Hey everyone!
Just a quick back brief, I originally took the OAR back in July 2020. Before the test, I briefly looked over the various google docs posted in this form. I had other obligations at the time that caused me to rush the test and my score reflected it. I scored a 44 on my first test putting me 10 points off from being competitive. Fast forward to December, I finished my degree and scheduled my second OAR test 4 weeks out. I took the test again this morning and I made a 60. 16 points higher in 4 weeks of studying! I want to share a few things that I found along the way in hopes that it will serve you well in your preparation.
I'm not going to mention all of the google doc drives mentioned in an earlier post to prevent redundancy. (Check them out they are a must!)
Also, if the things I mention below have already been mentioned I apologize.
1st:
With a limited amount of time, I wanted to get in front of as many problems as possible. I recommend watching videos at 1.5-2x speed and only slowing down on the parts that you struggle with. This saved me HOURS!!!!
2nd:
So much good information on YouTube. Channels to look into include but are not limited to: The Tested Tutor, NancyPi, The Organic Chemistry Tutor, Khan Academy, Professor Julius Sumner Miller (good real-world applications to help understand the physics portion), and Crash Course (good physics overview).
3rd:
I found this website helpful for the math portion of the OAR.
https://www.ets.org/s/gre/pdf/gre_math_review.pdf
4th:
Writing out ABCD 20 times on a sheet of paper for the Reading Comp. section was big. I marked out the wrong answers as I read through the answers. This saved me from rereading an answer that I already deemed incorrect, time saver!! I read the paragraph slow and summarized after each reading portion before answering. Read slow and answer fast was my MOTO on test day.
5th:
I went into test day having memorized key references that I thought would be helpful to have in front of me on test day. As soon as I got to the testing center, I wrote all of it down. I honestly only referenced from it once on the math part, but it served as a way to memorize key highlights.
These are the tools that helped me and I hope it serves you well. I must note that doing these things above will not ensure a 16-point jump or even a 5-point jump. No substitute for hard work.
Good luck! GB