The revised test has six sections. You will get a 10-minute break between the third and fourth sections and a 1-minute break between the others. The Analytical Writing section, also known as the Essay, is always first. The other five sections can be seen in any order and will include:
An unscored section will look just like a third Verbal or Math section. You will not be told which of the three sections doesn’t count. If you get a research section, it will be identified as such, and it will be the last section you get.
| Section # | Section Type | # Questions | Time | Scored? |
| 1 | Essay | 2 essays | 30 minutes each | Yes |
| 2 |
Verbal #1 Math #1 (order can vary) |
Approx. 20 | 30 minutes | Yes |
| 3 | Approx. 20 | 35 minutes | Yes | |
| 10-Minute Break | ||||
| 4 |
Verbal #2 Math #2 (order can vary) |
Approx. 20 | 30 minutes | Yes |
| 5 | Approx. 20 | 35 minutes | Yes | |
| ? | Unscored Section (Verbal or Math, order can vary) |
Approx. 20 | 30 or 35 minutes | No |
| Last | Research Section | Varies | Varies | No |
The small, four-function calculator with a square root button found on the GRE means that re-memorizing times tables or square roots is less important than it used to be. However, the calculator is not a cure-all; in many problems, the difficulty is in figuring out what numbers to put into the calculator in the first place. In some cases, using a calculator will actually be less helpful than doing the problem some other way. Take a look at an example:
If x is the remainder when (11)(7) is divided by 4 and y is the remainder when (14)(6) is divided by 13, what is the value of x + y?
This problem is designed so that the calculator won’t tell the whole story. Certainly, the calculator will tell you that 11 × 7 = 77. When you divide 77 by 4, however, the calculator yields an answer of 19.25. The remainder is not 0.25 (a remainder is always a whole number).
You might just go back to your pencil and paper, and find the largest multiple of 4 that is less than 77. Because 4 does go into 76, you can conclude that 4 would leave a remainder of 1 when dividing into 77. (Notice that you don’t even need to know how many times 4 goes into 76, just that it goes in. One way to mentally “jump” to 76 is to say that 4 goes into 40, so it goes into 80…that’s a bit too big, so subtract 4 to get 76.)
However, it is also possible to use the calculator to find a remainder. Divide 77 by 4 to get 19.25. Thus, 4 goes into 77 nineteen times, with a remainder left over. Now use your calculator to multiply 19 (JUST 19, not 19.25) by 4. You will get 76. The remainder is 77 − 76, which is 1. Therefore, x = 1. You could also multiply the leftover 0.25 times 4 (the divisor) to find the remainder of 1.
Use the same technique to find y. Multiply 14 by 6 to get 84. Divide 84 by 13 to get 6.46. Ignore everything after the decimal, and just multiply 6 by 13 to get 78. The remainder is therefore 84 − 78, which is 6. Therefore, y = 6.
You are looking for x + y, and 1 + 6 = 7, so the answer is 7.
You can see that blind faith in the calculator can be dangerous. Use it responsibly! And this leads us to …
The on-screen calculator will slow you down or lead to incorrect answers if you’re not careful! If you plan to use it on test day (which you should), you’ll want to practice first.
We have created an online practice calculator for you to use. To access this calculator, go to www.manhattanprep.com/gre and sign in to the student center using the instructions on the “How to Access Your Online Resources” page found at the front of this book.
Throughout this book, you will see the 
symbol. This symbol means “Use the calculator here!” As much as possible, have the online practice calculator up and running during your review of our math books. You’ll have the chance to use the on-screen calculator when you take our practice exams as well.
The GRE offers you the ability to move freely around the questions in a section. You can go forward and backward one-by-one and can even jump directly to any question from the “review list.” The review list provides a snapshot of which questions you have answered, which ones you have tagged for “mark and review,” and which ones are incomplete.
You should double-check the review list for completion if you finish the section early. Using the review list feature will take some practice as well, which is why we’ve built it into our online practice exams.
The majority of test-takers will be pressed for time. Some people won’t be able to go back to multiple problems at the end of the section. Generally, if you can’t get a question the first time, you won’t be able to get it the second time around either. With these points in mind, here’s what we recommend.
What you want to avoid is surfing—clicking forward and backward through the questions searching for "easy" ones. This will eat up valuable time. Of course, you’ll want to move through the tough ones quickly if you can’t get them, but try to avoid skipping around.
Following this guidance will take practice. Use our practice exams to fine-tune your approach.