You will probably take the exam only once or twice, so you should be strategic about when you take the exam.
#Physics gre registration#
The exam is currently offered three times a year: April, September, and October (see this schedule for relevant registration dates). It’s an important exam and it will influence what graduate program you end up getting into. But not all of them are, so don’t count on the place you want to go to not caring about the physics GRE. For astronomy, many grad schools are doing away with the requirement to submit physics GRE scores because of high costs, bias, and more. But that doesn’t really matter, because a lot of physics grad schools care a lot about this test and your score on it. The physics GRE is dumb and no one likes it, and there’s a lot of people who question what it even tests fundamentally as an exam. There are several of these books available in the SPS Library for you to check out and use. The generally accepted book for studying for the exam is Conquering the Physics GRE by Yoni Kahn and Adam Anderson. Questions cover the entirety of your undergraduate education: classical mechanics, optics, electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics, statistical and thermal physics, modern physics topics, and experimental methods. It is a 100 question 170 minute exam of pure physics questions (to do the math for you, that’s 1 minute 42 seconds per question - not a lot of time). The Physics GRE is completely different from the general exam, and it’s where you’ll spend most of your studying efforts. If you wait too long, then at best you’ll find that you have to take the exam at an inconvenient time on a weekday during the school year, which is frustrating, but at worst you’ll find yourself unable to reserve a seat for any exam and won’t be able to apply to graduate schools. Even though you can take the exam any time, you need to actually reserve your seat for the exam, which must be done well in advance of the exam. Many people wait until later, but it’s a stressful time so do it as soon as possible. You should take it 2 - 3 months before you apply for graduate schools. Unfortunately, there are no GRE testing sites in Charlottesville, and you will have to travel to Richmond or DC in order to take the exam.
The general GRE can be taken any time throughout the year at one of several designated testing locations in Virginia.
(there are other perspectives on this though) When should I take the exam? The general GRE (unless you absolutely bomb it) also isn’t heavily emphasized in physics PhD program admissions, so the general advice is: do well, but don’t stress too much over it.
However, in the SPS Library, there are several test prep books you can check out that will help you increase your score on this portion of the test.
#Physics gre how to#
For most students applying for PhD programs, the general GRE isn’t much of an issue (mainly the math section), so not a lot of effort is spent providing tips on how to study for this exam. The general GRE is a standardized test that graduate schools use to test your ability in reading comprehension, analytical and math skills, and argumentative writing skills (AKA the SAT for grad school). There are two parts of the GRE that are relevant to you: the general GRE and the Physics GRE subject exam (pGRE). Quick Links: GRE Study Resources, Physics GRE Test Dates, GRE Cost Information What is the GRE?
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