GRE At-Home Check-In #ProTips (Speed Through The Check-In With These Tips)

This post was initially made in Reddit /r/GRE but was deleted because a highly insecure sociopathic Reddit user who moderates another Reddit forum reported our account to the GRE forum moderators of /r/GRE, and the moderators in their infinite wisdom not only banned our account but removed all the useful posts and comments we made. Reddit is not a good community. With moderators who actively delete stuff useful for users just so moderators don't feel upstaged. So we're posting this here for all. All the while /r/GRE Mods allow GreGmat advertisements constantly from paid shill posters. Why? GregMat is a moderator so we guess that is fine? Disgusting. And they think we are unethical.

Tips for At home GRE Check-In

If you are taking the GRE at home for the first time and you are not a meticulous person, then read this and follow it carefully to make sure your GRE at home goes well. If you are a thorough, meticulous person, you don’t need this; you are good to go. This is specifically to help people quickly clear the Wheebox proctors. Written based on deep expertise. Have other suggestions? Feel free to contact us; if it makes sense, we will update and add here. With the big shift from ProctorU proctoring to Wheebox, there have been several changes to the at-home check-in process for GRE. Here are some tips to speed you through the check-in:

1. The new GRE proctoring company, Wheebox, allows you to start the check-in 15 minutes before the time you are scheduled (this was not the case with ProctorU). ALWAYS start early.
2. Bookmark the check-in link, this is the link that starts with https://rpv4.wheebox.com/ (with this, you don't need to worry about signing into ETS.org after, you can start the check-in just with this link). Close all other tabs other than the check-in tab.
3. Clear your desk and just have your laptop (using a laptop is a lot better than using a desktop for simplicity). You can have your ID and whiteboard on the desk, but other than that, literally nothing else should be on the desk. No knick-knacks, cups, mugs, pictures, extra monitors, or turned-off computers. Obviously, you need a desk and a chair.
4. Remove anything hanging on the wall in your eye-line, left and right. Paintings, pictures, posters, certs, etc.
5. Take the test in a closed room, not in an open space like a living/dining room. Taking the test in an open space triggers the proctor. If you have no option but to take it in an open space like a living room, then make sure nobody else is in the house. If there are a lot of people, offer them money/gift cards/food to get them to leave. If you are taking the test in an open space, be sure to tell the proctor you are alone in the house. The door should be behind you.
6. Clear your closets of anything embarrassing. 85% of the time, the proctor will ask to see inside the closet or bathroom, so don't have anything embarrassing out. This is quick, so it's unlikely you'll be embarrassed for too long. Same with your emails and any unsaved open files/browser tabs—close/archive all that before the check-in.
7. Got a bad proctor who has it in for you? Close the browser and restart the check-in. As long as you are within 30 mins of your exam start time, you can restart check-in easily (this is why starting the check-in 15 mins early is smart).
8. Be respectful to the proctor. Address them by their name if you can easily pronounce it (or you can call them champ (lol) or "sir"/"ma'am" - they love "sir"/"ma'am").
9. [MOST IMPORTANT] Before test day, go to speedtest.net and run a full speed test from your computer, using the same internet and room you will take the GRE from (don't do the speed test on your phone). You should have at least 10 mbps upload and download speed with ping time less than 300 ms for a smooth GRE at home experience. Faster download and upload = better; 2 video streams from your computer are being uploaded to ETS servers, so it’s imperative to have fast, stable internet. Here’s a pro tip: run the ping command against a server like 8.8.8.8. On Windows: open Run, type in cmd.exe, then type ping 8.8.8.8 -n 100, hit enter, and let it run. On MacOS, open Terminal and type in ping 8.8.8.8 -c 100. Watch for the number of requests that timed out. More than 2% lost means problematic internet. If 100% of your ping requests timed out and you still have internet then that means you are on a firewalled network that blocks ICMP (you're probably using a corporate line/school line that's likely solid so use the speedtest.net as your guide in this case).
10. If you have long hair, tie it back. The proctor will likely ask you to untie it but then let you tie it back up.
11. Run update and install all updates on your Windows/MacOS computer 48 hours before the GRE, then repeat 24 hours before. This will save a lot of heartache. Don't know how? Ask ChatGPT.
12. No water bottle or cups, and no chewing gum or food (obviously). No reading the questions out loud.
13. Cover all TVs, large mirrors, and monitors in the room. Remove any large hanging whiteboards or projector screens. Cover any printers (printers trigger proctors hard). #ProTip: you can use a large black trash bag with duct tape or a large sheet.
14. Proctor not showing up? This is SUPER rare but can happen. Just close your browser tab, click on the check-in link again, and restart the check-in process. Don't wait more than 10 mins for a proctor to connect unless it's your second check-in attempt.
15. If you have a multi-monitor setup, unhook all but 1 monitor and put them away. Only 1 monitor is allowed during the GRE. If you have monitors mounted, cover them with trash bags or, ideally, remove them.
16. Clear anything under your desk near your legs. With Wheebox (unlike ProctorU before), the GRE proctors are quite touchy about cables. The only cables allowed are power, internet, keyboard, and mouse. With a laptop, that’d just be power and internet cables, which are allowed.
17. Have drawers on your desk? Sometimes thorough proctors will make you clear everything in your desk drawers. It’s wise to clear your drawers the night before the GRE. If there’s too much stuff use a box to clear them or just pull the draws out fully and put them under your bed.
18. Ensure there’s sufficient lighting. Use a webcam check site or your camera app to preview the view. Don't know how? Ask ChatGPT.
19. Keep room windows closed. Ensure blinds/curtains cover all windows. If you are in a high-rise and can’t close all windows, tell the proctor you’re high up if they bring it up.
20. When showing the room, stand out of the camera's view and show each wall from floor to ceiling. Plug in the power cable if using a laptop and you unplugged it. For a desktop, avoid unplugging your webcam or power cord during this process.
21. Practice using your phone's camera to show the proctor your computer screen. Wheebox may ask you to take pictures of the screen and show them to the webcam.
22. Ideally you should be using a computer no older than 24 months. You should have at least 8Gb of RAM (aka Memory) and an Intel i3 processor (or better). Want to find out how much RAM or what type of processor you have? Use ChatGPT.
23. No AirPods, headphones, tie clips, cufflinks, caps, beanies, or jewelry of any kind (except wedding rings—but ideally, no jewelry).
24. If you are the really obsessive type (the best type) and want to go the extra mile then don’t take the GRE at home using WiFi instead get a long ethernet cable and a usb-to-ethernet adapter (most laptops these days don't have ethernet ports, you can thank Steve Jobs for this) and plug the computer directly into your Modem/Router (where it says LAN 1 / LAN 2 / LAN 3. This will ensure your internet is a lot better than on WiFi. Also, have everyone using your internet stay off the internet during your GRE. If they’re streaming Netflix that is gonna adversely affect your GRE experience. Turn off any smart TV's and hide the cables or change the WiFi password if you really want to cover your bases. I've seen WiFi cut out at the worst time because somene used a microwave to heat something up.
25. Ensure nothing other than the computer is within arm’s reach to make the check-in easier, with whiteboard and ID as exceptions.
26. Take the GRE before admission season rush. Why? Right before admission deadline lots of people are taking the GRE this causes issues like check in wait times getting longer and analytical writing essay scoring taking more than 10-12 days. Oh and fewer proctoring slots at normal times available. So take the GRE early if you can.
27. Ensure your first name, last name, and date of birth match exactly what is on your ID. Check under Personal Information on ETS.org/myGRE.
28. Don’t use phone internet/hotspot or Starlink unless there is no choice, as these can have slow/high latency connections. And bad internet = bad GRE.
29. Plug in your power cord after the room scan. Ideally, keep it plugged in during the room scan if possible.
30. Save a screenshot and PDF report of your official GRE score for each attempt. This is helpful in case you later attempt the GRE and receive a lower score.
31. Don’t drink a lot of water right before the test, and avoid clicking “Next” too quickly on the last question of each section.
32. Uninstall Grammarly, TeamViewer, AnyDesk, RemotePC, Zoom, Skype, OBS Studio, SnagIT, any VPN, and similar apps that may be detected and terminate your exam.
33. There are no breaks allowed in the GRE. Snacks, chewing gum, vaping, and getting up to walk around are not allowed.

Big takeaway: Preparing your environment and internet will ensure your test experience is smooth. Starting early and testing your connection is critical.