GRE General Test
ETS
AdmissionsEnglish
A graduate admissions test from ETS, used by many master's and PhD programmes and by some business and law schools. Since September 2023 it has taken under 2 hours.
Details
- Format
- About 1 hour 58 minutes across five sections: Analytical Writing (one 'Analyze an Issue' essay, 30 minutes, always first), two Verbal Reasoning sections (12 questions in 18 minutes, then 15 questions in 23 minutes) and two Quantitative Reasoning sections (12 questions in 21 minutes, then 15 questions in 26 minutes). Verbal and Quantitative are adaptive by section: the difficulty of the second section depends on how you did in the first.
- Scoring
- Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning are each scored 130–170 in 1-point steps; Analytical Writing is scored 0–6 in half-point steps. Official scores are usually ready 8–10 days after the test. Programmes set their own expectations; many publish average scores rather than strict cut-offs, and some no longer require the GRE.
- Results valid for
- Scores can be reported for 5 years after your test date.
- How you take it
- On computer, at a test centre or at home.
- Fee
- US$249 in most countries (fees effective 1 August 2026) and US$237.86 in China. Test takers in India should check the ETS India website. Rescheduling costs US$55 and each additional score report US$40.