Accessories

Same as Barrons' GRE 2006-2007
I thought maybe I should borrow this newer version of the Barron's GRE from the library and see if there's a big difference between this and the 2006-2007 one. I was disappointed that all the materials including the practice exams were the same. I would not bother to get a newer version if you already have the 2006-2007.

Excellent Review Book!
I've never been moved to write a review before, but this book has influenced me to do so.

I hadn't taken a math class for five years before I took the GRE, so I was incredibly worried. On the diagnostic test I scored around a 400. Not so great. Thanks to this book, in less than two weeks I was able to boost my math score to a 680 when I took the real test. I'm sure I could've done even better, if I had started studying earlier!

The examples in the math section are clear and easy to follow, as are the explanations. The list of most common words in the verbal section is also a great asset, as many of the words I studied appeared as choices while taking the exam.

If you're rusty and need some fine tuning before taking the GRE, this is a great book to help you!

Great for Vocab, mediocre practice tests
In preparing for the GRE, I used the Princeton Review book, Kaplan vocabulary flash cards, and the Barron's book. Of the three, I feel the Princeton Review was the most useful to overall test prep.

The Barron's book excels at vocabulary: their list of words is extremely large and pretty comprehensive from what I've seen. In addition, they break down roots and stems which makes taking an educated guess on a word you're unsure of or have never seen substantially easier.

I feel the math on the Barron's was much more comprehensive than it needed to be. Often, questions on the Barron's tests were on material that would not show up on the actual test. In addition, their data interpretation questions are plagued with poorly drawn graphs that make it hard to ascertain the values. I had to make approximate guesses on data questions that demanded exact answers simply because the graphs didn't provide adequate labels.

However, unless you are testing on paper, the practice paper tests really don't help much more than provide more practice questions. To get an understanding of the rhythm of a computer-adjusted test, you really need to take computer-adjusted ones! When you can't skip and have limited time, it's important to learn how much time to spend guessing and how important it is to ace the first third of the test. Where Barron's is weak is its lone computer-adjusted test. For this reason, I feel the Barron's book is less helpful than the Princeton Review. If I had to pick one book, I would get the PR because of those extra tests - they make all the difference.

In short, the Barron's will overprepare you for the math and provide a comprehensive word list. It's great at preparing you for specific questions. However, it doesn't do a very good job of preparing you to TAKE the test, which is the most important aspect of acing the GRE. For that, I would recommend another book, especially the Princeton Review's.

Save your money, buy older version.
I had Barron's 2006 and I bought the 2009 one hoping that it would better prepare me for the GRE. The content of the book is EXACTLY the same as the older version. My suggestion is - save your money, buy older version - it's much cheaper and has 99.9% same contents (questions + reviews).

Helpful for practice
I bought this book about 9 months before I actually took my GRE. The paper practice sections and tests were very helpful however some of the explinations lacked. The math was more helpful than the vocabulary, I would recommend additional help in that area.