#8: Arrive early. Save fashionable lateness for your social life. Rushing around like a crazy person isn’t the best way to start your GRE day. If the testing center is in unfamiliar territory, you may even wish to scout it out a week or two before just to be sure you know your way. One less thing to worry about couldn’t hurt.

#7: Don’t sweat the small stuff. Okay, so what if it’s 9 billion degrees in the testing room and that obnoxious kid from high school is at the computer right next to you? If something potentially correctable is bothering you, by all means talk to a test site administrator, but if there’s nothing you can do about it, let it go. Don’t allow small annoyances to distract you from your mission.

#6: Gear up for a long haul. Some people arrive at the test center all revved up, bouncing off the walls—the big day is finally here! Slow down; you don’t want to overheat and peak too soon. You’ll get to the test site, endure the usual standardized testing bureaucratic technicalities, and then be shown to a computer. “Go time” isn’t until you’ve completed the testing tutorial and the first Analytical Writing essay prompt appears on the screen. Which brings us to our tips for the final and most important phase of the testing experience . . .