shifts


In Ch. 3, do the Drill: 20 Hard Questions. Read the full explanation of the answers. Take



flashcards.

4) Read







Week Eight, Day Six


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Week Nine

Week Nine, Day One1) In Magoosh, watch the following videos

In Verbal : under Text Completion Sentence Shift, the last three videos in that section


Read Chapter Four. Take notes in your journal on any concept or perspective or strategy

thats new to you.


flashcards.

4) Read





Week Nine, Day Two


In Verbal: under Text Completion Double Blanks, the first three videos in that section



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Week Nine, Day Four


In Verbal : under Text Completion Triple Blanks, up to One Sentence Triple Blank


In Appendix A, read the Part II: Prefixes. Make flash cards for any prefix roots that are

unfamiliar to you, and drill these with your vocabulary flash cards over the next few weeks.


flashcards.

4) Read





Week Nine, Day Five1) In Magoosh, watch the following videos

In Verbal : under Text Completion Triple Blanks, the last three video in that section


In Appendix A, read the Part III: Suffixes. Make flash cards for any suffix roots that are

unfamiliar to you, and drill these with your vocabulary flash cards over the next few weeks.

3) In Magoosh s GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read




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Week Nine, Day Six









Week Ten

At this point, yo u have seen all of the Magoosh verbal videos twice (except the Vocabulary

videos watch them again as need be, but you probably have the hang of learning vocab

by this point!). As in Weeks 3-6, we are now going back to the challenging math problems

in the NOVAS book.

Week Ten

Week Ten, Day One


Do Problem Set Q, Ratios & Proportions, #6 -30. Check your answers as soon as you

finish.

2) Manhattan GRE

If you are making flash cards of the 500 Advanced Words, cont inue to work on

that. Otherwise, re-read any section and redo any drill/test in the Manhattan GRE books.


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flashcards.

4) Read





Week Ten, Day Two


Do Problem Set R, Exponents & Roots and Problem Set S, Factoring. Check your

answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE

If you are making flash cards of the 500 Advanced Words, continue to work on



flashcards.

4) Read







Week Ten, Day Three



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Do Problem Set T, Algebraic Expressions and #1 - 11 of Problem Set U, Percents. Check

your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE




flashcards.

4) Read







Week Ten, Day Four


Do Problem Set U, Percents, #12 -31. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



3) In Magooshs GRE Flashcards, go t hrough 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

4) Read


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Week ElevenWeek Eleven, Day One


Do #1- 22 of Problem Set W, Word Problems. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE

Re-read any section and redo any drill/test in the Manhattan GRE books.


flashcards.

4) Read





Week Eleven, Day Two


Do Problem Set W, Word Problems, #23 - 32 and Problem Set X, Sequences &

Series. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



flashcards.


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4) Read three good-sized article from The Economist , noting grammatical structures. Look

up, and create a flash card for, any words you dont know.




Week Eleven, Day Three


Do Problem Set Y, Counting. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



flashcards.

4) Read






Week Eleven, Day Four1) In the NOVAs GRE Prep Course book

Do Problem Set Z, Probability & Statistics. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



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flashcards.

4) Read






Week Eleven, Day Five


Do #1- 22 of Problem Set AA, Permutations & Combinations. Check your answers as soon

as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



flashcards.

4) Read





Week Eleven, Day Six


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1) Today, you are going to take the last of the Manhattan GRE practice tests. Take the







Week Twelve

Week Twelve, Day One1) In the NOVAs GRE Prep Course book

Do Problem Set AA, Permutations & Combinations, #23 -43. Check your answers as soon

as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



flashcards.

4) Read





10 Multiple answer math questions

Week Twelve, Day Two



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Do Problem Set BB, Functions. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



flashcards.

4) Read






Week Twelve, Day Three


Do Problem Set CC, Miscellaneous Problems. Check your answers as soon as you finish.

2) Manhattan GRE



flashcards.

4) Read

Your chosen reading material (one chapter, or a few articles). Look up, and create a flashcard for, any words you dont know.





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Week Twelve, Day Four


Do the Diagnostic/Review Test, #1-15. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Watch any 3-4 videos for an additional time

3) Manhattan GRE


4) In Ma gooshs GRE Flashcards, go through 20 words. Review your previously learned

flashcards.

5) Read






Week Twelve, Day Five


Do the Diagnostic/Review Test, #16-30. Check your answers as soon as you finish.


Watch any 3-4 videos for an additional time

3) Manhattan GRE


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flashcards.

5) Read






Week Twelve, Day Six

1) Today, you are going to take the practice GRE available through the GRE PowerPrep

software. Pay attention to any differences you notice between the Manhattan GRE tests and

this one: this one is presumably much more representative of the real GMAT.






At the end, copy the essays you wrote into a Word doc, and as before, these you will share

with a trusted friend or mentor, or post in the online forums asking for feedback, or critique

later with the Official Guide Guide rubric.

After Week 12: Concentrated Review

At this point, if you have been following the schedule, you should have done every question

in both Magoosh at least once. For whatever days remain before the test, keep up work on

GRE math and verbal. Some suggestions for what to do:


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1) Through selecting question type & difficulty on the Dashboard, do Magoosh problems

over again, and see how you do a second time.

3) Keep watching for an additional time 3-4 Magoosh lesson videos as needed, on whatever

topics you feel you need to review

4) Keep reading your challenging material, to build vocabulary and acclimate your ear to

eloquent style.

5) Keep drilling your vocab cards.

6) As needed, re-read any section of the Manhattan GRE books or re-do any problems from

the NOVAS book.

Day before the test:

1) No GRE preparation all day

2) Eat a large, healthy, leisurely dinner no alcohol!

3) Go to bed earlier than usual.

Day of test

1) ABSOLUTELY NO LAST MINUTE GRE PREPARATION!

2) Eat a large breakfast, full of protein

3) Do relaxing, fun activities to pass time until the test

Bring to the test1) A liter of water

2) Healthy energy-packed snacks (nuts, protein bar, etc.)


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3) On breaks, make sure to get up, move & stretch moving & stretching the large muscles

of the body (legs & torso) will get oxygen flowing throughout, which will help keep you

awake and keep you thinking clearly.

- See more at: http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/90-day-gre-study-plan-verbal-focused/#sthash.vm99wYxi.dpuf

90 day gre study plan

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