About Talha Omer, M.Eng., Cornell Grad

About Talha Omer, M.Eng., Cornell Grad

Welcome! I’m Talha Omer, founder of Brightlink Prep. I am an educator and a technologist with a degree in Engineering from Cornell University.

10 Best Books to Improve Reading Comprehension – SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT

Have you ever noticed that you fail to grasp any meaning out of it when you read a particular passage? How many times we sit down to read a passage and find ourselves reading and rereading a paragraph because none of it makes sense. I know it is an absurd occurrence because reading should equal comprehension, right? Although that is what most of us believe, however, reading something doesn’t ensure that you will understand the meaning behind it. Reading words as they appear and deriving meaning out of them are two separate things.

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5 Best ways to get organized & productive at college

College is an entirely new experience compared to the years of formal education leading up to it. You suddenly have complete freedom over your time, which can prove to be problematic initially. Cleaning your room can seem like a hellish prospect when you can easily watch a movie. Why write that paper today which is due in a week? Of course, we all know how that goes. One day turns into two, and then before you know it, the deadline is hanging over your head.

However, college does not have to be a reckless and lawless land. You can easily avoid these pitfalls by putting in some time and effort into better organizing yourself. Reading this article means you are concerned about how you can better organize yourself, and for that, I commend you. Let’s look at some of the changes you can make to achieve this goal.

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GMAT Course by Target TestPrep: A detailed review

GMAT is the go-to standardized test for business school aspirants. Each year thousands of prospective business school students take the test and study in their school of choice. As with any other test, it is paramount that you have a solid grasp of all the concepts tested on the exam. You can do this by studying from a prep book as most people do, or you can go on a step ahead and enroll in an online course.

Online courses offer greater personalization and tend to be the better choice for those struggling with their prep. You can learn at your own pace and use many of the provided tools to strengthen critical areas lacking in your preparation. However, not all online courses are made alike, and it is essential to choose one that will offer you the best help without cutting shortcuts.

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How to juggle job and college like a PRO

It is no doubt that attending college while working full time is an intimidating idea. Many students have to juggle their work with college because they don’t have any other choice. However, many people do it because they see the bigger picture. Whatever the case may be, no one can deny that juggling both work and college is exceptionally challenging.

The good news is that you can do both and still keep your sanity. Countless students work full time to pay tuition and support themselves without having to incur lifelong debt. So you may wonder how is it possible and why should someone put themselves in such a taxing position. Don’t worry, in this article I’ll show you the benefits of why you should study and work at the same time. Also I will discuss how you can do both without losing yourself in the process.

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Does GRE Score Matter for US Visa?

Each year thousands of international students apply for U.S. student visas, and the vast majority of them are denied. Unsuccessful applicants are quick to speculate about a myriad of different reasons why their application got rejected. Never ever is your visa application rejected because of your low GRE scores.

There are several legitimate reasons whereby your student visa can get denied, but your GRE score is not one of them. Graduate schools use your GRE score to determine if you make a good candidate for their school or not. Outside of that, your GRE score is irrelevant to the visa process. However, before you can apply for a U.S. student visa, you need to prove that you have been admitted to a grad school. If your low GRE score prevents you from getting into grad school, then the visa process won’t even start.

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How can ETS stop cheating on the GRE at Home?

I recently wrote an article proving how test-takers worldwide are cheating on their “GRE at Home” tests. It is quite disappointing how ETS’s home-based GRE service is so vulnerable to fraudulent activity. ETS first introduced the home-based test a year ago after the pandemic broke out, and there is no telling how many of the test results have been fraudulent so far.

It is equally alarming that there hasn’t been a more significant backlash by people regarding the rampant cheating, but that might be due to the lack of coverage on the issue. Anyway, it is no secret now that ETS’s “proctor U” software is obnoxiously easy to cheat. Since ETS plans on keeping the home-based test around for the foreseeable future, it is paramount that they fix the issues so that decent people who take the test legitimately don’t get affected.

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GRE at Home vs. GMAT Online Exam

MBA aspirants looking to take either GRE or GMAT during the pandemic can do so thanks to the “at-home” versions of the tests. Both ETS and GMAC began offering their home-based tests shortly after the pandemic broke out last year. Due to test center shutdowns, students couldn’t take the regular tests.

As far as format and content are concerned, both tests are identical to their test-center versions. However, GMAC has omitted the AWA section on GMAT online, whereas GRE has no such omissions. Skipping the AWA section from GMAT has made it 30 mins shorter as compared to the regular test. Other than this, GMAT online is identical to the standard test.

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Do’s and Don’t of GRE at Home Testing

The ongoing pandemic has caused GRE test centers worldwide to shut down. ETS introduced a home-based GRE test to cope with the shutdown and offer students a chance to take the test without leaving their home. However, as you can imagine, a home-based standardized test comes with its own set of problems due to the lack of in-person supervision.

Although the home-based test and the general test are identical in format and content, their delivery is vastly different. ETS has to deal with particular challenges to prevent cheating instances, and the recent cheating reports are hopefully going to make the proctors more vigilant.

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Stationary for GRE at home vs. test center

ETS began its “GRE General at Home” testing service early last year due to the pandemic. The home-based test is identical to the GRE in format and content. However, the rules for the kind of stationery you can use for note-taking differs from the usual GRE.
The home-based test is administered through “Proctor U” software, and because of security concerns, there are special guidelines in place to ensure that nothing related to the content of the test leaves the room.

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Cheating is rampant on GRE at Home

As I write this, test-takers across the world are rampantly cheating on their “GRE at Home” tests, achieving near-perfect scores, and nobody seems to be taking notice. It is happening all over the world as can be seen from this NDTV article as well as by this Indiaexpress article. The GRE test has always been revered as a safe and secure test that has emphasized preventing fraudulent activities at test centers worldwide. However, its home-based GRE service is deeply flawed that can be easily bypassed by using a mere $5 splitter HDMI cable. Yes, that’s all it takes.
This article will provide photo evidence of actual GRE questions sent to me by people from across the world. I will uncover the method that is used by fraudulent test-takers so that ETS could take appropriate measures and stop this.

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