GRE Writing Test Preparation

GRE Writing requires the writer to:

• articulate complex ideas clearly and effectively
• examine claims and accompanying evidence
• support ideas with relevant reasons and examples
• sustain a well-focused, coherent discussion
• control the elements of standard written English (poor writing skills impede readers' understanding of the argument)

Planning: Do this first for 5-10 minutes. Essays are effective because of your planning and content.

Read the topic carefully and note every aspect of the prompt that must be addressed. Read the topic carefully again; check that you have understood the question and have found all the issues that must be addressed in your response. Write each as a separate heading. Check your headings against the prompt for a final check.

Brainstorm ideas. Write everything down that occurs to you under the appropriate heading. Don’t write sentences; don’t censor yourself; don’t make it pretty. Aim for many ideas with at least two or three under a heading. Practice brain storming topics until you get the feel for how much is enough for you to write your essay in the allotted time without running out of ideas.

Group your ideas logically into paragraphs. Number them in importance, if you wish to make sure you make your strongest argument. Star the most important ideas in each column for use in your introductory paragraph. Ignore any dud ideas.

Writing: Follow your plan with 20-25 minutes of solid writing

• Reread the prompt and address it directly in a short concise sentence.
• Follow that sentence with another short concise sentence. Your aim is to provide the reader with the opportunity to ‘hear your voice’
• Gain confidence in your ability to express yourself clearly, concisely, and accurately.
• Continue making the points you have decided to include in your introductory paragraph.
• Make as powerful a statement as you can at the beginning and end of your essay; that is what readers remember.
• Before writing your concluding sentence, reread your opening sentences; see if there is an effective way of tying the two together.

Style Points

• Write formally: without contractions and using standard punctuation.
• Be careful with sentences beginning with ‘And’ or ‘But’ or ‘Because.’
• Avoid using a word you are not sure how to spell, especially in the first paragraph—use a synonym.
• If you are not sure of the meaning of a word, don’t use it.
• Write at least one complex sentence in a paragraph to show your ability, and keep making your points clearly and logically with relevant supporting detail.

Writing Points

• It is a writing exercise, not true confessions. You are allowed to enjoy writing!

Proofreading: Allow at least 5 minutes. Use your finger to point to every word and read what you have actually written.

• Aim to catch every mistake.
• Make only very minor changes in content at this stage.
• Your reader realizes you are writing under pressure with considerable time constraints.

READ ALL 200 GRE WRITING PROMPTS ON THE GRE WEBSITE

Read complete text at www.number2.com

“Do not just add words and paragraphs in a thoughtless way because you feel it will increase your score. Judges will be very sensitive about repetition and irrelevant statements. The ability to write concisely is an important skill; do not pad, ramble, and babble to make your essay longer; however, if you feel that you've made your point well enough using just a few sentences, look again, because you can probably develop it further.”

“Choose your words carefully.Be precise in your writing; say exactly what you mean to say. Use words according to their proper usage without being too ornamental, or too simplistic in your expression. But don't force fancy words into the text where simpler ones will do. The purpose of the issues writing is for you to convey your point and support it with evidence. Being overly verbose or pompous will distract the reader from your argument.”

GRE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The AWA section has two essay questions. Each of the two essays requires a completely different strategy.

• Present Your Perspective on an Issue (45 minutes)
  Here you present your opinion on a controversial issue.
• Analysis of Argument (30 minutes)
  Here you analyze the reasoning in an argument and find its logical flaws.

The GRE used to use two human graders to grade your essays. If they disagreed, it went to a third grader. Under the new system, a human and the ‘E-rater’ (a computer program that scan essays) will grade your essay. If the human and E-rater agree on a score, that's the grade your essay will receive. If they disagree, a second human will grade the essay to resolve any differences.

BE PARTICULARLY CONCERNED WITH STRUCTURE

Divide your essay into introductory paragraph, two to three content paragraphs, and a conclusion. Take time out before you start writing to set up an organizational structure.

• Use transitional phrases such as "first", "therefore" and "because" to help the computer identify concepts between and within the paragraphs. Make sure you spell these transition words correctly so that the computer may identify them. The E-rater does not have a spell-checker built in.
• Be a conformist. The E-rater is not programmed to appreciate individuality, humor, or poetic inspiration; it will be comparing the style and structure of your essay to that of other high-scoring essays.
• Clearly state your critique in the Analysis of Argument essay. The Analysis of Argument question will show you an essay loaded with logical fallacies, such as the unwarranted assumption or fallacy of equivocation. These are buzzwords that the E-rater detects to see if you have correctly identified the argument's logical flaws.
• Know the essays. The GRE handout shows you all of the 275 actual GRE essay questions. This will give you a feel for the essay questions.
• Write in effective American style. Both the human and the E-rater will detect poor writing style. The E-rater's memory banks have essays written in American grammar/style, which is slightly distinct from the English used outside the U.S.
• Practice, Practice, Practice. Try to do the essays in the 30-minute time frame. That is half of the challenge. Always practice under timed conditions on a computer.

Source: http://gradschool.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.800score.com%2Fgre-essay.html

ANALYSIS TOPICS

ETS' official GRE site provides a list of over 125 topics on analysis of an issue to prepare for these topics:
http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem

ARGUMENT TOPICS

A list of over 125 topics and situations for argument analysis section of the GRE:
http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem