A tragedy

[fatcatking]

Hi all. I took the GRE for the first time this week. I saw that I had obtained a 167 in quant, even though I took care not to make silly mistakes and answered the “tough” questions correctly. (Or at least, what I thought)

I am planning to retake the GRE sometime this month. When I retake the GRE, can I omit all other sections and just try to get a better score on the quant section? How will a score of 0%ile in verbal and AWA be looked at by top programmes? Especially CMU and UCB - the two programmes on my target list that still give importance to the GRE score.

Any advice or opinion would be appreciated.

 

[kombuchalover]

Email and ask the programs, they know best.

 

[fatcatking]

Email and ask the programs, they know best.

Seems kinda unprofessional to ask them this on mail.

 

[kombuchalover]

Seems kinda unprofessional to ask them this on mail.

I’d argue it’s completely fine! You just have to say: “Hi admissions team, my name is @fatcatking . I am about to take the GRE and I was wondering, how much weight does the admissions committee place on the Verbal and Written GRE score? Does it carry the same weight as the Quantitative score? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, @fatcatking”

If they don’t consider the verbal score at all, they’ll tell you if you ask them this. You don’t need to tell them that youre considering getting a 130 on it.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

There are many ways you can ask the programs about this without emailing: during virtual information sessions, or DM them here.
We have representatives from many programs here.

Don't be afraid, they love questions like this from applicants.

 

[fatcatking]

I would also like your opinions. Is it worth retaking the test to get that 1-2 point improvement? (I am discounting the probability of getting a lower score, who knows?)

 

[MikeLawrence]

I don't think so.

I would also like your opinions. Is it worth retaking the test to get that 1-2 point improvement? (I am discounting the probability of getting a lower score, who knows?)

 

[Andy Nguyen]

If it makes you feel better, retake it. You can report the highest score on each section from these tests. GRE is a small part of your application so weight the pros and cons.

 

[kombuchalover]

I would also like your opinions. Is it worth retaking the test to get that 1-2 point improvement? (I am discounting the probability of getting a lower score, who knows?)

I agree with @MikeLawrence …. I’d also wager that CMU values GRE Verbal considering their average scores are so high. But it may also be the case that high GRE Quant scores tend to correlate with high GRE verbal scores. It would be neat to hear from the horses mouth.

 

[Itachi]

If it makes you feel better, retake it. You can report the highest score on each section from these tests. GRE is a small part of your application so weight the pros and cons.

Hello @Andy Nguyen, I know princeton takes the best scores section-wise. Would you know if others(CMU /MIT etc..) do the same?
I got 170Q, 151V in my first test and 166Q,166V in the second and really don't want to spend more time on GRE like OP.

Input from any others regarding other top programs is highly appreciated as well, thanks!

 

[Andy Nguyen]

All other programs allow best score in each section.

 

[Itachi]

All other programs allow best score in each section.

That's great to hear.
But I could only find this being specified in Princeton's application page.

Others(CMU for eg) just say we can self-report highest score(doesn't specify whether its overall or section-wise).

Would you mind sharing how you figured this for others? I'm sure many other applicants would find this very helpful as well. Thanks a lot in advance!

 

[Itachi]

Hello @Andy Nguyen - Following up incase you missed this msg.

Inputs from others in this regard are much appreciated as well!

 

[fatcatking]

Hello @Andy Nguyen - Following up incase you missed this msg.

Inputs from others in this regard are much appreciated as well!

I think your scores are well above average, and you are good to go as long as GRE goes.

 

[Itachi]

Thanks. But, which score should I report in the application? Not sure if I can just write down the best scores in each section.

Will probably check with the admissions team themselves.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Yes, best to confirm with each program admission team.
In this field, GRE Q is important but it's not an be all end all signal. They will look at your profile holistically and will not ding you for GRE Q 167 instead of 170. At the end of the day, you will end up in only one program and make sure it's the right one for you.