janaca

I wouldn't worry about a 4.5. From what I've heard, a low AWA score (i.e. below 4.0) might raise some flags with adcomms in literature/writing-heavy programs, but a high AWA score will do very little to help you out. Also, for what it's worth, I'm just finishing my MFA in creative writing, always get mad high verbal scores, but still can't get into the 5-6 AWA range, don't get that portion of the test, don't care, give up, can't figure it out....

I am applying to PhD programs in Literature and Gender Studies, and I am wondering which of my GRE scores to report to schools. I took the test twice. The first time, I got 169V, 158Q, and a 4.0 AWA. The second time, my scores were 168V, 162Q, and I'm still waiting on the AWA but I figure it's got be higher this time. My essays were a lot better this time. So, I'm wondering, should I just report my second scores, since they were higher, or should I report both scores, since my verbal was slightly higher the first time? I've heard that some literature programs only care about the verbal anyway? Thanks for any thoughts!

Thanks for the responses. I certainly argued and reasoned well the first time I did the AWA. (You can't write well without arguing and reasoning well, and people who dismiss "talented" writers as non-analytical never cease to piss me off.) The only thing I can think is that my idea was probable too complex and my structure was probably too unusual, thought it was certainly well suited to the point I was making. I guess I'll take the test again, although I'm tempted to just submit my credentials, my writing samples and personal statement, and let the programs see for themselves what a waste of time this AWA crap is. But yeah ... going to resist that temptation!

So, I took the GRE over a month ago and was pleased with my verbal score (770), and pretty proud of my math score (700), even though I'm told humanities programs won't care about the math. However, I was shocked when I received my AWA score of 4.0, which put me in the 41st percentile. I'm a native English speaker. I majored in English and creative writing. I've won awards for my essays and had them published in various places, including my university's freshman writing textbook. I tutored for the freshman writing class at my university, and I've been an editor and writer in the two and a half years since I finished undergrad. I wrote practice essays before I took the test, and I thought I wrote solid, well structured essays. I paid for a re-score but again received a 4.0. Do I really have to take the bloody test again just to convince a history PhD programs that I am a good writer? Also, is there any research out there to back up this claim that the AWA section is a remotely accurate measure of analytical writing ability?