![]() ![]() You should be able to get through your entire prep period without using any calculator, virtual or physical. Which option you choose to go with shows what you prioritize.ĭon’t use a calculator right from the moment you begin your GRE prep. Using the calculator boosts accuracy at the cost of speed. Doing the math on your own boosts speed at the cost of accuracy. Trap #2: The GRE calculator makes you pick between speed and accuracy. ![]() You will depend on the calculator for that and end up getting massively slowed down because of it. Under this assumption, you will not practice doing basic calculations on your own as a part of your prep. Trap #1: If you don’t do your research, you will assume that the GRE calculator is like any other virtual calculator you can find on the internet. So, the reason we tell you to avoid using it is tied to why a badly designed calculator is provided on the GRE in the first place. This calculator comes as a part of a few traps that are put in place for you by the ETS. In any case, we recommend avoiding this calculator altogether. After that, it’s up to you to decide whether it will be faster to use that calculator or to do the math on your own. What you need to do is to get a feel of how it works, how fast or slow it is, and how comfortable you are with using it. You could try using it to solve a question or to do some random calculations off the top of your head. The trick is to use the calculator once or twice as a test run before you decide to use or ignore it for the rest of the test. However, if you have faith in your mental math abilities, you could probably do these calculations yourself as well. For example, if you need to multiply 34.69 by 3.82, you may end up doing it faster using the calculator. Some questions on GRE Quant might be tricky because they involve non-whole numbers. Often, misreading or mistyping could lead to you entering the wrong answer. Since these are not multiple choice questions, you have to calculate and enter your answer manually. We will discuss the logic behind why this tool is so basic in the subsequent sections since it is a rather nuanced question. It is deliberately rudimentary for various reasons, one of which is that the GRE wants to see if you will fall for it and end up wasting your time. The calculator is provided instead of allowing you to bring your own to maintain uniformity among test-takers worldwide. So, the ETS is obliged to allow you to use a calculator. Believe it or not, the Indian system of doing all the heavy lifting in your mind is not common. The ETS caters to students from all over the world, and in most countries, students are accustomed to using calculators during their math exams. Worry not, there are perfectly reasonable explanations for all these things. Now you’re probably wondering why the ETS would even bother providing a calculator if it is so badly designed, or why they can’t provide a better one. You may end up getting multiple entries or no entries at all.Īnd no, you won’t have time before the test begins to familiarize yourself with this calculator and figure out how lightly or hard you need to click to get the result you want. The GRE calculator does not take inputs from your keyboard, you have to use the mouse to click the keys.įurther, depending on the sensitivity setting of the mouse you’ll be given at the test center, you will have to adjust the way you click on these buttons. Still, it is important to understand a couple of things about this tool before you make up your mind about whether or not you should use it. You probably already understand that this limited-function calculator is not going to be of much help on the day of your test. Well, join the club of disappointed GRE test-takers. As you can see, this calculator can only perform five functions: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and finding square roots. ![]()
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