{"id":637,"date":"2019-07-03T12:00:23","date_gmt":"2019-07-03T17:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.tntech.edu\/graduate\/?p=637"},"modified":"2019-07-03T10:41:06","modified_gmt":"2019-07-03T15:41:06","slug":"mat-vs-gre-which-should-you-take","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.tntech.edu\/graduate\/2019\/07\/03\/mat-vs-gre-which-should-you-take\/","title":{"rendered":"MAT vs. GRE: Which Should You Take?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The GRE and MAT are both exams taken by people who plan on attending grad school, but the GRE is significantly better known.\u00a0If you\u2019ve heard of the MAT, you may know that it\u2019s a shorter and cheaper grad school admissions test that includes only one type of question you need to study for.\u00a0Is the MAT your solution to a less stressful and cheaper test-taking experience?<\/strong>\u00a0Don\u2019t get too excited just yet \u2014 there\u2019s more to know about the MAT.<\/p>\n

In this guide, I\u2019ll give an overview of what the MAT is and what its questions are like then compare and contrast that information with the GRE. I\u2019ll then explain which exam is considered easier and walk you through the MAT vs. GRE decision so you can be certain you\u2019re making the best choice for grad school.<\/p>\n

What Is the MAT?<\/h2>\n

There are multiple exams with the acronym \u201cMAT\u201d so before we go any further, let\u2019s first be clear on which test we\u2019re talking about.\u00a0In this guide, \u201cMAT\u201d refers to the Miller Analogies Test.<\/strong>\u00a0The Miller Analogies Test is the exam most closely related to the GRE, and it\u2019s the exam likely being discussed in any article with a title like \u201cMAT vs. GRE\u201d or \u201cGRE or MAT.\u201d<\/p>\n

The MAT is a standardized test that measures your ability to solve analogies, and it\u2019s used mainly for graduate school admissions.\u00a0<\/strong>The MAT was created about 50 years ago as an IQ test to measure the test taker\u2019s analytical thinking skills. It\u2019s administered by Pearson Assessments.\u00a0In the following sections, we\u2019ll dive more in-depth into the format and content of the MAT, as well as the GRE.<\/p>\n

An Overview of the MAT<\/h2>\n

The MAT contains 120 questions and is 60 minutes long.\u00a0The MAT is designed to test higher-level thinking skills, analytical thinking, and general academic knowledge accumulated over years of schooling.\u00a0All of the questions on the MAT are partial analogies that you must complete.<\/strong>Below is a set of five sample questions so that you can get a sense of what to expect from this exam.<\/p>\n

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\"MAT
The correct answers are 1.b, 2.a, 3.d, 4.a, and 5.d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/dt>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n

There are no separate sections on the MAT, and you\u2019ll take the entire exam in one sitting, without breaks.\u00a0Twenty of the questions (you won\u2019t know which ones) are unscored questions used only for research, so you\u2019ll only be graded on 100 questions.\u00a0Like many other standardized tests, the MAT is computer-based, so you won\u2019t take it with pencil and paper.<\/p>\n

An Overview of the GRE<\/h2>\n

Like the MAT, people take the GRE as part of grad school admissions.\u00a0The GRE has three major sections: Analytical Writing, Quantitative Reasoning, and Verbal Reasoning.<\/strong><\/p>\n