GRE
I have been tutoring the GRE for over 10 years, first as a Kaplan teacher and tutor, and later as an independent, private tutor. I’ve taken the official GRE twice, receiving a perfect Quantitative score and a 99th percentile Verbal score on an older version of the test in 2005. After the GRE changed in 2011, I took it again, this time earning a 170 Verbal and 169 Quantitative. These scores have gotten me into three different graduate school programs, all with full funding. I’m happy to share my knowledge of the graduate admissions process with students.
My Quant score
My Verbal score
When I last took the GRE
My Approach
As the GRE is used for many types of graduate programs (including a growing number of business and law schools), my GRE students have had a wide range of starting scores and goals. Customization is the strongest advantage of one-on-one tutoring. Some students need quick suggestions for test strategy, while others need a more comprehensive review of topics they might not have encountered for years. I take the time to get to know your situation, then offer guided support to systematically target the exact areas and skills you need in order to raise your GRE score.
Approaches to each section
Quantitative
Most of my students come to me asking for help with the quantitative section. For many, this is the first time they have seen some of these types of questions since high school! My tutoring focuses on reviewing the fundamentals of algebra, geometry, and data analysis so that students can apply these concepts on GRE questions. We’ll also cover strategies for demystifying the quantitative comparison questions.
Verbal
The GRE verbal section is a mixture of vocabulary and reading comprehension. I help my students identify the most commonly tested GRE vocabulary words so that they can maximize their efficiency in studying them. We also work on developing strategies for attacking the questions and eliminating answers, even if some of the vocab is still unclear. For reading comprehension, we’ll work on techniques for reading the passages and working through the questions.
Analytical Writing Assessment
The best preparation for the GRE Analytical Writing section is a solid knowledge of what is expected in the two essays, strong and adaptable templates, and ample practice with feedback. I work with students through the official essay prompt banks, striking a balance between writing full essays as homework (for depth) and practice creating essay plans for a variety of prompts (for breadth). We also work on writing techniques that acknowledge the fact that your essays are graded by both humans and a computer.
Included in Tutoring
Convenience of Online
You’ll never have to sit in traffic to make it to our lessons. Use the time you would have wasted commuting to get in more vocab flashcards. Online tutoring gives you more flexibility with scheduling and ensures that you can meet with a highly qualified tutor no matter your location.
Custom Study Plans
After each session, I’ll send you a customized study plan for the week. We’ll make sure the plan aggressively targets your goals, but we’ll also make sure it’s actually doable given your schedule. This service is also available separately, but comes free with tutoring.
Support
Suddenly feeling extra anxious? Completely bugged by a logic game that just can’t wait until our next session? I’ll do my best to reply to your email or text as soon as possible to give you the moral support you need.
Satisfaction Guaranteed
Not sure yet whether online tutoring will work for you? I offer a satisfaction guarantee for the first session. It’s important to me that I only work with students who feel we’re a good match, so if you’re not 100% satisfied after the first session, the session fee will be completely refunded.
Need more information about logistics?
Testimonials
“Carrie is very bright and really knows how to break down any problems you have. Her explanations are easy to understand and once she teaches you something, it stays with you and problems you saw in the past go away. She was always on time and very respectful. She was flexible in terms of when I could meet with her. She was great and I would recommend her to anyone.”
“Carrie is amazing! I had three weeks to prep for the GRE and she was phenomenal at teaching me how to approach the entire exam. I especially needed help with the quantitative portion. She was able to break it down into ways I could understand where the books I had were lacking. I highly recommend her to anyone in need of GRE prep. Thanks Carrie!
Update: I got into the grad school of my choice!!! Thank you so much, Carrie Bach! I’ll be recommending you to my friends who will be studying for the GRE soon, you’re amazing!”