Easier to get 165 in GRE Quant section or 710 in GMAT

Hi Alex,

To start, your question is a bit 'biased' because you're not comparing 'like' things (a score in the Quant section of the GRE vs. the OVERALL Score in the GMAT). Does the Master's Program that interests you care AT ALL about how you perform on the Verbal section of the GRE? If not, then you would likely find that taking the GRE would be the better option (assuming that your overall Quant skills are strong).

Before I can offer you any additional advice, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

1) How long have you studied? How many hours do you typically study each week?
2) What study materials have you used so far?
3) On what dates did you take EACH of your CATs/mocks and how did you score on EACH (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)? Have you taken any practice GREs yet?
4) What application deadlines are you facing?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Hi Alex,

To be honest, you likely are going to get a variety of answers to your question. To better determine which exam may be better for you, you should take a full-length practice GRE and full-length practice GMAT.

So, first familiarize yourself with the GMAT and GRE and then take an official practice GMAT and an official practice GRE.

Once you see how you perform on each of those exams, you should be able to better determine which test is right for you.

Also, you may find it helpful to read the following article:

GMAT or GRE, which one should you take?

Hi Rich

My university does not care about the results in the other sections in the GRE at all, so I would simply keep them empty and get a NS for the other sections. In case I do the GMAT, they care about the total score. So maybe it's also easier to prepare and perform in just one section compared to all sections in the GMAT.

1) I'm just starting now and wanted to decide for which exam to prepare (GMAT or GRE Quant) before I commit to studying. When I've decided I plan to study about 1h-2h each day, maybe around 10h on average each week, although I can increase it to 20h a week if necessary.
2) I have the pdf of: "OFFICIAL GRE QUANTITATIVE REASONING PRACTICE QUESTIONS" from ETS and "Educational Testing Service - ETS - The Official Guide to the GRE 3rd Edition-Educational Testing Service (2017)".
3) Did not do this yet, but will do it this week-end.
4) I want to apply between 01.10.20-31.01.21, although the deadline is 31.03.21.

Hi Scott

Thanks for your answer and the helpful article. What you suggested with trying out both test's is probably best, will do this and then decide based on that.

Best,
Sven

Hi!

Have you taken an official practice GMAT and an official practice GRE.

You will also get the answer once you give an official practice exam.

All the best!

Hi aboutlastminute,

Q165 on the GRE is ~86%, whereas 710 on the GMAT is ~90%. The comparison is not as straightforward as it seems though:

1. The pool of test takers is different, and the GRE may be "easier" than the GMAT in that sense.
2. A total of 710 on the GMAT does not need 90% in both sections. For example, both Q49 (74%) and V37 (82%) and Q50 (85%) V36 (80%) are likely to lead to a total of 710.

If I were you, I'd take the GRE. That way, there would be no need to worry about the verbal section.

Awesome. I'm happy to help.

Hi Alex,

If the Program that you're interested in really only cares about the Quant Score of the GRE (and none of the other sections matter AT ALL), then you would almost certainly find it easier to study for the GRE. That having been said, I suggest that you (re)confirm with the School that only the Quant sub-score matters - and if possible, get it in writing. From a practical standpoint, I am concerned with the idea that you could essentially 'bomb' the other sections of the GRE and still be fine - for example, if you were in a "tie" with another applicant who earned the same Quant score as you did but actually scored really well on all of the other sections, what would the School use to decide who to let in?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich