Let’s be honest:
Playing chess every day won’t magically push your GRE score to 330.

But here’s the catch — chess trains the brain to learn faster, focus longer, and perform better under pressure.

Think of it like this 👇

🏋️ Chess is your gym.
It’s where you build cognitive strength — focus, calculation, patience, and resilience.

🥋 The GRE is your martial arts contest.
It’s where you apply martial art relevant tactics (GRE concepts) combined with that strength you gained in the gym — using refined techniques, strategy, and timing.

You can’t win a fight by just lifting weights.
But you also can’t win if you’re weak, unfocused, and out of shape.

That’s where chess helps.
Every game you play is a mental workout:

Calculating moves ahead → builds working memory for multi-step problems.

Recognizing patterns → sharpens intuition for complex reasoning.

Managing time → trains focus and discipline under pressure.

Recovering from mistakes → builds emotional control.

Chess doesn’t teach GRE vocabulary, formulas, or essay structures.
But it builds the mental muscles that make mastering those things easier and faster.

So if you’re deep in GRE prep, consider chess not as a shortcut, but as cross-training.
Because a strong mind doesn’t just study harder — it studies smarter. ♟️🔥

when i started to play chess the first time and continued it for a week, i have observed a great improvement in my reading and calculation, but so much that it sky rocketed my accuracy, but enough to give me that extra push i was looking for. also playing chess doesn't automatically improve that mental muscle, it requires you to consciously form ideas, tactics, imagine the pieces move in your head, a conscious effort to outwit your opponent to be precise.

lichess is the website where i solve puzzles, but you can also play against real players online.