How much are GRE verbal scores taken into account?

[sp108]

Got a 158Q/154V. Performed under what I expected and want to know how much the GRE score is taken into consideration.  I was considering retaking but I have a lot of things going on and things would just be hectic for me.

[KenBesonders]

Depends. Many students going into international affairs or public policy that focus on more qualitative and critical thinking aspects will weight the verbal higher, generally speaking. If you however want to go into a data analysis/quant aspect the math might mean more.

Since most admissions are holistic it is hard to say, but to my understanding, verbal is generally looked at in my field, which is international security.

[Guest]

Ditto with the above.Then, at the same time I've seen some programs put more emphasis on the verbal score. It depends what you are going for (economics, policy, security, international affairs, etc). I know that it can be a pain to fit it in based on your schedule a well ...then you have to throw a lot of money out (200+ dollars, then more $ to send scores to the other scores). Been there, done that.

Edited August 2, 2015 by Guest

[chocolatecheesecake]

Got a 158Q/154V. Performed under what I expected and want to know how much the GRE score is taken into consideration.  I was considering retaking but I have a lot of things going on and things would just be hectic for me.

 

If you have a strong application overall, I don't think you need to re-take the GRE just for a higher score, especially on the verbal. For quantitative, they want to make sure you can handle the math. For verbal, they need to know you can write and have good reading comprehension. Thus, you can make up for less than perfect GRE scores with As in coursework in those areas (microeconomics, statistics, academic writing) and work experience (if you spent significant time doing grant writing, memo-writing, etc.). Look at the rest of your resume and application and see how strong you look overall before you commit to taking it again. 

[Kaneisha]

Hi sp108,

I generally advise my clients applying to top policy schools to aim for at least a 160 on both sections of the GRE, so I personally would advise you to retake the GRE one more time before giving up on it. That said, I know that test prep can be exhausting and time consuming. If you don't have enough time and/or energy to focus on both GRE prep and writing outstanding essays, focus on writing outstanding essays.

Best of luck!

Kaneisha