GRE AW: Practical Tips for Writing Essay Response

There are no shortcuts to scoring well on the GRE Analytical Writing section. At the same time, there are clear and practical guidelines for writing a mature essay response that meets the expectations of the test makers and supports strong scores. Awareness of these guidelines can improve your performance with very little extra effort.

These guidelines include maintaining a clear structure and flow across the essay, using language that reflects the purpose of each paragraph, clearly signaling examples when following a reason plus example format, writing an essay of sufficient size, avoiding flashy vocabulary in favor of words that come naturally to you, and saving a few minutes for proofreading so the response reads polished and easy to follow for both the evaluation program and the human reader. The following short video, part of our GRE preparation course, explains these genuine guidelines in a clear manner. Absorb them carefully and apply them during your prep and GRE practice tests.

GRE Analytical Writing: General & Practical Tips

For a strong GRE Analytical Writing response, structure plays a central role. A clear and coherent structure supports both the human evaluator and the computer program that reviews the essay. Organize the response according to the approach already discussed so ideas flow logically and the argument remains easy to follow from start to finish.

Within this structure, use keywords that reflect the purpose of each sentence. Important keywords include for example, because, however, counterview, although, despite, alternately, furthermore, firstly, and secondly. In the middle paragraphs, follow the reason plus example format, and place each reason and its example in a separate paragraph. It also helps to keep a few generic examples ready that fit many topics, such as examples from history, corporate or business settings, or everyday life.

Essay size also matters. Scoring high becomes difficult with a short essay, so aim to write a meaty response that fully develops ideas. Save the last three minutes for careful proofreading, since typos and grammatical errors can undo hard work. Avoid using flashy vocabulary and stick to words that come naturally, and always follow the recommended time management plan to keep the writing focused and effective.

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