I20fever
The information hub for
students
The minimum credentials required for applying for
admission to a
·
10+2+4
years Education (some programs require
10+2+3+2)
·
Passport
·
Standardized
Tests
Graduate
Record Examination (GRE)
Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT)
Most graduate
programs require the GRE for admission; however, law, medical, and business
schools usually require different exams (the LSAT, MCAT, and GMAT,
respectively).
·
TOEFL
GRE/TOEFL
·
GRE
and TOEFL are the two most common prerequisite exams to apply to a masters
program in the universities of the
·
They
can be taken in any order but preferably GRE should be taken first followed by
TOEFL after a gap of 20 days or more.
·
The
exams may be taken on any working day (Friday, Saturday and Sunday are
holidays) throughout the year.
·
Though
different universities ask for different minimum scores in the standardized
tests, it is advisable to score at least 213/300 in TOEFL.
·
The
earlier you submit your application to the university the better your chances
are with the university and the earlier you get an admission. Getting done with
these tests at least a year before you intend to attend grad school (i.e. in
the third year of your undergraduate program) will enable you to apply
sufficiently ahead of the deadlines.
·
Applying
well ahead of the deadlines will also put you in the race for financial
assistance and it is therefore strongly recommended.
·
However,
the importance of these tests cannot be overemphasized and thorough preparation
is imperative. You can never be sure when you are completely prepared but be
rest assured that very few can achieve their full potential by not preparing at
all. Make sure that you spend at least
50-60 days preparing for the GRE and 20 days preparing for the TOEFL.
How to register for GRE/TOEFL?
·
Costs:
The GRE fee is $170. The
TOEFL iBT test fee is US$150
·
The
online
registration is the fastest and most convenient way to book a slot for the
GRE. All you need is a Credit Card, and the credit card needn’t be your own.
·
Once you begin the registration process, please do not use your
browser's Back button to return to a previous page. Be careful to not
double-click a field entry.
·
Click
on Schedule an Exam. This would lead you to an instructions page, click Next at the end of this page. The next page requires you to
click on I agree to proceed, after which you click Next. This throws up a page
listing out all the available test sites in
·
A
test date for TOEFL can be booked online. Currently, TOEFL is available in two
formats in most cities- the TOEFL Internet Based Testing (New) and the TOEFL
Computer Based Testing.
·
The
TOEFL iBT registration here
requires you to create an id to TOEFL Access. Log in with your id and password
and you see a page that says My Home Page. Under Test Registration and Orders
(in the left) click Register/Order. This leads to the Select Product Type page,
select TOEFL Test and continue. Click on I agree in the next page, then choose
Important Note:
As
soon as you finish your GRE/TOEFL exam you will be asked to select 4
universities to which ETS will directly send your scores without an additional
fee. So, predict your scores based on your preparation and select the
universities to enter at the end of your tests www.i20fever.com will help you with your
university selection) so that you can directly send your scores while saving
$60 without waiting for scorecards.
Other
Standardized Tests
Graduate
Management Admission Test (GMAT)
The GMAT is a standardized test used by 1,500
graduate management programs around the world to assess the qualifications of
applicants. The GMAT exam consists of three main parts, the Analytical Writing
Assessment, the Quantitative section, and the Verbal section. The exam
begins with the Analytical Writing Assessment of two separate writing tasks,
and you are given 30 minutes to complete each essay. The quant section contains
37 multiple-choice questions which you have to complete within 75 minutes. The
verbal section consists of 41 multiple choice questions in Reading
Comprehension, Critical Reasoning, and Sentence Correction. The Verbal section
is also timed for 75 minutes. GMAT scores range from 200 to 800. The fee to
take the GMAT is $250. For more information on GMAT, click here.
The American Bar Association requires a half-day
standardized test for admission to any of the law schools that are members of
the Law School Admission Council (LSAC or Law Services). The test is
administered only four times a year. Most law schools require that the LSAT be
taken by December, nine months before law school begins. However, The Law
School Admissions Council recommends taking the test earlier, 15 months to a
year before law school begins. The registration fee for the LSAT is $118. More
information on the LSAT is available here.
The MCAT tests skills in Verbal Reasoning, Physical
Sciences, Writing Sample, and Biological Sciences. Almost all
Preparation
GRE Overview
|
Exam |
Sections |
Time |
No. of Questions |
Max Score |
Total Score |
|
GRE |
Quantitative |
45 min |
28 |
800 |
1600 + 6 points |
|
Verbal |
30 min |
30 |
800 |
||
|
Analytical
Writing |
75min |
2 |
6 points |
Preparation
Verbal
·
A
good beginning would be working on the high frequency words.
·
Finish
the 50 word lists in Barons or any good book you are comfortable with (typically
contains 3000+ words)
·
Practice
reading comprehension. Most RC passages are demanding and often have nothing to
do with what you have studied in the last three or four years. Patience is a
prerequisite while doing RCs as is alertness. Get sentence completion practice from Barons.
·
Take
as many practice exams as possible (
·
Over
time you will learn basic yet key strategies for getting many answers right.
·
Preparing
from books is not entirely effective, using the CDs for computer based tests
like GRE and TOEFL makes abundant sense.
Quantitative
·
This
section is rather easy and needs only a
review of fundamental math concepts
·
This
is the scoring part of the exam.
·
Finish
all of Barons (twice, if possible)
·
If
you prepare and perform intelligently you can score 800/800. But, do not be
over confident.
·
As
in the verbal section, practice is important.
Exam Overview
|
Exam |
Sections |
|
Typical Time |
No. of Questions |
|
TOEFL |
Listening |
30 |
60-90 mins |
34-51 |
|
Structures |
30 |
60-100 mins |
36-70 |
|
|
Writing |
30 |
20 minutes |
6 tasks |
|
|
|
30 |
50 minutes |
2 tasks |
Preparation
How do I select
Universities?
Based on your Profile i.e., GRE/TOEFL scores,
percentage in your Bachelors course, Backlogs, Technical/Term paper
presentations, Work experience, other significant achievements, etc., you can
choose universities considering the following factors
·
Majors/
Program Offered
·
School
rankings
·
Profile
Match : Admit chance in the University
·
Tuition
fee
·
Funds
for research in your area of interest
·
Research/Teaching
Assistantship positions
·
Cost
of living
·
Campus
jobs
www.i20fever.com helps you with your
university selection. You may also join the i20feverhyderabad yahoo group for
any assistance.
What are the application materials to be sent to the
Universities?
The following are the list of
things that you need to send to the universities you will be applying to.
1. Completed application forms
·
·
In
some cases, a separate application for your department
·
In some cases, Research/ Teaching Assistantship form
2. Application Fee Demand
Draft (US $XX) (If you are applying online however, you’d be paying by credit
card)