GRE Vs GMAT RC

The common thread between the GMAT verbal section and the GRE verbal section is reading comprehension (RC). In both the GRE and GMAT, the content of writing exhibits a similar level of complexity and is taken from a wide array of topics yet, there are some differences. Let’s explore those:

Question Types:

• GRE RC: On the GRE, you’ll encounter three types of RC questions:

Multiple Choice (Select One Answer Choice)

Multiple Choice (Select One or More Answer Choices)

Select-in-Passage

• GMAT RC: The GMAT primarily features traditional multiple-choice questions.

Adaptive Nature:

• GRE: The GRE is adaptive by section, meaning the difficulty level adjusts based on your performance within each section.
• GMAT: The GMAT is adaptive by question, adjusts the difficulty of each question based on your previous answer

Complexity:

• RC in GMAT: Though the Passages are picked from a wide array of topics the Question types will include more inference-based questions and fewer factual ones. The passage reading requires a very logical approach to understand and a similar treatment is required while answering the questions. The passages are not very long and are followed by 2 to 4 questions. The Critical reasoning (CR) type of short passages now make up half of the total Verbal Section hence if one does not have a good hand on this, it may seriously rock the score.
• RC in GRE. Drawn from a wide gamut of serious research-based writings, the type of passages are more or less similar in both exams. The passages in the GRE are of varying length mostly short and very few long passages. The questions are more fact-based and less inference-based. The wide array of question types makes the Biggest difference – as it requires one to fly back to the passage to identify the key area to pick the correct answer in the multiple choice with more than one correct answer type question. Also the question variant ‘Select-in-Passage’ requires a very strong fundamental understanding of the content of the passage. The GRE has a low number of CR-based passages and hence may not require that heavy practice.

In summary, while there are similarities, understanding these differences will help you tailor your approach to each test.

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