Devastated by GRE Scores--HELP!

[greenlover45]

Hi all,

 

I'm going to go straight into my questions. Are my scores (V: 152, Q: 154) OK to apply for MA Psychology programs of top 1 to 30 schools (not all of them)? In other words, will I stand a chance? 

 

I put so much effort studying for GRE the past month; I spent about 10 hours a day 6 days per week, studying vocabs, math, and verbal. Whenever I took the practice tests, I scored mediocre on verbal (~157), but pretty good (~166) on math 154. Of course I had expected I'd get a verbal score higher than maybe 152, but CERTAINLY higher than 154 on math. I don't know what happened today, but there it is. That's my score. However, it's hard to accept that I did so much worse than I had expected. When my scores popped up on the screen, the person next to me stood up and probably saw my scores. I was so embarrassed, so I kind of leaned into the screen to cover the scores up...LOL. I WAS THAT EMBARRASSED.

 

So....I know they aren't that great.. I might retake the test too.. but I really don't want to. At this point, I hate the GRE. 

 

Please give you guys' opinions. Should I retake? Is it OK to send that score to the schools? Will I get accepted to any program? I want to hear some inputs.

 

THANKS!! :) :) 

[greenlover45]

I put so much effort studying for GRE the past month; I spent about 10 hours a day 6 days per week, studying vocabs, math, and verbal. Whenever I took the practice tests, I scored mediocre on verbal (~157), but pretty good (~166) on math 154. 

 

Typo on the last part. Please disregard that number at the end of the sentence. My mom's computer's keyboard needs to retire.

[iphi]

Well what does the rest of your application look like? Also, there's plenty of time for you to take the test over if you want!

[GeoDUDE!]

retake the test.

[lyrehc]

One of my professors as an undergrad gave me a piece of advice a long time ago that has always stuck with me.  

 

Q: What do they call someone who finishes a PhD at the lowest ranked state school in the country?  

A: Doctor.  

 

It is not too late to retake the GRE if you really want to be in a top program, but there are many outstanding programs that aren't in the top 30.  I'm in another field, but the program I chose is not in the top 30 but it has a very strong reputation in the field and well-respected faculty.  Plus, because my program is underrated the faculty is able to mentor students a lot more than more prestigious programs (last year we actually ended up with more funding available than we had students accept admission offers).  There are a lot of programs like mine which may have lower rankings nationally but which have excellent placement rates for their graduates.

 

Good luck!

[bsharpe269]

Retake the test. People get nervous or have bad days all the time. What you experienced is normal. Those scores are below the cutoffs to a lot of programs though so it would be well worth your time to retake.

[greenlover45]

Thanks guys! I really appreciate your thoughts!