Working carefully and accurately on the Quant sections of the GRE is extremely important because you likely won’t have time to double-check your work.

Let’s say you solve a problem and your answer matches one of the choices. You might be tempted to go back and double-check your work just to be sure. If that takes an extra 30 seconds and you do it for every question, you’ll end up using about 6 minutes in the first Quant section and 7.5 minutes in the second Quant section just reviewing answers. That’s more than a quarter of the total time for each section. Can you really afford to use nearly 30% of your time checking problems you’ve already solved?

The reality is that, on the GRE, every second counts. You don’t have the luxury of confirming every calculation. If you do, you may run out of time before getting to the final few questions — and those unanswered or rushed questions can have a big impact on your score.

So, rather than relying on reviewing and re-checking, focus on accuracy the first time through. Be present and methodical. Take a few seconds before starting a problem to be sure you understand exactly what’s being asked. Don’t rush through arithmetic steps. Don’t jump to conclusions about what the question is asking. Careless mistakes often happen when we think we’ve seen a problem before and go into autopilot. Instead, treat every problem like it deserves your full attention.

By working carefully and purposefully from the outset, you minimize the need for second-guessing and maximize your chances of getting correct answers within the time you have. In short, the most efficient way to avoid wasting time is to get things right the first time.

Reach out to me with any questions about your GRE prep. Happy studying!

Warmest regards,

Scott Woodbury-Stewart
Founder & CEO, Target Test Prep