Are you unsatisfied with your GRE AWA scores and planning on taking the exam again? Worry not! Here are some strategies to improve your GRE AWA scores. But before we begin, let us take a quick look at a few things you should keep in mind when retaking the GRE.
GRE Retake
In a scenario where you are dissatisfied with your GRE scores, the ETS offers you the choice to retake the GRE. However, there are a few things you should keep in mind before you retake the GRE. The first thing to note is that you can retake the GRE only after a gap of 21 days from your previous attempt. The second thing is that you can take the GRE up to 5 times within a year. The third is you have to register for the GRE once again if you are retaking the GRE. To do so, you can log into your ETS GRE account and follow the registration process to register yourself for the GRE retake.
Let us now delve into the strategies to improve your GRE AWA scores.
Strategies to Improve Your GRE AWA Scores
As you might be aware, the GRE AWA section requires you to critique an argument and effectively articulate if the argument is logically sound or not. It also requires you to support your statements or claims with proper evidence. The AWA section consists of a writing task that you have to complete within 30 minutes and is scored between 0 to 6. While the scores of the AWA section do not contribute to the total GRE score, the GRE AWA score adds significant value to your university application.
Below are some strategies to help you improve your GRE AWA score:
Draft an Essay Outline
Before you begin drafting the AWA essay, you must create an essay outline. Creating an essay outline will help you visualise how you would like to draft your AWA essay. Additionally, an essay outline helps you make a note of the main points that you should incorporate in your essay. To create an effective essay outline, you must follow a paragraph-by-paragraph structure starting with an introduction followed by the body of the essay and a conclusion. You can also make note of the main flaws in the argument and include them in your essay outline. This will give you a better understanding of how to structure your essay.
Know the Common Flaws
The GRE AWA prompts or topics consist of some common flaws that can be easily predicted by you. Knowing the common flaws helps you identify the flaws in the argument effortlessly. An easy way to spot these common flaws is by familiarising yourself with them before your exam. There are three kinds of common flaws — vagueness, overconfident language, and causality. If the argument is vague, then that becomes a flaw. Similarly, if the argument uses complicated or overconfident language, the argument is flawed. Finally, when there is no direct connection between the cause and effect in the argument, the third false causality occurs.
Practice with Sample Questions
Last but not the least, to improve your GRE Analytical Writing scores, you must practice with AWA GRE sample questions. The GRE AWA questions or prompts are available on the official ETS website. You can refer to prompts that have a score of 5.0 and above to understand how to draft a good AWA essay. You can also attempt a few of the prompts by yourself and compare your essay with a sample AWA essay to analyse your weak areas.
These are some strategies that will help you improve your GRE AWA scores. If you make use of them effectively, there is no doubt you will ace the GRE AWA section with flying colours. All the best!