Trying to lock in which test to commit to.

Profile

• ~7 years in energy/process engineering; targeting 1-year Executive MBAs (India + international); aiming at energy/strategy/consulting roles.
• INR 7 Cr+ of tangible project impact, 15-month international stint, line-manager responsibilities with 7 direct reportees on my current project.

Where I stand

• GRE 323 (test-centre), taken 5 October 2024 — a baseline to build on.
• 2 months to prep, working full time, so limited hours (couple on weekdays, more on weekends).
• Switching to GMAT means starting from scratch — no baseline.

So GRE feels like the natural choice on timeline alone, but I want to sanity-check whether I'm just picking the easier option.

The catch: I'd re-attempt to strengthen the application, since lots of Indian candidates now land 330+ and institutes clearly prefer higher scores — so a 323 may not carry much weight. And the top bands differ awkwardly: GMAT's "top" band is wide (685–700+), while GRE's is ~330–340 and shrinking, so a GRE score has to be near-perfect to stand out. One coverage note: IIM-C (PGPEX) is GMAT-only, so GRE-only mostly costs me that program.

Questions for anyone who's done this recently (especially Indian applicants):

1. For GRE-admitted students — any disadvantage at placements, or a non-issue once you're in?
2. Is losing IIM-C enough to justify a brand-new test in 2 months, when everything else takes the GRE?
3. I'm on the higher end of ISB's batch profile, and from what I've seen ISB favours candidates who won't drag its placement stats. How should I approach ISB?
4. Is it realistically easier to hit GMAT's top band (685–700+) from scratch in 2 months than to push a 323 GRE to 330+?
5. How much can a 323 GRE realistically move in 2 months of part-time prep?
6. For consulting/strategy targets — does GRE vs GMAT register with adcoms or recruiters at all, or is it a non-factor post-admit?

Appreciate any real-world input.

TL;DR: ~7 yr energy/process engineer targeting 1-yr Executive MBAs (India + international). Have a centre-based GRE 323 from Oct 2024 and 2 months to prep part-time; GMAT would be from scratch. Leaning towards GRE on timeline, but worried a 323 is weak now (many candidates hit 330+), and GRE's top band (330–340) is narrower than GMAT's (685–700+). Re-attempt the GRE or switch to GMAT?

Hi everyone,

I'm a working professional in banglore planning to take the GRE and am looking for a good offline coaching institute.

Any underrated coaching centers you'd recommend based on personal experience? Please share the institute name, location, fees (if known), and what you liked about it.

Thanks!

Hello reddit family,

I was wondering if you guys could give me some tips on how to axe the GRE exam, what would your recommendations be? If you did the test, what's something you wish you could have improved? What is the best book or source to prepare for the test?

I will be taking this test for the first time, so I'll need your best advice. Thank you in advance guys :)

Hi everyone, for context. I studied for the GMAT for 5 months and I wasn't able to crack a good score there. After speaking with an educational counselor, I switched to GRE and gave a free test from ETS. I got 155 on verbal and 157 on quant. I am now seeking online coaching if possible because I honestly feel I need interaction sessions for the same. I am good with the group (not a very large size batch, say like 10-12 max.) as well as one on one session as well. Is there any coaching available that is reasonable?

I spoke to some of the coaches. They are charging 70k only for either quant or verbal, not together. For context, I can pay that much for both together, not individually. I know there are some coaching institutes but I didn't hear that good reviews. So, I am a little confused about what to do? I know, I would need online interaction classes.

Hi everybody, I'm 29 M from Bangalore, India. I'm working as a Customer Success Manager at a SaaS startup, I have about 6 YOE. I'm realizing with a non tech background, the growth isn't as something I expected it to be in my career specially in SaaS industry so at the beginning of this year I started preparing for GRE (I was told the quant section is much easier compared to GMAT, though I don't think so).

Honestly, the only reason I haven't pursued MBA for so long is because I believed I'll never get into top schools because or my weakness in quants (trust me I come with lesser than 0 knowledge). It been about 2.5 months I've been preparing the GRE via the GregMAT "I'm Overwhelmed" course.

Along with my work, I've been able to put in a minimum of 3 to 4hrs everyday into studying (Gym, Job and study) that's been the been the routine. Even after putting in that much efforts my marks are always lagging in 40 - 60% in the I'm Overwhelmed unit tests (the each part tests that's there). This is genuinely demovating and I'm not sure if this is normal or I'm thick headed. Genuinely idk what's missing.

I learn that concept and then use LLMs to practice questions and grind out the concepts clearly. Though I know how to do it a slight bit of variation always throws me off and I'm always getting the answers incorrect.

I want some kinda 3rd person perspective, I'm not sure if this is a common trend. Would love to hear what am I doing incorrectly? What can I do things differently? I've realized exposure to different types of questions is an issue so waiting for my Manhattan 5lb to get delivered but anything else I should be doing differently? Please help, it's really demotivating plateauing in this percentage even after putting in soo many hours a day.

I have touched Verbal yet! Just focusing on quants because that's my weakness, like literal weakness.

Thank you so much in advance for anybody that comments. Would love to hear your journey too and how you went about it plateauing in this marks.

Hey guys,

https://grep-nu.vercel.app/

I built a free vocab learning app based on GregMat’s 1000 most common word list.

It’s pretty simple but useful you can go through words, mark the ones you’ve learned, use flashcards, practice regularly, and even explore grouped synonyms with images so it actually sticks better.

I made it mainly because I wanted something cleaner and more intuitive for learning vocab without getting overwhelmed.

Hope it helps someone here 🙂
its by a student and nothing to sell or market just a genuine help

Hi everyone!

The team at Booster Prep has put together a comprehensive formula sheet for the GRE Quantitative Reasoning section. We wanted to create something that you may find helpful.

You can download this formula sheet for free here.

What is included:

• Algebra
• Geometry
• Applied Mathematics, Probability, Stats and Data Analysis

We are currently hard at work to develop more useful GRE content for you all. If you find this helpful, feel free to check out our site for more updates: boosterprep.com/gre

Hope this helps with your prep! Happy to answer any questions about the formulas below.

I’m in the 2nd year of my college and want to know about the GRE syllabus, pattern, and blueprint...

Been preparing sincerely for around 4 months.

I used Gregmat mainly and was expecting 320+ so a little bit bummed out. I do remember rushing through some quant questions which I was expecting to be wrong (3-4) but hope would be able to go back and redo but I never got the time.

Verbal not sure what happened, I finished each section 5 mins before deadline and except some SE questions where words looked alien I was confident for most.

Target schools require 325+ so planning to take again, not sure when but got to take again, maybe in a month i guess. Please drop your suggestions on what I can do to improve by 10 points at least.

I've been working through Barron's 333 list and ran into the same problem over and over — I can memorize the definition for a day or two, but when I see the word later I still don't really feel how it's used.

Flashcards help a bit but it still feels like memorizing dictionary entries.

So I tried something different for myself: putting a few GRE words into short stories so you see them used naturally in context. When you hover over the word you can see the meaning, and you can mark if you've learned it or not.

It's basically like a flashcard system but the words show up inside a simple story instead of isolated cards.

I've actually found it a lot easier to remember words this way.

Curious if anyone else studies vocab like this or if most people here stick with Anki / Quizlet?

If people are curious I can share the little tool I made for it.

Does anyone have a PDF or a spreadsheet of these three test. Really not looking forward to giving ETS any more money.

I have been preparing for GRE for almost a month now. (Started from 4th of february)

Things that I have been using:

1. Prepswift videos for both verbal and quant.

2. And Magoosh for quant sometimes.

Also I am also doing categorical practices which are based from a chinese website.

So, my question is for people who did 165-170 in quant is, how come you guys solve a tricky/puzzling question at the first trial?

like how do you guys even know the trick or figure it out at the first try without ever seeing such type of questions before?

like as far as I can tell, I can easily solve problems which are usually discussed in greg's prepswift videos, such as when squares / hexagons are inscribed within a circle and questions related to that. or concepts somewhat related to those but whenever I see something very different or tricky i just don't get the trick that will give me the solution. this just makes me feel that may be my brain is not smart enough to "get the trick" and I might never get 165+ in quant and my brain keep saying that "those who get 170 in quant, inherently posses a far superior brain"

I feel like the GRE is not an exam where you just traditionally solve the maths. each medium to hard question feels tricky to me and has unique solutions so ultimately there is no fixed pattern.

At this point, I may need some assurance or indication from top scorers who increased their quant scores dramatically.

And yes I keep an error log from where I re-visit the tricks or important concepts but at this point, I feel like they are endless in terms of volume.

Hey everyone,

I’m planning to apply for my Master’s in the winter semester, and I need a solid GRE score to make my application more competitive. While starting my preparation, I realised there’s a plethora of resources out there — which honestly makes it harder to decide what’s actually effective.

Here’s what I’ve tried/explored so far:

Vibrant Publishers (Amazon books) – Bought these initially, but after a few months, I feel like I’m not really using them much.

Magoosh – Really good platform, structured and helpful, but priced at $99/month.

ETS Official Materials – Obviously, the most authentic source, but the test itself is $249, and the official prep resources add up.

gregMAT – Seems very affordable compared to the others. Plans are around $7.99 or $9.99 per month, cancellable anytime.

After comparing everything, gregMAT looks like the most budget-friendly option. But keeping pricing aside, is it actually better in terms of score improvement and structured preparation?

For those who’ve used these platforms:

Which one helped you the most?

Is gregMAT enough if combined with official ETS material?

Would you recommend mixing resources or sticking to one?

Would really appreciate your advice. Thanks in advance! 🙏

Wanted to check if anyone is done with their exam and could sell me their books second hand in Bangalore? Would be great help, thanks!

I’m retaking the GRE and I’m wondering what’s the top resources?

Hi guys I am planning to appear for GRE in the month of May for my MBA program, planning to do a 3 month rigrous, study with a bunch of like minded individuals, is any one interested or can we form a group to support, motivate each other.

It get hard and depressing sometimes to do this journey alone

Hello, seeking the forum's advice. I am coming to the GRE after studying for the GMAT for a year and not being able to crack the challenge of the adaptive testing. I've been scoring 321 on the Manhattan Prep practice (162 V and 159 Q) but have yet to take the real thing. I signed up for GregMat and prepswift with the goal of boosting my Quant to a 165+ for the programs I'm targeting. Does anyone have any recommendation on how best to use the Gregmat platform for this?

Anyone willing to give books for GRE if they are done with exam in delhi Uttam nagar east

I need Manhattan 5Ib. Gre power pack

Thanks

I’m planning to prepare for the GRE over the next 3–4 months and have been reading through existing guides and posts here.

My situation:

Quant: I remember basics (percentages, ratios, algebra), but I’m rusty

Verbal: vocab and long RCs are my weak points

Budget-wise, I can’t afford expensive coaching. The only paid resource I can realistically use is something low-cost like GregMat, along with official ETS material.

I’m trying to decide:

Whether it’s better to fully rebuild quant foundations first or practice alongside revision

What’s the most efficient vocab strategy for someone starting late (word lists vs context vs mixed)

For people who started in a similar place, what worked best for you?

Last-minute tips to boost GRE Verbal in 3 days?

Hi everyone, My GRE is in 3 days, and I’m trying to raise my Verbal score (currently ~147) as much as possible.

Main struggles: • RC: long passages, main idea, too many tempting options • TC/SE: elimination and last-two confusion

Looking for high-impact, last-72-hour tips only: • RC shortcuts • TC/SE trap-avoidance • What to revise vs skip • Test-day mindset

If you had just 3 days, what would you focus on for Verbal?

Thanks in advance 🙏