ETS于2009年12月4日在美国研究生院委员会第49届年会上再次正式宣布GRE考试将于2011年8月进行历史上最大的一次改革，并且纽约时报教育版和美国著名教育网站都对此进行了相对权威的报导，可见ETS对于GRE考试改革的决心，并且这次改革大有“势在必行，绝不忽悠”的态势。由此可见，GRE改革是迟早之事，同时改革内容之重大无容置疑。那么现在我们从考试内容方面来讲解一下改革后的新GRE的特点及相关备考策略。
此次GRE考试内容方面的改革，指导思想是使考试结果能更好地反映并评估那些学生在美国大学研究生院学习并取得成功所必备的技能。ETS相信这些改进有助于更好地测试各个考生未来取得成功的潜力。新GRE考试的内容如下：
新GRE考试的内容
新的GRE考试总耗时约为3小时45分钟，外加考生中场休息时间，共有6个部分。最先考的是写作，其中包含两项计时写作任务(Issue和Argument);接下来就是两个语文部分和两个数学部分(其中一个部分不算分数);最后是研究考试部分。研究考试部分之前会有一个10分钟的休息，其余各个部分之间只有1分钟的间隔。现在我们逐一介绍：
A、写作：
写作部分将重点考察考生有针对性地对具体考题做出反应的能力，而非要求考生堆砌泛泛的文字。具体说来，这些重点关注的能力包括：
• 清楚有效地阐明复杂观点
• 用贴切的事理和事例支撑观点
• 考察/验证他人论点及其相关论证
• 支撑一个有针对性的连贯的讨论
• 控制标准书面英语的各个要素
对策：
整体来看的话新GRE考试的写作部分改动不大，但仍要注意如下问题：
1、新GRE考试大规模更新了题库，降低了考生依赖事前准备(如背诵)的可能性。
2、新GRE考试的issue答题时间由以前的45分钟变为了30分钟，要求考生的瞬间反应速度要更快，思维要更活跃，作文要更流畅迅速。
3、新GRE考试的作文原文会直接寄给学校，这样一方面增加了评卷的准确和客观性，一方面也给所有考生提供了一个机会，当然更是一个挑战。
B、语文
传统笔考的GRE我们比较熟悉，分为填空、类比、阅读和反义四个部分。而新GRE考试分为阅读、填空和同意填句(sentence equivalence)。
1、阅读(共10个题目左右)
(1)、篇幅缩短，数量增加。
(2)、文章体裁更加多样性，不只有阳春白雪，还会有市井俗文(academic or nonacademic);
(3)、题型多样化。在新GRE考试中阅读有三种题型：单选(5选1)、多选(3选多)、点句。
Sample questions：
Policymakers must confront the dilemma that fossil fuels continue to be an indispensable source of energy even though burning them produces atmospheric accumulations of carbon dioxide that increase the likelihood of potentially disastrous global climate change. Currently， technology that would capture carbon dioxide emitted by power plants and sequester it harmlessly underground or undersea instead of releasing it into the atmosphere might double the cost of generating electricity. But because sequestration does not affect the cost of electricity transmission and distribution， delivered prices will rise less， by no more than 50 percent. Research into better technologies for capturing carbon dioxide will undoubtedly lead to lowered costs。
Sample Multiple-choice Questions ― Select One Answer Choice
1. The passage implies which of the following about the current cost of generating electricity?
A. It is higher than it would be if better technologies for capturing carbon dioxide were available。
B. It is somewhat less than the cost of electricity transmission and distribution。
C. It constitutes at most half of the delivered price of electricity。
D. It is dwelt on by policymakers to the exclusion of other costs associated with electricity delivery。
E. It is not fully recovered by the prices charged directly to electricity consumers。
Answer： C
2. The passage suggests that extensive use of sequestration would， over time， have which of the following consequences?
A. The burning of fossil fuels would eventually cease to produce atmospheric accumulations of carbon dioxide。
B. The proportion of the delivered price of electricity due to generation would rise and then decline。
C. Power plants would consume progressively lower quantities of fossil fuels。
Answer： B
3. Select the sentence that explains why an outcome of sequestration that might have been expected would not occur。
Answer：
“But because sequestration does not affect the cost of electricity transmission and distribution， delivered prices will rise less， by no more than 50 percent.”
2、填空
(1)、每题总长度1-5句话。设有1-3个空格。
(2)、若2或3个空，每空对应三个选项，若一个空，对应5个选项。
(3)、独立选择，没有连带关系。
Sample questions：
Directions： For each blank select one entry from the corresponding column of choices. Fill all blanks in the way that best completes the text。
1. It is refreshing to read a book about our planet by an author who does not allow facts to be (1)__________ by politics： well aware of the political disputes about the effects of human activities on climate and biodiversity， this author does not permit them to (2)__________ his comprehensive description of what we know about our biosphere. He emphasizes the enormous gaps in our knowledge， the sparseness of our observations， and the (3)__________， calling attention to the many aspects of planetary evolution that must be better understood before we can accurately diagnose the condition of our planet。
选项列表1
Answer： overshadowed， obscure， and superficiality of our theories
2. The author‘s (1)__________ style renders a fascinating subject， the role played by luck in everyday life， extraordinarily (2)__________。
选项列表2
Answer： soporific and tedious
3. From the outset， the concept of freedom of the seas from the proprietary claims of nations was challenged by a contrary notion ― that of the _______ of the oceans for reasons of national security and profit。
选项列表3
Answer： appropriation
