How to study for the GRE

You may have noticed I've been a bit MIA on the blog recently and I wanted to tell you why:

I recently retook the GRE. And I want to share with you some tips for doing well and raising your score. 

I first took the GRE a few years ago before I was admitted to my Master's program. When I finished my M.Ed I felt like I was so DONE with school. A doctorate? Five years? No, not for me. 

And then, about a year later, I started missing school desperately. And I found an incredible doctoral program at an ivy league that only required three years and covered full tuition. 

I decided to apply for next Fall 2014.

However, aside from my writing score, my GRE scores were not close to the average of the previous incoming class that the university's graduate website reported. I was going to be applying to one of the most selective schools in the world, and thus I knew I was going to have to prepare for a standardized test like I'd never prepared in my life.

I learned a ton throughout the process these past two months (and was able to raise my scores to the ivy league level for the first time in my life!), and I wanted to pass on that knowledge to you as I get so many e-mails from many of you who're interested in going to graduate school. 

So below are the things I did that helped me raise my scores and (hopefully) qualify to get into the doctorate of my dreams. I hope some of these things can help you do the same. 

1) Research GRE requirements: Every graduate program has different requirements; some don't even require the GRE! Do your research first and identify your target score. The best way to find out for sure is to talk to an admissions counselor for the program you're interested in.
 
2) Register for the test: Ask the admissions counselor when the GRE scores are due for your application and then register to take your test at least a month or two before that date. If you are ahead of the game, try to take it as early as possible to give yourself room to retake it if needed (keep in mind you have to wait a few weeks between retakes). Also leave yourself at least a month or two to study. 

3) Buy study materials with practice tests: This is the time to invest and I think it's absolutely worth it. The ETS website offers some great free resources, but I also recommend getting other resources or perhaps signing up for a class if that's right for you. I purchased and loved the Kaplan GRE book, the ETS GRE book, and the Kaplan vocabulary flash cards. 

4) Schedule A LOT of time for studying: Studying for a standardized test requires a lot of time because you have to study a lot of things that may not be on the test. Since you don't know exactly what is going to be on the test, you have to study everything. That takes time, and the time spent will pay off. Dedicate time into your schedule; it will require making some short-term sacrifices in your schedule to find the time. (I probably studied about 75 hours.)

5) Divide your studying into manageable chunks: I dedicated the entire month of October to studying for the GRE (I scheduled my test for October 31, for an application due December 13). With about 30 days to study, I divided the 5 practice tests I received with my books throughout the week and scheduled them in my calendar. I also took the 500 words, divided them by 30 days, and memorized just those words each day. 

6) Tell people: I was nervous to tell people at first, for fear I would fail. But I knew I had to take the advice I give students, so I started telling people, and while it was scary, I knew I had to be accountable; it encouraged me to stick with my study plan. 

7) Take practice tests: I learned the most by taking practice tests and then going over the answers I missed. Take as many as possible and dedicate the time to go over the answers. 

8) Identify your strongest area: After you take your first practice test identify your strongest area and focus on studying to improve your weakest areas. My strongest area is writing, so all I did to prepare for the essay portion was read the sample perfect-score essays to get an idea of tone. I focused 65% of my time on math and the other 35% on vocabulary.

9) Meet with a tutor/friend for help: Ask for help in your weakest areas. I'm lucky to be married to a math whiz so I was able to get free tutoring. Find someone who can help you figure out the problems that the book alone can't explain well. If writing isn't your strongest area, have people read your essays to get help. 

10) Be strategic: Think about what your graduate program requires; for example, I know the one I'm applying for isn't focused at all on math, which was good for me because my math scores were still struggling. I knew that while I could get my math scores to the bare minimum, they weren't going to be impressive. That is why, though I was very good at the Verbal section, I still focused heavily on studying for it. I decided if I could get almost perfect scores in Verbal and Writing it would overshadow my average math score. This paid off big time as I was able to take my verbal score from a percentile rank in the 70's to the 90's.
 
11) Get creative: Have fun with your studying as much as possible and find ways to work with the material; staring at a book alone will not work. I entered the vocab words I kept struggling with into Quizlet, as well as found GRE flash cards others had made. I loved playing Scatter with them and doing the practice tests. 

12) Relax: Do not study the night before the test or the day of. Plan to have a nice dinner, a healthy breakfast, and then relax. Listen to your favorite music on the drive to the test. Wear a comfortable but nice outfit that gives you confidence. Breathe. Know that all of your studying will pay off. And that, in the end, it's just a test. It doesn't define you. 

Please share any of your tips on the Facebook page, and best of luck in your graduate plans! It's quite an adventure. 

What Miley Cyrus reminded me about college

As I've been starting to pack to move to a new place in a few weeks I stumbled across my senior thesis. The title? 

“Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman”: The Incongruous Juxtaposition of Girlhood and Womanhood in Mediated Portrayals of Britney Spears

I opened it up and this paragraph (written in 2008) caught my attention:

       As represented by Spears, when women try to perfect the incongruous standards of girlhood and womanhood, certain destruction follows. Yet these conflicting expectations are still being mediated, as represented by the slew of criticisms that follow new emerging starlets. 
        For example, many question if young pop star Miley Cyrus will go down the same destructive path as Spears (“Teen Stars”). Their shared Southern roots and claims to innocence make many believe Cyrus will also rebel with sexual promiscuity. Media outlets have been on the lookout for these instances, and are already beginning to criticize some of her outfits...
       Cyrus has become a symbolic replacement for Spears; it seems the public is anxious to see if she too will mismanage her transition from girlhood to womanhood.
       

(It turns out I can predict the future.)

After community college I transferred to Stetson University where we were required to write a senior thesis; the project took over a year and was one of the most intense experiences of my life.

And, looking back now, I can honestly say it was one of the best experiences of my life.

Reading it over four years later reminded me how wonderful the learning process of college really can be.

The rhetoric surrounding whether or not college is worth it today focuses heavily on numbers, career outcomes, and speed.

While I truly believe college should help many have access to a good career and be done efficiently, I think it's easy to forget the actual privilege of learning. 

Aside from a few professions, there will be no other time in your life where your sole goal is to learn. 

While there are times in college where you will dream about the day where your life isn't dedicated to learning, I daresay you might be surprised when you miss it.

I won't lie - I don't miss exams. 

But I do miss the life dedicated to nothing but your own learning and growth. It was such a beautiful, magnificent privilege.

And that is what we can't forget. College and learning are a privilege. Just ask the millions around the world who would love to be in your shoes right now. 

The best thing you can do to show your gratitude for this privilege is to take full advantage of it. Bask in the knowledge. Learn deeply about the world. Pursue classes that excite you. 

Many think what they learn in college isn't relevant to their futures. At first glance you may think mediated portrayals of Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus have nothing to do with my current career. But you would be mistaken. 

That research project was the foundation to everything I'm doing now. It taught me to think in a way I still think every single day. (Critical thinking: it's highly underrated.) 

It also taught me how to manage a big writing project (when people ask me how I was able to write a book at such a young age I usually point to this research project). 

And it also taught me to fall in love with learning for learning's sake. I chose to research this topic for no other reason than it fascinated me. I wasn't thinking about my future career. I wasn't thinking about what would be easy. I was thinking about what I wanted to learn more about. 

It paid off: I got a $2,000 research grant and was flown to New Orleans (beignets also changed my life) to present it at a national conference. 

Learning is wonderful. If you aren't in love with learning right now it might mean you're not pursuing something that fascinates you.

Learning what you love isn't easy, of course. A good college education is excruciatingly difficult. But it's the appreciation of what you are learning that makes the challenge fun. 

So when choosing the next topic for a project, or your major, go for something you want to know just for the sake of knowing it. 

I have learned that being curious, thinking critically, and pursuing knowledge that fascinates you lead to a tremendous career, even if at times you have no idea where it's going to go. 

The habit of learning is the best thing college can give you. But it's up to you to run with it. 

Ask Isa: "How do I calm my nerves as a returning adult student?"

From the Ask Isa Inbox:

Dear Isa

This is for students who have been out of school for over 15 years: How do calm your aniexty? I feel so scared and nervous because I don't want to feel like the old, dumb lady in class.

Sincerely,

Over the Hill
-----

Dear Over the Hill,

Actually, let's change your name...

Dear Amazing Go-Getter,

Congratulations on going back to college! All students feel nervous before starting college, and I know the nerves can be even greater for non-traditional students returning to school after some time. 

However, I want to let you know that you are one of the main reasons I fell in love with community colleges. While I was traditional age when I started community college, many of my friends were older. And here's the thing...

I didn't really notice.

There's something beautifully democratic and equalizing about the classroom environment; in my experience, age became hazy and we were all just students trying to learn. 

Here are some things that I hope will help calm your nerves:

1) Remember that you are doing something many other adults dream of doing but let that (understandable) fear get in the way of taking that first step. Take a moment and allow yourself to be proud of what you've done so far.

2) Sit in the front of the class and do all of your homework. You have just as much skill and potential as everyone else in the class. Hard work, not age, will determine success.  

3) Visit each professor and explain your anxiety. Ask for their advice. I've only ever heard professors speak highly of their adult students - they often love their motivation and diligence. 

4) Join a club that interests you and get involved on campus. Though adult students often have more responsibilities outside of the classroom, I've still seen many find the time to become club leaders and win amazing scholarships. It's also a great way to begin to get more comfortable. 

5) Find other non-traditional students and share your stories. Some campuses have clubs just for adult students. You are not alone, and it can be very comforting to find other students in your situation. Don't hide your anxiety but instead be open and share it with others. You'll be surprised to find out most in your situation are feeling the same way, and those who are younger will often exclaim they don't even think of you as "old" but just as their classmate. 

Best of luck in this new endeavor. I applaud you for taking this big step; it's exciting! You are what community colleges are all about. 

And remember that nerves usually mean you're about to do something important. 

Sincerely,

Isa

Any non-traditional students out there? Please share what helped you calm your nerves and succeed in the comments or on the Facebook page!

New speaking video!

A few months ago I had the honor of speaking to all of the new students at Guttman Community College's orientation. I wanted to give you the first peek of the short 5-min video featuring clips from that speech. You can also watch the full version here if you like. :)

Ask Isa: What do you do when you get discouraged?

My favorite thing to do in my day-to-day job is read questions from the Ask Isa inbox. Sadly I've been so behind in answering the questions during what's been a very busy speaking season.

I want to get back to it today and want to thank you for being so honest and sharing your questions. They keep me going when things get tough.

And that brings us to our question for today: 

Dear Isa,

What do you do when you get discouraged?

Sincerely,

:(

Dear :(,

Discouragement is the worst. 

The more I read about success and successful people, the more I see how common their failures are. 

I'd heard my whole life that failure is part of success (for years my little brother had that Michael Jordan poster about how many shots he missed and games he lost), but it's really hard to stay focused when you're in the pit of discouragement. 

I've recently had some discouraging times in my life, including last night when I checked my e-mail right before bed (bad idea!) and saw a YouTube comment where the person called me an idiot multiple times and talked about why community colleges were the worst. 

What helps me cope with those kinds of things is based on something Marie Forleo said - she never receives harsh criticism from someone who is more successful and whom she admires. If you think about it, the same is probably true for us all. 

Because successful people usually don't have time to dedicate to make someone else feel awful; they also know it's not a path to success.

I know criticism may not be what's discouraging you now, but it's definitely something that discourages me. Even though I know it's part of the process and journey, it still hurts. 

Below are the four things that help me get through the many many moments of discouragement and self-doubt that come when trying to move forward in your life. I hope they help:

1) Meet with close friends/mentors
Schedule a coffee or lunch with someone.Talk about why you're discouraged and ask for advice. More importantly, though, ask that person about their life and just listen. 

2) Write down your past successes and what you're thankful for
I'm all about writing down your goals, but sometimes you need to write down what you've already accomplished to remind yourself of how far you've come. Then write about the things that you're currently thankful for.

3) Journal
My journal is my best friend when it comes to discouragement. I journal every morning, even if it's only a few sentences; it helps me clear my head.

4) Read
Read books about successful people you admire. Every book about a successful person is jam packed with failure and discouragement. It's actually comforting, because reminds you that discouragement is normal and not a precursor to failure if you don't want it to be. 

It's how you handle discouragement that can set you apart and help you reach greater heights. 

So next time you're discouraged, see it as an opportunity to become more resilient, resourceful, and successful. 

And at the risk of sounding incredible cheesy, well, forget it, I'm going to just be cheesy and end with a line from a song I love:

It's always darkest before the dawn...

:)

Sincerely,

Isa

You can submit your question to the Ask Isa inbox here!